Douglas County commissioners reached a compromise Wednesday night on revisions to the Horizon 2020 long-range plan and preserving high-quality agricultural land.

After a discussion when commissioners seemed unable to reach a consensus, they opted for a 3-0 vote that supported an earlier recommendation from the Lawrence-Douglas County Planning Commission.

The changes mention the importance of preserving high-quality agricultural land, defined as nonirrigated soil determined to be class 1 or class 2 by the National Resources Conservation Service.

A separate paragraph also mentions the land near the Lawrence Municipal Airport as high quality. And it says agricultural industry businesses should be encouraged to locate in those areas.

The airport development land was the source of controversy in the last year when opponents to a proposed industrial development mentioned the prime agricultural soil there.

Commissioners Bob Johnson and Jere McElhaney advocated to strike specific language about the airport site, saying they were concerned about limiting potential sites for industrial development along transportation corridors.

But instead, they agreed to leave the language.

Commissioners opted not to go further on proposed language changes that would have been more specific in protecting certain agricultural land.

The approved changes will go back to the Lawrence City Commission to consider, after it sought direction from the county.

After that vote, Commissioner Charles Jones agreed to join the other two and support the new makeup of the Lawrence-Douglas County Metropolitan Planning Organization. Two weeks ago, he had expressed concern about the county’s representation on it.

Also at the meeting, commissioners for a second time in the last year denied a conditional-use permit for property owner Justin Johnson to use an airstrip he has built on his property at 2142 N. 300 Road.

Neighbors spoke both for and against the strip during the meeting, but commissioners said they had safety concerns, including after seeing conditions in a Federal Aviation Administration memo.