Land Use Programs

There are several Land Use Programs that property owners may wish to take advantage of. Each of these programs lowers the taxable market value used in determining payable taxes and each has its own set of qualifications and payback requirements.

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  1. Green Acres Program

    The Green Acres Program provides property tax relief to qualifying owners of Class 2a agricultural property in areas where the market value of land is being affected by development pressure, sales of recreational land, or other non-agricultural factors. 

    Visit the Minnesota Department of Revenue site under Green Acres for more information about the program requirements. 

    To apply, please complete the Green Acres Application and Green Acres Addendum Form and email them to RS-PropTax-Assessor@anokacountymn.gov.

  2. Rural Preserve Program

    The Rural Preserve Program provides property tax relief to qualifying owners of class 2b rural vacant land in areas where the market value of the land is being affected by development pressure, sales of seasonal and recreational land, or other outside factors. 

    Visit the Minnesota Department of Revenue site under Rural Preserve for more information about the program requirements. 

    To apply, please complete the Rural Preserve Application and email it to RS-PropTax-Assessor@anokacountymn.gov.

  3. Open Space Program

    This program provides property tax relief to qualifying owners of open space property in areas where development pressures can jeopardize the supply of private outdoor, recreational, open space, and park lands. Eligibility depends on the use and size of the property, who operates the property and who can use the property and its facilities. 

    More information regarding the program can be found in the Property Tax Administrator Manual published by the Minnesota Department of Revenue. 

    To Apply, please complete the Open Space Application and email it to RS-PropTax-Assessor@anokacountymn.gov.

  4. Metropolitan Agricultural Preserve Program

    Established in 1980, the Metropolitan Agricultural Preserves Act (“Ag Preserve”) was designed to encourage agricultural-use retention on land specifically located in close proximity to the Minneapolis/St. Paul metropolitan area. The structure of this law is similar to that of Green Acres (Minnesota Statutes, section 273.111) in that the land is valued based solely on the land’s agricultural use. However, land enrolled in Ag Preserve is protected from tax increases by limiting the annual tax capacity rate increases to 105 percent of the average statewide levy. The land is also protected from special assessments and eminent domain rights of local governments. Unlike land enrolled in Green Acres, land that is enrolled in Ag Preserve is not required to repay taxes or special assessments that have been deferred. Ag Preserve is generally considered more restrictive and as such is less popular than Green Acres. 

    More information regarding the program and how to enroll can be found in the Property Tax Administrator Manual published by the Minnesota Department of Revenue.