Cochise County approves annual $1,585.98 payment to retain grazing lease on Bella Vista Ranches

Cochise County Flood Control District supervisors on Feb. 11 approved a yearly $1,585.98 lease-permit payment to Arizona State Land to maintain a grazing lease connected with the county's acquisition of the Bella Vista Ranches property.

The payment was part of a demand and budget amendment the board approved 3-0 after staff explained the fee supports water recharge and preserves a long-standing grazing lease on adjacent state trust land.

The payment arises from an agreement tied to the county's acquisition of the Bella Vista Ranches parcel in 2016, which staff said was negotiated alongside The Nature Conservancy and used army-compatible funding to conserve land near Fort Huachuca. Floodplain administrator Joaquin Feliz told the board the contested demand is a lease-permit fee to Arizona State Land under a five-year arrangement and "we'll be paying it yearly in the amount... $1,585.98. So it's a yearly, a yearly payment." He said the work on the property supports groundwater recharge: "The main reason for this is to recharge water into the service the watershed."

A member of the public, Tricia Jourdette, asked whether the payment was a one-time fee or recurring and where the property is located. She asked, "Is it a 1 shot deal or is it quarterly, and what it's for?" Feliz and other staff answered that the property is at the southwest corner of Mohsen Road and Charleston and that the state trust land parcels adjacent to Bella Vista Ranches have been covered by an historic grazing lease for many years.

County staff summarized the conservation and grazing history during the discussion. A staff speaker described the state parcels as part of an "historic grazing lease on state trust land that has been part of the Bella Vista Ranch property for decades" and said the county does not recover the lease payment from grazing operations: "We make no money back on that. No. We don't charge..." Supervisors asked how the property relates to Fort Huachuca; staff said the county used Army Compatible Use Buffer (ACUB) funding to acquire conservation easements near the fort and that the Bella Vista property helps serve as a buffer for nearby military testing ranges.

Supervisor Crosby (District 1) said the board would schedule a working session to discuss the matter further: "We're gonna schedule this for a working session. I wanna talk about this, but for now, I'm okay." The board approved the demand and related operating transfers 3-0.

Votes at a glance

- Approval of meeting minutes (Dec. 10, 2024): Motion to approve carried 3-0. (Agenda item 1) - Approval of demands and budget amendments for operating transfers, including a lease-permit payment for Bella Vista Ranches: Motion carried 3-0. The demand includes a recurring annual payment of $1,585.98 to Arizona State Land under an ongoing grazing/lease arrangement. (Agenda item 2)

Background and next steps

Staff said the Bella Vista property and adjacent state trust land were conserved in part using Army Compatible Use Buffer funding and that the county maintains an active grazing operator on the property. Supervisors directed staff to schedule a working session for additional discussion; no additional policy actions were taken at this meeting beyond approving the demands and minutes.