Washtenaw County, MI
Conservation Easements in Washtenaw County, Michigan: The Ann Arbor Greenbelt Program
A city-funded program reaching well beyond city limits: Ann Arbor's Greenbelt has spent more than two decades purchasing development rights on farmland and open space across eight surrounding townships. Here's what that means whether you're buying land that already carries a Greenbelt easement or considering selling development rights on your own.
This page covers what's specific to Washtenaw County. For the general explanation, see the national guide.
A 30-year, voter-approved millage funding land outside the city itself
In 2003, Ann Arbor voters approved a 30-year millage to fund two related goals: creating parkland within the city, and purchasing development rights (PDR) on select farmland and open space parcels surrounding it. That second piece is the Greenbelt program, and it's genuinely unusual in reaching well past the city's own boundary -- the program has acquired development rights on land in Pittsfield, Scio, Northfield, Salem, Webster, Superior, Lodi, and Ann Arbor Townships, all part of Washtenaw County. A purchase-of-development-rights transaction is a specific kind of permanent conservation easement: the landowner sells (not donates) the right to ever subdivide or develop the property, is paid for that right at a negotiated value, and keeps ownership and can continue farming or otherwise using the land -- but the land can never be built out beyond what the easement allows, for any future owner, including whoever the landowner eventually sells or passes the land to.
The scale: roughly 7,600 acres protected since 2004
By the program's own reporting, the Greenbelt has protected roughly 7,600 acres of farmland since the 30-year millage passed in 2004, including more than 50 working farms and over 28 miles of protected river, stream, and waterway frontage. Individual transactions give a sense of scale: the program purchased development rights to 286 acres of Webster Township farmland owned by Bill Nixon for $2.14 million, and members of the Webster United Church of Christ separately agreed to relinquish development rights on 94.4 acres behind their building for $613,000, permanently preserving it as open space. These are real, negotiated, publicly reported transactions -- not a hypothetical or aspirational program.
If you're buying land that already carries a Greenbelt easement
A Greenbelt-encumbered parcel is not off the market -- it can still be bought, sold, farmed, and lived on -- but the development-rights restriction runs with the land permanently, meaning you inherit it exactly as the current owner holds it, with no ability to negotiate it away. Before buying land in one of the eight participating townships (Pittsfield, Scio, Northfield, Salem, Webster, Superior, Lodi, or Ann Arbor Township), specifically ask whether the parcel already carries a Greenbelt conservation easement, and if so, request the full recorded easement document -- not just a summary -- since the specific permitted uses, any reserved building envelope, and any conditions on agricultural operations vary by individual agreement rather than following one standard template.
If you own land in one of the eight townships and are considering selling development rights
The City of Ann Arbor's Greenbelt program office is the direct starting point for a landowner in one of the eight participating townships interested in a PDR transaction -- it's a genuinely active, funded program with a real track record of completed deals, not just a policy on paper. Expect a negotiated appraisal-based payment for the development rights, a formal recorded easement permanently limiting future subdivision and development while typically preserving agricultural use, and a process that, based on the documented examples above, involves real money and real legal terms rather than a token transaction. As with any conservation easement, get independent legal and tax advice before committing, since the restriction is permanent and binds every future owner of the property, including your own heirs.
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- Ann Arbor's Greenbelt Program making strides on preserving open space — AnnArbor.com (accessed 2026-09)
- The Ann Arbor Greenbelt, Then and Now — Concentrate Media (accessed 2026-09)
- Partners — City of Ann Arbor (accessed 2026-09)
- Ann Arbor's Greenbelt Program | Ann Arbor District Library — Ann Arbor District Library (accessed 2026-09)
- Municipal Regulation and FAQs About Farmland Preservation in Washtenaw County — Washtenaw County, MI (accessed 2026-09)
Last reviewed 2026-09