Vanderbilt University Register: Alumna uses easement to protect family farm from encroaching suburbia

Photo by Neil Brake

Mary Ann Sugg and her brother John (not pictured), worked with the Land Trust for Tennessee to establish a conservation easement to preserve the family's Brentwood property. Mary Ann and John each graduated from Vanderbilt in 1951

by Jessica Howard

Vanderbilt alumni Mary Ann Sugg and her brother John made sure that flora and fauna -- not land developers -- will always have a presence on their 208-acre farm on the southern edge of Davidson County. In November 2001, they completed a nearly two-year process that placed a conservation easement on their family's farm, forever preserving the property.

When Sugg and her brother -- both 1951 Vanderbilt graduates -- inherited the Brentwood property in 1982, developers began calling with handsome offers. The Suggs weren't sure how they would utilize the scenic farm, but were reluctant to let it fall into the hands of developers.

Around the same time, Hulda Cheek Sharp, the wife of former Vanderbilt professor of fine arts, Walter Sharp, approached the Suggs about protecting their farm adjacent to her property. After Sharp's husband died, she donated her property to create what is now Cheekwood Owl's Hill Nature Center, a wildlife refuge in Brentwood.

"I just listened [to Sharp's proposal] and made no commitments. It kind of brewed in the back of our minds for a long time," Sugg said of the decision to create the conservation easement on their farm.

The Land Trust for Tennessee is the organization responsible for making sure the land placed in conservation easements stays protected and remains the way the landowner intended. Landowners who choose to work with The Land Trust for Tennessee voluntarily place restrictions on the future use and development of their existing property.

To Sugg, who resides in Franklin, the easement means "a little part of God's green earth will remain God's green earth."

Photo by Neil Brake
Creeks, foliage and wildlife on the Sugg's farm in Southern Davidson County are among the
beneficiaries of the easement, which limits how the property may be developed.

The Sugg's easement was tailored so that the majority of the property will remain untouched perpetually. They stipulated that only 32 acres may be developed with the limit of no more than six single-family residences. Under the easement, Sugg is allowed to sell or lease the property, as long as the stipulations under the contract are met. Currently, they lease a portion of the farm to a farmer who grazes horses on the land and another section to the neighboring Owl's Hill Nature Center.

"We're just country folks," she said. "We like to see a little bit of open space."

"Its such a wonderful, generous thing they'vedone, such a contribution to our community," said Jean Nelson, the president and executive director of The Land Trust for Tennessee and a 1975 graduate of the Vanderbilt Law School.

Giving to others is not unfamiliar to Sugg, who studied sociology at Vanderbilt. For the past 10 years, she's volunteered at the Child Development Center at the Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Her brother, a doctor for many years, graduated from the Medical School and now lives in New York.

The farm is situated in Beech Creek Valley in Brentwood near Westminster School and fronts the busy Hillsboro Road. The rocky land has a few streams that intersect its limestone outcroppings and is home to a variety of wildlife, including bobcats, deer, wild turkeys and coyotes.

"They care so much about the wildlife in our area," said Nelson.

According to Sugg, the farm's most treasured feature is the ancient trees sitting on its high ridge, running north to south on the property. Sugg estimates the trees are more than a century old and are mostly hardwoods such as poplars, chestnuts and oaks.

"Its like virgin timber almost," said Sugg. "You just don't see that every day. What can I say? It's just pretty."

The Sugg's paternal grandfather purchased the property in 1900. Their father, also a Vanderbilt graduate and community doctor, later inherited it and operated a successful dairy farm. In a time when milking cattle was not mechanized, Harpeth Brooks Dairy milked up to 100 cows each day during its peak. The family also had horses.

"That was a big part of my life," she said. "They were my favorite animals."

The two major benefits of a conservation easement are preserving the integrity of the land and the potential for tax benefits. Many donors may enjoy income tax and estate tax benefits, since the value of their property is lowered due to the elimination of the possibility for development.

Several members of the Vanderbilt community have taken an active role in The Land Trust for Tennessee, in capacities including board members, volunteers and land donors. Henry Denmark Bell, an esteemed retired local judge and 1951 graduate of the Law School, created a conservation easement for his 72-acre farm in December 2000. Bell's farm is also located in Beech Creek Valley. Thomas W. Beasley, a 1973 Law School graduate, preserved his six-generation Smith County family farm in July 2000.

Former Nashville Mayor Phil Bredesen began The Land Trust for Tennessee along with other conservation-minded community leaders in 1999. The non-profit charitable organization hopes to preserve the unique character of Tennessee's natural and historic landscapes for future generations. The organization has completed a total of 13 conservation easements in Middle Tennessee.

"I have been so pleased because so many people have commented on this [conservation easement]," said Sugg. "Everybody thinks so positive about it."