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Board approves Tower Alliance option delaying payments until 2031 for Cannonsville Road lease
Summary
Montcalm County commissioners authorized staff to convey option 2 to Ms. Franklin of Tower Alliance LLC for a 25-year extension of the Cannonsville Road lease, with payments beginning in 2031 at $9,600 per year and a $10,000 one-time signing payment; board approved option 2 by voice vote.
The Montcalm County Board of Commissioners on Feb. 10 authorized county staff to accept option 2 proposed by Ms. Franklin of Tower Alliance LLC for the Cannonsville Road lease agreement.
Under the approved option, annual payments would begin in 2031 at $9,600 with a 2% annual increase. Both option 1 and option 2 include a $10,000 one-time signing payment and grant a 25-year extension and a right of first refusal that applies to aggregators; option 1 would have started payments immediately at $5,400 a year with a 1.5% annual increase.
Controller/finance staff told commissioners the county had received no or minimal payments on the location for many years and that option 2 yields more long-term revenue. The board discussed cash-flow considerations and whether immediate payments were necessary; one commissioner said the county did not need the immediate cash and preferred the larger long-term return.
Commissioner Peterson moved to authorize the controller to convey the board's agreement to option 2 to Ms. Franklin and to have her attorney draft the formal agreement. The motion was supported and approved on a voice vote.
Board members asked for clarity about how the right of first refusal would operate for other aggregators; staff said they would seek legal clarification from the parties when drafting the agreement. No dollar figures beyond the base payments, the signing payment amount and the 25-year term were amended during the motion.
