Chris Fletcher and his wife Althea Dye have owned the family farm for just shy of thirty years.
On their northern Knox County (OH) property, which features rolling farmland, mature hardwood forest and a tributary of the Kokosing River, they grow crops, raise beef cattle, and keep chickens for eggs. They’ve also got several personable and friendly cats. They’re active community members involved in Lions Club International and Pheasants Forever, and Chris is an avid hunter.
It’s just the kind of place Owl Creek Conservancy is hoping to protect from development.
When Fletcher approached OCC Director Vicki Kauffman at the Bladensburg SERTOMA Gun Bash back in 2022, it became the start of Fletcher and Dye’s journey to conserving their land from future development. Kauffman, who was hired in the role of director earlier that year, guided them through the process and encouraged them to apply for the Ohio Department of Agriculture’s Farmland Preservation Program during the 2024 grant cycle.
Ohio’s Farmland Preservation Office assists property owners in protecting agricultural lands, providing education and resources on their website, including a toolkit and FAQ section. They also administer the Preservation Program, which provides between $6M and $6.5M annually for the purchase of agricultural easements through the Clean Ohio Local Agricultural Easement Purchase Program (LAEPP). Additionally, the office certifies land trusts and other entities to serve as local sponsors for the LAEPP, enabling them to direct the LAEPP grant application process for landowners, receive funds from the Ohio Department of Agriculture (ODA), and manage agricultural easements.
As one of Ohio’s certified local sponsors, Owl Creek Conservancy assists landowners like Fletcher and Dye in the application process and monitors conserved properties. Citing a desire to protect their land from division and development, they successfully completed the LAEPP process on two parcels totaling 160 acres and closed on December 20, 2024.
The Fletcher property is now a part of over 5,600 acres of land in four Central Ohio counties protected from development by Owl Creek Conservancy. Contact us at