In the US, there are a thousand companies that batch search various public records for a small fee, like the telephone book or voter records, to match names & addresses with phone numbers.

Ask them direct about short term rentals and what is being discussed.

I would recommend following through with the early termination fee; which in itself is quite generous compared to other termination fees I've seen before.

They most likely have a "story" they told the owner and you being there again may jeopardize that story and therefore whatever their assignment fee is, or something along those lines.  

Would love to discuss 5 year plan I have in mind.

Enter recurring charges and automatic late fees.

Drop a comment or message me directly to discuss opportunities and ideas.

With luck, that fee may already be paid and this part of the planning included.

There is never a time that is too early to meet with City staff, but once you have a site plan would be the preferred to have a starting point for discussions. 

If you want to discuss these concepts in more depth feel free to reach out to me in a message.