The Transfer of Development Rights (TDR) program established a non-profit TDR bank that will engage in transactions to protect priority greenspace parcels identified by the community. These green space priorities represent the values of farmland protection, watershed protection and cultural, historic and scenic vista protection expressed by the community. The TDR Program is enabled by Georgia Code and the Zoning Ordinances of the City of Chattahoochee Hills. The Conservancy is a middleman which purchases and sells TDR’s.
TDR’s are based on Conservation Easements which separate the right to develop on land from the land itself. A property owner typically has the right to develop, e.g., build houses, on his/her land in accordance with local zoning ordinances. A Conservation Easement is a legal document in which the property owner pledges not to develop a defined portion of the land. The Conservation Easement becomes part of the deed and sustains that pledge forever. The TDR enables the land owner to sell those rights to develop. A developer can purchase those TDR’s in order to have the right to increase the density of building on his/her land. The original land is referred to as a “Sending Area” and the land to be developed is referred to as a “Receiving Area.”
Through TDR’s, the Conservancy aims to protect land valued for its natural features to focus new development in selected areas where the development will not disrupt the rural character of the area. The Conservancy completed two transactions to purchase TDR’s as a pilot project to establish procedures. The downturn in real estate development has precluded demand for TDR’s since 2006. The Conservancy holds TDR’s covering 22 acres on two parcels.