Commercial real estate shifts northwest with residential growth

14 | July 2010 Community Impact Newspaper • Northwest Houston Edition
Agriculture
of market value and production
value on the land, times 7 percent,
CONTINUED FROM | 1
for the previous five years it was
under special evaluation.
land values in the area skyrocket, For example, Underwood said
facing landowners with the deci- if he owned 100 acres and sold
sion to sell or continue farming. 50 to a developer, but kept cattle
“Sometimes people can’t afford on his half while the developer
to not sell off some of their land,” began building an apartment
Underwood said. “Land values complex, the developer was the
could range from $20,000 to one to take that land out of agri-
$40,000 per acre.”
culture and would have to pay the
Underwood said a lot of the rollback taxes.
time landowners split large prop- “Most people know about this
erties into smaller tracts of 15 to law and will negotiate a deal,” he
20 acres and sell them off little by said. “But there have been times
little.
where I’ve had to deal with up to
“Right now a large percent of a quarter of a million dollars in
the land in agriculture is owned rollback taxes.”
by investors,” Underwood said. Urbanizing agriculture
“Most are keeping the land as is Though the number of acres
until they are ready to develop used for agriculture is declining
it because taking the land out of rapidly, the county recognizes
agriculture can get expensive.” the land will continue to be used
When land is used for agricul- for production purposes. Because
tural purposes—cattle produc- of this, the county wants to edution,
timber, wildlife managecate local farmers on adapting to
ment, cropland and more—the the urbanization.
landowner pays taxes on the “Some of these smaller tracts
production value rather than the of land are being sold to people
market value. This production is tired of living in the city,” said
monitored by HCAD and is called Jeff Koch, Harris County Texas
a special evaluation appraisal. AgriLife extension agent for agri-
If that land is then taken out culture and natural recourses.
of agriculture, the legal owner at “They may want to move out into
the time must pay the difference the country and own a piece of
Coldwell Banker United, Realtors®
Houston’s Leader in
Closed transactions*
www.expectmoretoday.com
Cy-Fair Office
23800 NW Freeway #101
Cypress, TX 77429
Phone: 281.304.5900
Fax: 281.304.5999
* Houston Business Journal June, 25 2010
land; that is where we come in.”
The extension agency developed
an urban rancher program,
started in 2005, that offers support
and instructional information
to current landowners and
new-to-ranching participants.
During the 13-week class, participants
learn about land laws,
farm equipment safety, herd
health, fence building and more.
“People are able to get their
hands dirty and learn what it
takes to run a small ranch,” Koch
said. “We try to give them a good,
sound foundation on how to
make decisions for their properties.”
Rural vs. urban
As an area of land founded
upon agriculture by German
settlers in the 1800s, the landscape
continues to become more
urbanized.
Today, nearly 30 percent of the
land in Harris County is used for
agriculture, according to HCAD.
“Go out and ride on any back
road in the area,” Underwood
said. “The land is still here for
now. It is being produced and
used, and I think that surprises a
lot of people.”
Comment at more.impactnews.com/9036
Betsy Ellison Keeping the old west alive
Built about 65 years after Warren Ranch was established, this barn sits in the middle of the
ranch headquarters bearing its historic name.
Not only is Warren Ranch the largest working ranch in Harris County,
it is also the oldest, dating back to the 1860s.
With about 6,400 acres, historically it was known for rice farming.
Today the ranch is owned by members of the Warren family and the
Katy Prairie Conservancy, a not-for-profit organization working to
preserve land for farming and ranching in the Houston area.
Wesley Newman, manager at Warren Ranch and land manager
for KPC, said it is important to keep the ranch land away from
urbanization because it is very diverse in wildlife and agricultural
entities.
“Part of what makes this place so neat,” he said, “is you wouldn’t
think you are just 10 minutes from a major subdivision. You get out
here and for the most part it’s quiet. You are in the country, and it
should stay that way. We don’t
Mound Rd.
have to pave over everything.”
The ranch includes about 400
Warren
Lake
head of cattle, 275 acres of hay
and a 150-acre lake. Also, land is
leased for farming corn and the
various hunting seasons.
Jack Rd.
Read more about KPC
more.impactnews.com/5884 15025 Warren Ranch Road, Hockley
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