In a 10:1 vote, the Ann Arbor City Council has approved contributing over half of the $478,867 cost of preserving the 75 acre Lepkowski farm at 7084 Spencer Road.

MLive: Ann Arbor officials have change of heart about preserving family farm - Ryan Stanton, 2-20-2019

Before Northfield Township voted to contribute $2,000 and Washtenaw County agreed to contribute $10,000, Ann Arbor had been on the hook for approximately 55.3% of the $479K cost.   Less the - according to MLive - USDA grant of $213,750, plus the township and country contributions, Ann Arbor will now pony up $253,117, 52.8% of the total.

The base price of the conservation easement was $5,700/acre.

After this allocation, over 3/4 of a million dollars in U.S. Department of Agriculture funding remains available for conserving greenbelt land outside the Ann Arbor City Limits.

 

Some backstory:

MLive: This is it for us,’ farmer tells Ann Arbor officials in emotional plea - Ryan Stanton, 1-24-2019