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HomeMy WebLinkAboutM041105 District No. 1 Commissioner: Phil Johnson District No.2 Commissioner: David W. Sullivan District No.3 Commissioner: Patrick M. Rodgers County Administrator: John F. Fischbach Clerk of the Board: Lorna Delaney MINUTES Week of April 11, 2005 Chairman Phil Johnson called the meeting to order in the presence of Commissioner Patrick M. Rodgers and Commissioner David W. Sullivan. Ribbon Cutting Ceremony for the Courthouse Front Entrance Doors: Several constituents and employees were present when the Board cut the ribbon to acknowledge the successful completion and opening of the new front entrance doors of the Courthouse. Approval of Minutes: March 14, and 21,2005: Commissioner Rodgers moved to approve the minutes of March 14,2005 as presented. Commissioner Sullivan seconded the motion which carried by a unanimous vote. Commissioner Sullivan moved to approve the minutes of March 21,2005 with a correction of a typographical error. Commissioner Rodgers seconded the motion which carried by a . unanimous vote. Letter of Support for Senate and House Budget Proposals: Chairman Johnson reported that the State House of Representatives allocated $10 million in their budget this year for Courthouse Restoration, and $450,000 is to be specifically set aside for the Jefferson County Courthouse Clock Tower Restoration Project. The State Senate has allocated $9 million for Courthouse restoration. Chairman Johnson moved to have the Board send a letter to Governor Gregoire encouraging her to pass the budget including the Courthouse Restoration Funding. Commissioner Sullivan seconded the motion which carried by a unanimous vote. David Alvarez, Deputy Prosecuting Attorney re: Public Comment: David Alvarez explained that the Public Comment Period has traditionally been a time for the Board to listen to citizen's comments without dialogue exchange because this takes time away from other citizens who may want to speak. Page 1 Commissioners Meeting Minutes: Week of April 11, 2005 ('J(;~ , , Commissioner Sullivan stated that he feels it is important for citizen's comments to get to the appropriate department and the Board should be able to forward comments or direct people to the appropriate staff. David Alvarez explained that it may be problematic for staff if the Board transmits messages or comments from citizens regarding quasi judicial issues. The public has a responsibility to get their comments to the appropriate department. David Alvarez noted that the Board has chosen not to deal with quasi judicial issues, and on Type I projects, the appeal process for a determination made by the SEP A Responsible Official goes to Superior Court. The Board can let citizens know where their comments need to be submitted. Chairman Johnson asked if a stormwater permit is considered quasi judicial? David Alvarez answered that it is, the determination is made by the SEP A Responsible Official, and an appeal of the determination goes to Superior Court. Commissioner Sullivan pointed out that the Board received a letter from Gendler & Mann, LLP, stating that the Board can make comments on SEP A determinations. David Alvarez replied that the SEP A Responsible Official needs to be independent to make an unbiased determination based on all the information submitted by proponents and opponents of a project. Comments from the Board could cloud the issue. The Board delegated their administrative authority to the SEP A Responsible Official in the UDC in order to stay out of this process. The decision to comment is up to the Board, but he has never seen this done in the past. It is very difficult to use SEP A to deny a project because all things can be mitigated. Commissioner Sullivan asked about mitigations. David Alvarez noted that the previous Board added mitigations in the case of the Fred Hill Materials Mineral Resource Land Overlay in 2004. Commissioner Sullivan added that it is important to get the word out that if people want to have their comments included in the record, they need to submit them to the Department of Community Development by the comment deadline. PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD: The Chair read the following information into the record: Your comments on any topic are welcome. Please keep them brief so others may also speak. You should know that in certain cases, such as decisions relating to land use applications, the County Commission does not make the final County decision and will not express any opinions in that regard. Comments made during the Public Comment Period relating to an item where others make the final decision will not be sent to that decision-maker. You may have other forums that will allow your comment to reach the relevant decision-maker. The following comments were made: the State is going to allocate funding to improve the dissolved oxygen problem in Hood Canal; do copies of all comments sent to the Board get forwarded to the appropriate department?; concerns about the quality of SEP A review by staff; the County needs a website link to take comments on landuse issues; the Board is elected by the people to listen to them and serve their interests; a proponent's lawyer shouldn't be able to tell the Board what comments they can hear; the Board should be Page 2 Commissioners Meeting Minutes: Week of April 11, 2005 f)'.'''''.''>'. ;' ...,~ 4r~,;'" "II¡"c.\ able to respond to public comments; planners should always ask for an EIS; a citizen who passed away last week should be honored and remembered for making the County a better place to live; industrial development on Hood Canal will destroy the water quality; is there an internal investigation being done on the treatment of inmates at the jail?; congratulations on the funding allocation for Courthouse Restoration projects in the State budget; a Blue Ribbon Committee should be formed to address the Courthouse restoration; the culture of the County is not good and staff and Elected Officials are disrespectful of the public; the Board can help make the public's input on issues more effective; the "buck stops" at the BOCC; the type of plastic and glass that can be recycled in Jefferson County is very limited compared to other areas around the country; FHM was working with Skookum on a technology to recycle green glass and it is important for the public and the private sector to work together; and several people commented that the FHM project needs an EIS determination. APPROVAL AND ADOPTION OF THE CONSENT AGENDA: Commissioner Sullivan moved to approve the Consent Agenda as presented. Commissioner Rodgers seconded the motion which carried by a unanimous vote. 1. RESOLUTION NO. 24-05 re: Declaring Certain Property as Surplus; Jeff Com 911 Communications 2. AGREEMENT NO. 0563-70845 re: Working Capital Advance (Restricted Reserve); Jefferson County Health and Human Services; Washington State Department of Social and Health Services 3. AGREEMENT, Amendment No.1 re: Phase I Dosewallips River Properties ESA; Jefferson County Health and Human Services; Krazan & Associates 4. AGREEMENT No. 0063-42088, Amendment No.4 re: Medicaid Administrative Match; Jefferson County Health and Human Services; Washington State Department of Social and Health Services 5. AGREEMENT No. C13035, Amendment No.1 re: 2005-2006 Consolidated Contract; Jefferson County Health and Human Services; Washington State Department of Health 6. AGREEMENT re: Employment Services to Provide Timber Stand Management and Timber Assessment; Jefferson County Public Works; Michael R. Cronin 7. MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING and MEMBERSHIP AGREEMENT re: Participation in the County Workplace Safety Alliance (CWSA) to Receive Services of a Third Party Administrator to Improve Workplace Safety and Reduce Labor and Industry Claims Costs; Washington State Association of Counties 8. Letters to State Representatives To Thank Them for Allocating Funds for Courthouse Restoration Including $450,000 for the Jefferson County Courthouse Clock Tower Restoration Project; Representative Lynn Kessler, Representative Jim Buck, and Representative Hans Dunshee Page 3 Commissioners Meeting Minutes: Week of April 11, 2005 t)+iìt~, ~~j 'I-I(¡·".-;\~~ BID A WARD re: Publication of County Legal Notices: Clerk of the Board Lorna Delaney stated that she reviewed the two bids received for the official County newspaper. The circulation information provided by the Peninsula Daily News and The Leader indicated that the total coverage throughout the County for The Leader is 40.4% and the total coverage for the Peninsula Daily News, without the Olympic Marketplace supplement, is13.6%. With the Olympic Marketplace, the total coverage for the Peninsula Daily News is 43.7%. The newspapers use different column widths and this explains the cost difference per column inch. Based on the cost per square inch, The Leader is less. The recommendation is to award the bid to The Leader. Commissioner Rodgers pointed out that the Peninsula Daily News is qualified to be the official County newspaper and was awarded the bid a few years ago. He feels that the convenience of having a daily newspaper versus a weekly newspaper is better for legal notice deadlines. Commissioner Sullivan moved to award the bid for the official County newspaper to The Leader. Chairman Johnson seconded the motion. Chairman Johnson and Commissioner Sullivan voted for the motion. Commissioner Rodgers voted against the motion. The motion carried. Thank You Letters for Allocating Funds for Courthouse Restoration: Commissioner Sullivan moved to have the Board sign letters to Senator Margarita Prentice, Senator Karen Fraser, Senator Mark Doumit, and Senator Hargrove thanking them for their support for the Courthouse Restoration budget allocation. Commissioner Rodgers seconded the motion which carried by a unanimous vote. Discussion re: Countywide Vote By Mail: Auditor Donna Eldridge explained that the Help America Vote Act requires that all polling places have direct recording equipment (DRE), also known as ''touch screens," for visually impaired persons. Some DRE voting machines do not produce a paper audit ballot and this has become an issue. Other machines are available that produce a paper ballot that goes through the ballot tabulator. Currently 66% of Jefferson County's voters request absentee ballots or live in a vote-by-mail precinct. During the last general election, 72% of the voters requested absentee ballots. The following counties have gone to all vote-by-mail: Clallam, Ferry, Okanagon, Pend Orielle, and Skamania. Whatcom, Skagit, Lewis, and Yakima Counties have begun the process to go all vote-by-mail. Currently Jefferson County has 31 precincts, 12 of which are vote-by-mail. If there are less than 200 poll voters in a precinct, it can automatically go all vote-by-mail. In order for the County to go all vote-by-mail now, approximately 10 or 12 precincts will need to be split and this would have to be done before June 30. Page 4 Commissioners Meeting Minutes: Week of April 11, 2005 :'!]"'" "\ ~..~.... ·-\il¡·"~.\~~ It would cost $96,000 to purchase DRE machines for all the precincts if the Board doesn't want to go all vote-by-maiL If the County goes to all vote-by-mail, two DRE machines will still need to be purchased. The cost of a ballot cast at the polls in the last general election was approximately $4.41. The cost of an absentee ballot was approximately $1.76. The DRE machines are required to be in place by January 1, 2006. Donna Eldridge asked if the Board wants to pursue the all vote-by-mail option? Commissioner Sullivan added that currently there is legislation before the State House and Senate regarding the authorizing of County-wide mail ballot elections. The Auditor stated that this legislation, if passed, could simplify the conversion process. Commissioner Sullivan moved to have the Auditor draft a resolution on a proposal for County-wide vote- by-mail and that a public hearing be scheduled to take comment. Commissioner Rodgers seconded the motion which carried by a unanimous vote. WRIA 16 Watershed Plan: The Mason County Commissioners have asked that the Board sign a joint letter to the Skokomish Tribal Council requesting a meeting of the entities to review the WRIA 16 process and set the course for completion and adoption of the Watershed Plan. The WRIA 16 watershed is located south of Mount Walker in Jefferson County into Mason County. Commissioner Sullivan moved to have the Chair sign the joint letter to the Skokomish Tribal Council. Commissioner Rodgers seconded the motion which carried by a unanimous vote. Appointment to the Jefferson County Solid Waste Advisory Committee: The Board interviewed Roger Short who is interested in serving on the SW AC, representing District #2. Commissioner Rodgers moved to appoint Roger Short to a two year term on the Solid Waste Advisory Committee. Commissioner Sullivan seconded the motion which carried by a unanimous vote. Mr. Short's term will expire on March 11, 2007. The meeting was recessed at the close of business on Monday and reconvened on Tuesday at 10:00 a.m. for a workshop on the Parks and Recreation Strategic Plan. All three Commissioners were present. Page 5 Commissioners Meeting Minutes: Week of April 11, 2005 e:~~ ~ -1/fI"';I"\ . The meeting was recessed on Tuesday and reconvened on Thursday at 9:00 a.m. at WSUÆxtension for a workshop on Best Available Science (BAS) with Leonard Bauer, Growth Management Division, State Department of Community, Trade and Economic Development. Commissioner Sullivan and Commissioner Rodgers were both present. Chairman Johnson was out of town at a conference. MEETING ADJOURNED SEAL: .I'" ," 'jlt'-. ._c, If " .j'f_. ·i fJ '," , ð '. , ~ ' . .., \ ..Jio ,." . - I /I'o,~ ¡. . 'i-__ ¡ ,::. ", .. .-^ JEFFERSON COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS \ ..', '\ ' # : ~ ! ..t, - , \ . . . ~ ~ . \ '" ... .\¡)-- ..: t- ¡... -.f ¡l '\ _, .~, _~:- ..." -'';; ~:-;;J ,,~ , .' ",,-_ "'" )I "~ '...... " ~" "- " .~~ Davia W. Sullivan, Member ~c4~ Patrick M. Rodgers, Member ---- ATTEST: /:JiJ L l Ir( Ûtt:11!../2 J (~/i,^,- '~lie Matthes, CMC Deputy Clerk of the Board Page 6