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Iowa County approves temporary access easement to allow timber removal across county land
Summary
The Iowa County Board of Supervisors approved a resolution authorizing a temporary access easement to let a timber company move harvested timber across a portion of county-owned property; the easement is limited in scope and set to expire March 15, 2025.
The Iowa County Board of Supervisors voted to approve a temporary access easement to permit a timber company to move harvested timber across a portion of county-owned land.
The measure, introduced by county staff after discussions with the company and conservation staff, authorizes access limited to a narrowly defined area and excludes the county’s designated red-zone parcels. The agreement is set to expire March 15, 2025, according to materials presented at the meeting.
County staff described the request as necessary to allow the contractor to move logs from the harvest area to the public road. The county’s draft agreement requires the timber operator to repair any damage caused on the county property used for access. The board’s conservation representative said the county wanted the arrangement to go before both the supervisors and the conservation board before execution.
Board members asked staff to keep the original signed agreement on file because the work may extend into another season and might require the county to reconsider access timing to limit ground damage. The supervisors voted “aye” on the resolution; there were no recorded opposing votes on the audio record.
The easement applies only to the areas explicitly described in the agreement (referred to in the packet as the yellow area) and specifically prohibits access to the red-zone areas identified in the packet. The county staff said the company is an active corporation in good standing and provided an authorized corporate signature for the agreement.
The board’s action was procedural: it adopted the resolution authorizing the chair to sign the access agreement and instructed staff to retain the original document and monitor any need for reauthorization if work extends beyond the current term.
The county did not provide a detailed financial guarantee amount on the record; details about bond or insurance requirements were not specified in the meeting discussion.
