VIENNA — The county commissioners June 18 approved a revised policy for utility right of way and road crossing procedures for buried lines, that had been previously rescinded after a meeting with Vesper Energy.

After disputes with Vesper Energy about its Vichy Solar project, the commissioners rescinded the policy, but they now recognize the need for clear standard for utility work.

“We can’t just have the Wild West,” said Patrick Kleffner, western district commissioner.

The policy requires companies wanting to do utility work along county roads to apply and abide by certain specifications. The new version features minor revisions from Rodney Southard, eastern district commissioner, to clarify the language. It also expands the $100 deposit from the water district to any applicant.

County Clerk Rhonda Rodgers said that before the policy existed, companies would email the county, and the work was allowed if damages were repaired and conditions were left the same.

After Ervin Cable Construction LLC requested to install underground fiber cables, the commissioners discussed the policy during the May 21 commission meeting.

Vesper Energy met with the commissioners on Dec. 22, 2025, about the project. Ernesto Segura, lawyer at Husch Blackwell, said that the commissioners’ role was to determine if the company met policy requirements, not whether they favored it.

But now former Eastern District Commissioner Doug Drewel argued that he was to represent the majority of his constituents who did not want the Vichy Solar project.

After discussion in closed session for legal actions, the commissioners rescinded the June 30, 2025, policy. All pending and noncompliant applications were declared “null and void.”

During the June 18, 2026, commission meeting, Rodgers said that the policy was reinstated Dec. 29, 2025, but after further review, she said at the June 25 meeting that a motion was made but not seconded. Therefore, the policy was not reinstated until June.

The commissioners discussed the topic with lawyer Cody Holt in closed session because they were concerned about litigation. But he declined to represent them because of a potential conflict of interest.

Because the revision was of a dead document, the commissioners voted June 29 to make the revised document effective to clear any legal ambiguity.

However, the commissioners believe that they should have a policy to make expectations clear. Vic Stratman, presiding commissioner, said that the policy makes sure both parties understand the requirement of the utility company to restore the road to its original conditions.

“We just kind of let Doug run with that kind of deal and probably shouldn’t have,” he said.

Stratman said that the only control they have is regulating how utility companies work along county roads. Therefore, if an applicant is fully compliant, the county can’t refuse the request, even if the commissioners don’t agree with the project.

But in a May 28 interview, Stratman said that the county would “drag our feet” on approving the right-of-way usage because that is the only control the county has.

“I can intend to discourage the solar project because most of the people in Maries County don’t want it,” he said.

To establish further control, the county would have to implement planning and zoning, requiring voter approval. But Stratman doesn’t think that the voters would approve that because of the “nightmares” of needing a city permit to fix a deck or pave a driveway on personal property.

However, while the commissioners must let Vesper Energy work, Stratman said June 29 that he doesn’t see a reason to make the process easier for them. He also said that he “probably got too free with talking” in May.

“Put myself in a corner. Done that before,” he said.

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CORRECTION: In this article, we said that the county commissioners spoke with Cody Holt in closed session, and we incorrectly labeled him as their lawyer. But they never entered an official attorney-client relationship. We apologize for this mistake.