Commissioners approve lease extension option for American Tower site at county fairgrounds

The Sheridan County Board of Commissioners voted to approve option 1 — a lease extension — for payment options in exchange for a perpetual easement at American Tower site 4710808 at the county fairgrounds.

Kimber Solberg, Fairgrounds director, told commissioners the fair board forwarded the proposal for the commissioners’ decision because the county holds the contract. Deputy County Attorney Clint Beaver warned commissioners that accepting a one-time payout could convert the site into an effectively perpetual easement with reduced county control.

“...if you take the option of the payout, it is no longer a renewable 5 year contract. It is there forever,” Beaver said, adding that a one-time payout could leave the county and the fairgrounds “in a situation where you can never get that tower off again.”

Commissioners debated trade-offs. One commissioner said the $200,000 one-time payout would help the fairgrounds’ building plans but favored ongoing lease payments for future bargaining power. Another commissioner asked that the approved option 1 attempt to add 625 square feet of additional leased ground to increase future revenue; commissioners noted a $5,000 signing bonus in the proposal.

Commissioner Jennings moved to approve option 1 and authorized the chairman to sign documents; the motion was seconded and approved by voice vote.

Commissioners and the fairgrounds director discussed that adding 625 square feet would likely affect a small lawn area north of the current tower base but not parking or major fairground functions. The fair board had not expressed a firm preference, Solberg said, and presented the board’s role as a conduit for information to the county.

The commission’s decision preserves recurring lease reviews rather than converting the site to a one-time-purchase perpetual easement.