To begin, I would like to thank you for the opportunity to speak in front of the whole Board. I also wanted to say how refreshing it was to get a chance to speak with several of you this week. I apologize if we were stuck playing phone tag, and would welcome the chance to speak with you one-on-one. I am Kati Hagenbuch, my husband John is over there, as well as my in-laws, Albert & Eileen Hagenbuch. We also have a group of several neighbors and community members who have come to show their support, and we are grateful.
We are 3rd generation farmers in Waltham Township. We are living in John’s grandfather’s home where the farm was established nearly 80 years ago. John & I have three young children: Bella, 5 years; Mae, 3 years; and Nolan, 2 years. We also share the home farm with John’s parents, Albert & Eileen. The Hagenbuch family has been grain and livestock farmers for all of their 80-year history. John & I became involved in 2001 when our current hog-finishing barn was built.
Our hog operation is currently a farrow-to-finish operation. Meaning, we breed sows, deliver the piglets, and raise them to market weight all on our farm. We enjoy the farrow-to-finish operation, but need to expand in order to remain competitive in a growing market. As with most things, new construction is expensive. In an effort to lessen the financial burden, we have opted to begin contract finishing for Illini Swine out of Kingston, IL. This helps us defray the cost of the buildings by decreasing the input costs of raising hogs like feed and veterinary costs, while still allowing us to grow our established farm for the next generation of Hagenbuch farmers.
Throughout this entire process of gathering information about the buildings, selecting a site, submitting our request to the IL Dept. of Ag, and waiting for the 30 day notification period to end, John & I have been concerned about stewardship; being stewards of the land, as well as, stewards in our neighborhood. As farmers, we are obligated to protect the resources we have been given. As you know, the IL Dept. of Ag and IL EPA also have many standards that we are required to meet. John & I take it to heart to ensure that we are not only meeting, but exceeding all those standards in an effort to be good stewards of the land. Also, as we began the siting process, we took several things into account. First and foremost was the location of neighbors in the area. As you may be aware, one of the sites is at our home farm where we are the most immediate residents, in addition to John’s parents, and our first cousins. We also assessed road and traffic conditions, biosecurity issues, and prevailing wind directions. To assist us in this process, we have hired Frank & West, Inc., an engineering firm from Springfield. Frank & West, Inc. are well versed in the regulations and standards for livestock barns in the state of IL.
As stated above, being stewards in our community also something John & I feel strongly about. John & I have also spoken with the neighbors to discuss any questions or concerns that they may have in regards to the project. In addition, notices were sent to any neighbor, or landowner, who lives within a ½ mile radius of each building site. Also, public notice was put in the newspaper by the Dept. of Ag, regarding the 30-day window for a citizen to request a public hearing.
One of the many benefits of raising hogs is the nutrients in the manure. As we are currently doing, we plan on using the manure from the new buildings as organic fertilizer on our own farm. We will continue to apply the manure by injecting it into the ground 6-8 inches deep. This also decreases the odor by up to 75%. Manure will be managed per guidelines established in our Comprehensive Nutrient Management Plan, which will be filed with the State Dept. of Ag.
Per statistics from the LaSalle County Farm Bureau’s last profile from the Census of Agriculture, the number of farms in the county decreased 12%. We are here to make a positive change to that number. Because of the locations of the two farms, our taxes will go to four different school districts and two different townships. Since we are already an established family, we will not be adding more children to any of the area schools. We will use local trucking contracts to help us haul the manure, and hire locally when needed.
We urge you to vote against having a public hearing, on the basis that Public Notice has been made without objection. By voting in favor of the Public hearing, you could be pushing our project back up to 60 days, which would in turn result in the buildings not be completed by the end of this year, and ultimately result in the County not receiving any tax revenue from it.
As stated before, our family is engrained in the history of LaSalle County. We have been here for 80 years, and we plan to be here for at least 80 more. We are continuing the legacy of our family farm, so that our children will be able to raise their children here. We urge you to vote against having a public hearing, on the basis that Public Notice has been made without objection. Thank you.
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