The committee voted to recommend that the county board initiate a text amendment to the county zoning ordinance to permit temporary meteorological (met) towers in agricultural districts. Members said temporary towers are commonly used by wind developers to gather multi‑season wind data and that the current zoning ordinance required a public hearing for those temporary towers, which committee members said is burdensome.

Staff recommended using a county board resolution to start the text-amendment process, then holding a brief public hearing and allowing the Zoning Board of Appeals to review the proposed language and design criteria. Committee members discussed typical tower heights, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) notification requirements for structures over 200 feet, setback and design criteria, and whether temporary towers might later be converted to permanent infrastructure if a wind farm is built.

The committee approved a motion to ask the county board to begin the ordinance amendment process, to allow temporary met towers as a permitted use with design standards to be developed by staff and reviewed in a public hearing. Staff said the final language would be prepared for publication and hearing and that the zoning office would coordinate timing and notice.