Residents confront commissioners over lawsuit blocking citizen zoning petition

A packed public comment period at the Prairie County commissioners meeting turned into a denunciation of a county-initiated lawsuit that attendees say is blocking a citizen zoning petition. Residents told commissioners the petition met the required signatures and urged the board to let the courts decide the petition’s fate rather than press a county suit.

Dave Hudson, who spoke early in the meeting, read portions of outside legal correspondence and said the petitioners followed counsel from the petitioners’ attorney: "We did exactly what Mr. Overstreet said to do and he said it was our only option if we did not agree with the initiative." Hudson also read a judge’s note tsking the parties for "gameship" and urging effective communication.

One commenter said a motion was made to suspend the county’s suit and allow citizens to vote. "I made a motion to suspend that. Walk away from it. Let the court let. Let the citizens vote," said Rick Holden. Meeting participants questioned whether commissioners had properly authorized the county’s legal action during any closed session; several speakers requested FOIA records for communications about the issue and about Nextera, the wind project referenced repeatedly.

Petition proponents said the ballot wording had been adjusted to comply with recent legislative changes and that signatures (described in the meeting as "160 plus") were on file with the clerk. Speakers warned that if the county simply appointed a planning commission and substantially altered the petition’s regulations, the district the petition sought to create could be weakened or repealed without voter approval.

The meeting produced no final board action on the suit. Attendees pressed for transparency, including making the clerk’s letter and attorney correspondence public. The meeting adjourned without a recorded vote to drop the suit.