- Author: Linda Peterson
Interested in farming or ranching on county owned land? Here's the scoop…
On March 10, 2015, UCCE and Sonoma County Ag Preservation and Open Space District presented the final 2 phases (farming and grazing properties) of “County Lands for Food Production Report” to the County Board of Supervisors, and it was approved unanimously.
Eighteen properties, owned by various county agencies (see below) were assessed. It's worth your time to read through this document to see what lands are out there and whether they may be suitable for you!
As outlined in the Assessment of County Land for Food Production Report, Phase 2, it's recommended that, when possible, future County land acquisitions have the necessary infrastructure and other attributes compatible with agricultural uses. These include considering the following features: water, fencing, access, power, minimal parcel size for agriculture, and biotic issues.”
Each property in the report lists the county department that owns the land, so if you want more information, you must contact them directly.
County Lands for Food Production Report
Contacts are:
- Sonoma County Regional Parks: Bert Whitaker, Park Manager; Bert.Whitaker@sonoma-county.org ; 565-2041
- Sonoma County Water Agency: Mike Thompson; Michael.Thompson@scwa.ca.gov; 526-5370
- Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation & Open Space District: Kathleen Marsh; Kathleen.Marsh@sonoma-county.org; 565-7360
- Sonoma County General Services: Ed Buonaccorsi - Ed.Buonaccorsi@sonoma-county.org; 565-2550
- Author: Karen Giovannini
County Lands for Food Production: submit a proposal to for a community garden on County Land.
At the request of County of Sonoma (County) Board of Supervisors the University of California Cooperative Extension, Department of Health Services, Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District, Regional Parks Department, Sonoma County Water Agency, Agricultural Commissioner, and General Services Department collaborated to assess the feasibility of making land owned by organizations governed by the County Board of Supervisors available for food production.
There are three (3) phases associated with this project:
- Phase 1, Community Gardening
- Phase 2, Small-scale farming operations
- Phase 3, Grazing
This Request for Proposal (“RFP”) is issued by the Sonoma County Regional Parks for Phase 1 of the project. We invite proposals from qualified organizations for the licensing of publicly owned lands for the development and management of community gardens.
See the Request for Proposal for complete information.
Important Dates
- April 10 - Interested parties must return the completed Acknowledgement of Receipt of the RFP to the Sonoma County Regional Parks.
- May 31 - Proposals must be received no later than 3pm by the Sonoma County Regional Parks.
- NOTE: Any changes to dates will be posted on Sonoma County Regional Parks as an addendum.