By Don Pilotte / Berkshire Hathaway Home Services Montana Properties
Although they’re a common subject of conversation in southwest Montana, conservation easements are often misunderstood.
Essentially, a conservation easement is formed when a landowner voluntarily decides to gift or convey some rights associated with their property, most commonly the right to develop or subdivide. A private organization or a governmental agency agrees to enforce the restrictions included within the easement.
For example, an owner can decide to restrict development or commercial activity, refrain from subdividing or further subdividing a property, or discontinue or prohibit mining. Other terms written into an easement can specify that timber will not be harvested, or place restrictions on certain activities. Many people believe that a conservation easement automatically allows public access to the land, but public access is granted on a case-by-case basis and is often not part of a conservation easement.
A conservation easement should be considered a permanent encumbrance on the land. Sometimes the easement language might be changed a bit, but the overall impact of the easement is binding for all future landowners associated with the encumbered property.
The Crazy Mountains Alpine Ranch is a 4,526+/- acre ranch on the western side of the Crazy Mountains near Clyde Park, Montana. It is listed at $10,750,000 and has one section (574+/- acres) protected by a conservation easement.
If a landowner donates certain rights to an organization or agency, the donation often results in a diminished value for the subject property. This reduced value has to be verified, typically by a certified appraiser who appraises of the land’s value before and after the easement has been placed on the subject property.
These appraisals help the property owner determine the difference in the land’s value before and after the easement is in place. If the property is located in a high-demand area where there’s considerable growth, the diminished value can be quite high. Conversely, if the subject property is in a region of low growth and demand, the percentage of the reduced value can be quite low. For example, in an area of high growth and demand, a property with a conservation easement restricting all development might have a value that’s 80 percent of the property’s value without the easement. That 80 percent can then be applied toward a deduction for tax purposes. Land- owners who are not looking for a deduction for tax purposes might also sell the value of the conservation easement to a sponsoring group.
View of the Crazy Mountains
If the subject property is adjacent to or in an area of other conserved properties, sometimes organizations and agencies may actively court landowners to see if they’re interested in adding to the conserved properties in that specific area.
Sponsoring groups can be local, regional, national or even international in scope, size and interest. For example, The Nature Conservancy, Montana Land Reliance and Gallatin Valley Land Trust are all active in southwest Montana. Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks, Ducks Unlimited, Trout Unlimited, Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, and many other groups are also active in Montana.
View of the Crazy Mountains from the upper cabin. PHOTO BY DON PILOTTE
For more information on farms and ranches in Montana, contact Don Pilotte at Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Montana Properties in Big Sky at (406) 580-0155, or email don.pilotte@bhhsmt.com.
We all are familiar with using a limited palette, but do you use one? Do you know how to use a
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We all are familiar with using a limited palette, but do you use one? Do you know how to use a limited palette to create different color combinations? Are you tired of carrying around 15-20 different tubes when you paint plein air? Have you ever wanted to create a certain “mood” in a painting but failed? Do you create a lot of mud? Do you struggle to achieve color harmony? All these problems are addressed in John’s workbook in clear and concise language!
Based on the bestselling “Limited Palatte, Unlimited Color” workbook written by John Pototschnik, the workshop is run by Maggie Shane and Annie McCoy, accomplished landscape (acrylic) and plein air (oil) artists,exhibitors at the Big Sky Artists’ Studio & Gallery and members of the Big Sky Artists Collective.
Each student will receive a copy of “Limited Palette, Unlimited Color” to keep and take home to continue your limited palette journey. We will show you how to use the color wheel and mix your own clean mixtures to successfully create a mood for your paintings.
Each day, we will create a different limited palette color chart and paint a version of a simple landscape using John’s directives. You will then be able to go home and paint more schemes using the book for guidance.
Workshop is open to painters (oil or acrylic) of any level although students must have some basic knowledge of the medium he or she uses. Students will be provided the book ($92 value), color wheel, value scale and canvas papers to complete the daily exercises.