Heather Knebel.

School is out and summertime is welcomed!

The Board of Supervisors had a productive and busy month. Laura Wilson has been hired as the new Zoning Administrator/Weed Commissioner. Laura has jumped right into the role and is doing a great job, ensuring the Tama County Zoning Ordinance is being followed. We’ve also hired an IT Director by the name of Mike Jackley. We are excited to get Mike up to speed and help us work through several new, as well as ongoing projects. We are accepting applications for Board of Adjustment and Zoning Commission members in June 2025, as some members’ terms will be completed effective June 30. This information will be posted on the Tama County website.

The Board of Supervisors designated May as Mental Health Awareness month. We need to work together as a County and communities to support mental health and ensure that we have enough resources in place in Tama County to support the needs of individuals.

The Zoning Commission updated the current Tama County Land Use Plan. The first paragraph states the following: We would discourage the use of prime agricultural land for anything other than agricultural production, generally this would be land with a corn suitability rating (CSR2) of more than 60. The Board of Supervisors adopted the amended plan that included a couple minor changes that now bring the plan up to date since it was initially adopted in 1986.

We are still working with the Economic Development Board on the next steps for Economic Development in Tama County. We all want a robust Economic Development Plan, but we also want to ensure it is set up in the best way to help grow Tama County. Currently the board consists of cities, mayors, and one Supervisor. In some neighboring counties such as Poweshiek, businesses that are on the board help provide ideas to bolster Economic Development. We will continue working over the summer with the board to formulate the best path forward for taxpayers as well as the County.

The Supervisors enacted a moratorium on “Community Solar.” We currently don’t have an ordinance in Tama County dealing with Community Solar, so this pause allows the Zoning Commission time to research and develop the language for an ordinance.

There was a temporary injunction hearing on May 27 at Tama County District Court. This lawsuit is Salt Creek Wind LLC vs. the Tama County Supervisors. The hearing went well and our lawyer, Mike Reck, did a great job in highlighting many discrepancies between the Conditional Use Permit request in 2020, and requirements in our Tama County ordinance. He also showed the current building permit request, issued in September 2024, also differing from the 2020 Conditional Use Permit request. Other numerous discrepancies Mr. Reck identified were: the utility substation has been moved to a new parcel that was never approved by the Board of Adjustment; several transmission lines and access roads have been moved to different locations; the turbine model that Salt Creek plans to use is different than what was identified and approved in 2020; the decommissioning bond is for just one year and wholly inadequate per our Tama County ordinance requirements. As Supervisors we were elected to ensure that our ordinances are lawfully enforced. There is currently a stay in place, but Salt Creek Wind LLC is not abiding by the law and continues to build anyway. The District Court judge said it would likely be June or July before a verdict is given on the Temporary Injunction. We will continue to do everything in our power to protect the citizens, land, and well-being of Tama County residents. The County has two lawsuits against them that were dismissed by the Plaintiffs in late May 2025. They included the following: Salt Creek Wind LLC vs. Tama County, Tama County Board of Adjustment, Tama County Zoning Administrator. As well as Bev Espenscheid vs. Tama County Board of Adjustment. There is a Board of Adjustment Appeal Hearing scheduled for June 17, at 6 p.m. in the Board of Supervisors room. This appeal is challenging the Extension granted to Salt Creek Wind LLC by the prior Zoning Administrator.

As usual, please reach out with any questions or concerns.

Supervisor Heather Knebel (R-Traer), the first elected female supervisor in Tama County history, represents District 3, including the townships of Spring Creek, Crystal, Perry, and parts of far northern Carlton (excluding Garwin) and Howard. She can be reached at 641-481-2532 or hknebel@tamacounty.org.