Should we threaten the seller's broker somehow through their governing body?

As long as all of the transactions (however you arrange them) individually satisfy the statutory and regulatory requirements of IRC 1031 it can be done, no LLC required. 

As a landlord, you are liable for any failure to meet your obligations (regulatory or contractual).  

The "lingo" is different, what the investor may call wholesaling the Realtor may call it a net listing, so investors need to know the lingo used on both sides of the table.Investors as a group have no rules or regulations or ethical requirements (besides acting lawfully) but Realtors are restricted by ethical codes, rules of a broker and regulatory matters at the state level.

I would try to buy some more ground from this guy or help him improve the access enough so that every body can use it IN TRADE for some more acreage (bigger barrel) and then I would get behind this guy and help him get the commercial zoning. 

There's a whole body of law around residential leases, and you lease terms can't override that.

I doubt there are any current books or much info on the topic that includes the new regulatory concerns.....but maybe there is...IMO, the best way to learn might be to go to work or assist a note broker as well as study.

Most documents are scanned and uploaded, and consultations, while nice in person, are just as effective by phone unless you are trying to look him in the eye and read body language.  

You have to be aware that deal types and structures that once where in vogue can have the regulatory and legal risks change and are no longer practicable.  

Pause, let them speak and listen carefully to what they say with words and body language.