It takes a village to save a farm. Two cities, a county, a land trust, a university, the state of California and the federal government have joined forces to preserve agricultural land.

The consortium this month announced a $2.2 million grant from the state Department of Conservation to preserve 300 acres of land between Davis and Dixon. The grant completes a $3.7 million funding package to acquire a permanent agricultural conservation easement on land surrounding the Kidwell Road interchange on Interstate 80 in northeastern Solano County.

Partner agencies include the cities of Davis and Dixon, Solano County, Solano Land Trust, UC Davis, California Department of Conserv-ation, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

"This is a legacy decision," said Davis Mayor Ruth Asmundson. "It is the first major step toward creation of a permanent agricultural and open space buffer between the cities of Davis and Dixon."

"It is important that we maintain the distinctive characters of our respective communities, and sharing a buffer allows us to still retain a connection," said Dixon Mayor Mary Ann Courville.

In 1999 Davis and Dixon adopted a joint resolution declaring the intent to establish an open-space agricultural and natural habitat buffer between the cities. The opportunity to realize this goal came a year later, when UC Davis began the process of updating its Long Range Development Plan, which guides development decisions on the campus. The campus acquired options to purchase several tracts of agricultural land, including property owned by John and Jean McConeghy on either side of Interstate 80 surrounding the Kidwell interchange.

With completion of the LRDP in November of 2003, the campus determined that it did not need the McConeghy property for university agricultural uses. The university then initiated discussions with the other agencies about the possibility of placing an agricultural preservation easement on the property.

"We consciously decided to grow in a compact manner near the core campus, but also identified strategic areas where we might be able to either acquire additional land for campus agricultural use, or partner on this type of project," said Chancellor Larry Vanderhoef. "We are delighted to facilitate the preservation of this land in partnership with our neighbors."

"The Kidwell Road interchange, so close to urban areas, is the last undeveloped interchange in Solano County, which creates substantial speculative development pressure," said Jim Ball, executive director of the Solano Land Trust, a non-profit dedicated to preserving agricultural and open space land in Solano County. "This project will limit speculation in this important corridor between Dixon and Davis."

Of the $3.7 million cost of the easement, the largest portion would come from a grant of $2.2 million from the California Department of Conservation. The U.S. Department of Agriculture has committed to a grant of $720,000; the city of Davis $500,000; the city of Dixon $150,000; and UC Davis $77,500.

The state and federal support comes from grant programs specifically intended to fund agricultural easements. Funding from the city of Davis comes from agricultural mitigation fees and proceeds of Measure O, a parcel tax approved by city voters in 2000 for the purpose of acquiring agricultural and open-space land within the city's planning area.

The city of Dixon's share will be funded by mitigation fees imposed on city development projects. UC Davis' contribution is in the form of option payments made since 2000.

The transaction is expected to be completed by the end of this year.