Council members pause vendor talks on "church ranch" and seek meeting with landowner; conservation easement urged

Unidentified Speaker 3, a council member, said multiple solar companies have approached people about building more solar on the "church ranch" and urged the council to meet directly with the landowner before engaging further with vendors. "We need to sit down with whoever represents the church and say, we need to work out the detailed file," Unidentified Speaker 3 said.

In the brief discussion, Unidentified Speaker 3 recommended putting solar-company outreach on hold until the council has met the landowner and understands the owner's intentions. "Until then, the solar company can just be put on hold," they said. The same speaker added a personal preference that a large portion of the property be placed under a conservation easement and that public walk-in access be allowed.

Unidentified Speaker 2 said they would try to set up a meeting with the landowner. Participants also raised questions about whether the owner might sell the property to a city and discussed using conservation or open-space tools to protect the area. One speaker referenced past public presentations by vendors that had drawn large audiences.

The meeting was opened at 09:16PM and later closed at 09:18PM after Unidentified Speaker 2 moved to adjourn. The transcript records affirmative responses from several speakers, including the names "Richard," "Michael," and "RLE," but it does not provide a full roll-call vote or a complete tally for every seat. The record does not show any formal agreement to negotiate or execute a conservation easement; the transcript shows only that members asked for a direct meeting with the landowner as a next step.

The council did not record any formal motions or votes on land-use policy, easements, or contracts during this session. The next procedural step documented in the transcript is that Unidentified Speaker 2 will attempt to arrange the meeting with the landowner.