The Josephine County Board of Commissioners once again delayed the sale of the Pipe Fork property near Williams during its weekly business session yesterday.
The Board was scheduled to approve a purchase and sale agreement with The Conservation Fund and a contribution agreement with the Williams Community Forest Project valued at just over $2.3 million for the 320-acre forested property.
Commissioner Herman Baertschiger made a motion to table consideration of the agreements because the Board recently received some new information from the Bureau of Land Management and he wanted more time to review it. The motion passed unanimously.
County Legal Counsel Wally Hicks said the Board is facing a deadline to sign the sale agreement because funding won't be available after July 15th. He said the final contract must be signed by August 15th.
In the public comment period, the Board heard complaints from two Williams residents about the Pipe Fork sale delays that may jeopardize the transaction, which has been years in the making. Other public comments included a complaint against an unnamed Board member for his conduct at a recent meeting and promotion of the Independence Day Celebration at the Courthouse tomorrow.
The meeting opened with a presentation from the Illinois Valley Soil & Water Conservation District regarding its Agricultural Water Quality Monitoring Program. District Director John Bellview said the program started in 2021 after numerous marijuana busts in the Illinois Valley demonstrated the unlawful use of water and the degradation of water quality by illegal cannabis operations.
