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Seward County planning board reopens hearing for wind project, delays decision to Feb. 9
Summary
The Seward County and City of Kismet Planning and Zoning Board held an executive session on legal preparation for conditional use CU 2025‑02, heard limited public comment from residents and the Liberal Chamber, and voted to continue the hearing and final decision to the Feb. 9, 2026 meeting while allowing additional five‑minute speakers who have not previously spoken.
The Seward County and City of Kismet Planning and Zoning Board on Monday continued its public hearing for conditional use application CU 2025‑02 (a proposed wind energy project), held an attorney‑client executive session under KSA 75‑43‑19(b)(2), and voted to delay a final decision until the board’s Feb. 9, 2026 meeting.
The board entered a 30‑minute executive session for attorney‑client consultation related to ongoing preparation for the public hearing and identified counsel and specific members to participate; the chair set the session to begin at 7:02 p.m. and return at 7:32 p.m. After returning to open session, the board voted to accept additional, time‑limited public input (five minutes per speaker) from people who had not previously spoken at an earlier meeting and required sign‑in at the podium.
“Kathy Fitzgerald, a Liberal resident, said the county needs to ‘look at the regulations that we have’ and warned that inadequate setbacks and rules could leave the county vulnerable if large projects arrive,” said Kathy Fitzgerald. “I just don’t want to see us get into a situation where we later are hurting our county because of the fact that maybe we didn’t do our due diligence upfront.”
Roselle Webb, CEO of the Liberal Chamber of Commerce, told the board that the project could bring jobs and additional tax revenue if it is governed by clear, appropriate rules. “It would be a very good economic development impact on our community and it could provide follow‑up jobs and more tax money for our county,” Webb said.
The project applicant, Jana Matthews, summarized the proposal’s preparation, saying the team has invested years and submitted an application in October. “We are fully in compliance with Seward County’s regulations,” Matthews said, adding that landowners have signed on and the project team has tried to address concerns raised in prior hearings.
Board members told attendees they were not in a position to make a final decision with the members present and moved to continue the hearing and decision to the Feb. 9, 2026 meeting so a full board could participate. The board also voted to table the election of officers to the next meeting and completed routine agenda business before adjourning.
The chair cited KSA 75‑43‑19(b)(2) when explaining the legal basis for the executive session and noted that no binding action would occur while the board consulted counsel. The board’s written records will reflect the additional public comments collected under the five‑minute rule and the hearing remains open for deliberation at the next scheduled meeting.
Next steps: the planning and zoning board will reconvene on Monday, Feb. 9, 2026, to continue deliberations and consider any additional public input and staff recommendations related to CU 2025‑02.
