Viva Farms Purchases 56 acres in King County
RELEASE: VIVA FARMS PURCHASES 56-ACRES OF AGRICULTURAL LAND IN THE SAMMAMISH VALLEY
Contact:
Elma Burnham
Communications Manager, Viva Farms
communications@vivafarms.org ; 360-969-7191 x812
Woodinville, WA – July 15, 2026
On July 1, 2026, Viva Farms purchased 56 acres of agricultural land in Woodinville, WA. The farm business support nonprofit is expanding in-place, purchasing the 10 acres that Viva Farms has stewarded since 2018, in addition to the adjoining 46 acres. The King County Conservation Futures grant program funded the purchase.
“Purchasing farmland in King County is an exciting and crucial next step for the organization – and for the farmers we serve. We are committed to honoring the stewardship and care that has shaped this land, and to carrying that work into its next chapter. With the purchase complete, our focus turns now to making sure small farmers have the land, resources, and support they need to thrive here for years to come,” said Viva Farms’ Interim Executive Director, Rob Smith.
This season, there are 36 farms operating in Viva’s Farm Business Incubator, 18 farms at the Woodinville site and an additional 18 at Viva Farms Skagit County. Viva will also continue to provide access and support to several independent farms with a long history at the site. The nonprofit’s programming supports farmers at every step of growth, allowing beginning farmers to plan, pilot, establish and expand their farm businesses in a lower-risk environment over 10 years. In King County, Viva Farms has not yet been able to offer much room to scale, or even secure long-term land tenure for farmers due to being tenants themselves.
The purchase preserves this property for agricultural use, ensuring that the organization will be able to strengthen local and regional food systems while supporting the livelihoods of beginning and historically underserved farmers. “With this farm expansion, we will now be able to deliver our full model in King County, by developing an AgPark to support the scaling of viable, independent organic farm businesses,” Smith continued.
King County Conservation Futures is the primary source of funding for King County Government’s Land Conservation Initiative, which has a goal to preserve the County’s most important natural lands and urban green spaces. Viva Farms was awarded $3,200,000 of Conservation Futures grant funding between two awards, in 2023 and 2026.
“Viva Farms has been an invaluable partner in expanding opportunities for the next generation of farmers, and we’re thrilled to see them grow their presence in King County. Their expansion is an important step toward making farmland more accessible and helping more farmers build successful, lasting businesses,” shared Michael Lufkin, King County Local Food Economy Manager.
Viva Farms strives to contribute meaningfully to the Sammamish Valley agricultural community and recognizes that organizational success and the success of farmers would not be possible without community support. This exciting expansion was possible only with considerable help from the organization’s friends and neighbors. Plans are in the works to host the community at the King County farm in the Spring of 2027.
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Viva Farms is a nonprofit farm-business incubator and training program located in Western Washington. We empower aspiring and limited-resource farmers by providing bilingual training in holistic organic farming practices, as well as access to land, infrastructure, equipment, marketing, capital and community. Learn more at www.vivafarms.org or @vivafarms.
Preview of a 2024 Virtual Farm Walk of Viva Farms King County brought to you by WSU Food Systems, Tilth Alliance and Edge Perma.
For the full tour, visit the Virtual Farm Tour here.