HomeMy WebLinkAboutM101501Distrid No. 1 Commissioner: Dan Tilterness County Administrator: Charles Saddler
Distrid No. 2 Commissioner: Glen Huntingford Deputy County Administrator: David Goldsmith
Distrid No. 3 Commissioner: Richard Wojt Deputy County Administrator: Gary Rowe
Clerk of the Board: Lorna Delaney
MINUTES
Week of October 15, 2001
The meeting was called to order by Chairman Glen
Huntingford. Commissioner Dan Titterness and Commissioner Richard Wojt were both present.
Temporary Closure of Port Townsend Post Office: Deputy County Administrator David
Goldsmith updated the Board on the closure of the Post Office facility because a letter was found that
contained an unknown substance. There were approximately 35 Public Works employees with offices on the
second floor of the building who were affected by this closure. The letter was taken to the State lab for
testing and the results were not available for several days. The substance was found to be nontoxic. At
approximately 1:30 p.m. on Monday, the Federal Government reopened the Post Office and employees were
able to return to work. This incident demonstrated the County' s ability to handle this type of situation and
areas where more planning is needed.
David Goldsmith, who is also the Public Information Officer, explained that last week the webpage for the
Department of Emergency Management was added to the County website. The address is:
www.jcdem.co.jefferson.wa.us. This is very timely, because the page has information on hazardous materials
and anthrax. Jean Baldwin, Community Health Director reported that last week the Health Department
mailed out information on procedures to deal with hazardous materials delivered through the mail. The
Commissioners agreed that the County needs to address alternative work options for employees who may be
prohibited from accessing their workstations if similar situations occur in the future.
Peggy Thompson, Director, Domestic Violence Program re: Proclaiming the Month of
October as Domestic Violence Awareness Month: Peggy Thompson, Director of the Domestic Violence
Program reported that their organization will have a candlelight vigil on Friday, October 26 at 6:00 p.m. at
Haller Fountain. She explained that domestic violence has always been treated as a woman's issue, but it is
really everyone's issue. The new focus of their organization is to involve more men in supporting the
program. Commissioner Titterness moved to proclaim the month of October as Domestic Violence
Awareness Month. Commissioner Wojt seconded the motion which carried by a unanimous vote.
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Commissioners Meeting Minutes: Week of October 15, 2001
COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR BRIEFING SESSION: David Goldsmith reported on the
following items:
· The CDBG Grievance Hearing is scheduled on the Board's agenda for the afternoon of October 22.
They will be receiving information in their packet.
· Union negotiations are continuing with the Sheriff' s deputies and sergeants.
PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD: The following comments were made: The County needs to
intercede in the Julian Street right-of-way issue because several properties in the plat will be landlocked; the
wording on the Eisenbeis Bay View Addition Plat map states the roads are given to the people ofdefferson
County forever; and Lakeside Industries is storing used asphalt at Cape George, can they continue to do this
even after a road project is completed?
APPROVAL AND ADOPTION OF THE CONSENT AGENDA: Commissioner Wojt
moved to adopt and approve the Consent Agenda and that #9, the letter to the National Parks, be copied to
Senator Patty Murray and Representative Norm Dicks. Commissioner Titterness seconded the motion which
carried by a unanimous vote. Chairman Huntingford directed that the letter to the National Parks also be sent
to people in the Westend through Bob Huelsdonk.
1. RESOLUTION NO. 84-01 re: HEARING NOTICE; Proposed Budget
Appropriations/Extensions; Various County Funds; Hearing Scheduled for Monday, November 5,
2001 at 10:05 a.m. in the Commissioners Chambers
2. HEARING NOTICE re: Sale of Surplus County Property; Hearing Rescheduled for Monday,
November 5, 2001 at 2:00 p.m. in the Commissioners Chambers
3. AGREEMENT re: Program Evaluation Services; Quilcene 4-H After School Project (YIPPEE);
Michelle Maike
4. AGREEMENT, Intergovernmental re: Water Resource Inventory Area (WRIA) 16 Planning Unit
Education and Outreach Strategy Development and Implementation; Jefferson County Health and
Human Services; Mason County
5. AGREEMENT re: Developmental Disability Program Services; Jefferson County Health and Human
Services; Washington State Department of Social and Health Services
6. AGREEMENT re: Focus Group and Meeting Facilitation Services; Jefferson County Health and
Human Services, Marine Resource Committee; Susan Latham, Thinking Edge
7. AGREEMENT Supplemental #6 re: Allocation of Remaining Funds for Segment 2 for Olympic
Discovery Trail (Larry Scott Memorial Park); Jefferson County Public Works; Washington State
Department of Transportation
8. Request for Second, Twelve (12) Month Extension of Preliminary Long Plat; Woodridge Village II
(fka Teal Lake Village Division II), #SUB95-0004; Located off of Teal Lake Road, Port Ludlow;
Port Ludlow Associates (fka Olympic Property Group), Applicant
9. Letter Commenting on the Olympic National Park General Management Plan; National Park Service,
Cliff Hawkes
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Commissioners Meeting Minutes: Week of October 15, 2001
Jim Pearson and Warren Steurer re: Non-Motorized Transportation Plan and Parks and
Recreation Plan: Jim Pearson, Public Works, explained that they want to have the draft plan available by
mid-December. They will schedule workshops with the Board in January to allow for revisions. When the
final draft is approved by the Board, it will need to be docketed as a Comprehensive Plan amendment and go
through the process.
Financial strategies are a key issue. If the draft plan is complete, the County may apply for grant funding.
However, the plan has to be adopted as an element of the Comprehensive Plan before the County can receive
funding.
Chairman Huntingford noted that he has concerns about how the County will pay for the projects listed in the
plan. This plan is a big "wish list" and he questioned where it fits in with the County's other priorities. Jim
Pearson reminded the Board that this is a 20 year vision. He used the example of trails on Indian Island, and
said that this can only occur if the island is no longer a Naval facility. Chairman Huntingford is concerned
about the plan creating false hopes that all of these projects will get done.
Tom Beckwith, the consultant on this project explained that the plan has 2 timeframes: a 20 year "wish list"
of all projects relating to parks and recreation, trails, and non-motorized transportation throughout the
County and a 6 year plan listing actual projects and proposed funding.
Commissioner Huntingford pointed out that this is only one element of the Comprehensive Plan and there are
many more elements that the County is currently working on that will need to be updated. This adds up to
thousands of dollars in consultant fees and staff time. He asked Jim Pearson to put together a spreadsheet on
the cost that is being billed to the General Fund for this project.
An initial phase of this project was to inventory all the County's trails, parks, and recreational facilities. In the
future, this information will only need to be updated. Tom Beckwith explained that the major portion of the
vision planning is to refine how to finance projects and fine tune the financial strategies. For instance, the
path for the multi-purpose trail is already established and it probably won't change; but the key is to find
funding to finance the purchase of the property and improve the trail. The County needs to look at how to
leverage grant money for trail projects.
Tom Beckwith explained that they have conducted several forums throughout Jefferson County to discover
specific community interests. The next phase of the project is to develop a financial strategy. He distributed
3 documents. The first document is a Park's Plan Survey from Pierce County. They use a combination mail-
out/telephone survey to get a statistical control sample of registered voter's priorities for the plan. The survey
creates a more diversified perspective than just the "user groups" who attended the workshops. Some of the
financial questions asked in the survey are: do you favor impact fees, bonds, or additional sales tax to pay for
projects? The survey is done to see the reaction to specific proposals, rank the priority list, test the financial
devices, and see what the level of acceptance is to determine how that will affect financing.
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Commissioners Meeting Minutes: Week of October 15, 2001
The second document shows the methodology to estimate the costs for trails. The value of the present
system is determined by using market replacement costs. Tom Beckwith explained that this is done for all the
other facets of the plan also, including parks, recreation facilities, ball fields, etc. This does not factor in the
cost of the land. There is another chart that estimates the cost of different types of property such as
residential or resource areas. There is an obvious cost differential in acquiring land for trails in the rural areas
and acquiring land for athletic fields in the city. This methodology results in the cost of impact fees per
residence.
The third document is an example of financial strategies to pay for projects. This spreadsheet shows the
"wish list," or proposed level of service, and the existing level of service in dollar terms. It also shows 3
sources of revenue: the current level of funding projected over the next several years, funding from impact
fees and revenue from bonds. The County doesn't have to amend the Comprehensive Plan to adjust these
projections because this spreadsheet is updated when the Capital Facilities Plan is updated.
Chairman Huntingford reiterated that this is only one funding issue that the County Commissioners have to
take into consideration. There are also several other issues, including Law and Justice needs and after school
programs for children at risk. All these issues are important to the future of the County and it is difficult to
have to choose priorities.
Tom Beckwith answered that this plan lists the cost of parks and recreation funding up front, so that the
Commissioners know how much will have to be spent. It is also up to the public to decide if they want these
facilities enough to vote for a bond, impact fees, or additional sales tax.
The discussion continued about several other tactics that will be taken into consideration:
· Meeting immediate needs such as maintenance, repair, and minor construction with money from the
General Fund.
· Acquiring the land first and developing it later. Use the General Fund money for acquisition of
property and bond money for development.
· Don't buy the property unless you have to, don't develop it if there is another entity who can do it,
don't operate it if you can get someone else to operate it.
· Is the County interested in doing regional facilities or local facilities? If local facilities, what are the
differences in providing facilities in Chimacum and Port Townsend?
· Local service areas are an option rather than Countywide support. Local people want to determine
what the local facilities should be.
· The possibility of forming a Park & Recreation District to fund these types of projects.
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Commissioners Meeting Minutes: Week of October 15, 2001
Chairman Huntingford asked how this plan will be coordinated with the City of Port Townsend's plan when
it comes to sharing of strategies and funding? Tom Beckwith advised that in the planning process they have
considered the demand/need side for the entire County including Port Townsend, the School Districts, the
Port of Port Townsend, and some non-profits. On the supply side, there are projects that these other entities
will be doing and 0% County financing will be indicated. In some cases there will be an integrated financial
management strategy for shared projects. Simple use agreements might be all that is needed for trails.
Sensitive and critical areas also show up in the Conservation Future Plan.
Chairman Huntingford stated that it is his understanding that approximately 400 acres of County owned land
was identified in the Comprehensive Plan for future parks and it was agreed that there was no need to
purchase more land. It makes more sense to use and develop this property. Commissioner Titterness asked if
any of the County's properties have been evaluated and prioritized for use, or need to be surplused? Tom
Beckwith answered that several properties are mentioned consistently in the plan. They have not identified
any properties to be surplused, but there are some that will require special uses. The properties have been
classified as regionally important or locally important for financing purposes.
There was a discussion about whether the percentage of open space per capita has been evaluated. Chairman
Huntingford pointed out that there is a lot of land in the County that is available for recreation including the
Olympic National Park, the Olympic National Forest, the State parks, and the school properties, just to name
a few. Tom Beckwith answered that there is a low facility rating. In the forums, most rural communities
didn't want more properties dedicated to recreation, they just wanted the properties developed or established
parks connected by trails.
Commissioner Wojt mentioned the advantages of creating multi-purpose trails. Chairman Huntingford asked
where motorized off-road vehicle paths are listed? Tom Beckwith stated that this is an element of the Parks
Plan where the sites and demands for motorcycles, ATVs, and four-wheel drive vehicles are covered. They
did not find a suitable site for four-wheel drive users in Jefferson County, but there are sites in Clallam
County. Chairman Huntingford stated that he has concerns that these types of recreation will not get as much
attention as the non-motorized vehicle trails.
Commissioner Titterness suggested that the prioritization of the 13 goals of GMA be part of the telephone
survey. Tom Beckwith answered that they could do that but expanding the scope of the questions in the
survey would lose the focus on parks and trails.
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Commissioners Meeting Minutes: Week of October 15, 2001
Commissioner Wojt asked what direction staff is requesting from the Board? Tom Beckwith stated that if
the Board is comfortable with the draft version of the survey, they will send it om in October to be able to
compile the information by Thanksgiving. He reiterated that they want to have the draft plan to the Board
by December 17. The Board gave direction to continue the survey process. Chairman Huntingford asked to
see a copy of the draft survey before it is sent out.
MEETING A p.
Loma Delaney, CMC
Clerk of the Board
JEFFERSON COUNTY
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