
	Triangle Land Conservancy 1101 Haynes Street Suite 205 Raleigh, NC 27604 919.833.3662

Landowner Case Study: Ken and Rosalyn Winter

Summary

Project: Winter Farm
Landowners: Ken and Rosalyn Winter
Transaction: Agricultural Conservation Easement
Acres: 91
County: Chatham
Conservation Values for TLC: Water quality protection, agricultural open space protection
Landowner Goals Met: Desire to protect and preserve land, animal and plant life

Background

"You won't be judged by what you have created but rather by what you have refused to destroy." Roughly quoted, this is an adage Dr. Ken Winter likes to repeat. Based on the habitat and history he and his wife, Rosalyn, have preserved on Winter Farm, they've got all their bases covered.

Ken Winter with his two llamas, Lewis (right) and Clark.

After eight years of looking, Dr. and Mrs. Winter bought their land from an owner who wanted to see the farm kept in working condition. The Winters were happy to oblige, and have put many years of love and labor into their slice of heaven in the slightly rolling terrain of Chatham County, approximately 91 acres of equal parts mature forest and green pasture.

Located in the Evans Creek stream corridor, the Winter Farm pasture feeds horses, mules and llamas, while the woodland and some pasture land are managed for wildlife habitat, supporting deer and quail. A four-acre, deep-water pond attracts many wetland birds and raptors, making the property a major bird habitat. Native American artifacts dating back 12,000 years have been found here. History is also preserved in the form of a 1936 farmhouse, and two log cabins dating to 1840, that the Winters have restored and refinished.

The Strategy

To preserve the land and the years of work they've put into it, the Winters granted an agricultural conservation easement to TLC in December of 2002. This type of easement is a voluntary deed restriction placed by the landowner on his or her property to protect valuable agricultural resources, including soils, water quality, wildlife habitat, historic sites and scenic views—a perfect fit for Winter Farm.

Ken Winter, a self-avowed "tree hugger," traces his love for the outdoors to attending a snake camp in Florida when he was growing up. Today he spends as much time as possible outside and around animals that, he says, "are perhaps the best teachers of patience."

He found TLC by Googling "conservation easement," and ended up working closely with TLC's Director of Conservation Strategies, Jeff Masten. Dr. Winter says, "Jeff did a wonderful job," and was a great person to work with.

The easement gives the Winters some measure of control over the land's future. As Rosalyn Winter puts it so well, "We can't control who owns the property after we're gone, but I know what it's going to look like." The Winters and their two sons agree that their stewardship of the farm is one of the best things they've ever done.

The Results

Thanks to the Winters' efforts, the farm is a lovely balance of practical utility and natural beauty, a pastoral oasis for all living things. Their unselfish stewardship will continue to help protect agricultural open space and water quality in the area. The Winters hope to acquire additional surrounding land and give it the same "TLC" as their original property.