Rick has been hired by Horse Farms Forever to study why the TDR program in Marion County, Florida has underperformed. In Phase I of this project, Rick prepared a Preliminary Findings Report that discussed how work on four program components might result in a more successful program. The study was presented and debated at a workshop held in Marion County in April 2023 and Horse Farms Forever has agreed to proceed to Phase II of the study. Following the workshop, Rick and John Piotti, President and Chief Executive Officer of the American Farmland Trust, made presentations at the Horse Farms Forever Speakers Series about the preservation of US farms and farming as reported in the following blog post by Busy Shires, Director of Conservation Strategies for Horse Farms Forever.
