Log in

Disappearing farmlands: Creative preservation measures in Arizona

Posted 4/29/20

When Monte Nevitt’s family moved to Queen Creek in 1959, they bought some land and planted cotton.

But today, the town looks much different than it did back then.

Queen Creek was once …

You must be a member to read this story.

Join our family of readers for as little as $5 per month and support local, unbiased journalism.


Already have an account? Log in to continue.

Current print subscribers can create a free account by clicking here

Otherwise, follow the link below to join.

To Our Valued Readers –

Visitors to our website will be limited to five stories per month unless they opt to subscribe. The five stories do not include our exclusive content written by our journalists.

For $6.99, less than 20 cents a day, digital subscribers will receive unlimited access to YourValley.net, including exclusive content from our newsroom and access to our Daily Independent e-edition.

Our commitment to balanced, fair reporting and local coverage provides insight and perspective not found anywhere else.

Your financial commitment will help to preserve the kind of honest journalism produced by our reporters and editors. We trust you agree that independent journalism is an essential component of our democracy. Please click here to subscribe.

Sincerely,
Charlene Bisson, Publisher, Independent Newsmedia

Please log in to continue

Log in
I am anchor

Disappearing farmlands: Creative preservation measures in Arizona

Posted

When Monte Nevitt’s family moved to Queen Creek in 1959, they bought some land and planted cotton.

But today, the town looks much different than it did back then.

Queen Creek was once home to sprawling fields of corn, alfalfa, cattle, cotton and other crops, all owned by certain families.

When the children of those families grew up, they either continued the family business or pursued other careers.

Yet it wasn’t that simple. A growing population in Arizona caused development to surge in the valley, and Queen Creek’s plentiful fields made it a prime location.

Development has displaced or replaced much of the farmland occupying Queen Creek in the last 50 years. Today, farmers in Arizona have the say in whether their farmland will be preserved or sold.

Farming in Arizona

The warm weather in Arizona creates a harsh environment, more suited to crops like corn, alfalfa, citrus and cotton. These are the crops most Queen Creek farmers have always grown.

Much of the farmland in Queen Creek has been sold and developed into neighborhoods and businesses.

“Arizona [just] doesn’t have a culture for agriculture preservation,” Mark Schnepf, owner of Schnepf Farms, said.

Mr. Nevitt and Mr. Schnepf are just two of the few remaining original farmers in Queen Creek today. Instead of using laws to preserve farmland, these Arizona farmers have found creative ways to stay in the farming business.

Nevitt’s Farming and family history

When Monte and his siblings were growing up, their father told them to get away from the farm, and that easier money could be made elsewhere, Mr. Nevitt said.

“All three of us [sons]… still landed back in agriculture for some reason,” Mr. Nevitt said.

He started his own farm-consulting business, brokering for buying and selling farms and ranches. Along the way, he realized the owners of farms needed help managing the farms, and developed a part of his business to oversee farmland management.

Mr. Nevitt’s family sold their land in Queen Creek when Johnson Ranch started building housing close to the Nevitt’s farms in 1998.

But they bought farmland just south of Coolidge, which they still own to this day. All seven of the Nevitt children, including Monte, own the farm and continue to oversee its growth.

Schnepf Farms

The Schnepf family moved to Queen Creek in 1941 and turned the desert land they purchased into a farm over the years.

Mr. Schnepf carries on their legacy today.

But farming has become more and more scarce since the Schnepfs first came to Queen Creek.

“There’s not a movement anywhere in Arizona to help save farms. It is more left up to individuals,” Mr. Schnepf said. “Costs are higher here, labor costs are higher here and it’s difficult to earn a living just farming.”

In order to continue earning income and preserve his land, Mr. Schnepf has turned his family farm of 260 acres into one of the country’s “agritainment” businesses, merging agriculture and entertainment into one industry.

Schnepf Farms hosts approximately 100 weddings a year in addition to other events, gives educational tours, has a glamping campground, sells pies from their bakery, and offers a "u-pick" garden where customers can pick their own produce, Mr. Schnepf said.

Farmland preservation

Across the country, farmland preservation is a diverse issue, getting different responses in each state. But essentially, the reason behind farming is the same.

"In a 50-year time frame, the population of the world will continue to increase, and I think we’re going to be hard-pressed to feed the world," Mr. Nevitt said. "I think it’s important for us to do two things: to be involved in helping serve humanity [by farming and making produce], but more importantly, I think that now is the time when we have to learn how to farm very efficiently.”

Editor's note: Sarah Hunt wrote the story for a class at the Arizona State University Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication.