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FINDINGS FOR CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT PA-2500200 NATURE CONSERVANCY/ELI FERRIER Williamson Act Principles of Compatibility Findings Pursuant to Development Title Section 9-702.060, in order to approve the Conditional Use Permit application for developments on parcels under a Williamson Act contract, the Planning Commission is required to make the following findings in the affirmative: 1. The use will not significantly compromise the long-term productive agricultural capability of the property, or of other contracted land. • The proposed avian viewing platform and associated parking area and bus turn around will not significantly compromise the long-term productive agricultural capability of the property. The proposed site is already an equipment staging area for the farm at the intersection between a dirt farm road and the main gravel road down the center of the island. Crops are not grown where the platform and parking will be. The improvements that we propose will result in an improved turn around for large vehicles and equipment in the proposed bus turnaround. During the peak of the farming season, migratory birds and birding visitors are historically not present,so the site retains its utility as a staging area. As a result, the proposed use will not significantly compromise the long-term agricultural capability of the property and other contracted land. 2. The use will not significantly displace or impair current or reasonably foreseeable agricultural operations on the parcel or on other contracted lands. • The proposed project will not significantly displace or impair current or reasonably foreseeable agricultural operations on the parcel. Instead, the proposed amenity will enhance the farming operation by adding a portable restroom facility to an area of the farm where there is not one currently. The avian viewing platform will provide a place of shade and respite for agriculture workers to rest and recuperate while on their breaks from field work. The focused use of the platform by farm visitors will enhance the farming operations' safety and exposure to the public by creating a space where the public can congregate away from the heavily trafficked farm roads, reducing the likelihood of negative interactions between the public and farm equipment. Currently, there is no such space and the public consistently parks in the right-of-way on the gravel Staten Island Road, creating a hazard to themselves and to farm workers and equipment who must actively avoid them on the narrow roadway. As a result, the proposed use and project area is not anticipated to displace or impar agricultural operations. 3. The use will not result in significant removal of contracted land from agricultural or open-space use. • The proposed Avian Viewing Platform will not result in significant removal of contracted land from agricultural or open-space use. The proposed site impacts less than a half an acre of arable land on a 9000-acre farm. The site is not currently in cultivation as it is utilized for equipment staging. The actual impact to arable land is much less than the site footprint because area includes roadway shoulders and staging areas and is not currently in cultivation. We do anticipate a small open buffer of 20 feet by 150 feet in the field bordering the platform's viewing edge. This project edge will remain open-space and see seeding which will provide a buffer for the birds of the flyway. Therefore,the use will not result in a significant removal of contracted land from agricultural or open-space area. PA-2500200— Findings 1