The demand for ethanol is rising. Ethanol is a fuel made from corn. Corn is suddenly fetching higher prices.

Do you see something interesting in this trend?
I do.

What if we are on the verge of a reversal in development patterns? What if suburban subdivisions are leveled to make way for lucrative cornfields?

Granted, the scenario is a little far-fetched, but you have to admit that it would make for some unusual news stories:

Rural sprawl causes conflict
As central Ohio’s suburbs give way to cornfields, residents lament a vanishing way of life.

Larry Tyvek of Powell, Ohio shook his head as he stood outside his 5,000-square-foot house, the last one standing in a suddenly rural neighborhood.

“A generation of Tyveks worked this land,” he said sadly. “We mowed it, applied broadleaf-weed control, tended our flocks of golden retrievers. But now it’s all changing.”

One by one, his suburban neighbors have sold their McMansions to farmers seeking land to grow the corn that supplies the nation’s ethanol.

The agricultural sprawl has fundamentally altered the suburban environment, Tyvek said.

“It used to be we lived close to nature. We had deer nibbling on the shrubs, squirrels eating birdseed, geese nesting around the hot tub. Now that’s all gone. We destroyed the habitat that so much suburban wildlife depended on.”

The farmers who moved in aren’t tolerant of suburban lifestyles, either, he said.

“They complain about the noise from our leaf blowers.
They say our giant strollers take up too much room in grocery-store aisles. Well, I’m sorry, but that’s how it is in the suburbs.”

Suburban shrinkage plagues central Ohio
Columbus’ outer-ring suburbs lost 27 percent of their population last year as cornfields continued to gobble up prime residential land.

The Pickerington, Ohio area, once thickly populated with houses on cul-de-sacs, has seen a third of its land sold to ethanol interests in the past year.

The change has left school districts with depleted marching bands and cities with a declining quality of life.

“This was once strip malls and convenience stores as far as the eye could see,” said Councilman Bill Curbcut, standing amid a vast expanse of corn. “Now? It’s seven miles to the nearest Big Gulp. A man could die of dehydration.”

State to preserve subdivision
The former Oak Heather Meadow Glen Mews subdivision in Westerville, Ohio will become a historical park, the state of Ohio announced today.

The shift is part of a state effort to preserve suburban history from the pre-ethanol era.

Visitors to the park will be able to participate in activities such as sealing a driveway, hosing off lawn furniture and picking up a carryout dinner from Giant Eagle.

“Today’s kids are growing up without firsthand knowledge of lawn tractors, vinyl siding and Invisible Fences,” said Richard Winnebago, director of state parks. “We don’t want them to lose touch with their heritage.”

This farm news was published in the Aug. 29, 2007 issue of Farm World, serving Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan and Tennessee.