Midway council approves form of Lundin conservation documents and authorizes mayor to sign pending settlement

The Midway City Council on Dec. 17 approved the form of purchase, escrow and conservation-easement documents for the Lundin property and authorized the mayor to sign the documents provided the Lundin family returns a signed settlement agreement and the county executes its concurrent funding documents.

Counsel and staff said the documents are close to final but that the Lundin family’s attorney recently indicated Ron and Terry Lundin may not accept earlier terms. Counsel (Corbin) said the core concepts are agreed and urged the council to allow staff to finalize four relatively minor edits so the documents would be ‘‘executable’’ once the Lundin settlement is signed. Corbin summarized the status: "conceptually everybody's pretty close on these documents," and said the city would hold water shares in escrow rather than accept full ownership.

Nora, representing the Lundin family, told the council she needs ‘‘executable documents’’ and a signed settlement to present to other family members; she asked counsel to send a written statement to the Lundin attorney confirming the documents are in the form the city will sign. Councilmembers discussed timing and county concurrence; staff said concurrent county approval and NRCS funding are required for the transaction to close. The council recorded a motion to approve the form and allow the mayor to sign if the settlement and county signatures are obtained, and vocalized assent.

Council and counsel described the intended security mechanics if NRCS funding does not materialize: the city would record a notice of interest and rely on water shares as security; the transcript records a $3,000,000 contribution figure discussed as the contemplated funding level for the transaction. Staff will complete edits, coordinate with county counsel and return final documents as needed for execution.