There are over 130 TDR programs in the country, with 15 programs currently operating in Washington State. Following are examples of these programs.

Montgomery County, MD

Located just north of Washington, D.C., Montgomery County operates one of the most successful TDR programs in the nation. Over the course of 25 years, this program has protected nearly 51,000 acres of farmland. The program has encouraged participation by offering economic incentives to both buyers and sellers of development rights. Landowners of sending sites can sell 5 development credits for each development right extinguished (a transfer ratio of 5:1), while developers in receiving areas gain enough additional density to make TDR purchase financially viable.

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Boulder County, CO

Boulder County is home to 94,000 people and is located about 15 miles northwest of Denver. About 6,500 acres of rural land have been protected from development since TDR was enacted in 1981. Boulder County’s program began as a tool to allow clustering of development in unincorporated areas, but was later expanded to include transfers of development rights between unincorporated areas and several cities, including the City of Boulder. Intergovernmental agreements authorizing these transactions reflect a high degree of regional cooperation and are paramount to the program’s success.

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Cambria Pines Project, CA

Cambria, a coastal community located in San Luis Obispo County, California, instituted a TDR program in 1985 for the purpose of preserving its small-town character, open space, and native Monterey Pine habitat. A local land trust, the San Luis Obispo Land Conservancy, has played an active role in the program – acting to buy, hold and sell development credits through the use of a revolving fund initiated with a grant from the California Coastal Commission. As of 2005, the land trust had successfully retired 250 lots from antiquated subdivisions in the area and purchased over 85,000 square feet of development credits. The re-sale of these credits has doubled the initial seed money, allowing the trust to be more flexible when opportunities arise to purchase additional credits. The program has preserved prime pine habitat in the Fern Canyon area and is helping to build a permanent greenbelt surrounding Cambria.

New Jersey Pinelands, NJ

In 1980, the New Jersey Pinelands Commission established one of the most ambitious regional TDR programs in the country, aiming to protect over a million acres of environmentally sensitive lands from development. The lands targeted for conservation include cedar swamps, oak and pine forests and cranberry farms, in an area that spans 7 counties and 56 municipalities and comprises over 20% of the state. Development credits can be bought and sold privately or through the publicly-sponsored Pinelands Development Credits Bank. The Bank has helped to foster an active market, with transactions averaging about 40 per year and resulting in the preservation of over 44,000 acres of land as of late 2005.

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King County, WA

King County Washington enacted a TDR program in 2001 to allow for density transfers from rural areas and resource lands to areas more suitable for development. Density can be transferred either to unincorporated areas within designated zones, provided the sites meet certain criteria, or into incorporated areas if there is an inter-governmental agreement between the city and county which allows such transfers. Intergovernmental agreements have been established with the cities of Seattle and Issaquah; density transfers have been used by 3 completed or approved projects in the City of Seattle. King County provides amenity funding as an incentive for receiving areas to accept density transfers, and operates a TDR bank to facilitate transactions. The program has resulted in protection of over 91,000 acres, including the vast Snoqualmie Tree Farm and the Girl Scout’s Camp River Ranch. To date, public funding has been used to protect most of these lands through purchase of development rights, but the county anticipates holding the development rights for future sale to developers in receiving areas.

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Snohomish County, WA

In an effort to stem the loss of valuable farmland, Snohomish County conducted several studies which led to adoption of a TDR ordinance in late 2004. This ordinance establishes the first phase of a TDR program, targeting 3,400 acres of agricultural land in the Stillaguamish River Valley for protection. The County and the City of Arlington have entered into an inter-governmental agreement which allows development rights to be transferred from unincorporated areas to sites within the city. Pending the designation of additional receiving areas, the County took action to purchase the development rights to a 71 acre farm near Arlington which was threatened by development; the County is holding these development rights for future sale to a developer once an implementation plan and receiving areas for the TDR program are established. Washington State recently allocated funds for two counties, including Snohomish County, to advance the implementation of TDR. Snohomish County plans to utilize this funding to develop additional receiving areas and intergovernmental agreements with cities within the County.

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Redmond, WA

Redmond initiated a TDR program in 1995 with the goal of preserving agricultural land and the rural character of the Sammamish Valley, and soon expanded the program to address critical areas within the city. Receiving sites in designated commercial and industrial zones are eligible for a variety of development bonuses, ranging from increased height or building area to reductions in required on-site open space or impervious surface limitations. As of 2003, 284 development credits have been transferred and approximately 350 acres of land including critical habitat areas have been preserved. 13 projects utilizing TDR’s have been approved.

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Issaquah, WA

In 2005, Issaquah enacted a TDR program to protect critical areas such as aquifer recharge areas, stream corridors and wetlands within the city. The program also authorizes transfers from land in the Issaquah Basin, outside city limits, based on an inter-local agreement between the city and King County which provides for “amenity funds” from the county to help pay for infrastructure and amenities in Issaquah. Priorities are established for sending sites, with those meeting the most public benefit criteria authorized for the initial round of transfers. Details of program implementation are still being developed and no transactions have yet been completed.

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Black Diamond, WA

Black Diamond enacted a TDR program in 2003, as part of a multi-faceted planning effort and agreement involving King County, the Plum Creek timber company, and other private landowners in the vicinity. As part of the agreement, King County expanded the Urban Growth Area for Black Diamond, and the City annexed 329 acres within the expanded UGA. The TDR program is being used in conjunction with other measures, including public funding for purchase of land and development rights and various public and private land transactions, to preserve thousands of acres of working forests near Black Diamond as well as open space, trails and stream corridors within the City. The Cascade Land Conservancy was actively involved in brokering the agreement, and is responsible for managing conservation easements on 1,600 acres of forest land on Ravensdale Ridge outside Black Diamond.