As communities across Utah County grow, Santaquin is trying to make sure the city will be known more for its orchards and tart cherries than gleaming new subdivisions.

The city wants to encourage rural land use and reduce potential friction between agriculture and growth as more homes go up in Santaquin. The move is part of a concerted effort by Santaquin to preserve its agricultural character, as stipulated in the city's recently completed master plan.

"People move to Santaquin for a reason ... and that reason is that they like the atmosphere," said Mayor James DeGraffenried.

One of the main parts of the plan is to protect rural land uses as developers build more homes in Santaquin. Oftentimes, when homes are built near farms, issues such as pesticide spraying and nighttime activity become a point of contention between farmers and new residents, said city manager Stefan Chatwin. In some places, residents have sued in an attempt to force a halt to such activity.

A major component of the plan will likely be a provision requiring some kind of buffer zone between new residential developments and pre-existing farms. Another part could encourage developers to build ranch-style homes near the farms, which would be more accommodating to agriculture.

"As the area continues to grow and as more and more residential developments come into play, we just want to be responsible," Chatwin said.

In Mapleton, for example, the city recently rescinded the operating permit of a dairy at the request of nearby residents who complained about the smell and other activities. However, in that situation, the homes were there long before the dairy opened. In Santaquin, officials emphasize that the farmers were there first.

"The farmer was there long before they built those houses, so in Santaquin we're trying to be responsible and establish a plan and methods to ensure that there are some buffering areas between the farms and the houses that are being built," Chatwin said.

Santaquin's population jumped by about 2,000 people from 2000 to 2005. Based on the number of lots available for residential use in Santaquin, DeGraffenried said the city's population could be as high as 30,000 in 12 years.

Chatwin said the plan will aim not only to protect farming and other agriculture, but encourage rural land uses as well. In many places, land prices have gotten so high that farmers opt to sell their land to developers instead of keeping their orchards.

The state Legislature recently passed a nonbinding resolution proclaiming Santaquin as a Utah Farming Heritage District. That fell in line with the city's plan to encourage agritourism and other related businesses that would put more money in farmers' pockets.

"We'd like to find ways that would encourage them -- not force them, encourage them -- to stay in this area, to continue to farm," Chatwin said.

The city is also planning to change its zoning to accommodate farming. Santaquin has no zoning district for agriculture -- surprising for a city that prides itself on being the second largest producer of tart cherries in the United States -- and most of the area's farming is actually done outside the city's boundaries.

Residential, commercial and industrial are the three basic zoning districts in Santaquin, and farming doesn't fit into any of them. So the city is planning to create an agricultural district so farmers who want to request annexation can continue farming inside the city limits.

Chatwin and DeGraffenried said they are hoping the land use plan will help Santaquin buck the trend of growth at the expense of agriculture that has been prominent in much of its neighbors.

"This is a viable, important part of the economy still here. That's all going to go away very soon if we're not careful. The city of Orem used to be full of orchards," Chatwin said. "Those orchards and the families that ran those ... they moved down to this area at some point because of the growth in Orem."

Jeremy Duda can be reached at 344-2561 or jduda@heraldextra.com.

This story appeared in The Daily Herald on page C4.