On July 12, 2023, Wes Shafer purchased his family’s farm in Knoxville from his parents, John and Janie Shafer, using the Frederick County Critical Farms Program. This farm has been a cornerstone of the Shafer family for generations, tracing back to the Civil War when John Shafer’s great-great-grandparents first acquired the land.
Critical Farms is a temporary preservation program that helps Frederick County farmers acquire farmland by providing them with the up-front capital (option funds) they may need for the purchase. Farmers in this program then must apply for a period of 5 years to sell a permanent easement to the Maryland Agricultural Land Preservation Foundation (MALPF) or another governmental land preservation program and once successful, repay the county option funds that were given to assist in purchasing the property.
After acquiring the home farm through the Critical Farms Program, Wes aimed to protect the farm for future generations. He successfully obtained an offer from MALPF to place a permanent easement on the property. On May 20, 2024, the preservation process was finalized. Potomac View Farm now becomes part of Frederick County’s largest contiguous block of preserved agricultural land, which spans over 10,000 acres.
With the support of both the Frederick County Critical Farms Program and the MALPF Program, Wes continued to expand Potomac View Farm by purchasing an adjacent farm. This expansion further strengthens the Shafer family’s commitment to farming and land preservation in Frederick County. With a rich history in Frederick County agriculture and the next generation of Potomac View Farm at the helm of the operation, the Shafer family was recently named the 2024 Frederick County Farm Family of the Year. Learn more about them here.