BusinessTN

Family farms and great pastoral vistas have always served as glimpses into Tennessee's rich history and agricultural pedigree. What most people may not realize, however, is that maintaining green space is also big business that impacts the state financially and politically. Transfer of development rights, voluntary conservation agreements and land trusts are buzz phrases that are taking root in our business lexicon as entities concerned with preservation of our natural assets fight to maintain Tennessee's pastoral legacy.

More and more, farmland and green space have become essential resources to the future of tourism in Tennessee. It's no secret that visitors to our state enjoy driving the back roads and seeing fields, pastures and farm animals. Agritourism promotes farms, orchards and vineyards as destinations for tourists, so it makes sense to preserve our natural resources.

As more farmers and land owners find themselves stretched financially, it can be tempting to sell off land and development rights to the highest bidder—often a corporation that plans to build homes or businesses.

Organizations such as The Land Trust for Tennessee and the Tennessee Overhill Association are working on alternatives for farmers and landowners who need to let go of their land. Recently, a prominent farm in McMinn County, the Mayfield Dairy Farm, donated 693 acres of land and forests to The Land Trust for Tennessee. Scottie Mayfield, president of the Mayfield Dairy business, considers it a win-win situation. "We retain ownership of the land," he says, "but The Land Trust will always make certain that control over the development of the land will be strictly monitored. What we've decided for these 693 acres now will hold true in the future."

The Mayfields, who began as homesteaders in McMinn County in 1820, have been involved with agritourism for fifteen years now with the Mayfield Visitor Center they operate on their farm. "Visitors can see us make milk jugs and fill bottles with milk, and they can view the ice cream packaging area," Mayfield says. "There's a video and tour, and we have a gift and ice cream shop. Close to 100,000 people tour our plant each year."

Now that nearly 700 acres of the Mayfield Farm has been donated to The Land Trust, Michael, Scottie's son, will continue to work the family farm and grow his agritourism business. "He's putting together an educational farm tour to show the folks where food—and not just milk—comes from," Mayfield says. Plans include setting the old milking parlor up to simulate the milking process, renovating barns, and putting a classroom in the loft of an old hay barn. The Mason Corn Maze, in business for eight years, will move to the farm and become the Mayfield-Mason Corn Maze.

The Tennessee Overhill Association (TOHA) promotes and preserves agricultural sites. The TOHA is a regional, cultural tourism program that encompasses McMinn, Monroe and Polk counties. "We focus on our assets—things that we can use to market the area to travelers, and about ten years ago we realized that was agritourism. We're anxious to do anything that we can at our level to help sustain family farms," says Linda Caldwell, TOHA's executive director. "The only way to keep farms and green space available in the future is for farmers and landowners to maintain the land and not have to sell it off to developers."

TOHA began producing and distributing an Agricultural Trail brochure a number of years ago, and the organization assumed that the target market was the individual traveler. "It wasn't long before group tour operators found our brochure and began contacting us. Now, we're on the coach motor tours that go through the southeastern counties," Caldwell says.

Along with land preservation, historic preservation is a growing concern in McMinn County, and the Southeast Development District has funded the production of brochures highlighting the area's rich history. "Tennessee is the only state in the United States that is designated as a national heritage area, as opposed to only parts of other states," says Joe Guy, assistant county mayor and McMinn County historian. "And McMinn County is a Civil War National Heritage Area."

The new brochure will draw attention to some of the treasures that McMinn County can offer to its visitors—attractions that have previously gone unheralded. "We have the oldest standing railroad depot in the state, the Niota Depot, which was built in 1853," Guy says. "We also have the Thomas Nixon Van Dyke House; the Hiawassee Railroad Bridge; many African-American churches that were founded before the Civil War; and the site of Wheeler's Raid, a Civil War skirmish."

There is also Free Hill in Athens, a free-black community founded before the Civil War. St. Mark's Church in downtown Athens, part of Free Hill, is still active in the mostly original building. "There were black-owned businesses that advertised in the newspapers here before the Civil War," Guy says.

Adding these sites to a tourism brochure will have a substantial impact because potential visitors will look to McMinn County as a destination area. "McMinn County and Athens are about more than farmland and Civil War battles," Guy says. "We're about the personalities, the railroads, the African-American stories and the fascinating political history."

Caldwell agrees. "Preserving our natural resources and historic treasures isn't just adding value to our community now but exponential value in the future." In the case of McMinn County's green spaces, the prevailing philosophy is: "Do not build it—and they will come."