Ballerina Farm’s annexation was unanimously approved at the Kamas City Council Aug. 27.
It’s a 14-acre parcel of land on the south side of state Route 248 west of Kamas.
Daniel and Hannah Neeleman, the family better known as Ballerina Farm on social media, hope to put a store and creamery there.
It could be the most visible example of “agricultural tourism” in the valley, where farms generate income with visitors, not just crops or livestock.
The Neelemans likely have plenty of potential customers after garnering an international audience of followers interested in their pastoral lifestyle. A check of the couple’s Instagram account on Friday by KPCW found they have 10 million followers.
The lone public comment, apart from the Neelemans' representative, came from Boyd Mitchell, who said additional property and sales tax revenue can benefit all of Kamas.
“I recommend you annex the property for us citizens, so that we may benefit from the growth that's going to happen around us,” Mitchell told the council Aug. 27.
The Neelemans’ farm on North Democrat Alley is not being annexed, just an undeveloped parcel on the main road into town where they want to sell their products.
To make that happen, the Kamas City Council approved a new zone, the ag tourism zone, Aug. 12. That puts ag tourism on the menu of options for anyone in town applying for a rezone.
According to the Utah Office of Tourism, agricultural commodity sales generate $2 billion annually while tourism generates $7 billion in the state. The office says agritourism diversifies both sectors and could make them more sustainable.
The office says farm revenues related to agritourism grew 35% nationwide between 2012 and 2017.
