Ground broken for $5 million farm innovation and education center north of Libertyville
The past and future of agriculture intersected Friday on the centennial Casey farm west of Milwaukee Avenue north of Libertyville.
About 75 guests, including several Casey family members, gathered in the shade of a giant oak tree between a house and barn built in 1864 for the ceremonial kickoff of what supporters describe as a visionary project.
The $5 million Farm Foundation Innovation and Education Center is billed as the Chicago area's first food and agriculture innovation hub. The idea is to nurture emerging leaders and host experience-based learning about food and agriculture for local, national and global programs.
"We at the Farm Foundation want to bring agriculture to life. This farm will help us do that," said Dan Basse, chairman.
The nonprofit founded 90 years ago connects stakeholders in the food and agriculture realm to accelerate practical solutions.
Innovators in the food and agriculture industries from across the country and the world will come to the Casey farm campus to learn, debate and collaborate, according to the Farm Foundation.
Current issues facing the industry include farmer health, leveraging new technologies, conservation and sustainability and developing and accessing markets, for example.
Climate change is another issue the industry must address, said U.S. Rep. Brad Schneider of Highland Park, one of several speakers.
"We will need to lead the way in innovation," he said. "That's one of the reasons this facility is so important."
The 4,000-square-foot innovation and education center will be located on 14 acres with an anticipated opening in summer 2024. The surrounding fields, woodlands, waterways and the historic buildings will be incorporated in the programming.
The research and development hub will be a landmark for Lake County, said John Wasik, vice-president of the Lake County Forest Preserve District and a county board member.
"It's about innovative new ways of farming, which I think we need," he said.
The Farm Foundation is based in an office building across from Oak Brook Center but the Casey farm site will be its new home.
"The view from my office is Neiman Marcus," said Shari Rogge-Fidler, a fifth-generation farmer who became president and CEO four years ago. "I was brought in to take Farm Foundation to the next level."
Rather than stay put or go virtual it was decided to seek another location. About 40 sites were vetted over the past three years. The Casey property "had a unique quality that spoke to all of us," Rogge-Fidler said.
Matriarch Helen Casey, the last family member on the property, left about 15 years ago. The northern 5 acres of the farm were sold to Libertyville Township and the southern 15 acres to the Lake County Forest Preserve District.
The remaining 14-acre core went to group that later merged with Openlands, a regional nonprofit conservation organization, that sold it to Farm Foundation in April 2022.
"We just felt it was so special we really wanted to find the right long-term owner," said CEO Jerry Adelmann. "For us, it was just the perfect marriage."
Openlands maintains a perpetual conservation easement on the property that restricts development significantly.