""I was not interested in destroying my farms," he told the TV station on Monday. "That was the bottom line. It really wasn't so much the economic end of it. I just didn't want to see these two farms destroyed.""
""We see from many farm families their desire to ensure that that farm remains a farm forever and that it contributes to the local community and that local quality of life," Jeff Swinehart, chief operating officer for Landcaster Farmland Trust, told Fox 43."
""It breaks my heart to think of what's going to take place here, because only the land that's preserved here is going to be here," Raudabaugh said. "The rest of every square inch is going to get built on. The American farm family is definitely in trouble.""
An 86-year-old farmer in Silver Spring Township, Pennsylvania, sold development rights to Lancaster Farmland Trust for just under $2 million to ensure 261 acres remain farmland. Developers had offered $60,000 per acre, totaling about $15.7 million, to build data centers. The sale guarantees the land will only be used for farming and protects wildlife habitat. The farmer prioritized preservation over economic gain, citing concerns about nearby data center construction and community quality of life. The account notes broader pressures on farm families as land prices rise amid high farming costs and low crop prices.
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