ASHLAND, Ore. -- The Ashland City Council was unable to agree on a Mount Ashland Association request to take the first step in a ski area expansion timber sale this week, raising the possibility of a lawsuit.

Mount Ashland (File Photo)

The council deadlocked 3-3 on sending a letter to the U.S. Forest Service authorizing the association to be listed as the timber sale purchaser. Because the Tuesday vote was a tie, the motion died and the letter will not be sent.

Mayor John Morrison, who votes in case of a tie, was absent from the council meeting.

The association, which runs the Mount Ashland Ski & Snowboard Resort, had wanted its name listed as the purchaser for trees that will be cut to make way for the expansion.

Councilwoman Kate Jackson was joined by councilmen Russ Silbiger and David Chapman in voting to send the letter.

"If we delay a settlement sale, we will have breached the lease and will be in court," Jackson said. "This is a step we need to take legally to reduce our spending on lawyers and keep the discussions going."

The city has a lease with the nonprofit association to run the ski area. Last October, the City Council sent the Forest Service a letter stating it wants the federal agency to deal directly with the city on timber sale issues.

Kim Clark, the ski area's general manager, said this week that he cannot comment on whether the City Council's continued efforts to block the timber sale will cause the association to sue.

Councilman Eric Navickas, a longtime opponent of the Mount Ashland ski area, voted with councilwomen Cate Hartzell and Alice Hardesty opposing the letter. Navickas said the city needs protections in place before any trees are felled in its watershed.

Navickas said the city ultimately is financially liable in the event the ski area fails and must return the mountain to its natural state.

The ski area expansion has been halted by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in an appeal filed by the Rogue Group Sierra Club, which has actively opposed the ski area's expansion. The court could lift an injunction on July 11 or keep it in place as the appeal continues.