Maybe fits, maybe doesn't. Didn't President Carter sign into law during the 70's, a fedarl law to protect farms? The thought being that farms were disappearing little by little, and there was a need (at least felt a need) to protect them from urban sprawl, so that farms would remain our US food source? I could be wrong, might be dreamin', might be loosing my mind. The reason that I ask, is that if that is so, perhaps they can't do (legally) such a thing. Perhaps the little farmer doesn't have the $$$ to fight cityhall, and that's how this stuff keeps happening. Three points at hand. One: I used to have a home in Romeoville, IL. Was all farm when moved and bought there. Urban sprawled out everywhere, farmers sold off to developers, took the money and ran. One farmer had the new water main go out past his property in the newly annexed easement to get out to the sprawl that went past him. The city told him "need to hook up", he told them that he's ag, "Go blow...". He didn't hookup. Two: City of Naperville, IL. boardered Rt 59 on it's east side, unincorporated Aurora boardered west. A farmer on the west had been approached by a mall developer several times to sell out, but he refused. Naperville's side of 59 were malls as far as the eyes could see. Naperville jumped (annexed) the west side of 59, "CONDEMNED" the farm, then sold it to the developer to build his malls (tax revenue). Three: City of Lisle, IL. did the same thing to a farm that had been held in a family for generations along Rt 34. The developer wanted it, the farm was a working farm, so the owners wouldn't sell, so Lisle "CONDEMNED" (annexed) it, then sold to the developer. My brother and I were talking about this yesterday. Thought was a law (farm protection act under Carter) to prevent this. Maybe farmers just can't afford to litigate against cityhall in a courtroom. I moved back to rural Bristol, IN. now. In Illinois, cityhall "CONDEMNS" property at the drop of a hat, for tax revenue. Is there a Federal Farm Protection Act signed into law under President Carter, or am I goofy? Or was it repealed?
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