Kane County Agriculture Committee met Aug. 17.
Here are the minutes provided by the committee:
1. Call To Order
Chairman Kenyon called the meeting to order at 10:00 AM.
PRESENT Board Member Michael Kenyon
Board Member Bill Roth
Board Member Leslie Juby
Board Member Bill Lenert
Board Member Jarett Sanchez
Board Member Rick Williams
ABSENT Ex-Officio County Board Chair Corinne M. Pierog
Ex-Officio County Board Vice Chair Vern Tepe
AWAY Board Member Deborah Allan
Also present: Bd. Members Bates*, Daugherty*, Kious*, Lewis, Molina* & Strathmann*; Dev. Planner Tansley; Dev. Dir. VanKerkhoff; Sp. ASA Shepro*; Exec. Dev. Planner Hill*; and ITD staff Peters.
2. Roll Call
3. Remote Attendance Requests
There were no requests for remote attendance.
4. Approval of Minutes: July 20, 2023
RESULT: APPROVED BY UNANIMOUS CONSENT
MOVER: Bill Lenert
5. Public Comment (Agenda Items)
None.
6. Partners
A. Northern Illinois Food Bank Updates (Corey Incandela, Advocacy Specialist)
Chairman Kenyon stated that the NIFB had collected 25k pounds of food to send to Maui.
7. Presentations/Announcements
A. Growing for Kane Project Updates (Matt Tansley, Planner)
Dev. Planner Tansley provided updates on the Urban Agriculture Innovative Production Grant, which is the USDA-funded program that provides training and technical resources to local farmers. He stated that recent efforts have been completed to obtain farmer feedback on what benefits they could utilize, such as sales and marketing training. There is a strong focus on technological outreach to further connect food production with communities. Discussion ensued. B. Grant Update (Janice Hill, Executive Planner)
Dev. Exec. Planner Hill provided a presentation on grant updates. She noted that the farm bill is taking longer than expected to be approved. She announced the passing of the Inflation Reduction Act as it relates to funding for local farms. (Allan* arrived - 10:21am) She detailed the application process to receive a portion of this national, multi-billion dollar funding opportunity. Kane County could receive up to $2.3M from this grant, in addition to a 20% match from other local funding opportunities. She spoke on its potential allocations, such as facilitating carbon-reducing and climate smart practices. She announced an upcoming presentation by the American Farmland Trust, which will be held on September 19, 2023 in Oak Brook. Additional information will be provided later in August 2023. Discussion ensued regarding the backyard chicken ordinance and solar development for local farmers.
8. New Business
None.
9. Reports Placed On File
RESULT: APPROVED BY VOICE VOTE
MOVER: Bill Lenert
SECONDER: Bill Roth
10. Executive Session (if needed)
None.
11. Public Comment (Non-Agenda Items)
None.
RESULT: APPROVED BY VOICE VOTE
MOVER: Bill Roth
SECONDER: Rick Williams
This meeting was adjourned at 10:43 AM.
https://www.countyofkane.org/MeetingMinutes/6687/23-8-17.pdf
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