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HomeMy WebLinkAboutDRAFT CFCOC Special Meeting Minutes 20260918 1 MINUTES Jefferson County Board of County Commissioners and the Conservation Futures Citizens Oversight Committee Joint Special Meeting – September 18, 2026, 1:30 p.m. Jefferson County Courthouse – Commissioners’ Chambers 1820 Jefferson Street, Port Townsend, WA (Hybrid) CALL TO ORDER: Chair Greg Brotherton, Commissioner Heidi Eisenhour and Commissioner Heather Dudley-Nollette participated in the meeting. Chair Brotherton called the meeting to order at the appointed time and passed Chairing duties to Commissioner Dudley-Nollette, as he was attending virtually. Conservation Futures Citizens Oversight Committee (CFCOC) Chair Ron Rempel called their Special Meeting to order, and had each member in attendance introduce themselves. The purpose of the meeting was for the Board of County Commissioners to meet with the CFCOC members and discuss a variety of topics, and give direction if needed. Chairing duties for the joint meeting were passed to CFCOC Chair Rempel for the remainder of the meeting. CFCOC MEMBERS IN ATTENDANCE: Chair Ron Rempel, Vice Chair Carol Bernthal, Tom Backman, Cheryl Lowe, Dave Wilkinson, Laurie de Koch, Ryan McMackin, Michael Donald, Rob Harbour, Esther Trueblood CFF PROGRAM STAFF IN ATTENDANCE: Tressa Linquist, Clerk, JCPH PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD: There were no public comments. WORKSHOP re: the Conservation Futures Citizens Oversight Committee (CFCOC): Discuss project-rating requirements and priorities under the Conservation Futures Fund criteria established in the Jefferson County Code, and consider potential guidance for the program: CFCOC Chair, members, and the County Commissioners participated in discussion regarding the future direction of the County’s Conservation Futures program, including whether its project criteria and scoring system still reflect current conservation priorities. The Commissioners generally supported modernizing the criteria while keeping enough flexibility to consider valuable projects that may not fit neatly within the current scoring system. The Commissioners encouraged the committee to look beyond traditional silviculture and consider broader forest conservation benefits such as climate resilience, sustainable management, and watershed protection. They also supported stronger consideration of adopted County plans, clearer criteria for trail and recreation projects, and a scoring process that is objective, understandable, and consistent. Commissioner Brotherton suggested revisiting the current low-score threshold so worthwhile projects are not unnecessarily excluded. Commissioners Meeting Minutes of September 18, 2026 2 Also discussed was including more accountability and outreach, and to include clearer expectations for project deliverables, stewardship, reporting, and alignment between what applicants propose and what is ultimately implemented. The Commissioners supported broader outreach to potential applicants, particularly in western Jefferson County, and expressed openness to expanding eligibility. The CFCOC members were also encouraged to gather information on unmet project demand before considering any future increase in the Conservation Futures levy rate. NOTICE OF ADJOURNMENT: Acting Chair Dudley-Nollette adjourned the meeting at 3:06 p.m. until the next regular meeting or special meeting as properly noticed.