Working With Landowners

Conserving land usually involves three key elements: a piece of property worth saving, a landowner willing to protect it, and an organization that can help the landowner meet his objectives.

Landowners bring these first two elements. The Battlefields Foundation provides the third if the property is within one of the Valley’s Civil War battlefields.  The Foundation helps battlefield landowners find preservation solutions that fits their needs, whether they are interested in selling their land outright (fee simple acquisition), donating it and receiving tax benefits, or selling or donating the development rights to the land through a conservation easement.

Fee Simple Acquisition:  The most familiar preservation technique for most property owners is selling the land at fair market value to a conservation organization such as the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation.  The land’s value is determined by a qualified appraiser and the transaction is like any other that involves the sale of real property.  Land may also be donated, which may offer the property owner a variety of financial and tax benefits.

Sale or Donation of a Conservation Easement:  With an easement, a private owner has the opportunity to guarantee the permanent protection of an important historic landscape without giving up ownership, use, or enjoyment of the property.  While the property remains in private hands and on the tax rolls, its existence and sympathetic treatment are secured for the benefit of future generations.  If the easement is sold to a conservation organization, the easement value is the difference between the value of the property before it is placed under easement and the value of the property after it is placed under easement.  Easement values vary widely depending on the size, location, zoning, and other conditions of the property. If the easement is donated, the property owner can often take advantage of significant financial benefits associated with easement donation.