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The problem, Stephany Johnson said, is that Cumberland County hasn’t really defined ‘agritourism’ in the past. Johnson, who works as Cumberland’s planning director, said what is or isn’t allowed to receive approval as agritourism varied, depending on who was serving in her role. 

“Three planning directors ago, if any activity occurred on any farm or any land that had animals, it was automatically exempt as an agritourism activity,” Johnson said at the planning commission’s Monday, Sept. 16 meeting. “Four planning directors ago, there were stricter requirements, it had to be a bonafide farm, regulated by state code.” 

As for what the official definition is, the Virginia Code labels agritourism as “any activity carried out on a farm or ranch that allows members of the general public, for recreational, entertainment, or educational purposes, to view or enjoy rural activities, including farming, wineries, ranching, horseback riding, historical, cultural, harvest-your-own activities or natural activities and attractions.” It goes on to say an activity is agritourism regardless if the people involved paid or not. 

But while that’s what the Code says, it offers counties a bit of wiggle room, to interpret things in a more lenient way if they want. The problem comes when counties don’t actually have a written policy or guidelines, and try to tackle requests on a case by case basis. It can lead to both confusion and accusations of favoritism. 

“I’m trying to (prevent) that,” Johnson said. “I’m trying to make sure everybody is treated equally.” 

Agritourism defined 

And that means Cumberland County needs to develop some ways to define agritourism. To be clear, we’re talking about Cumberland’s planning department here, when it comes to who is putting this policy together. This isn’t something that will need to be voted on by county supervisors. It’s more of a working document for the department, something that can be given out to people in the future who ask what Cumberland’s guidelines are for agritourism. 

“We are in the process of drafting an agritourism policy,” Johnson said. “In order to ensure that everybody is treated fairly and equally across the board, the building official and myself, along with the county attorney, are drafting a policy.” 

That includes answering the question of what will be permitted, what would require a festival permit and in general help would-be applicants walk through the process. 

“We want to make sure no matter who is in this position, everybody is treated the same,” Johnson said.