Get AI Briefings, Transcripts & Alerts on Local & National Government Meetings — Forever.
Subcommittee backs memorandum of understanding with Nature Conservancy to study grassland restoration on Big Chino water ranch
Loading...
Summary
The subcommittee voted 3‑0 to recommend a nonbinding memorandum of understanding with The Nature Conservancy to assess grassland restoration and erosion control on lands in the Big Chino Subbasin, including the city’s Big Chino Water Ranch; staff said the MOU is intended to fund and complete an assessment and identify pilot projects.
The Prescott City Council Subcommittee on Water Issues recommended forwarding a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with The Nature Conservancy (TNC) to the full council for approval after a presentation and questions about scope, funding and legal terms.
Leslie Grazer, the city’s water resource project manager, introduced the MOU as a study‑phase agreement to support grassland restoration and erosion control in the Big Chino Subbasin. Kim Schonek, Arizona Water Program Director for The Nature Conservancy, and Selena Powell, TNC Verde River project manager, told the subcommittee TNC’s role would be to study potential sites on public and private lands, identify feasible techniques and help prioritize pilot projects.
TNC representatives said they have completed a Big Chino assessment funded by a private foundation and that restoration work could be implemented through grants and partnerships. Schonek said the broader Upper Verde Regional Conservation Partnership (RCPP) had about $22 million in identified federal and private funding for land protection work; she cautioned that availability can change with federal appropriations and program status. TNC estimated an initial site assessment for the city parcel at roughly $75,000 and cited a nearby Granite Creek implementation where TNC helped assemble about $350,000 in funding for on‑the‑ground work.
City staff said the MOU is nonbinding. Matthew Podracki, acting city attorney, reviewed the draft in the meeting and noted paragraph 11 declares the MOU nonbinding; he also called out a standard 30‑day termination for convenience in the agreement’s term language. Podracki recommended adding an explicit acknowledgment of Arizona’s public‑records requirements to clarify expectations around confidential information and records requests.
Council members sought clarity on what signing the MOU would obligate the city to provide. Staff and TNC said signing would authorize consultant access to the Big Chino Water Ranch to complete the assessment, but would not obligate the city to implement subsequent projects or to provide construction funding. TNC said implementation funding would be pursued through state and federal grants (including WIFA programs) and private philanthropy; staff added the assessment would prioritize projects so the city and TNC could seek competitive funding for construction phases.
The subcommittee voted 3‑0 to recommend the MOU for council consideration. Staff said it would incorporate suggested clarifications — including legal and public‑records language — as the item moves up the review chain, and that the MOU term currently spans March 3, 2025 through March 4, 2030 with a 30‑day termination clause.
