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i -3- The consultation with Golden Bear Ranch was regarding a 37 acre parcel. The owners wanted Love's Travel Center to place an easement on all 37 acres,not just the 5.06 acres required to satisfy the Agricultural Mitigation. The applicant states, that while the acquisition price per acre was lower than the County fee, the cost would exceed the County fee once administrative fees, monitoring fees, transaction fees, and legal expenses were factored into the price. Love's met with a realtor from Grupe Real Estate who was able to find two sites available that were not within the Sphere of Influence of any Cities; not located in the Primary Delta Zone; and that are zoned agricultural and suitable for an agricultural easement. The first was $25,000 per acre and there was no indication that they could acquire a 5.06 acre easement on a portion of the property. Inquiries regarding placing the agricultural easement on a second site went unanswered. The applicant states that neither of these sites meets the minimum criteria for the Central Valley Farmland Trust. The applicant then contacted Bill Martin with the Central Valley Farmland Trust who found a possible site, but indicated that it was too early to price the easement. The applicant states that Mr. Martin suggested the applicant purchase a larger parcel to meet the selection criteria and bank or sell the credits to others that may need agricultural easements. The applicant states that Love's does not have a larger parcel, and is not currently aware of a parcel that is available that meets the Central Valley Farmland Trust Guidelines for the Selection of Agricultural Conservation Easements. Additionally,the applicant has contacted the Farm Bureau regarding possible land for an agricultural easement. Since the adoption of the Agricultural Mitigation Ordinance there have been three applications for General Plan Amendments or Zoning Reclassification that are subject to the Agricultural Mitigation Ordinance. This is the first project to request the use of in- lieu fees to fulfill the Agricultural Mitigation requirement. If the Board approves the request to pay the in-lieu fee in place of providing an easement, $43,895.50 will be due. The fee will be used by the Qualifying Entity in fulfillment of its programmatic responsibilities which include acquiring interests in land and administering,monitoring and enforcing the farmland conservation easement or other instrument designed to preserve the agricultural values of the land for farmland mitigation purposes. The fee calculation is provided below. Agricultural Mitigation Fee per acre $8,675.00 Acres to be mitigated X 5.06 Total fee $43,895.50