HomeMy WebLinkAboutclosed_caption09:02:18 Okay. Good morning. Everybody at the November twenty-first lots to be thankful for.
09:02:26 This week, and looking forward to a lot of cooking later in the week, as we do every Monday morning, we'll start our week with public comments if there's anyone who's joined
us this morning and hasn't public they want to make please raise the hand raise your hand
09:02:46 using. The raise hand button at the bottom of the zoom screen.
09:02:50 Also we will have a number of other opportunities for public comments throughout the day.
09:02:56 On specific agenda items that are on our agenda today.
09:03:01 Board hearings, and there's number of items on consent agenda. Today so
09:03:07 Look at that. Got anyone with us this morning machine to make a public comment. Get us going
09:03:28 Over.
09:03:36 Good morning, John, you'll need to unmute
09:03:43 Good morning.
09:03:57 Is that is that better? Okay? Thank you.
09:04:04 Appreciate the reminder, swallow the mic. Looks like Tom.
09:04:11 Tears would like to be brought over. Thank you for that, John.
09:04:21 Good morning, Mr. Tears. You will have 3Â min for public comment.
09:04:27 Once you get unmuted
09:04:32 Good morning, Mr. Nurses, everyone, Mr. Ebner, but beat me to to that comment.
09:04:39 Yeah, you all are barely, barely audible.
09:04:43 Couple of items on your consent. Agenda caught my attention.
09:04:49 The first one is Consent, number 13, which is spending almost $13,000 to produce some videos that are specifically regarding vaccinations for Covid.
09:05:03 You know these might have been useful 2 and a half years ago, but it's a little bit late.
09:05:08 Yeah, the money is a grant. It's not coming directly out of the county funds, but that money really would be better spent on almost anything else for public health.
09:05:20 You know to better promote public health and vaccinations in general, but making a Covid specific video 5 of them at this time first of all it's not going to change anybody's
bind those folks who are refuse mix they're gonna still be there.
09:05:36 And you know, like I say, redirect that money to something more.
09:05:40 Useful, because this is just just wasteful other item that caught my attention was Consent.
09:05:47 Number 6, which is regarding Kptz and their transmitter.
09:05:53 Could you please ask, will events when his time comes around?
09:05:58 If that's $65,000 is going to include things like generators for the the transmitter site, as well as for the studios which I think are being moved, or have been moved to Fort
Warden unless They've good standby generators, and and probably also as hey?
09:06:14 Startling connection. It's not gonna be very useful when the power goes out to countywide, as it as it did during the last big windstorm.
09:06:29 Thank you. Mr. Tears. Is there anybody else with us this morning who would like to make a public comment?
09:06:37 If so, you can use the raise hand button at the bottom of your zoom screen, and there's no one with us on the phone this morning.
09:06:44 So it's just Zoom's our option I'm not seeing any other hands go up, so I will close public comment.
09:06:56 Well, leave public comment open until 9 30, but we will move on, and with our agenda.
09:07:02 Yeah and yeah
09:07:06 Greg, would you like to? Address comments made sure I can go first?
09:07:11 Thank you as always, for the initial reminder when we're not audible.
09:07:16 You know we really appreciate that, John. And to Tom, you know we can ask about the the Morgan Hill.
09:07:23 This is not the site of the Kptz studio itself, but just the the Antonio, and I define question for Willie.
09:07:32 I'm I assume that there would be generators there.
09:07:35 I'm not sure if the construction that we're supporting with this Grant is going to buy that or not.
09:07:39 But it's a good question for Willie, and I'll ask it during our health officer questioning on Kptz today, and as to the the videos which look more like $10,000, you know it's
it's kind of we have to use, this Grant money to build COVID-19,
09:07:58 vaccine confidence. While I agree with the tenor of your statement that it's probably not going to have a substantial impact on on people's vaccination inclinations.
09:08:10 You know I do love supporting local local filmmakers and increasing communication.
09:08:18 So I think, building a stable of of collaborators that can do this work and and communication work in the future does have real, real long-term benefits.
09:08:29 And I I look forward to what they can come up with with this notcho, grant that we'd have to use for this or or something similar. You know. I don't think we could redistribute
this into a you know a different public health application is my reading of it but I don't know if
09:08:45 Staff has a different read on it, not on that, but I would like to add, regarding Kptz Commissioner, Brother 10 and I took a tour.
09:08:57 Their new facility on Fort Warden, and they have a very sophisticated and modern battery backup system.
09:09:03 They cost somewhere in the vicinity of 80 to 100,000.
09:09:09 That will keep them on the air for an extended period. Of time.
09:09:12 I can't recall exactly how long most week. Yeah.
09:09:15 But it's it'll keep them running for an extended period and typically tower installations of this type do have generator backup, but will confirm that I'm not sure Willie knows
that's a question probably for kptz folks but we'll get an answer for
09:09:33 sure, thanks, Mark, I don't have anything to add regarding those couple of comments that we've received so far.
09:09:41 I will take one more. Pass it. Anyone wanting to make a public comment this morning
09:09:50 You can use the raise hand button at the bottom of your zoom screen.
09:09:55 Okay, not seeing any other hands go up any other discussion on consent. Agenda
09:10:03 It's a big one. Yep. Lots of good stuff here
09:10:11 Yeah.
09:10:13 Feel like there is a couple of things I want to call out
09:10:20 Agreements for a lot of you know, Arpa grants that we've already talked about is really great, and the Chicago confluence project is intriguing I'm glad it's getting going.
09:10:32 No, it's always nice to see partnership between public works, and wash Dot and and working out detours
09:10:40 And
09:10:47 Great to see continued support for mental health, counting for our youth
09:10:57 We've, you know, we've talked a lot about a lot of these stuff, the hiring and retention incentive for corrections, officers is really needed, and you know if we see it more
and more and some of the more difficult to fill positions, but keep Jeff calm you know a 3
09:11:13 65, 31 operation is is just critical to its mission.
09:11:17 So this is was easy to support.
09:11:20 Couple. Just let people know that property tax appeals, you know, starting with Jefferson accounting board of equalization
09:11:36 Yeah, great stuff. Take a week off, and all this work keeps happening
09:11:42 Yeah, right? Yeah, we did that last week and this week together.
09:11:46 So that explains the meeting. Consent, agenda, all good stuff, though
09:11:54 Grateful for people stepping up for additional terms on advisory boards in the community.
09:12:01 I mean I just can't underscore the importance of citizen volunteers who step into these roles and and really are active and productive members of issues from and today from
the parks board to conservation futures which allocates funding for conservation projects in the county
09:12:22 and the solid Waste Advisory committee. I mean.
09:12:25 There's just so many opportunities for people to be involved in committees as citizens, and if you're ever interested, I always like to say this when there's more people on
the line if you're ever interested in raising your hand for one of these committees or finding out which opportunities are available there's a list
09:12:43 on the county, website or you can call any of us commissioners or the Commissioner's office, and we can talk to you about the current availability of opportunities to volunteer
and get engaged in your community more
09:13:00 Well.
09:13:02 Anything else? Do you want to call out Mark on consent.
09:13:06 No, I think no, I'm good with everything on there and kudos to staff.
09:13:13 Well, I will move that we approve and adopt the consent.
09:13:16 Agenda as presented, and I'll second that and all in favor.
09:13:24 I, I, Commissioner Dean, is sporadically with us this morning, so it'll be mostly Commissioner Brotherton and I here.
09:13:35 So okay. Consent. Agenda passes and Greg did you want to do something make a public comment? Yes, I know that you had something, and I did.
09:13:48 Yes, I brought an accessory today. I just you know it's this is our first meeting since the election, and really gratified the support of Jefferson County residents and really
feel re-energized for another term is your district 3 county commissioner and really there was only one big question that I
09:14:03 Got near the end of the campaign, and that was, Can you actually play the accordion and well, no, not really.
09:14:12 But I'd love to try and and and express my the feelings that I had before the election, the days going up to it, and and how I'm feeling right now if if I can
09:14:27 We've got his Petosa out. People watch out I'm like, boy in his accordion.
09:14:36 The lady's a coordinate right so for you, though appropriate.
09:14:39 So first this is from a classic film score, and this is how I was feeling really for the 2 weeks up to the election
09:15:05 From Halloween and now one more, just to show how I'm feeling.
09:15:10 Now this is an old, woody got 3 song. Pretty boy Floyd.
09:15:14 I actually wrote a campaign song about this, but wiser, cooler heads prevailed, and I never actually used it.
09:15:31 Oh, I screwed up one more time
09:15:38 No, a
09:15:51 : thank you. Thank you. Yes, I know that the house goes wild I'll have to admit when the postcard came in my mailbox with you and the accordion on the front I was like oh, this.
09:16:02 Is great. You know. Support Greg postcard. Right? Because it was a good picture of you.
09:16:09 So anyway, still learning still learning the accordion, yeah, I'll I'll keep working it for keep working on it.
09:16:16 Yeah, I'll never forget my first day as a commissioner, and you you had a song for me.
09:16:22 Yeah, that was great. Well, we have a little bit of time.
09:16:27 We? We do have our regular our now, regular third Monday of the month a public health update this morning at 9, 45, with Dr.
09:16:36 Barry, and we've been so stay on the line.
09:16:39 You might get some more accordion, too, if you stick around.
09:16:42 Never know what's gonna happen. Especially when Kate's out of town right so do you wanna do a little calendaring, or what's your pleasure?
09:17:01 We haven't done that in a while. Yeah, maybe back a couple of weeks briefing briefing. And Kate raise your hand if you at any point wanna Hi, in my dear.
09:17:15 Thank you, and I appreciate it. I'm sorry that I don't have 3 reception, and
09:17:28 And I would say or not. I mean you, you know. Take care, take care of your hear people.
09:17:37 Thank you.
09:17:37 So okay. Do you wanna start out? Shall I go back 2 weeks been together since the seventh?
09:17:49 Yes, let's see. So last on Monday the seventh, we are all together on Tuesday.
09:17:58 We're doing the annual park tour, but I'm unfortunately the the incident weather.
09:18:03 We had the snow created accessibility issues for some of the places we were going up to camp bo site which hadn't been plowed so that has been reuseduled, and then we had the
finalist interviews altogether for the Jefferson transit GM permanent ones.
09:18:23 And super excited to announce yet again. It's public information already that Nicole Gottier, who's been the interim GM has been awarded the the final, the final the position
on a permanent basis.
09:18:34 It was, there was strong applicants from all over, and she, you know the work she's done, and in building it in teamwork and morale and services.
09:18:45 Is, was just. It was really clear, so I'm glad that she that we had that process, because, even though you know someone in the deck came out on top, she she proved herself against
a worthy slate of a of a applicant so really proud of her and the work she's been doing
09:19:04 And then it was election day, and I went on vacation.
09:19:08 So, you know I didn't do a lot after that we had.
09:19:14 Yeah, I just missed a bunch of stuff and had a lovely time celebrating luckily until I got back Wednesday night.
09:19:26 The sixteenth, and then on Thursday we had a Jeff com meeting.
09:19:34 Yeah, we have a Jeff con meeting and yeah, some some heavy stuff going down to Jeff com, too.
09:19:43 We have a special meeting this Tuesday as well to continue that work, and then attended the Coswell Brown Development Meeting and really excited to announce that the infrastructure
is going in this week the the septic and sewers and and they're going to start inviting
09:20:04 New new folks on on December one. So there's 36 more spots where we're working out sort of an equitable.
09:20:10 We I should say, only Cap is working out an equitable application.
09:20:14 Process, but the the first step is to get folks into the Hmis courted entry system.
09:20:20 So one you know. We are pretty confident that there's gonna be more applicants than we actually have spots.
09:20:27 But all of the existing phase, one residents that remain from the the fairgrounds, which were 14, plus, I believe, one kind of emergency mother, and child, that were given an
exception are down to at the new location already the shower trailers in place and should be activated this week and
09:20:48 We're working with. Pudd was really generous, and don'tated a like a early 2 thousands double-wide.
09:20:53 That will end up being the community room, some staff staff offices and staff bathroom, as well as confidential offices for any stakeholder, agency, or or a advocate to have
private meetings so that's really exciting and i'm glad to see that scaling up
09:21:13 Soon we had the Board of Health meeting on on Thursday as well, and you know that went really well.
09:21:25 Good presentation that we've long been delayed on on harm reduction from our help.
09:21:30 Officer and it was weird. You know these these health briefings that we've been now gone to monthly, you know I really miss him. So it was got new information from Dr.
09:21:38 Barry at the the Board of Health Meetings we've got some new a a hearing, I think, coming up for new fees, environmental public health fees should be going up.
09:21:49 I believe pretty much 5% across the board for Cpi and a few fees will get adjusted or reduced as well, and there's the new soils.
09:22:01 You know you can get a 2 year. Do a soil study, and you get 2 years of that soil study being valid, which is a new new environmental health policy, and then we have the international
intergovernmental collaborative group on on Thursday evening and that was great to be mostly
09:22:22 In person. It was a hybrid meeting, of course, out of the Ports pavilion building at at Cape George.
09:22:27 I mean sorry for Hudson. Excuse me, and we've we're going to continue the Icg.
09:22:33 Going next year. I think was one big takeaway and and I think that pavilion will be our new home for meetings, so glad to have a place that people can come and and hope that
we get more people engaged in that ongoing effort we can see the fruits of partnership with our
09:22:49 Municipal partners across the spectrum from child care to housing to infrastructure and glad that that is going to continue and then had talked housing or to how housing fund
board a lot with some some staff and volunteers and with some community members on Friday
09:23:12 Kept caught up on a lot of email and unfortunately cut some sort of confirm some bad news about a grant grant use for the Seventh Haven.
09:23:22 That looks like it won't quite, quite pencil with our efforts to make sure everything is above board, so probably gonna have to return some money that is not able to be used,
but will continue pursuing that and that was my friend when talk talk more about that what what was that sure we had we'd asked for it's a chip grant it's
09:23:43 A grant specifically for infrastructure. And so the Seventh Haven was going to use it retroactively, which was legitimate for $174,000 for the seventh Haven project so it was
awarded to the Seventh Haven.
09:23:56 Project to the county, and then we were going to, or the idea was to make a loan to Holy Cap.
09:24:03 The there were a couple of fears, one that it would if we made that loan it would trigger commercial prevailing wage for the whole project, and would not it would cost right
right and we just didn't see any way.
09:24:17 Around that basically and the the loan was a little a little sketchy, and, as you know, the state auditors, you know, we invite the treasures office and the deputy civil prosecutor
attorney and it just seemed the risk was high for for making that loan so
09:24:33 Makes sense pretty much the position of the county, so far. So they're right now.
09:24:36 They're only capable to go back and see if it can be used for a different project, or if there's any flexibility there, so it's not an absolute but it's unlikely that we'll
be able to use, it right.
09:24:49 Okay. So looking back. 2 weeks. One thing I would say about our last meeting day, November seventh is that we had a workshop on the forestry and Dnr's carbon project and a number
of Stakeholders from the community joined Us.
09:25:10 Here in the chambers that was actually for me, exciting because it was the most people I'd seen in the Chambers since I've been a commissioner, and I appreciated everyone's
participation and engagement on forestry and we're still still, in the information gathering phase
09:25:26 And and learning big big new pieces of information almost every day on the forestry and carbon front.
09:25:32 So our next opportunity for folks to tune in on this issue will be November thirtieth.
09:25:39 We're gonna have a workshop at the Jefferson County Library from 4 30 to 6, 30, and have invited a number of stakeholders, and if anyone has questions or interest and participating
please reach out to myself or the commissioner's office and we'll get you more information
09:26:00 I can also be in the room with us, so let's see, on the eighth.
09:26:12 We had a budget discussion with one of our departments with Mark, and it was really great for me just to see how our team can work together to find com middle ground when you
know kind of trying to manage the budget and they're in a super responsible way, but also responding to the needs
09:26:36 Of departments, and the way things have been done in the past, and I feel like these conversations that we're having as we go into the next budget, setting process, are productive.
09:26:45 And we're gonna come out of all of this work together with a stronger budget in the future.
09:26:51 And I'm super grateful for Mark's leadership on that front, because he's is the Cpa.
09:26:56 And does have his head around the numbers, and knows when it might be beneficial for the chair of the board to be involved in the conversation.
09:27:06 So anyway, was grateful to be involved in that. Then add a meeting with our new noxious week Coordinator.
09:27:13 Sophie to group, and she's wonderful addition to the team, and I know that a number of members of the public have reached out to me about weeds in their backyard and now there
is an official week coordinator on board and she's out at wsu so you can look at the
09:27:28 Wsu, you website and find the noxious weed, or you can look at our website and find the noxious weed program and her contact information turns people to reach out to her.
09:27:38 I was out for most of the eighth for a medical appointment for a member of my family, and everything's fine there and then celebrated election night with my seat mate and other
colleagues super grateful for the team staying together, cause i'm still the new commissioner
09:28:03 Not that most recently a reelected commissioner, but anyway, anyway, I need to be the new Commissioner, but some told me that after 2 years I'm gonna milk it for all it's worth
until the end, of this year, because after 2 years I can no longer call myself the new commission on the
09:28:22 Ninth, I so I've been participating in a number of States Dnr.
09:28:28 Department of natural resources work groups over the last year and a half on a program program called the Trust Land Transfer Program, which is a mechanism by which we can transfer
lands that are better suited to conservation or recreation out of dns timber management into the natural area st status
09:28:52 Or into Washington Department. Official, mild wildlife area or State parks, or in some cases county lands, and these lands are traditionally or yeah, I mean they're they're
just lands that are better suited to another use.
09:29:06 And you know, when Dnr was granted, it's lands over a 100 years ago.
09:29:10 They were given 2 sections, and every township, and that some of those sections happen to have important species in them, or some of them are shoreline.
09:29:22 And now here we are, a 100 over 150 years later.
09:29:26 Meant trying to manage these lands, and there are, you know, right restrictions on them.
09:29:30 Federal State, you know, shoreline restrictions and dangerous species, anyway.
09:29:36 So trust land transfer has been an important tool, and I've spent a year and a half on this work group, and we we finished it up last week so as part of that.
09:29:46 I was part of a junior taxing district focus group, and we met on the Ninth and then let's see.
09:29:57 Then I join habitat for humanity at the library that afternoon to talk about the Mason Street project, and habitat is doing a number of community meetings right now to reach
out to the community and in the phase one sewer boundary and also just in in the immediate vicinity of the
09:30:18 Mason Street Project and a number of neighbors of the Mason Street project were there, and it was great just to hear support for the project support for the sewer and support
for habitats leadership and developing workforce and affordable housing import Headlocks so it's just still
09:30:37 The thing. I'm the most excited about. I think I say that at least once a month.
09:30:44 Then that evening I went to a meeting at the Grange and Chimneum.
09:30:49 Small celebration of all the work that the Grange has been doing throughout the year.
09:30:54 But it's really important whenever I go to the grains.
09:30:58 It reminds me of what a resource it is, and how it's a place where district 2 folks in district 2 can convene around issues agriculture and just community issues of priorities
that I don't know it just feels like one constituent in in district 2 is
09:31:22 Asked me, Where's where's the civic center of district?
09:31:24 2, because we don't have a Uga. Yes, we don't have a city.
09:31:29 We don't have a a city council, or you know, so we're trying to figure out how how to have more civic conversations.
09:31:38 Not civil, civic. Yeah, civil is great and then let's see, I'm also on another.
09:31:47 On Thursday. What the encumbered lands, proviso work group, which is a Washington State Association of Counties work group that's been meeting for the last few months, and we've
wrapped up our work together last week and that's around lands that are encumbered
09:32:06 By Federal endangered species, restrictions, and there were 5 counties that were called out in a proviso to the Legislature last year.
09:32:14 Column, and Jefferson, and then also Schemenia.
09:32:18 What kayak come, and oh, they're Scamania! Look, hike!
09:32:27 I can't remember the fifths right now.
09:32:29 Anyway, we've been meeting for 6 months to talk about this 10 million dollar allocation that was made by the Legislature, and how it should be allocated amongst the counties
for used to by replacement lands or by lands that aren't encumbered so
09:32:47 That they can have timber revenue versus all of these lands that are encumbered by a dangerous species, rich restrictions, so going a little too deep on forestry issues.
09:32:58 But that's where I've been still active on the street.
09:33:06 Ern Environmental restoration, network local integrating organizations.
09:33:12 Still, the chair of that co-chair with with Representative Thereinger and we've been working on our legislative agenda, and it that that's still see something that I want to
stay super active on feel like it it needs that extra spurt of leadership so
09:33:30 met with some constituents who want to do a Development project on obey road and I think I got them to the right folks in the courthouse.
09:33:40 I mean in the county, and I think they're moving moving ahead with their project.
09:33:45 Friday was a holiday and I'm going way long.
09:33:48 But anyway, then I was out the beginning of last week.
09:33:53 Commissioner Dean and I were both at the Washington County Leaders Conference, organized by the Washington State Association of Counties.
09:34:03 Monday morning of that conference I participated in the Timber county caucus meeting, and that meeting included a presentation on the carbon project from Dnr.
09:34:14 And you know there's still more questions about the carbon project than there are answers.
09:34:20 But we're learning a lot more about the carbon project as as the weeks go by.
09:34:25 So I'm hoping by when we get to our November thirtieth workshop we'll have a lot more specifics to share with folks, but I I'm super I'm it became clear at the timber counties.
09:34:39 Meeting. That I'm probably one of the most optimistic people about the carbon project.
09:34:44 I think it could be a new viable tool, in the toolbox for forest land management for Dnr.
09:34:51 And I know that they're working double-time to get to the revenue, producing pieces of that program to answer the questions largely of the beneficiaries they get funding.
09:35:02 From the timberlands that are managed by Dnr. On our behalf.
09:35:05 So hold tight everyone on that one looks like I had more trust land, transfer work, group meetings on Tuesday, too.
09:35:15 So while I was at the conference I was actually running up to my hotel room and jumping on zoom.
09:35:21 I felt like half the time one of those meetings was the kickoff of our recruitment process for the Washington State University Extension Director for Jefferson County, which
is, I mean, I feel like that should be in bold and the leader.
09:35:34 That we are moving forward with hiring our next extension director, and I know that a number of people are really excited about that, and have been waiting to hear that news
that we're actually have a plan for that recruitment.
09:35:48 So I can officially announce that here today, and then came back on Thursday and got ready for vendor meetings with the one over 10 to 1% Behavioral Health Committee we're doing
our grant vendor interviews right now and we did our first round of
09:36:11 Them last Friday, and then we're doing our second round of them.
09:36:15 The twelfth of December, and we will know how all that funding will be allocated.
09:36:20 I think we have about $700,000 with the funding to allocate, or the next per year.
09:36:30 For the next 2 years. So it's a 2 year, grant Grant cycle
09:36:37 Board of Health Meeting as Commissioner Brotherton mentioned Icg.
09:36:41 I, too was inspired to be back in person with our colleagues at the Icg.
09:36:49 It's been really interesting for me as a commissioner.
09:36:52 My entire campaign was done virtually, thanks to Covid, I don't know if I'm thinking Covid here, but thanks to Covid right and then most of my first 2 years have been all virtual
so as we move back into being together, I just feel like a kid in a candy store I mean going into
09:37:07 The Pavilion building, seeing what the port has done with that building.
09:37:10 It was where Pygmy Kayaks was located for decades, and I remember going in there, and all the the kayak's hanging and their racks, and it just it felt so different to be in
that building but i'm so glad that the port has embraced, it
09:37:23 And is turning it into a community space, and that we can have our Icg meetings there next year, and we plan to have all of our meetings there, so that the community knows where
we are and when they can come to participate so just really glad to be back in person as much as possible met with
09:37:43 Mark, to plan, agenda for this week had a planning session for the November thirtieth workshop on Friday morning with Mallory, and her team, Mallory Weinheimer Chicken E.
09:38:00 Forestry is is kind of the coordinator of our forestry efforts, and she's assembled a great team of folks and they're gonna come to the November Thirtieth workshop with some
Russians and specific ideas about parcels of land that Jefferson county May
09:38:22 Propose co-management with DNA because some of the lands that have been proposed for the carbon project may actually be better suited to timber harvest recreation.
09:38:35 Some of them are places where certain recreational groups have kind of earmarked as the best locations for routes, for, like the Olympic Discovery trail or extension of trails
in Anderson Lake state Park so there's just some some opportunities for creative
09:38:56 Planning around those parcels of land that aren't wouldn't just include timber, harvest, or just include the carbon project, but might include a mix of those uses on that parcel
so anyway, stay tuned for that and then we did our one-tenth of 1%
09:39:13 Vendor interviews on Friday the eighteenth, and then the cherry on top of the Sunday of the last 2 weeks of civic duty, was the grand opening of the jump playground, at the
HD carol Park and it.
09:39:26 Was just full of joy. I mean that the brass band was there, playing their their instruments, which is always trueful.
09:39:36 But the the thing that I said in my my comments was that I imagined for all the years of knowing about the jump playground.
09:39:44 And its eventual location. When I walk in HD.
09:39:47 Carol Park, or I ride my bike, which I do frequently, because I, the Rick Telson Trail, connects to the connects my side.
09:39:54 Of headlock to the the west side of Hadlock, in the schools.
09:39:58 I I ride across there a lot, and I'm always imagining that little patch of ground and thinking that someday that's just gonna be full of joy and laughter.
09:40:08 And oh, my God! Friday! It was freezing cold, but it was a caffeine of kids just screaming and joy, and it was just exactly what I imagined that place would be and I'm so grateful
for the county leadership our public works team and parks matt Tyler and parks I mean
09:40:27 Everybody dug in an or, and we all rode together in the same direction along with the jump, playground, board, and Sarah Grossman who led that board and all of her team and
the the contractor who actually constructed the playground, and if you haven't gone and seen it yet you have
09:40:45 to go. It is so colorful and happy, and joyful, and I did not.
09:40:49 I know I talked about the merry-go-round in my comments, and I probably talked about it in my comments here.
09:40:56 I did not get on the merry-go-ground, yet it was too full of kids, so I had to had to defer to the principal stakeholders of that playground on Friday but it it was awesome
it was fancy i've never seen an opening as well as tended for
09:41:10 sure or as many screams as joy. Yeah, nothing short of awesome, nothing short of awesome.
09:41:15 So that ends my last week
09:41:20 So I gobble that most of the time do you wanna look, look ahead, for we can do it quickly.
09:41:29 Maybe maybe you should go first. Well, we can look ahead quickly because today, this week is Thanksgiving and the courthouse is closed on Thursday and Fridays.
09:41:38 So I have a couple of meetings on Tuesday and Wednesday, but not much, so I'll be getting a lot of my tasks done, and if anyone's waiting on anything for me know that you're
gonna get it this week sorry I've had this I keep this list.
09:41:52 My most important tasks in my notebook, and sometimes the page gets really long before things get checked off.
09:41:58 But about I have about a half a page and stuff to do this this Tuesday, and Wednesday, but then we'll be out Thursday and Friday, so that's my this week all right.
09:42:08 Well done. Yeah, it's it's a short one. I'll be if you're waiting for an email back from here.
09:42:12 Or something. I'll probably get that taken care of before Wednesday.
09:42:15 This week too. Tonight's busy night. We have the the point.
09:42:19 Time Kickoff meeting. If anyone wants to volunteer in the the annual homeless discount first meetings tonight that happens in January, I can send you the the countdown clock,
and then we have the northward Canal Chamber of Commerce down in
09:42:35 Quilsee from 4 30, and then the board meeting, and then the all, all, all hands meeting, and 5, 30, and there's a community meeting meeting about the relationship between the
community centers and only cap which manages the them and the community which is really interested in the advisory Council which is referenced in our contract
09:42:58 But hasn't really taking place yet. So a meeting about that at from 6 30.
09:43:04 To who knows when tonight tomorrow we're I think just about done with the asap project through the area sector analysis with the Edc.
09:43:17 So I'll participate at that in the morning. And then, as I mentioned, we have a special meeting of Jeff.
09:43:21 Com, which will mostly be executive session. At 10 A.
09:43:26 M. And then go. You know, visit some some staff members to got it only cap for a little Thanksgiving celebration.
09:43:34 On Wednesday. We've canceled the Housing Fund Board meeting because the day before things giving we'll talk a little bit about that later in the agenda today.
09:43:44 And then I'm meeting with some some folks about Dnr.
09:43:48 Forest issues on Wednesday, and then that's it for me this week.
09:43:54 Maybe in case folks don't know what the point in time count.
09:43:58 Maybe you can explain a little bit about what that is just for the benefit of the public.
09:44:01 Who's with us? Sure. So every year there's a an annual point in time, Count, that
09:44:10 I guess, and so we count how many folks are are homeless, only cat manages this count, and it can there's some interest in expanding the scope because a lot of the those folks
who are you know couch surfing or marginally.
09:44:26 Housed don't necessarily qualify for the point in time, count, but would be interest.
09:44:30 We'd be interested in capturing that data for our own.
09:44:33 Our own work with the Housing Fund Board and other housing programs.
09:44:38 But it's basically one day and you're trying to find on that point in time.
09:44:44 How many people are unhoused in Jefferson County.
09:44:47 They don't have, you know, if they're in an Rv.
09:44:49 They don't have electricity, or septic, or or you know, so they're not.
09:44:54 That's pretty much it. If you're in an Rv.
09:44:57 With appropriate septic and electrical, and you can wash and prepare food.
09:45:02 Then you're not unhoused according to the point in time, count, so that it'll there'll be a couple meetings the first one, as I say, reach out to me.
09:45:09 If you want to be invited today, but it relies on volunteers.
09:45:13 Usually I've participated down at the South and food banks, you know, just hidden everybody up as they come in, asking if they they know anyone that's homeless or or unhoused,
and or if they are themselves and often people don't even identify, as as unhoused but would
09:45:28 Qualify for the point in time, count. So it's a lot of communication and and talking about definitions, and it's a lot about.
09:45:36 You know, shaking people out where they where they house and where they where they camp.
09:45:42 You know there's people that go out to the the known encampments and the areas around poor towns in, and really is just an opportunity to identify the scope of the problem that
we're trying to work on thank you and how many about how many have you guys counted in the past you know
09:46:06 Anywhere that and our numbers are the tip of the iceberg. Often the schools own count will identify more students who are marginally housed, but you know 150 to 175 is usually
the number that we get it's 9 46 and I see Dr.
09:46:14 Barry has joined us, so we will kick off our monthly, and I saw Willie there too.
09:46:22 Oh, you have to accept. I saw a number of Kpd.
09:46:25 C questions. So it's it's this is our first monthly update from Dr.
09:46:30 Barry, so we'll see if we can actually get it done in 45Â min.
09:46:34 Good morning, Willie.
09:46:35 Hi, everyone. It's nice to see you again. It does feel like it's been a while and based on some of the comments we've received from Kptz probably longer than some of our listeners
would have preferred since.
09:46:48 Thank you. Back with you guys and there are some updates to give today the biggest challenge we're facing right now is that we have 3 simultaneous respiratory viruses putting
a strain on our health care system.
09:47:01 So I'll talk you through all 3. But we are.
09:47:05 We are facing some shortages in access to healthcare, related to respiratory viruses in our region, and the State as a whole.
09:47:12 Nationally on the Covid front cases and hospitalizations are relatively flat.
09:47:19 Deaths are actually downtown. But that's down to 286 deaths per day, due to COVID-19, which is still an incredibly high number, as we've discussed on this program before a bad
flu season is about 60 to 80 decks per day so we're still
09:47:33 well above that when it comes to COVID-19 we've just been hanging there for quite some time.
09:47:39 So that's just helps us keep in perspective that COVID-19 remains a very severe virus, and much more severe than the flu statewide cases and hospitalizations, as well as decks
are relatively flat in Jefferson county we have diagnosed 6,240
09:47:58 4 cases of COVID-19. That puts our case rate at 184 per 100,000, with a 6 point, 7% positivity rate that combined with the rate of home tests reported to our office puts us
at a key S.
09:48:13 Or retainment rate of about 20%. Right now, meaning we're catching about one in 5 of the cases that are out there.
09:48:20 So there's still a lot of COVID-19 transmission in our community.
09:48:23 We have no one currently hospitalized for COVID-19?
09:48:27 We did have 2 more hospitalizations in the last week, so a total of 162 hospitalizations.
09:48:33 Unfortunately we do have one new death to report today. We lost one of our citizens to COVID-19 for a total of 33 deaths.
09:48:42 In this response. He was a man in his seventies. He was vaccinated and boosted, but had not had a chance to get the bivalid Booster yet he had multiple chronic conditions and
unfortunately his tradition was affected by access to health care issues particularly around some of the critical hospital shortages We're seeing
09:49:01 In Kitsap County right now that that likely contributed to his morbidity and ultimate more mortality, we are still seeing a better uptake in our region of the bivalent Boosters
than in many we are tied with San Juan county for having the most
09:49:19 Vaccinated population with bivalent boosters, with 40% of our population has gotten that booster.
09:49:26 But we still have a ways to go to get more of our population vaccinated.
09:49:30 Clown County is third in the State with uptake of the Byvalent Booster at 30 clown Kenny's case rate is currently 109, but the case as retainment rate and clown is much lower
at 7,% so we are we're, not capturing most of the
09:49:46 Covid cases that are out there currently on the Covid front.
09:49:49 We're following the the variance that we're seeing nationwide we're seeing Bq.
09:49:56 1.1 which is a subvariant of omicron overtaking the prior variance.
09:50:01 We've not yet seen that here currently in Washington State 67% of the COVID-19 virus variance that have been sequenced are B a 4 and 5.
09:50:14 So we're still seeing predominantly. B a 4, 5, the b queue sub variance, which is the newest one, which is even the most immune basis we've seen yet is 18% of the variant mix
that we're seeing at this point so that i'll just say it's still
09:50:27 Almostron, but we do have a new variant on the horizon that is even more immune.
09:50:32 Evasive than what came before, and when I say immune, evasive, that means it has the ability to get around prior immunity primarily actually in this case from prior infection.
09:50:45 And I think that's really important for folks to know, because we back in the day you might remember there was discussion about kind of hybrid immunity.
09:50:52 If you've been vaccinated and gotten Covid, that you were protected against all subsequent infection, and that's no longer true in the age of Omaha.
09:51:01 So with Bq. 1 point, one starting to circulate as well as B, a.
09:51:05 4 and 5 basically if you were not, if you were not, if you were infected before July, you don't have protection against what's circulating right now.
09:51:15 And As Bq. 1.1 starts to overtake it that that date will move even closer.
09:51:20 The good news is that we are seeing very good efficacy from the bivalent booster.
09:51:26 So we're seeing neutralizing antibody levels from those who have gotten the bivalent booster that are 15 times those who didn't, and that are 5 times those who had a recent
infection and the most compelling thing there is that we're seeing protection against
09:51:41 Symptomatic disease in early data. That's lasting up to 6 months from when you got that vaccine.
09:51:47 The additional good news is that we are seeing good cross reactivity against Bq.
09:51:53 1 point, one, so this new variant that's moving forward.
09:51:56 We are seeing that the the Byvalent Boosters protecting well against that.
09:52:00 So we have the tools we need to manage the COVID-19 search that is starting in our State and our country, but we we need to use them so more of us need to move forward with
getting the bivalent booster it's really important and it's very promising that prevent
09:52:16 us from getting sick this winter and giving the virus to other people.
09:52:20 The other 2 virus that we're watching very closely are influenza and Rsv.
09:52:28 We are moving in the flu season, and we are starting to see flu cases tick up in our region when it comes to flu.
09:52:35 We don't count all the cases, but we look at the percent of tests that are coming back.
09:52:38 Positive, as well as how many people are coming into the er with influenza like illnesses when it comes to flu, we are up to 6% of the the samples that we're sending coming
back causes that's up from 2% last week so we are in the upward.
09:52:53 Trajectory of influenza, and the most concerning is Rsv.
09:52:58 Or respiratory, sensational by virus. In most people this causes a cold, but in very young people, or high risk.
09:53:05 Individuals it can cause severe disease, hospitalization, or even death, and what we're seeing is a really dramatic uptick in Rsv cases in Washington State, including in our
region our regional report, that comes out of Kitsapp Jefferson and cloud is showing that 30% of
09:53:24 Rsv tests that are being sent off are coming back positive for Rsv.
09:53:30 So really a lot of Rsv. In our community, and most critically, we are seeing a shortage of access to pediatric care, and particularly pdiatric hospital beds, looking at at how
we manage pediatric care when you need critical pediatric care when you
09:53:45 need to be hospitalized, and and get that higher level of care.
09:53:49 We always have to transfer our children to Cattle or Tacoma to get them cared for and both of those hospitals are critically overwhelmed.
09:54:00 At this time we're seeing demand for 3 times the hospital beds that are available at Seattle children's.
09:54:06 The wait times in the er there are 4Â h for kids to be seen, and we're seeing the same thing play out at Mary Bridge in Tacoma.
09:54:14 So our our pediatric hospital system is experiencing a search.
09:54:19 That's very similar to what we experienced as a whole in the Delta wave it's they're talking about it as as their their Covid crisis.
09:54:29 Moment, and I think it's just really important that we all take that into account, and that we take what precautions we can to protect our kids.
09:54:37 Rsv. Doesn't have a vaccine for it that's widely available.
09:54:43 But what does work really well for Rsv is masking masking, and indoor spaces, makes all the difference.
09:54:50 And so I at this point given what we're seeing with hospital access, I would ask all of us to mask indoors when we're in any kind of crowded inor space for a prolonged period,
of time it's really critical that we mask in the coming weeks so that we can
09:55:04 Prevent a critical collapse of our pediatric healthcare system.
09:55:09 Remember. And then the other big part of that is stay home when you're sick.
09:55:13 What feels like a cold for you could be fatal for a small child, and so making sure that you're not spreading what feels like a mild infection.
09:55:22 To kids in your life, and if we mask indoors we do that through the holiday season we really can quell this surge of Rsv.
09:55:31 And make sure that our kids have access to the care that they need
09:55:33 Dr. Barry, can I? As just make sure that I'm understanding clearly?
09:55:36 It's the Rsv. Explicitly that is, causing the Tacoma and Seattle pediatric rooms to be overwhelmed
09:55:46 Yeah, it's particularly it primarily. Rsv: but it's a little bit of everything.
09:55:50 So the biggest driver of that is Rsp. But we're starting to see influenza also trying to hit the pediatric hospital system, and so that's one that we have a good vaccine for
so that's getting vaccinated and masking would make it difference there
09:56:05 We are trying to see some Covid activity in the pediatric hospital system as well so getting vaccinated and masking.
09:56:12 Works there too, and then the other thing that is affecting it is that this surge is coming at a bad time for our healthcare system, our our health care workers have many got
incredibly burned out in the last couple of years under the strain of COVID-19 and so we're
09:56:29 Short staffed, and we were short staff. Going into this.
09:56:33 And now we're having this critical surge of demand on top of being short staff, with all those variables working together.
09:56:39 But the biggest driver is Rsv
09:56:41 And are you talking to schools about? I mean me, perhaps mandating masks in classrooms again.
09:56:48 Or is this something that's anyone has any appetite for
09:56:52 So that is some that is a conversation we're starting to raise, because, particularly with oursv, the group that we're most worried about is kids, and we know that school make
a huge difference in reducing transmission.
09:57:06 Of all of these viruses, including Rsv. Our hope is to try to get there without a mandate.
09:57:12 If we can get more of our community to mask up without mandating it.
09:57:15 That's always preferable. But if we get to the point that we can't provide care to our local children, that would be the time where we would move towards a mass mandate in schools
it would be temporary until we can get through the Rsvcs season and I'm.
09:57:30 Hoping we don't have to do a mandate, but that is on the table.
09:57:34 If we're getting to the point where kids can't get the care they need.
09:57:37 I think it's something that we all can do
09:57:39 Thanks
09:57:44 Any other questions from our commissioners before I move to the Kptz questions
09:57:50 No, although I'm I had a cough for 3 weeks, and I'm wondering if it was Rsv.
09:57:56 And then there I was, coughing around and masking a lot.
09:58:00 But you know just it's it was interesting as I was so concerned about Covid, and I was testing testing testing dusting for Covid.
09:58:10 Negative negative now, I'm like okay, good. I don't have Covid.
09:58:12 Sure.
09:58:12 I just have a cold, but now that I am understanding what the symptoms of Rsv.
09:58:16 Are, I'm like, did I have Rsv. You know.
09:58:25 Yeah.
09:58:19 Anyway. So if you have a cough a niggly cough, you might, you know, want to start masking if you have. If you're around kids or elderly people. Just just I mean I wish I had
been more good about that.
09:58:36 Thank you for sharing that, and that's a really common thing.
09:58:40 Is, you know we've done such a good job of talking about Covid and thinking about Covid.
09:58:44 That that is a common tendency is people will test. It's not Covid so they'll go about their day.
09:58:49 And it is okay, to not, you know, not isolate as much if it's not Covid.
09:58:53 But it is really critical that you mask, and if you can stay home or work from home, please do.
09:58:59 But if you have to go out in the world masking in those spaces does make a big difference in keeping you from transmitting to others.
09:59:06 What what other questions.
09:59:06 Well I'd be happy to move into the Kptz questions.
09:59:10 The first one was a a passionate plea for a return to weekly weekly Kptz meetings and I defer to the Commissioners on that one.
09:59:22 I am here at the pleasure of the commissioners, and I know they have a lot of other business to tackle.
09:59:26 One thing we can explore is if there's a particular week of the month that's easier for the public to remember than the third Monday, so, for instance, something like the first
Monday might be might trigger a little more easily for people who don't track a bunch of outlook schedules the
09:59:41 way that we do so just some options on the table.
09:59:46 But I'm happy to be here as much as you guys need me to
09:59:49 Well as I understood it, Dr. Barry, it was a little bit based on your capacity constraints, because your your allocation for you know, state funding to deal with Covid was was
reduced significantly right. So we
10:00:04 There are some limits on my time, though we actually just found some grant funding to cover a little bit more time for me to to dedicate to Jefferson County in particular, so
if we needed to stretch this out for another couple of months.
10:00:19 We could. So we have the capability to do that if we needed to
10:00:22 I should point out that we have 54 folks in on the call today which is a pretty large number. I'm not sure they're all here for your update, Dr.
10:00:33 Barry, because we have other items on the agenda of interest.
10:00:35 But that's about the highest number I've seen, and so some people got the word regarding your pitch this morning.
10:00:46 So yeah, appreciate you being here. Well, we can. We can mark you, and I can talk about when we need to talk with Kbdz, because I know they had to.
10:00:53 Okay.
10:00:55 You know Redigger, their whole programming schedule, which is not a small monster, and but you know, maybe we could consider going to twice a month.
10:01:03 You know, first and third, or something, and and anyway, so we'll we'll work on it with you.
10:01:10 Okay. Thank you.
10:01:08 Okay, sounds good and whatever we whatever we set a lot, I'm happy to to be here on the time that we can and we're we're still here every day of the week.
10:01:22 At Jefferson County public health, and we're always posting on Facebook responding to email.
10:01:25 So, if you have questions, do send it our way, and know that if we get multiple questions on the same issue we usually turn it into a Facebook post, because it means that more
people have that question so you can still drive the conversation in that way, couple other questions.
10:01:43 So this person was asking about the Nova Baxter.
10:01:47 They! Got the Mrna vaccines, and then A. J.
10:01:50 And J. Booster a year ago, and they were wondering if they could get the Nova backs as a second booster.
10:01:55 They had a reactive to the Mrna vaccine, so they don't want to get the bivalent.
10:02:00 Mrna Booster. Unfortunately, the Nova acts vaccine has not been approved as a single booster.
10:02:05 It is approved as a first booster. So if you've had no other boosters, you can get it in that way, but we can't use it as a second until it's approved by the FDA for that indication
it's the biggest reason why we haven't
10:02:18 Seen that yet is. There's just not the data on its benefit as a second booster.
10:02:24 So, if you are in, if you're in that rare group that can't get An Mrna Vaccine definitely make sure you've at least gotten one booster and Novax is a great match for that but
beyond that you're gonna have to lean on these other interventions to minimize your
10:02:38 Exposure. Things like masking and indoor spaces, and also what's called ring vaccinations.
10:02:46 So making sure the people around you are up to date in their vaccines, because the bivalent booster is showing good promise at reducing symptomatic disease, making sure your
household has all gotten the bivalent booster actually does reduce the risk of you getting COVID-19 even if
10:03:01 You don't get it. So that's another way to kind of boost.
10:03:04 The immunity in your surrounding space. When we talk about the the tiny group of people who can't get vaccines right now, which is very small children ring vaccination is is
really what we lean on is vaccinating their parents and their siblings to make sure that we don't
10:03:18 bring Covid home to them. This next person was asking like Commissioner Brilton about mask mandates, so in Canada there is discussion of returning to mass mandates.
10:03:30 Generally even else beyond schools, just in the community as a whole.
10:03:35 Similar to here the conversation I've been hearing from my colleagues in Canada is to really try to get folks to do that voluntarily.
10:03:44 We're struggling with what we've often struggled with in this pandemic.
10:03:49 The disconnect between what we're seeing in the health care system and what we're seeing in the community.
10:03:53 So if you spend any time at Children's Hospital or Mary Bridge, you know that it is incredibly stressful, and there it's heartbreaking to see so many sick kids in the waiting
room that they can't get to and it's not what we're seeing in the world and so
10:04:09 I think many people in our community just don't know that that's happening.
10:04:12 And so one of my jobs today is to let you know that that is happening.
10:04:16 There are there are kids who need care who are struggling to access it, and what we can do as a community to make sure they have that access is to mask up, and I know my colleagues
and King, and pierce are spreading that same message this morning as well if we all can
10:04:30 Mask up in the next few weeks we can help protect kids.
10:04:34 I'm hoping that we can do that without mandates, but if we needed to we would trigger a mask mandate in this case, because it's about a pediatric infection.
10:04:44 It would be primarily in the school system where we think about doing that, mandate, not necessarily in the community as a whole, but it does make a difference if we mask as
a community because you're less likely to spread rsp to a kid, so it would be something really critical we all can do
10:05:02 so that this person asked if the viruses were behaving different differently in Canada, and the United States, and they're not.
10:05:08 We're all struggling with the same issue. The biggest challenge is what what can we do about it?
10:05:15 And what is our community willing to do to protect our kids in this winter season?
10:05:20 This next question was from a 55 plus senior co- housing community.
10:05:26 It sounds like they've been incredibly safe throughout the pandemic and really following all of our recommendations to a T, and sometimes even going going further than our recommendations.
10:05:36 And it sounds like it's been serving them well.
10:05:39 But one of the questions they had was whether or not right now they're saying that when they have visitors outside of their community, if they're vaccinated they can come to
shared events, but they have to stay masked meaning that they can't share meetings with folks and they were wondering if for
10:05:56 the holiday season, or as we move forward, if we could change that, and I think one way you could consider changing, it is to say that if people have gotten their bivalent booster
more than 2 weeks ago, then that they could come in and share meals with other folks in the community knowing that the ask is
10:06:14 that people who are sick don't, because just like we talked about we don't want Rsp.
10:06:17 Spreading in your community either. So if they've had their bivalent booster, I think it's reasonable to let them share meals, and really have a conversation with folks about
how if you're sick you have to stay home and if you have any signs or symptoms of
10:06:31 COVID-19, or any of these other viruses. It's really important to test before you come, and if you're feeling ill don't come at all until you're feeling better.
10:06:39 It sounds like they're also doing a a somewhat stringent isolation for people who have tested positive for COVID-19 saying that individuals have to test negative before they
return to the community.
10:06:52 I would say it is reasonable to say that folks can return from isolation after 5 days of isolation as long as they wear a mask until day 10, and then it's reasonable to unmask
after day 10 I don't think we need to have people testing negative before they return a lot of times people will
10:07:07 Test positive for a long, long time, and not be contagious to other people.
10:07:11 So it's okay, to not lean on that.
10:07:14 Some people will test Nick early, and so sometimes you can use testing to get out of isolation earlier.
10:07:19 But that's very, very rare. So usually, I say 5 days isolation.
10:07:23 5 more days of masking, and then you should do just fine.
10:07:27 They've also been doing a quarantine for folks who have traveled.
10:07:32 I would say, that's a very it. It is effective.
10:07:36 But if you're not wanting to they've been doing 5 day quarantine for folks who've traveled.
10:07:40 If you want you could do a 3 day, quarantine and a test with the shortened incubation period that we're seeing with the omicron sub variance.
10:07:50 You're likely to catch it after day 3, especially if you do a test.
10:07:54 You want to get folks back in the community for those who are listening who don't live in this community.
10:07:59 Were not generally recognized, quarantine at this point. We're not quarantining folks for COVID-19 anymore.
10:08:05 We, but we do really recommend paying close attention to symptoms and testing at the first sign of symptoms and masking if you've been in any kind of hires whenever you're in
a high risk space if you do all those things you should do just fine and so if as a community.
10:08:22 You decided you wanted to do away with quarantine after travel.
10:08:25 I think that's okay, too. You just really want to have a conversation with folks about being aware of their symptoms.
10:08:32 Testing at first sign up symptoms, and you could consider testing after travel testing on day 3 regardless of symptoms that'll catch a couple more cases too but it sounds like
you're being super safe and that it serves you well and I would encourage you to keep being safe.
10:08:48 Just figure out what where? Are the tension points in your in your protocols that are making things hard on you and your and the people in your community, and look at how?
10:08:59 You can adjust those to make it sustainable through the holiday season.
10:09:03 This next person asks, are the new strains of Covid covered or not covered by the most recent vaccines, and so the good news is that with Bq.
10:09:16 Or Bq. One which is the newest subvariance of Omicron.
10:09:20 Early data is suggesting that they actually are well covered by the violent booster.
10:09:26 They're not well covered in the old boosters, and so, if you haven't gotten your bivalent Booster, it's really important to move forward with that but it is still showing good
protection against Bq.
10:09:36 One and Bq. 1 point, one. So if you've gotten all those things you're in a good position as you move into the winter.
10:09:43 This person was particularly saying: They're they're kind of just trying to come out again and be in the community.
10:09:49 And do they have to isolate again, and the answer is, No, I don't think that you need to isolate I think it's important to be in community and and participate in the activities
that are meaningful to you the only thing to do to make that possible is to wear a
10:10:05 Mask. And so this person mentioned that they're going to church church is a relatively high risk setting because there's usually depending on the size of your troops.
10:10:12 Often hundreds of people in a closed space that often has poor ventilation.
10:10:16 So that's a space where I would wear a mask.
10:10:19 So if I was going to a holiday service I'd be wearing a mask in that space.
10:10:25 Restaurants are are a place where you can't mask, and so if you're very, very high, rescue, if you're undergoing chemotherapy, if you're immunosuppressed it's it's reasonable
to exercise some caution in the winter season, around going to
10:10:38 restaurants, but it if you've gotten your bivalent Booster and your primary worry is Covid.
10:10:44 We are seeing good protection against symptomatic disease, and so it's okay to go to restaurants as long as you've gotten your booster and then this last question was an interesting
one they said if a person were to get just one shot. This fall.
10:10:59 And they have been routinely getting routinely getting a flu shot.
10:11:03 Would the flu shot by itself be a good idea, or would it be smarter to get the biivalent booster instead?
10:11:07 And so first I have to say my preferences.
10:11:11 You get both of them you can get 2 shots.
10:11:14 I got 2 shots the best way to go is protect against both.
10:11:18 But if for whatever reason, you were constrained, I needed to pick between flu and getting your b violent booster.
10:11:24 I would actually recommend the violent booster. Remember that COVID-19 has a more mortality rate that is 100 times that of influenza.
10:11:31 It is a much more serious virus, so protecting against getting and giving COVID-19 is the most critical thing to do.
10:11:38 But my recommendation is, get both where a mask and credit indoor settings, and you should be able to do just fine through this winter.
10:11:50 I have one more question for you 2. Part question. So as I guess there there aren't at home tests for Rsv.
10:11:46 With that I'm happy to take any other questions or pass to Willie
10:12:00 Or the flu? Are there
10:12:02 Not right now. No, there's not any our appetite.
10:12:06 There's not really any rapid tests for oursv.
10:12:09 There is a rapid flu test, but right now it's only deployed in clinical settings.
10:12:13 So the the only way to tell the difference between the 2 or the 3.
10:12:19 So Rsv. Generally feels like a cold Covid can feel like anything right, so it can feel like a cold.
10:12:25 It can feel like the flu if it's that's been one of the complexity.
10:12:27 The flu can be covid, or the flu of the flu is classically sudden.
10:12:31 Onset severe symptoms, so you go from feeling fine to the next day.
10:12:37 You feel like you were hit by a truck often has some gi symptoms headache.
10:12:41 You just feel awful. You have a fever. It's you're having those symptoms.
10:12:44 It is really important. If you're in a high risk group to get tested because we have medication for the flu, and we have medication for Covid, both of which still work very
well against what's currently circulating so if you're over 65 if you have underlined conditions or if you're
10:13:01 Under 5. You are high risk for severe disease from the flu and so if you're having those kind of symptoms in your family, it's important to get tested.
10:13:09 So you can differentiate between the 2 and get the treatments that we have available
10:13:15 And then just following up on that, you know we don't do cat case ascertainment rates for the flu or any contact tracing or attempts.
10:13:25 I guess I'm just more and more especially with the positive tests so similar between the flu and and Covid.
10:13:32 Right now I guess I'm just looking at the landscape for Covid as we go forward and and fear that it's pretty much the same non response that we have to flu and wondering you
know what else can we what else can we do.
10:13:46 As funding, you know, dwindles and and I don't know what what are we missing right now as as a society other than masking?
10:13:54 I think you're very clear about that right now. But we're going into this this the season.
10:13:59 The infectious disease season call it, and it feels kind of like we've we've given up the battle a little bit against Covid as a society
10:14:08 Yeah, it? It does. And I think it's a really.
10:14:13 It's a really difficult time where people are exhausted.
10:14:17 Funding is just drying up, and we're not the virus isn't done and so what do we do as we move forward through that and I think it's a it's a difficult time all around for how
and the answers aren't super clear for how we get through
10:14:33 This, but I do think we can look at where we have succeeded in the past, and our biggest successes have come not related to massive amounts of funding, and not even related
that much to mandates but due to the community pulling together and thinking about how each of our actions affect the people around
10:14:51 Us, and that's something we can do without a whole bunch of money.
10:14:55 So the the biggest thing we can do is minimize our transmission to each other, and that means stay home when you're sick and wear a mask and get the vaccines that are available
to you they're still widely available thankfully with the extension of the Federal emergency order the treatments
10:15:13 Are still widely available, too, so Paxlov is still available and still free, regardless of view, insurance status so you can still get that if you have.
10:15:23 If you have Covid, but it is. It's tight right now.
10:15:26 And I think it's important for us to kind of tap into that community spirit that we had 3 years ago, and really really pushed through this this winter.
10:15:37 I do think there is light at the end of the tunnel in that I do think we're moving into these becoming seasonal viruses, so it should be much better comes spring, but we do
need to get through the winter, and the holiday season.
10:15:48 Is a time of community, and I think there's no better way to show your care for your community.
10:15:54 Then, by protecting the most vulnerable in it.
10:15:58 I have a great segue on that point, Dr. Barry.
10:16:04 I remember last year when we were approaching Thanksgiving, and we had our check in with you, and I said: You know this is the turkey confidential edition of the Dr.
10:16:14 Very update. If everyone's a foodie, and we've listened to Lynn, Rosetta Casper's turkey confidential broadcasts for decades.
10:16:24 Anyway, so last year I said, Well, I think we're gonna do rapid testing for everyone before they come in the house and we're gonna do it again this year.
10:16:31 We're gonna have cocktails and rapid tests on the front ports by the fire before people come in the house just just to be sure, you know because I that we do have a number of
older folks around the table and and it's just as you just indicated it's it's
10:16:50 Showing care for our community and our the closest people in my community who will be with us at the Thanksgiving dinner table.
10:16:56 So consider that I mean we've all been getting free shipments of.
10:17:01 Say yes, rapid tests for months now, if we've been signing up for him and my mom, my mom was like I've got 30 tests.
10:17:10 I'm like okay, well, we'll do rapid testing again.
10:17:11 So anyway, we're gonna do rapid testing again for our Thanksgiving celebration, and I think it's just a good.
10:17:19 It's a it's a new tradition right
10:17:20 Hmm: yeah, absolutely. And they do the say as Covid Test does send the ship within 48Â h.
10:17:26 So if you've managed to run out of tests at your home and you put in an order today, you could probably still get it before Thanksgiving.
10:17:33 But I think thinking about Thanksgiving and keeping that safe look at the people around your table.
10:17:39 Do you have a bunch of kids under 5? Do you have a bunch of elderly folks or folks with chronic conditions?
10:17:44 If so, one of the biggest things to do is to make sure that you don't go to a Thanksgiving dinner.
10:17:48 If you're sick and it's really tempting to go, because it's a big day, and you've been looking for to it.
10:17:54 But if you're ill and you bring Rsv to a sick kid who's not gonna have a hospital that in a week that's not the kind of care we want to show to our family and community so staying
home when you're sick is really critical testing for Covid if you have access to
10:18:07 tests, I think, is a is a good additional safety measure.
10:18:11 Any other questions for Dr. Barry in the room here, Mark Greg: anymore.
10:18:19 Okay. Well. So, Willie, a lot has happened since we last talked to you as well on your front.
10:18:28 Think that windstorm from the westerly windstorm, what people are still talking to me about?
10:18:34 That. That's the top discussion point in my life right now is what? Why?
10:18:40 Why so much damage from that when windstorm versus all the other ones we have
10:18:45 Yeah, so we'll take a quick shift away from Covid and talk about the windstorm.
10:18:50 We did just last week start what's called our preliminary damage assessment, which is a process through the State emergency management, Division and Fema to hopefully get that
Federal disaster declaration which we need money coming in for some reimbursement for some of the response
10:19:07 Costs. So that was started last week. It'll run through early December.
10:19:11 I should have an update on that for this meeting next month.
10:19:16 We still don't have a total amount of damage.
10:19:19 Cost, estimate, but we will once we complete this process.
10:19:23 So this event in particular did hit us pretty hard. The national weather service was predicting a pretty strong windstorm event a few days in advance, and the event that eventually
hit us was near the worst case scenario so they had a couple of different scenarios outlined this was
10:19:42 Not quite the absolute worst case, but it was definitely near that end of the spectrum.
10:19:47 One of the big problems was that this occurred pretty early in the season.
10:19:51 We had a couple of smaller wind events here already, when this stuff like this happens this early on in the season, there's still a lot of dead debris or dying debris on trees
and there are a lot of trees that may be near ready to come down that that this gives them the the kind of first push of big strong
10:20:11 push. And so this basically shook everything that might have come loose throughout the winter.
10:20:16 Basically shook it loose all at once. So again, cost estimates are still ongoing we'll have a final number for you and hopefully a decision on that federal declaration on here
within the next month.
10:20:30 Or so, if you, as an individual suffered, damaged your home as a part of this event, it's very unlikely that we get any sort of initial assistance from Fema I'm York, that you
should be taking should be talk to your homeowners insurance and things of that
10:20:47 Nature. I do know of at least 3 homes that were damaged by following priests do not hesitate to reach out us we we can't offer any sort of direct system here, but we would love
to be able to include your situation as part of our request for the Federal government
10:21:06 Maybe the off able to offer some advice, so don't hesitate to reach us.
10:21:09 Reach out to us here at deem regarding that otherwise it has been relatively dry.
10:21:16 The the past week or so unusually dry for this time of year but we'll remain ready to respond to future winter storms where I'm in the process of conducting our after action
review with all of our partners, but again one more time I will give a shout out to our public utilities
10:21:34 District to our road crews, both at the city up account in that state we just did phenomenal work things moving on to the Covid front.
10:21:44 You know, I think Commissioner Brooklyn and Dr.
10:21:47 Barry both mentioned that funding has dried up on the 100% Federal cost share for response activities ended on July first, on that went down to 90% through October 30, first
and then that deadline has passed so it is really unfortunate that even as we are recommending folks start to
10:22:05 Mask up yet again we don't have access to be able to distribute those free masks as we once did.
10:22:13 Thankfully, though I do know of a lot of locations still have quite a backstop from masks.
10:22:20 We previously distributed either surgical or in 95 or a and 95 I'm sorry, you know, in a lot of businesses a lot of organizations still do have free masks available when you
walk in their front door so do take advantage.
10:22:33 Of those. I'm just know that we won't be distributing any of those free masks like we did previously.
10:22:39 You already mentioned? Say yes, Covid test. I'm still is available I'm 2 Washington residents very thankfully.
10:22:47 I'm the Federal program ended back in September, but it is still, I think, a huge resource for Washington to be able to access those.
10:22:55 Yes, yes, open test I mean last, but not least, as we move into the holiday season, I will put in one plug that Commissioner Brother 10 has been really a vocal about advocating
for and that's, monitoring airflow using a hepa filter to help clean the air and provide a
10:23:12 Little bit more of a safe invitation for yourself. Your family and your co-workers.
10:23:17 You know a hepa filter and a Co.
10:23:20 2 monitor together, you know, and run easily into the the thousands of dollars, but at their cheapest I'm just looking at Amazon.
10:23:27 You can get 2 small help of filters in a Co.
10:23:30 2 monitor for about a 100 bucks, which is certainly not nothing but for those who do have the resources that would be a phenomenal asset in your home during your holiday celebrations
and for employers, I'm that's certainly something we should be looking at having in offices having
10:23:46 And classrooms, there, providing a little bit safer of an environment and monitoring airflow these are really too good tools in our toolboxes to fight against Covid so I'm really
wanted to recommend that an other map unfortunately, from an emergency management standpoint right
10:24:03 Now I'm funding, drying up and we'll continue to to be at ready to support any way we can.
10:24:09 But that's it from me. So any questions happy to answer
10:24:15 Any any questions for Willie. I just one that came up and in public comment that you probably aren't the the right person to answer.
10:24:24 But I said I would ask it. So I'm going to, you know we we passed in the consent agenda, supporting Kptz's power on Morgan Hill and the question was just about emergency power
there do you are you you've been as involved.
10:24:38 With Kptz as anyone do know if they have emergency power at that in the plan for that tower.
10:24:44 Oh, oh, sorry! Mark maybe got some more information yeah, I've heard from Kate Ingram and and Ray Sarah Brin this morning, and the generator and the 2 propane tanks that are
at amount view commons will be moved to Morgan Hill okay, to serve as better generator backup
10:24:59 For that radio tower. Great great! Can you just sing the praises of this project really quickly
10:25:05 Yeah, absolutely more than happy to. So you know we we've witnessed this during the during the power outage a little bit.
10:25:13 When folks were having difficulty making cell phone calls with no power.
10:25:18 Their internet's obviously down on terrestrial radio is one of the best tools that we have to be able to communicate.
10:25:24 Folks with folks post disaster. So even if you can't access the Internet you can't use your cell phone.
10:25:32 A lot of us have radios in our cars, or if you're smart within your emergency, kit, you have a radio that has a handkerchief or is battery operated.
10:25:42 I'm so tuning into Kptz or Kroh post disaster, and is something we really recommend everyone do for information.
10:25:51 I'm not just via Kptz, but directly from the the Eoc.
10:25:56 I think some folks know, this but not a lot do we actually have a seat in our emergency operations center for a radio operator to be able to provide direct updates from the
Eoc from first response.
10:26:09 Personnel on what? The situation is with the level of damage might be, and most importantly, for folks where resources might be accessed.
10:26:17 So this project specifically gives Kptz a little bit more.
10:26:24 On resilient infrastructure to ensure that they're going to be operational after a major earthquake, for example, it expands their reach and again, really helps us as the emergency
operations center and all of our public safety personnel to communicate with you post disaster and again gives you a view
10:26:41 To the outside world, and we'll let you know where resources may be when you need them both.
10:26:47 So absolutely a vital project. I'm Captz has always been an excellent partner, and I I really do appreciate the support from all of you at the Bocc for helping this project
along
10:26:57 And I did listen to the the kptz updates after the storm on my hand.
10:27:01 Crank radio and Grant, solar radio and they were doing them every 15Â min.
10:27:07 So I was grateful for the that service, and I couldn't remember about the generator.
10:27:14 So I'm glad that you could confirm that mark, because I thought that that was the case, but confirmed yeah, it's a standard good practice, anything else, for dr Barry.
10:27:29 It's happened once before, and corrected that quick
10:27:26 Or I always wanted to call you Dr. Willy Willier, Dr.
10:27:34 Barry any more questions for them. Nope. No, I just remember that we want to maybe talk about.
10:27:40 Maybe more frequent updates as we go through the rest of this flu season.
10:27:45 Yeah, I have one small item: if we could dispense with it before Assessor Chatman takes the microphone.
10:27:54 We had, a an Arpa workshop on the seventh subsequent to that, and speaking with Commissioner Dean.
10:28:01 She's telling me that the Y.M.C.A. Has assumed leadership regarding the child care project that was originally undertaken by Jefferson. Health care.
10:28:09 So I need the board's approval to shift those funds from Jefferson.
10:28:13 Health care to the Y.M.C.A. For the health care project so if you could by the child care project right?
10:28:20 Yeah, that I not so you said health care. Excuse me.
10:28:24 Sorry for the child. Care project, so if you could motion and and approve that direction, then I'll I'll take it from there, sure.
10:28:32 We want to let them go first or yeah, let's let's do that now.
10:28:37 Oh, bye, guys! Bye, bye, thanks so much not let Jeff go. No, and I'll move that we authorize the county administrator to to shift responsibility and funding from the Jefferson
health care to the Y.M.C.A. for the child care project and the hardware fund and I'll second
10:28:55 That all in favor. Hi, thank you. Okay. And it's 1028, so we cannot start our hearing yet, because Timestamp for 1030.
10:29:06 So everyone
10:29:10 Yeah, my second. So we have about a half a minute. Okay.
10:29:15 So everyone scratch 30Â s, stretch 700.
10:29:21 Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, although we're only in about
10:29:26 Hmm! To be up here
10:29:33 Esteemed colleagues thanks for joining us in person
10:29:44 Our computer calendars are a little bit ahead of our phone and we're going off the phone
10:29:56 Hey!
10:30:01 So we'll wait till it's 1030 on our phones.
10:30:58 Yeah, she said that she'd be here she could, and if she was here and wanted to make a comment, she would raise her hand
10:31:27 Okay. Yeah. Just turn to 1030. So we are. Gonna have a hearing this morning.
10:31:33 So I will welcome everyone, including all the public who's online with us this morning to this public hearing regarding setting the 2,023 AD valorem tax levies for Jefferson
County Levy in 2,022 and collection in 2,023 and we are joined
10:31:53 By our colleagues, Assessor Jeff Jeff Chapman, I'm not sure is treasurer.
10:31:59 Pray to gonna join us as well. She was listed on the agenda.
10:32:04 My
10:32:06 The case. All is here great thanks for joining us. Laurie.
10:32:12 Okay. So I'm opening the hearing. And if you have joined this meeting, no one's on the phone.
10:32:19 So if you're here via Zoom, and would like to make a public comment.
10:32:23 We're gonna have an opportunity
10:33:43 Left by and off when we started. Is there something we can start and re reboot testing testing
10:33:58 Okay. We're back I'm hearing from the public. Okay.
10:34:01 So I am gonna start again, and we are. We would like to out well, welcome everybody to this public hearing.
10:34:09 Regarding setting our 23 AD for alarm tax levies for Jefferson County.
10:34:14 The levy in 22 and collection in 2023, and we are gonna get a briefing from Assessor Chapman and Laurie Keesel in advance of the hearing and then we'll open the hearing for
public comment.
10:34:31 So and remember that you have to keep the mic close to your mouth for the public to hear you.
10:34:37 Thank you very much, Commissioner. I'm Jeff Javana again, and the county assessor and Laura Lee is here literally keeps so she's does our Levy technician each year all the taxing
districts run levies.
10:34:53 So a lot some of them are regular levies, which means they're limited to the 1% limit each year plus new construction.
10:35:01 Other ones are voted levies that at the time you vote something, in whether it be for one year or 3 years, 4 years or 6 years, that it sits the limits that we work with we have
50 levies.
10:35:13 That, we're working with is here literally work starting in beginning of September through 2, actually when we set the levies and close them in January with the taxing districts
to try to make sure that we're all everything stays in compliance with the rules and the asshole
10:35:30 With the budgets, constraints that are set by the various districts when they pass their budgets so far we've been doing a pretty good job of it.
10:35:39 I don't think we've never had to do a refund levy.
10:35:45 So. So we basically what we certify at the end that goes out on taxes is what exactly is most to go out and or frankly credit lowerly with.
10:35:54 But or the regular levies that would include the county levies.
10:36:01 The road levies, library, port, Pudd, the Re.
10:36:06 The non voted levies that are continuing. You're limited to 1% plus new construction each year in order to get the 1%, though you have to pass a resolution saying that you want
the authority to take the 1% okay, so you know what you're setting at that yes.
10:36:24 We're gonna qualified to take the 1% you can actually pass a resolution that qualifies you to take 1%.
10:36:31 But take 0, but you still need the resolution. And so what that does is that sets up bake capacity.
10:36:39 In other words, you say I'm gonna pass the resolution.
10:36:41 Take 0. But that still qualifies you for the 1%, so you could actually the next year take that 1% plus the next year is 1%.
10:36:49 If you don't pass the resolution then you're limited to what you had the prior year which would be 0 both for this year and ongoing so what this hearings about is to set the
one to basically authorize through resolution the 1% for the county levy the
10:37:11 Roads levy the county roads levy, and the conservation future is levy.
10:37:17 3 levies that the county has control over and
10:37:24 To add to that. Yeah, I just a little background is the, you know, assess values obviously went up quite a bit this year last year.
10:37:34 My ratio, which is set by department revenue of how I'm doing value-wise compared to sales, was like 91.3 this year.
10:37:44 I I just got it last week the end of last week, and it's 90.
10:37:48 1 point, 4 so we basically got values up to where our ratio is the same as before.
10:37:56 The time we started revival. We were down below 70%.
10:38:00 So that tells you why all the values went up it. It doesn't do any good to set the ratio low, because what the department reven does when they determine the State school levy
is they divide by your ratio and you'll come up with a higher levy rate if you're
10:38:14 Under evaluating, so that you know this day I'll get their money either way.
10:38:18 You look at it, the county current expense is limited to a dollar 80 per 1,000 back in 2,013.
10:38:26 We were at a dollar 56, and we've been talking about maybe doing a lid lift for various purposes.
10:38:31 But you only had a little bit to play with between a dollar 56 and a dollar 80, with the rising values over the last several years.
10:38:39 We're going to be a dollar to a dollar 3 so we're going to be almost 76 cents below the our statutory levy limit, and you'll see that very similar that we drop 35 cents on the
levy rate, since then same with conservation futures
10:38:57 And same with roads, as both of them have gone down considerably, because of the Ss values going up doesn't mean we get anywhere more money than the 1% each year.
10:39:06 But if you did do, Levy, if you had a lid left, then you have more of a cushion here to work with, which is probably why you're gonna see some lid lists next year, from some
of the junior districts and fire district of course is looking at lid lessons
10:39:23 February.
10:39:26 Which is now combined with Portland law
10:39:30 So anyway, if there are any questions I'd be glad to take them.
10:39:35 Jeff. You mentioned the the 3 resolutions for the levees yeah, also, there's a diversion of road levy for traffic law enforcement that you'll be asked to approve this morning
and I might note that this is a second year where the board is
10:39:52 reduced the the diversion from the road fund to current expense.
10:39:57 We began at 7 20 a year in 2,022.
10:40:02 We dropped to 6, 70, and in 2,023.
10:40:05 We're dropping to 6 20, and when when we entertain the budget for 2,02420, 25, we'll have a discussion about whether we can afford to reduce that even further in those 2 years
and so that that diversion what it effectively does is increases the amount of the
10:40:22 Rot fund going to public works, correct by reducing that diversion yeah, that's exactly what it does.
10:40:30 Yeah, public works keeps more of their property tax revenue, but it probably means that we have to supplement from the general fund for the sheriff's department.
10:40:37 I mean unless we're reducing the budget in the sheriff and what what we're saying is that we reduce the levy?
10:40:46 And we're not seeing ill effects on the general fund side. But you're right.
10:40:50 Anything that we give back to the road fund. The general fund has to cover otherwise right, but it also allows them to apply for more grants and and leverage that 1 10 ratio
that they get.
10:41:01 I mean yeah, and they're famous for every dollar they get.
10:41:07 They turn into $5, or in some cases even more great thanks for digging into that.
10:41:12 Yes, it the road levy is still limited to the 1% each year, and then the diversion is actually an after calculation that comes out of that.
10:41:21 So you set the road, levy. Add to one, then, you say, well, we're going to divert 620 of that over, so it doesn't change their lemon
10:41:29 And the same pretty much for veterans and mental health and DVD.
10:41:33 Development, disability out of the current expense, levy, as we you know, it's one levy, and then you have these sub levies underneath.
10:41:40 So the 1% is calculated on
10:41:43 Then to share.
10:41:47 I had one question for Jeff, and it's really just kind of.
10:41:50 I don't know. Table setting a little bit, you know.
10:41:54 I I mean it's been our practice usually, of course, to to raise the limit.
10:41:58 The 1% I mean inflation, especially for roadwork, has been over that long before we had inflation across the board, you know, and as we go through collective bargaining and
have you know some really made some changes with staff compensation it's it's critical i'm just wondering are there many counties that
10:42:15 Don't take advantage of this that don't do the the lid lift across the state.
10:42:19 There's a few that don't, but ultimately they do, because what happens is, if you pass the resolution, take 0 then you're banking that capacity, and we've had districts even
here in Jefferson County that have taken less because they were trying to Phase out their regular
10:42:36 Levy, so they would they pat, they preserve their right to take that one, but they wouldn't take it, and then what we found out is when they bank that capacity ultimately or
5 years later, so they get back up and it winds up so you know if if you were talking about 6% we used to have a
10:42:55 6% limit. Not one. You could say that. Yeah, we're not gonna take the whole 6%.
10:43:01 But you know 1% is so little, and it's well last.
10:43:06 Then inflation, the rate of inflation that you know you're not necessarily helping any buddy by not taking it, because you still need the revenue so if you're not getting it
through a property, tax one which is a pretty graduated increase, then you turn the fees and other ways of doing it
10:43:26 Which in themselves are our labor, intensive, and and a bit complex.
10:43:30 I mean, we now administer 7 fees. We're at one time we were only ministering the one fire, you know, for Dnr.
10:43:37 The fire, protection, assessment, and now we've got notches weed, and conservation, got septic.
10:43:45 So we've got a number that have done it to bring in that extra revenue, and each one of those requires quite a bit of administration, and so so I it doesn't necessarily.
10:43:54 There. I mean, it looks maybe okay, to not take the 1%.
10:43:58 But ultimately, it probably costs government more
10:44:03 Great. Thank you.
10:44:06 So I can open the public hearing now, so as your elected officials, we want to hear public testimony on this issue.
10:44:14 You're testimony will help inform our deliberations and decisions.
10:44:18 I'll now open the hearing to listen to public testimony.
10:44:21 If you've joined this meeting via the zoom link.
10:44:24 Please click on the raise hand, Icon at the bottom of your screen, and you will be broad over as a panelist, and asked to unmute and share.
10:44:33 Your video if you wish. I don't see anyone on the phone
10:44:40 So when called upon. Please address your comments to the board, and not the audience also.
10:44:45 Please be respectful of opinions by others that may differ from your own.
10:44:48 Each person must state their name in place of residence, and we'll have up to 3Â min for comments, so is there anybody who's with us this app this morning?
10:44:57 Not afternoon yet. Who would like to make a public comment on the on setting the 2,023 AD alarm, tax levies?
10:45:05 If so, use the raise hand button at the bottom of your zoom screen.
10:45:10 We'd love to hear from you
10:45:13 Not any up. There's a hand
10:45:25 Good morning, Jean, you'll have 3Â min for comment.
10:45:31 Good morning. Can you hear me
10:45:33 We can.
10:45:37 Oh, okay.
10:45:37 Fabulous Jean Valjean. I'm I'm just my my only comment is that this stuff is all very interesting, and I'm not gonna pretend that I understand it But I would find it.
10:45:51 Very helpful if more information was shared, it helps to take the mystery out of it for the public, and when Mr.
10:46:03 Chapman speaks is very high level information, and it is difficult for the general public.
10:46:10 I guess maybe that's the projecting. Do comprehend what he says.
10:46:14 So, if if he could dump it down, perhaps, or just share more information, or think out loud.
10:46:26 Thank you.
10:46:28 Thank you, Jean. You broke up there at the very last.
10:46:32 So if you could, could you restate your last sentence
10:46:38 She's just asking
10:46:39 Maybe we need an infographic. But one thing that I oh, I guess we're not deliberating yet. Is any.
10:46:46 Is there anyone else who is with us this morning? Who would like to make a cub public comment on the setting the tool 23 AD for alarm tax levies?
10:46:56 Please use the raise hand, button at the bottom of your zoom screen.
10:46:59 Anyone else with us here in the zoom room this morning, wishing to make a comment.
10:47:05 There's nobody with us in the public chambers in person.
10:47:12 So it's only the zoom room this morning
10:47:18 And you could. If you are interested, you can go ahead and raise your hand and we'll bring you over in the order that the hands go up, wow!
10:47:25 George, you're gonna need to accept the promotion to panelists
10:47:36 Hmm! That's my cop.
10:47:40 Is it on now
10:47:41 Yup. We can see we we're here with us now.
10:47:45 You have 3Â min for comment
10:47:46 Well, I'll take less than that. I would encourage you to vote for it, and I can't imagine Jeff dumming down anything.
10:47:58 Thank you.
10:48:00 Can you state your name and address for the record
10:48:03 Oh, sure. George, Yan, that's why, and T.
10:48:11 Thank you, George. Anyone else with us this morning who wishes to make a public comment on setting of the 2,023 AD valorem tax levy rates anyone else use the raise hand button
at the bottom of the zoom screen i'm not seeing any other hands.
10:48:30 Go up, so add I will, seeing no other interest in testimony.
10:48:36 This public hearing is now closed, and we can deliberate and discuss, and I I what I was gonna say is that a lot of misconception when people all got their new assessments,
in the mail people were immediately.
10:48:54 Jumping to the their taxes, are going to go up and equivalent percentage and I was explaining that the the amount that we can increase taxes are limited to 1% and that does
not even make up for the cost of consumer price index increases, that we're seeing so you know
10:49:15 There's gonna be constraints somewhere. But I just wondered if maybe you could state that, and I'm more assessor official way cause I feel like I've been explaining it a lot
to people and when I do.
10:49:28 They're like oh, thank God, I didn't understand that and it's it is, you know, shocking when people see their assessments go up so much, and they kind of wonder how that's gonna
affect their monthly you know budget but I think underscoring and reminding people that
10:49:44 The the increases are limited to 1%. Yes, the increases for regular levies are are limited to one which is basically the cost of government, the the exception of course, are
the voted measures most of which are school measures so most total measures when you vote.
10:50:02 And can increase. They're not limited to 1%.
10:50:05 But they're limited to what the voters approve.
10:50:07 So it's it's a good idea to pay attention, you know, when you go to vote or you vote on a lid left, which the lid lift that's where they call it.
10:50:15 A little lift. It's going above the 1% in other words, you you're not.
10:50:20 Don't want to be limited to your 1%.
10:50:21 Increase, for, say each Jefferson fire and rescue.
10:50:25 You want to be able to go higher than that, and instead of having an 88 cent levy which they're gonna have now they're they want to go up to maybe to higher amount and then
the voters decide working with the fire district how much is that appropriate but that's
10:50:39 exactly right is that what we're seeing? We there weren't a lot of voted levies this last year.
10:50:44 I think there was a capital project levy for more towns, a school district, but a lot of them were sustaining levies, and in one case with us failure of the bond measure and
quilting you actually are gonna have a situation where values went up but taxes are gonna go down.
10:51:02 But that's not necessarily good, thing. I mean. It's maybe a good thing for some vote taxpayers.
10:51:08 But, on the other hand, the school is the one that's paying the price for that.
10:51:12 So you would assume the school's gonna come back and try to do something to bring that back up.
10:51:17 But yeah, for the regular districts. It's important to understand.
10:51:20 We have that 1% plus new construction limitation which, with new constructions, another percent or 2%.
10:51:27 And so if the value is all go up equally, then what happens is, we only get that one or 2%, the levy rate comes down.
10:51:35 So you're multiplying a higher value by a much lower rate, and you're taxes.
10:51:42 Well, it in theory go up one or 2% the same as they would up because of that increase that's allowed.
10:51:48 Can you talk a little bit about the relationship between different areas increased value and and the levy as well?
10:51:56 I always find that very helpful, you know, if poor towns and values go up 25% and quilting values go up 10%.
10:52:02 What's the impact on on the levees that to the taxpayers?
10:52:06 Good point, that one thing that you, if for everyone, to only pay the same, you know that one or 2% increase, you have to have the same value increase across the county, and
indeed we did.
10:52:21 This year. But what what can happen when we used to be on a 4 year cycle?
10:52:25 Where you you would set values. We divide the county to 4 areas you each year.
10:52:30 You would value one-fourth of the county. So what happened is one, fourth of the county.
10:52:34 We get up to 100% of value. The other 3 counties, particularly in a rising market or a falling market, would be locked in.
10:52:42 So what happened is, you get a shift going where the county Lavie gets shifted from one area to another, where one area would pay a higher portion of the county levy than another
area.
10:52:54 Would pay, but the legislature changed that back, starting in 2,014, where they said, That's not going to work because it's really unfair particularly in a falling market.
10:53:03 Some folks are going to get locked into higher rates much higher than market, where another area will will get advantage of that.
10:53:10 So you get a huge shift to an area so starting in 2,014, they said, You're gonna value the entire county every year.
10:53:17 There's limited resources to do that. So you do.
10:53:20 You have appraisers that go door to door for 1 6 of the county each year, and then the other 5. 6.
10:53:28 We update, based on sales and statistics, using our computer systems to try to bring everybody up so that they're all in the end.
10:53:37 What went up in that 1 6 area. You inspected also happened in the other 5 6 area, but that 1 6 area you're able to look at each every other.
10:53:47 House. You know you each house. Our praises are looking at, and the other 506. Area.
10:53:51 The whole thing is going up. And the problem you have with that, of course, is, maybe some people improve their houses.
10:53:56 Maybe some people didn't. Maybe some user block, and and so you get a little more discrepancies when you do it this way overall.
10:54:06 It's much much fair, but and that's why you're you're like taking the monopoly board and raising the whole board rather than just tilting it out of corner.
10:54:14 But on the other hand, you you've got somewhere. I I admit that some properties may get over value doing it this way, and there we rely on the property owners to let us know
that that need happen and then we work with them some of them go on to appeals with board of
10:54:32 Equalization, but for the most part we actually, if people let us know we'll work with them and try to get that into perspective some cases.
10:54:41 We're not able to really do that till the following year.
10:54:44 We basically note down this is discrepancy there on equity.
10:54:49 Then the next year we look at those and fix those I hope that answers your question.
10:54:54 That does. Thank you. I think it's a we mentioned the Board of Equalization, and I'm I'm amazed at the number of people who don't know about the Board of Equalization.
10:55:02 In our community. So if you do have an issue with evaluation or the assessment of your property, you can appeal that to the Board of Equalization by contacting the Commissioner's
office and Julie's gonna Kill me because the Phone's gonna start ringing off the hook
10:55:16 But it's it's an opportunity to be heard and to review your particular case, and just just doing a little psa for the board of Equalization here.
10:55:27 It's a group of community members who have a lot of experience in the building trades and some in real estate, and they they work with one by one through the appeals that go
into the board of equalization so it's an important resource in the community and one that I'm finding and
10:55:42 Not a ton of people know about the other thing I was gonna say is, you know, a lot of the comments that your commissioners get are concerns about.
10:55:53 You know the wait time on a permitting process or potholes in a road which the county doesn't have as many as port towns and thankfully because our roads team is so stellar
but these are the things that you know Kate, and Greg and I hear about every day and you know
10:56:11 Those things are our capacity and our ability to address the things that we all depend on are tied to these 1% increase.
10:56:20 So where we can't fill positions in the county like in the department of community development, or in some of our are more public facing services like at the transfer station.
10:56:34 It comes down to people being able to find housing in the community, which is also increasing.
10:56:39 It's just everything is attached to this thing we're talking about right now.
10:56:43 The setting of the tax rates and the the risk the limitation of being able to raise taxes by 1%.
10:56:50 And I'm not a huge tax advocate, but I'm just saying, and this is the reason for a lot of the symptoms that we all feel in the community, and I think it's important for us to
whenever we have the opportunity remind folks that we're doing the best we can with the
10:57:08 Resources we have and I'm thankful for the people who call me, and start the conversation from that space and then give me their feedback.
10:57:17 But I'm happy to hear from anybody about specific issues.
10:57:20 They're having, and we'll do our best to address them.
10:57:22 But you know we're really limited in our ability to increase our capacity on behalf of the community.
10:57:30 Both the external facing the functions, like roads and solid waste, and the internal you know internal to the courthouse, you know we've had difficulty filling positions we're
doing better now which is awesome.
10:57:44 But a lot of that is tied to our lack of workforce housing.
10:57:47 So all these things are connected in the community, and it it all comes down to the thing we're talking about right now.
10:57:52 I think that's at least how I feel
10:57:56 I, and also to talk to gene balls, question or I.
10:58:00 I agree with her. It's it's a fairly it's it.
10:58:06 Washington State has a very complicated property tax system and it's very difficult to explain beyond. You know.
10:58:11 Talk about the 1%. Actually is one of the easier things I mean this year, they added, tax and permit financing to our calculations.
10:58:19 Where, if you have a public infrastructure, that, or like a stadium that you're you, you can actually take some funding from certain taxing entities and those taxpayers are
going to pay for that that will come away from other taxing entities, so every year the legislature
10:58:35 has maybe over 100 property tax bills, and most of them don't get out.
10:58:39 But some do every now and then. There's a few that passes it's somebody's favorite, you know.
10:58:45 Measure to to give you. Know I you you can imagine.
10:58:49 I mean it's like Microsoft server farms to give them a property tax exemption, or something like that, you know, and so some of them get through, and they're there they get
to where calculate these levies each year is extremely complex process and certainly difficult to explain to the public and and I
10:59:08 Agree the public should have a simpler system. We just don't.
10:59:10 Washington State. All I could say is that Laurel works very hard at it, and I do too, and we, and we tried to make sure there's no errors.
10:59:19 But done, we had done that. We're doing what the law expects us to do.
10:59:23 But it doesn't always make a lot of sense when you look at it.
10:59:28 Well, we're grateful for your knowledge on these complex issues and your work on behalf of the community, because it's foundational to everything the rest of us does.
10:59:37 So is there any other questions or comments for the assessors, team I'm happy to make a motion great several motions. Yep, I got. It.
10:59:50 I will move that we approve the resolution in the matter of an increase, for the Jefferson County Conservation futures tax levy for 2023 taxes as presented.
10:59:59 I'll second that all in favor, bye, I will further move that we approve the resolution in the matter of an increase in the Jefferson County General fund.
11:00:10 Levy for 2,023 taxes as presented.
11:00:13 I'll second that and all in favor. Hi, I will further move that we approve the resolution in the matter of diversion of road levy for traffic law enforcement for the 2,023 general
fund budget and I will second that and all in favor bye bye and
11:00:33 I will finally move that we approve the resolution in the matter of an increase for the Jefferson County road levy for 2,023 taxes as presented, and I will also second that
and call for a vote all in favor aye.
11:00:51 And do we further do we further move that we send the letter to the assessor, setting the 2023 real and personal property, leverage and refund amounts I'll make that motion
okay, all in favor you got a second second bye.
11:01:07 Okay, thank you. Guys. Thanks so much for all your work. If there's ever any questions
11:01:14 Alright. You heard that not the Bscc office.
11:01:18 The assessor's office you can call the BCC's office, and I'll transfer you to Laura Lee.
11:01:27 Thank you, Jeff. Thank you so much. We are.
11:05:44 Ready to share whenever you want to
11:05:53 I'm waiting till 11 O 5 on the cell phone, which is what we agreed 2 months ago
11:06:25 Hey? It's 11 O. 5 and that's when I said we would start our next agenda, item which is a hearing reconvene where we can meeting and starting our hearing regarding a resolution
in the matter of adopting the 2023 to 28 six-year transportation
11:06:46 Improvement program and we're joined by our colleagues from Jefferson County public works.
11:06:50 Who will give us a briefing on this item, and then we will open this up for public testimony.
11:06:58 After that staff presentation. And this is this is when you're gonna wish you were in the room, because we're gonna show the maps.
11:07:07 Well, I guess you'll be able to see it online too.
11:07:09 Greg's gonna share a screen and
11:07:14 And I just wanna say, I love this. So thank you for your leadership on this project and all the work on it.
11:07:21 I just love being able to, I mean I am kind of a gis nerd, anyway, so I just love being able to dig into the projects and have the pictures, and it's just super super tool that
you guys.
11:07:35 Have built services, did a great job of, you know, translating all.
11:07:38 But yeah, the Internet I'm Kevin Hitchcock's biggest fan.
11:07:43 No, I am. I'm chair for another you know, so I get to be the biggest fan for another 5 weeks or so.
11:07:54 Perfect, so for the 2328 tip, you guys, have the the spreadsheet in front of you.
11:08:01 I believe we have the map on the wall. There we have 32 projects on the tip, the total for 2023 is about 4.5 million dollars.
11:08:13 The 6 year total is about 38 point.
11:08:18 5 million, the average. If you take that 38 point, 5, divided by 6 is about 6, point 4 million per year, just to run over some high metrics.
11:08:28 The total local funds over that 6 year is 1 point.
11:08:32 8 million. So that's a that's a leveraging of about 5% and a quarter 95%.
11:08:41 Grant funds to local funds, so it's a it's a small increase in local funds, because we have a couple of solely locally funded projects on there like the Van Trojan shipsal project
and the gardener beach boat repair where we're gonna you know partner
11:08:56 With the port, but we're still in that same about $300,000 range this year.
11:09:03 I think we're around 2 50 last year. So if we want to run through, maybe the first top 10 well, they're not necessarily ordered by priority.
11:09:13 But there is a certain ordering in there, so we have the first one up on the on the screen here.
11:09:17 That's the quilting, complete streets project phase one that's a sidewalk and pedestrian project that's been in the works for some time, and is languishing with the need to
acquire property from local property owners that we've been unable to yeah.
11:09:35 So in front of the second one it's gonna happen this year, though, it's it's still lingua.
11:09:41 It's it's in the running. Okay. Eric was that partially funded by yep, it is.
11:09:45 There's about 95,660 is the number roughly
11:09:53 I think Kathy was working on that within last week.
11:09:57 Yep. Okay, that would be a good agenda item for January board meeting.
11:10:01 We were talking about Mark, that would be a good agenda item for the January Pif Board meeting.
11:10:07 We were talking about? Yeah.
11:10:11 Second up is the Upper Ho Road phase 2 flat project that's been in the works for some time.
11:10:17 You see, that's about a 19 million dollar or so project 2 bridges and the dolos.
11:10:24 The 2 bridges are in the I'm not. Is this the last year of that project money? You I guess we have money in it next year to finalize it so
11:10:34 But 4.5,
11:10:39 You guys ever go out there. I would love to go out there, jump in the car.
11:10:43 If anyone's ever going out there road trip. Yeah, I've seen so many pictures.
11:10:47 I just want to see it in person. Take my electric car
11:10:57 Next next project on there is the Snow Creek, culvert replacement.
11:11:01 So that's a covert that is is slowly failing.
11:11:05 It's under about 40 to 45 P. To fill.
11:11:07 We got a 1 million dollar roughly Fema has their mitigation.
11:11:13 Grant, and then we're matching it with Public Works Board Loan to to pay the the rest of it, and we're looking like Ron schedule for that next year you have a detour route worked
out yet.
11:11:26 Detour will be Lords Lake, and then it's just a question of whether we can get the permitting and the the right away necessarily do their repair.
11:11:33 Otherwise we might put temporary signals up. Take that down to, you know, alternating one way, traffic or something through construction.
11:11:40 Great. It's just not possible on on that site to to create a detour. Yeah.
11:11:47 So there's no alternative. Little cool scene. River Bridge.
11:11:50 That's right there, you know, right north of Quill Scene.
11:11:55 That's fully funded. You see, 5.7 million.
11:12:00 No match. So that's a pretty great score. We that's currently posted so load posted so that'll be a good one to get done where we've in design on that and then working through
the permitting issues and right away issues and so probably 2 more years before construction actually
11:12:23 25, I believe. Could you guys have that up in front of you? Yep.
11:12:31 Closes one on one
11:12:39 Now and University county.
11:12:46 Wow! That would make Steve family very happy he's trying to get that post posted anyways impacts.
11:12:55 When yeah, jeeze
11:13:01 This one on one
11:13:06 As well
11:13:09 The actual, so
11:13:21 It's important.
11:13:28 Critical.
11:13:31 I will mention. I'm looking for the number right now. To, we added.
11:13:36 Project this year. I'm looking forward to see your bridge.
11:13:41 You guys come to that, for I do like 30 or 29, I think somewhere down there we've been able to not load post that but looks like we're going to have to and so there was a funding.
11:13:53 Opportunity that we pursued and heard. Yet whether we were successful is that center road?
11:13:59 Then 3 and a half miles or so south of of Schumacher Center.
11:14:07 Wow! And that's the detour for a lot of washedd projects right so we'll see you don't even get us started on the septage trucks.
11:14:18 What what are we gonna do with all of our waste, anyway?
11:14:22 The next project there, and you road bypass, that's another flat project that's currently Underway.
11:14:28 To make you know we had. We had the emergency that cause the construction of this road, and then the the flat funding is going to improve 2 sites along.
11:14:39 One is right at the intersection you know. Kind of relying the road in another way.
11:14:43 A sharp bend to kind of flatten that out and fix the rate a little bit Gotcha.
11:14:48 Yeah, it's a it can be a little challenging.
11:14:50 Sometimes Monte Monty, when when you talk, are you talking? I'm getting text from people saying, they can't hear you.
11:14:58 Those those are areas of the undy road bypass that are actually in Clallam County.
11:15:02 That were where we we're using an existing Dnr road.
11:15:06 And so that's the sections that are getting upgraded, not the sections that we built from scratch ourselves and Jeffrey County, but we can continue to try to improve that road,
but it is a Steve narrow road.
11:15:25 And isn't the rest of the Undy road being decommissioned this year as well closed.
11:15:33 Yeah, the board. Excuse me. The board did a resolution recently for that closure to close it at the county line
11:15:42 And to be clear close at the county line to the slide.
11:15:46 The portion beyond the slide obviously stays open. Yeah. Yeah.
11:15:52 Odt project. So this will. This will connect us from the terminus of the existing Larry Scott Trail down through Anderson Lake State.
11:16:02 Park, so in in progress we have the vast majority of the right away that we need and the vast majority of the funding that we need so great project super excited about this,
I get lots of questions.
11:16:17 About it next, but I mean it. Then the the bigger the bigger challenges are ahead of us right one at a time.
11:16:37 Jefferson County Road Departure Project. So we did a road safety plan that led to this funding if we get this obligated in time.
11:16:45 This is a 100% project as well. This will replace a bunch of road signs and put up markers on on curves and add some guardrail.
11:16:53 So another nice safety project, and there's a current call for the next round of funding we're kind of debating whether to pursue that just with the resources we currently have
etc. Does this one use.
11:17:06 Mostly local staff, or is this one that is contracted out?
11:17:08 We're doing this all in house. We did this before probably about.
11:17:14 Oh, I'm sorry. Are you asking? Does design or construction well, I was asking about design we're doing in house construction. We'll we'll go to Bid Gotcha.
11:17:22 Just get that limitation on in that way or local forces.
11:17:28 I think we're limited about 2 million or so.
11:17:30 I think okay. So. Thanks for the clarification oops.
11:17:35 I think I went to yeah 8 right? That's mostly for construction.
11:17:41 Right right I just had. I got out of the West End.
11:17:45 Oh, yeah.
11:17:48 Crab defines that number yeah oil, city road and engineering assessment Flat Project.
11:17:55 So this is to look at the the last segment. Again.
11:17:58 Flat Project Federal Lands Access program through Western Federal lands and division of Federal Highways Administration to look at possibilities for what can be done for that
last segment of the road oil city road along the whole and this is a Flap project because there's a national Park Entry basically at
11:18:17 The end of the road correct, which is I think, they did a similar study.
11:18:22 You know, before that big second project on our list the 18 million dollar project kind of looking at ways to potentially realign the road, or alternatives so and when it says
uses toll credits that's there's really that's not a choice that we made locally that's just where those
11:18:36 Funds came from for it, or I think it is a choice that we make locally, but you know it's a it's a question of whether they're available they have a surplus of them now so we're
using them on quite a few pretty much any federally
11:18:51 Funded. If any F. Hwa funded project is using toll credits to to satisfy the match requirement
11:19:01 That's a good question, because I've asked that to be defined.
11:19:04 Mutton paid it it it's
11:19:08 It's not real money, but it's money that satisfies the match.
11:19:12 So they yeah. So it's not when I cross the hood.
11:19:17 The Hook Canal Bridge, and I good to go, charges me a toll that's not what it is not a good.
11:19:24 Now it's a calculation that the Federal highways makes based on the Washington State.
11:19:33 Do t transportation system and their tolling mechanisms that results in some credits back that again they can apply as match for federal projects, and since they have billions
and surplus total credits, they've allowed local agencies, like ours, to take advantage of some of those for again.
11:19:53 Match like because these flat programs are, you know, would require 13 and a half percent match from the local entity. So if you're doing a 10 million dollar project, or in
the case of that perjury, road almost 20 million so we would have had to come up with 2 and a half 1 million dollars
11:20:09 Of of a local match. Instead. We've come up with essentially 0.
11:20:13 But, like Eric says Toll, credits aren't real money, so it isn't like it added to and a half 1 million dollars of cash to the project.
11:20:20 It just removed the match, and so so
11:20:27 Just in any case, it's like the previous discussion about taxes.
11:20:35 It's complicated. There there's formulas applied by the Federal Government.
11:20:40 I was imagining what Commissioner Brother Tom was imagining that every time now I'm like I should go drive across the I.
11:20:50 I was an expert for a day on that subject about 5 years ago, and I've moved on so I can tell you exactly.
11:21:03 Thanks
11:21:06 Center Road. That's a crab rap Crab County Road Administration Board, rap or arterial preservation program Funded project they funded portions out of the last byniums funding.
11:21:19 So we're held to that funding amount, and then and then Mark has a graciously giving us some money towards this project to to help round out the the funding on.
11:21:31 It. So this is a resurfacing of 4 point, 2, 4 miles of of Center road, and this is from that little Quillsene bridge project north.
11:21:41 I think 300,000. That sounds right. And so on again on the spreadsheet.
11:21:47 There. So so we it took us 25 years to overlay Center road the last time starting at the south end and working north for 25 years.
11:22:06 To get Federal and State grants, and whatever local match we had to apply to get that done to do asphalt overlays.
11:22:15 Then we come back, you know, 12 years after, it's overlaid, and we chip Seal to try to keep it, you know.
11:22:24 Preserve the surface how we're starting over again, paving from the south, and it'll probably take another 25 years to do that to to acquire the funds graduates.
11:22:36 So we're this first project is to overlay section.
11:22:39 That was last paved in, you know, about 25 years ago, and it'll be another 2 inch asphalt overlay, and so it's a you know really important Major, road for the county you know
and and the the Federal funds that we use can't be
11:23:02 Used on most other roads in the County Center road, iron, Dale road, Chimicum Road, Upro Road, or the 4 roads that are fed.
11:23:10 Elligible. We can use state rap funds on minor collectors, paradise Bay road okay, road things like that.
11:23:20 But not Federal funds. So can I ask another?
11:23:24 Or should I just Google it? But I don't know. Road. I mean.
11:23:28 That's the road that I've driven for 4 million times myself.
11:23:31 Why is that Federal eligible? It's classified as a major rural collector versus a minor rural collector.
11:23:41 There's each county has a allocation, a major minor collectors, and then local access roads.
11:23:49 It would have to do with trips and the kind of communities it connects, and high highway facilities it connects to interestingly, though our other major collector, Upper Ho
Road you know, doesn't have near the traffic of iron Dale road.
11:24:07 But it goes to a Federal facility, and most of the traffic on that road is bound for the park Quinnell, South Shore road is a rural major collector. It's.
11:24:18 A gravel road with very limited traffic on it.
11:24:20 But because of when it connects to and from. That's how it's classified.
11:24:26 Meanwhile you have roads carrying 3 to 4,000 vehicles a day that are local access, not eligible for any Federal or State funding at all.
11:24:37 There's not. There's a there's a method there, but it doesn't always make sense.
11:24:43 There's a madness, too, yeah, we can't just arbitrarily decide what our classified federally in this county.
11:24:50 I mean this. These were decisions made decades ago that you can go through processes to gradually change.
11:24:58 But it's not something that we can snap our fingers and make happen in our next workshop.
11:25:01 We're gonna talk about this a lot a little bit too right.
11:25:04 And I mean so is Oil City Road. Then, like a major that's a local access road actually we're fortunate that the Upper Ho road in the Kunal South Shore Road our rural major,
collectors because without that designation we'd have gotten none of the Federal er money
11:25:20 Over the year, which is basically what's kept those roads open every time they've washed out because repairing those sites with county funds only would have never happened right
11:25:35 Thank you.
11:25:38 And then west, belly, covert, and look at the the next one as well is a Gibbs.
11:25:44 Lay Culver, we applied for fish, barrier, removal board funds that are Wdf.
11:25:51 W funds managed by the Rco. For both of these sites the design is complete.
11:25:57 We applied for funding. Last year we were in the last round.
11:26:02 We weren't successful this round we're ranked quite well, and then there's been another alternative source of funds, that kind of dovetails with these fishbry removal board
funds.
11:26:13 That were looking at as well. So Hi! Chance that these 2 projects, 10 and 11, will be funded through that one of those 2 programs.
11:26:25 Hey? What do you think? The the total is the how much more do you need for the the West Valley cover for construction?
11:26:34 Yeah, design and construction all that upgrade.
11:26:38 I'm just curious. Sorry it's good. Yeah. And the permitting is complete, and we have a little bit of a right right away.
11:26:43 Exercise, to still complete. So we have about 900 4,100 942,000 for West Valley, and then 800,000 for Gibbs Lake.
11:26:55 So 1.7 roughly between the 2 of them change great.
11:27:02 So I think that's we were just gonna go through like the top 10 product right now.
11:27:08 Huh! I'll stop unless there's something else.
11:27:10 You guys wanna okay, awesome tool. Too. We we I'm aware of one comment.
11:27:19 We received through the through the
11:27:23 In response to the hearing for the 6 year, Tip, and it was about chipsyiling band Trojan Road was an email based you know from one of the residents up there saying that it was
couldn't happen soon enough.
11:27:38 I'm assuming you guys saw the correspondence I don't know if you wanna discuss that project at all, or or anything any updates.
11:27:47 Well, you know it's an out year project
11:27:58 Project, number 19. It's scheduled for 25.
11:28:03 It's roughly a $150,000
11:28:08 The the Pd. Has to complete the power upgrade out out there before you know we get in there and do do work.
11:28:17 It's we're talking about. You know. Gravel roads a little bit.
11:28:21 We have 70 plus miles of gravel, road and dirt road, still in our 400 mile system. Most of them don't cost much to maintain, but
11:28:33 Certainly it's not unusual for us to field requests from people living on these roads to Chip, Clm.
11:28:43 You know the county is struggling to chip seal the roads that already has that are paved at a frequency that should happen.
11:28:51 So also chip, ceiling, gravel road takes decades to pay off that investment.
11:28:58 I mean it is cheaper in the long run, maintain a chip sealed road than a gravel road, but it's not free.
11:29:05 You have to you know. Chip seal, re keep adding new chip seals every 15 years or so to to low volume, chip sealed roads.
11:29:14 So the cost difference between chip, ceiling and maintaining the gravel road.
11:29:20 Eventually you can recover some of your initial investment, but it take like I said, it takes decades.
11:29:26 So really you can only really should be considering whether you know the the roads with the highest number of people on them that are costing you the most to maintain should
be chip sealed, and we have a an analysis that we did that kind of ranked our gravel
11:29:43 Roads about, you know which ones would even be candidates to consider for chip ceiling.
11:29:49 Based on the assumption that we really don't have money to do much of that or any of that work.
11:29:54 To begin with, because there's no grants for it.
11:29:59 Van Trojan road fell right at the top. That doesn't mean it's gonna you know, pencil out.
11:30:04 But no project. Pencils out necessarily the old cost something, and by measuring the return on it's a challenge, you know.
11:30:13 Roads like Middle Point Road, obviously, or near the top of the list.
11:30:16 A lot of people living on fair amount of expenditure to maintain the gravel road.
11:30:22 But again this this comes at the expense of other roads out there that carry higher traffic volumes.
11:30:28 So it's a lot of counties. Don't do any.
11:30:30 Chip, ceiling in the gravel roads, or they require residents to form road, improvement districts and pay assessments to pay for chip ceiling, even though it's already a county
road you want to upgrade.
11:30:41 It Expo can county's been doing that for decades.
11:30:43 They, they will not spend property, tax and gas tax to go, chip, seal, gravel roads.
11:30:50 It's a discretionary project we've we've put it on here based on the analysis we did, and the you.
11:30:59 Know the request we've received to do it. Other roads that are high on the list, like I mentioned Metal Point Road.
11:31:05 We've often received a lot of feedback that some of the residents didn't want those roads, chip, seal, and they wanna live on a gravel road because concerns about speed or increase
traffic or what have you so in any case ofantrogen road is on
11:31:23 There it's not gonna happen. For a few years. We we schedule our workout several years in advance.
11:31:27 The Pd. Has worked to do, and we have. We need to evaluate whether the base on that road is adequate to support a chip seal.
11:31:38 You know, if if there's a lot of work that is needed on that road, it'll drive these costs up, and we haven't done a lot of investigation on that road yet.
11:31:48 I'm you know. We've been too busy with things like the port headlock sewer and the jump project and our bridge projects and everything else to pour a lot of time into this evaluation
but we wanted to get it on there so that we could you know begin planning
11:32:03 For that it that road does. You know we get a lot of dust a lot of wash boards.
11:32:09 Very dry summer we can't grade roads when it's that dry out the if the washboards will come back in 2 days like you were never there.
11:32:18 It's just you have to wait for the moisture on those roads, but I know those are the kind of
11:32:27 Comments we received about that road is, you know, again the dust in the summer, the mud, and the winter, and the washboards in the summer.
11:32:35 So you know, Gypsy would address. Something. You know how many residents live on roughly 30 property owners up there.
11:32:42 It's a 2 mile long road. We're only talking about ship ceiling the first 1.3 miles, after which the number of property owners dropped its way.
11:32:50 Off, so trying to capture where most of the traffic is good.
11:32:56 It has about 270 trips per day. That would be half of those will be in and half out.
11:33:02 That varies, of course, right understand? There's logging going on up there right now.
11:33:09 So that's you know. That's one of our higher travel gravel roads, for sure, but nothing compared to the you know Iron Dale road, 5,082 chimick road 6,080 you know that's really
where the bull of the county's road fund should be span is on roads
11:33:25 like that, and they don't maintain themselves, even though they're paved you know.
11:33:30 That's why we're looking to spend 2 million dollars to do another overlay on Center Road.
11:33:35 It's got 10 inches asphalt on it, but it's still cracks.
11:33:40 After 10 years, and the cracks, you know grow, and that's an accelerating process that if you don't get after it you'll lose your road, so appreciate that can you talk a little
bit about the gardener boat ramp project which I know is one that's kind of
11:33:55 Locally funded, but seem like an opportunity, you know, at least the the port is is got some sort of grant funding to rebuild the and improve the the gardener boat ramp there
but that road.
11:34:09 Is increasingly at sea level, and so they're planning to raise the the boat ramp by about 18 inches, which means the road has to come up to match that elevation, and but their
Grant doesn't cover all of that work.
11:34:26 It also requires some raising of the trailer parking area next to it to you know, match all these grades, and so we've view this as a a project the county could contribute.
11:34:39 I think we put $50,000 in to go towards some of the road work in the right away, because, even though it's not gonna raise that entire stretch of road raising the part where
in the winter storms we get the most debris washing up up the boat ramp and a logs and gravel
11:34:58 Across the road, and water. It'll help alleviate some of that, but go down there in a high tide in the winter, and you're gonna see how see level elevate it rise is is definitely
becoming more and more of a problem for that location no I'm I'm fully supportive
11:35:21 of it. I think it feels like, you know. You're also really leveraging the port to kind of do the work and get the engineering done and everything right.
11:35:28 Yes, so it seems like a real opportunity. Yep, yeah, it it sure is.
11:35:33 No, I I meant by going down there. I think it's just.
11:35:34 It's a real eye opener at a high tides to see how vulnerable that that road is for sure. And it's a yeah, it's a good project to partner with the port on great no
11:35:48 Any other comments from you guys or questions always appreciate the work, and I I really encourage the public to go.
11:35:56 Look at the interactive map that we kind of walked a little bit through on public works, website it's it was a really instructive and helpful document this time.
11:36:05 Can I share a the graph with you guys
11:36:17 Your phone billing right? It. It's all red. The as Eric mentioned.
11:36:25 Most of the money, and the 6 year tip is grant funded, but there is up to 1.8 million dollars of local match for that.
11:36:34 This this graph reflects the budget without the 6 year tip matching, and so the picture would be even more dire if we put the local match in there.
11:36:46 But as you know, we've talked about this every year at this time, you know, public works take steps to manage our budget and try to keep this scenario, which shows negative.
11:37:00 Cash balance happening within the sequence period from happening, because obviously we can't allow that to happen.
11:37:06 Projects change for answer found some projects don't get done so that's why you do the 6 year tip every year to keep pace with changing information.
11:37:24 But and I'm sorry we didn't have time to.
11:37:28 With all the other work going on to to get this done at the level we normally do.
11:37:33 You can see. I hand sketched in there. It looks like we'll actually end the year a little better than we were projecting way back when when I made this graph.
11:37:41 So maybe we'll have about a 4 million dollar cash balance at the end of the year instead of a 3 point.
11:37:48 3 million cash balance. But any way you look at each you can see we've turned the corner, and what for the last few years has been a breake even scenario.
11:37:59 We're going to be eating into our cash reserves by about 6 $700,000 this year.
11:38:05 So again kind of following onto your conversation from your last item as costs continue to escalate 8% over the last year, whereas taxes go up 1% plus new construction which
works out about 2% for the road levy and motor vehicle field taxes maybe 1% a
11:38:27 Year, and some other sources of revenue, like the Dnr timber tax, have not been strong.
11:38:35 The last couple of years, you know. Fact affected, you know the the message.
11:38:41 Here isn't to have exact numbers on on this spreadsheet it's to say that we do have to manage our road fund closely, and pay attention to this developing scenario.
11:38:52 Where we may be
11:38:55 Eating into cash reserves more and more. Usually our operating costs and revenues for the last few years have remain fairly balanced, but this year our operating costs were
about 300,000 more than our operating revenues so.
11:39:12 We have, I think, turned a corner here. That's we're gonna have to watch closely on the road fund moving ahead and like, you, said Commissioner Eisenhower in the last session
that has a an impact on level of service I mean there's there's no other way to
11:39:34 Take to say it. You know when when the costs are higher than the revenues, the the level of service, whether it's you know whether you can have as many pieces of equipment or
employees in the in the future and the long run it something's gonna give because we can't raise
11:39:56 Revenues. So again, we will continue to manage our fund like we always have to, to, not let this scenario play out.
11:40:08 Thanks, Mandy
11:40:16 No better for our wrap it around your face.
11:40:23 Oh yeah no no
11:40:30 Hello! Camera!
11:40:35 Yes, yes, I can turn mine on. I don't have the blurry background.
11:40:40 Hello! There! Hey! Greg's camera
11:40:44 We're facing a cliff. Yeah, this doesn't reflect the glide down of the diversion, though, does it
11:40:54 Well, every every that, helps and reducing the diversion, as has been done for the last couple of years certainly certainly helps but it.
11:41:06 's just a number of factors are adding up to.
11:41:11 You know, the the biggest hit was the loss of the Federal timber money 10 years ago, or 10 to 12 years ago, which used to generate 1.4 million a year more than our motor vehicle
fuel tax in this county which is surprising to the other about 37 of the other
11:41:29 39 counties who viewed Federal taxes and Nice to have, but not necessary when I explain to them.
11:41:38 Well, how'd you like to lose the equivalent of your motor vehicle?
11:41:41 Field tax out of your budget in a couple of years they start to realize what that actually meant to us.
11:41:49 So you know we went from about 1.4 million dollars a year in revenues to about 300,000.
11:41:57 That's you know significant impact to the Road fund.
11:42:04 And so all the other. There's you know there's other things like the diversion going down. That helps.
11:42:12 But that's you know, $100,000 a year, not a 1 million.
11:42:16 When Dnr revenues aren't strong that might impact us by a $100,000 in in any given year versus what we are expecting.
11:42:24 So all these things add up. But with that Federal timber was a big, a big deal that a lot of people don't know about.
11:42:31 That's what built Jefferson County's road system, and it's what was maintaining it along with motor vehicle seal tax and property taxes were the big 3 until about 2,010 maybe
2,011 there's been major changes since that
11:42:50 Time do you have any crystal ball where the motor vehicle fuel tax is gonna go, I mean.
11:42:56 That's feel like that, is it? More and more electrification?
11:42:59 It's not going to go up, you know. There're gonna have to we need to address that issue with alternate mechanisms for collecting, you know.
11:43:09 Road use fees, or you know fees from electric vehicle owners which you know they're doing.
11:43:15 But do you think it's gonna go to road?
11:43:17 Use. No, I don't know what the the latest thinking is.
11:43:21 There. Yeah, isn't there a charge when you redo your tabs on electric
11:43:34 Part of it. Yeah, presumably so this is a hearing, so I need to open it up for public testimony, as your elected officials.
11:43:43 We wanna hear your public input on this issue, your testimony will help inform our deliberations and decisions.
11:43:49 So I'm now gonna open the hearing to listen to public testimony.
11:43:54 If you've joined us on zoom, I don't see anyone calling in.
11:43:57 You're gonna need to raise your hand and we'll bring you over for public comments.
11:44:03 So raise your hand, using the raise hand button at the bottom of the zoom screen, and we'll bring you over in the order that the hands go up.
11:44:10 Sorry cough, and it looks like Tom. Tears just joined us.
11:44:15 Tom, you're gonna need to unmute, and you'll have 3Â min for public comment, testimony, testimony, and you need a state your name.
11:44:23 And where you live for this one
11:44:26 I'm aware of that. Thank you.
11:44:30 For the record. Tom Tiersch, resident of Jefferson County.
11:44:35 I I first thank you, Commissioner Brotherton, for noting the the issue with declining fuel, text, revenue.
11:44:41 I was gonna mention that it's obvious, and it's gonna affect lots of things that are in the transportation budget.
11:44:47 And unfortunately our legislature hasn't been acting quickly enough to replace that funding and that's a disappointment.
11:44:55 I continue to advocate with them to get the pay pay by the mile program in place, but they keep dragging their heels.
11:45:03 We'll see what happens. Specific, though to to this subject of the proposal for funding the the roads once again our public works is done an amazing job maintaining the roads
in this county compared to the neighboring roads like Port townsend I gotta say
11:45:25 we have really good road conditions. So thank you. I have one specific comment that kind of overflows into your next agenda item.
11:45:36 But I think I cover it all here, you know there's a safety plan right for for the county roads, but almost last on the tip list is number 30, which is county side.
11:45:47 How many wide safety improvements, the biggest safety issue that I run into here is the fact that in the roads that I travel all the time, the site lines are really really bad.
11:46:02 There are a couple of ones that I that you know, are used quite heavily.
11:46:05 For example, Hastings Road turning left onto Jacob Miller hate it heading to the transfer station.
11:46:11 It's a really tight turn, and the sight lines.
11:46:16 If you're coming from Jacob Miller trying to turn on to Hastings, either left to right, the sidelines are terrible I think they're below, minimum and yet I mean I I understand
that that maintaining those sidelines, to be clear is the responsibility of the property only owner but where's the
11:46:32 enforcement, we. I think there needs to be some more proactive work being done by accounting public works to to get these sit lines cleared off another really dangerous one
is Cape George Road, heading East turning on to discovery road the you just cannot see the traffic that's that's coming up the hill
11:46:52 From on Discovery Road. It's zipping up there and usually doing faster than 40 miles an hour, because they think oh, I'm in the country.
11:46:59 I can speed up. No, you can't. But it's really really dangerous, and I've almost gotten t-boneed a few times there.
11:47:07 So again maintaining those sight lines and enforcing the rules that are in place would would really be very helpful improve the safety of for everyone in the county.
11:47:19 Those are the main things I wanted to talk about. So thanks again to to public works and go ahead.
11:47:26 Commissioners. Please do approve the plan.
11:47:28 Thank you for your comment, Mr. Tears. Is there anyone else has joined us today who'd like to make a public comment?
11:47:34 Please use the raise hand button at the bottom of the zoom screen, and we'll bring you over in the order that the hands go up
11:47:47 Hi, Jean, you'll have 3Â min for comment once you unmute.
11:47:52 Was that me
11:47:53 There you go. Yeah, that's you.
11:47:55 Hi! Hi! Jean Bulk will scene, I just want to say, Thank you for the really stupendous road conditions we have out in the county.
11:48:04 Maybe not so much in Port Town, but the county really knocks it out of the park, and I'm very grateful for that, and I've been all over this country and I've seen some really
terrible roads and we do not suffer from that here so you have my utmost
11:48:22 gratitude. Thank you.
11:48:25 Thank you, Jane, anyone else with us online this morning wanting to make a public comment on the 6 year transportation improvement program please use the raise hand.
11:48:36 Button at the bottom of your zoom screen
11:48:40 And as I wait for hands, I'll just join join the choir of huge appreciation for the work that Monty and Eric does, and our entire roads team from the planning to the grant writing
to the chip ceiling.
11:48:56 Every single step of the way. I mean we have the best roads, crew, and public works team, really grateful, and was a good exhibit of it at the jump moment of Euphoria, last
Friday when the jump playground was open that's a huge Kudos to you guys and
11:49:15 for that project. Anyone else wanting to make a comment. Okay, I'm going to close public testimony on the sixth year transportation, improvement plan and open deliberation with
my colleague any deliberation I mean no it's it's fantastic.
11:49:35 You know we get to participate in the early stages, so we are.
11:49:37 We've given input already into the into the tip and love.
11:49:42 This iterative progression of goal setting so really appreciate the process and and and the work, the work that results from it. You know not that we did much of the work, but
that you know thank you staff yeah, why would you care to make a motion I would be happy to make a motion I move that we approve the
11:49:59 Resolution in the matter of adoption of the 2,023 to 2,028 6 year transportation improvement, program and I'm happy to second that motion all in favor Hi!
11:50:10 Not a post passes unanimously missing Kate, Commissioner Dean today, but I know she is.
11:50:16 Hugely supportive of the work that public works does as well and works a lot on the State and Federal levels does not want to talk about sight lines at all.
11:50:26 I don't know
11:50:29 Well, those those 2 intersections that were mentioned by Mr.
11:50:33 Tears certainly. Do have you know they're at skewed angles, and in the case of Jacob Miller and South discovery also, there's a crass vertical curve there that does impact the
site lines.
11:50:47 And I think he was referring more to the brush and vegetation.
11:50:50 So we'll we'll take a look at that and see what how the site lines compared to the you know, recommended site distance and we do send our brush cutters and mowers out there
frequently.
11:51:03 Particularly Jacob Miller Road, and subsequently road.
11:51:06 But it grows fast around here, and in the summer, when the cruise busy chip, seal, and there's not a lot of vegetation work being done, so we'd we'd love to realign that intersection
as a project at some point we need to identify the
11:51:23 Funding for it I think it'll be interesting to see how the traffic changes as well.
11:51:29 If and when the dot does that round about project, it, Mel.
11:51:35 Road, and Sr. 20 and we'll kinds of pressures that what's on that intersection?
11:51:38 As well, I would say the accident rates at those intersections, while they're uncomfortable to drive through.
11:51:46 At times I drive through them. The accident rates are a bit elevated.
11:51:54 It's out screen road and and Jacob Miller, but not at a level.
11:51:58 That requires actions such as you know, according to the warrants that are published in the design manuals, they they set the accident rates at a much higher level, than we're
seeing there but these are still key intersections, that we recognize in our county as being you
11:52:19 Know with that we need to pay attention to thank you
11:52:24 Thanks, Monte. So the next item on our agenda also includes at least Monty, if not Eric, discussion and potential action regarding resolution. A resolution in the matter of
updating county road standards and because there's potential action we will take public comment on this item
11:52:50 So are we on to
11:52:54 Road standards, road standards.
11:53:01 Morning. Yes, so this is a discussion about county road standards.
11:53:05 This item does not require a a hearing. A resolution is is adequate.
11:53:15 The county has had road standards for years in its count.
11:53:20 Jefferson County, Code, Jccc. Section, 18 development standards.
11:53:26 In essentially our our standards, reference standards that are in the local agency, guidelines, and the American, you know, Ashdo and Wash dot design documents.
11:53:39 We haven't felt the need to publish our own documents.
11:53:42 That's seems realundant. Some counties particularly larger counties, tend to do that, but you know new roads that are carrying significant amounts of traffic.
11:53:56 Aren't being built at high rates in this county, but but the standards go all the way down to everything above a driveway essentially we have a standard for a you know, a a
3 a lot, short plat but we you know we try to be reasonable there so there's you know. Decent fire.
11:54:15 Access and potentially access for garbage trucks and things, but not require people to build super highways into their property, either
11:54:24 So. What, Ted, this up is the County Road Administration Board in Olympia?
11:54:29 Has place to renewed focus on making sure that all counties have adopted road standards.
11:54:38 You know, like you said we do in our code, and we've used some handouts over the years to show developers what is expected.
11:54:50 We took this opportunity to to dust those off, and tune them up a little bit, make the graphics a little bit better.
11:55:01 We felt like a belt. Suspenders kind of treatment here would be having the County Commissioners review those in public session, and adopt them by a resolution, even though we
already you know do have our road standards.
11:55:13 In code, but that'll make the County Road Administration Board happy.
11:55:17 They? They like to see stuff done this way
11:55:21 The standards that we've put in front of you typically Show Lane with shoulder width right away with minimum amounts of you know base material and and surfacing things like
that these are not new requirements you the only really new requirement that we're
11:55:48 Suggesting here is, we've left the issue of paving driveway approaches for years is, we have required paving of those approaches except when we're talking about access to a
commercial facility.
11:56:02 That's gonna generate a little more traffic. We've developed some guidelines here that would require paving driveway approaches more frequently, including for single family
residences.
11:56:15 If you're approaching off of a main county road like Cape George Road, or something, a road that carries over at a 1,000 vehicles a day, and reiterating that paved driveway
approaches our expected for a commercial entities that are Gonna generate more than 25
11:56:35 trips a day or 30, 15 and 15 out
11:56:41 All of that's captured on the diagram for road approaches
11:56:50 All in road approaches are required to be paved. All road approaches connecting to a county road with an Adt greater than a 1,000 commercial and industrial road approaches with
a proposed adt of greater than 30 that'd be 15 trips in and 15 trips.
11:57:05 Out per day county road approaches for new private roads and or shared driveway serving multiple parcels that'd be anything except for a single family resident and county.
11:57:19 Road approaches for short, plaid and long plaque subdivisions, which would be captured under some of the other requirements already but just to emphasize that if the county,
is going to approve a shorter long cloud or expectation that the road would have a paved approach the paved
11:57:37 Approaches 15 feet long from the edge of the paved county road.
11:57:43 It would extend back a minimum of 15 feet and then be you know, the width of the appropriate many of the other counties are requiring paved approaches in similar situations,
if not all situations the dot requires any approach to a state highway to be paved Kitsapp county repri requires
11:58:03 A 100% of road approaches to be paved, and I had a table in the agenda sheet.
11:58:09 That kind of talked about. That that's going to come at the cost of people developing property.
11:58:14 It's gonna cost several $1,000 for a small driveway to get the approach paved, and you know so that's a consideration.
11:58:25 I if you know again that the intent is to prevent, you know, tracking gravel onto the road or damaging the edge of the road.
11:58:37 I have. I have a few steps of examples here I'll show you what an unpaved road approaches.
11:58:44 Look like
11:58:47 When they're allowed to continue? Does the potholes at the transition between the edge of the paved road and the gravel road get bigger and bigger than the edge of the paved
road starts to break away and we end up you know.
11:59:03 Patching those holes. So what we've proposed is basically where other counties have gone, not every counter, but many other counties other than the most rural ones.
11:59:20 But we do recognize that there's some cost involved for people developing property, and that that might not be that that would be a concern.
11:59:29 So other than that issue. I think our road standards like I say they're the same thing we've been applying for years.
11:59:37 If Port Ludlow associates is building a new road, whether it's and it's going to carry significant traffic, whether it's going to be a county road or a private road it's gonna
have the same standards applied to it because it's based on the the volume of
11:59:54 Traffic. When you get to the lower volume roads.
12:00:00 There's a little bit more difference between whether it would be a if it's going to be a county road we're going to require it to be paved whereas if it's a private road gravel
may be okay, and we'll be coming back.
12:00:15 To you at the discussion about whether the county should be accepting anymore.
12:00:19 Residential streets into its county road system. At a future date, we think, with the pressures on the road fund that we shouldn't be.
12:00:28 And that's where we're a lot of our Jason counties have have landed.
12:00:32 But that's we don't have time for that discussion today.
12:00:36 But that's related to what we're talking about here.
12:00:40 So I I guess you know do you have any questions for us on what's being proposed here, or comments?
12:00:49 Certainly if we can't get through this all the day, we can come back on another day before that we do need to get our road standards adopted before the end of the year.
12:00:57 I feel like we already have adopted road standards, but we want to make the County Road Administration Board happy by getting a resolution adopted before the end of the year.
12:01:06 But there's still additional meetings this year if we, if we need to cover anything.
12:01:12 So I mean no, I I look forward to the conversation about whether the county is capacity should take on future roads, because I get that request a lot, and I know I've usually
thrown by you and I know what the general answer, is so look forward to that conversation in the future I appreciate you highlighting
12:01:28 The I guess the one change that might impact people as they develop property.
12:01:33 But it seems reasonable support it. I love looking through these. It makes me feel like an engineer, for a day.
12:01:39 So thanks for the the tour cause I just certainly couldn't live there, so I'm no, I'm I'm very satisfied with the presentation today.
12:01:46 My only question is in regards to the phase one sewer boundary.
12:01:50 There are a few unpaved roads, and in the phase one sewer, boundary, and I'm just wondering as if as part of the installation of sewer in that boundary if there's the opportunity
to paved like Alley street which is just off of iron dale
12:02:09 Road, just west of math, or just east between Iron Dale Road and Mathison, or Randolph Randolph Randolph, and how about so I? Mean?
12:02:22 There may be other and I haven't. I you know that's the one that I frequent.
12:02:27 But I'm just wondering if there's any opportunity.
12:02:30 There? Well, there could be opportunity, I mean it doesn't.
12:02:35 Valley Street doesn't carry a lot of traffic.
12:02:37 So you know we again run that through the filter like we did with Androjan Road.
12:02:42 I think we'd find it's such a low volume road that it you may not warrant it.
12:02:47 I don't think that we'd want to use the funding that's dedicated for the sewer for that activity.
12:02:53 So I I was wondering what Gravel roads might be in that phase one sewer boundary, because I couldn't really think of any.
12:03:00 But that is the one that I can think of. I don't know that there's a lot of other ones in there right now.
12:03:05 We can discuss that further. Certainly, I just don't know if there's a cost benefit like if we're digging up the road and we're putting a putting a fill in a back end you know,
and and does the does the phase one sewer boundary turn on development rights along
12:03:22 Alley Street, for example, that would make more trips on that road.
12:03:27 I mean it's just. These are all kind of the questions the middle of the night.
12:03:30 Sure. Well, we could talk about that further. I think it's kind of that might be a better be neat case.
12:03:36 I guess Scott streets the other one. That's not paved right now, and it that one does carry a lot of traffic.
12:03:44 So we we can. We can look at that
12:03:57 I guess speaking about the Uga this these road standards don't we don't have an urban road standard.
12:04:00 We, because the pace of development is well, we we do in that we again our standards are tied to things like.
12:04:07 Ash, dough, and and and other guidelines, but things like sidewalks are, you know, really covered when they're required.
12:04:17 We handle that through the sepa process right now, when we're looking at a new development in the Uga, and whether there's other sidewalks that could be tied into in the future.
12:04:29 So we don't envision requiring everyone in the ug to build sidewalk in front of their residential home.
12:04:36 But certainly along, you know Ness's Corner road. We've they've been a few developments that have occurred over the years where sidewalk has been a a requirement.
12:04:44 But it's a challenge because of this how to handle storm water when you put a curve and a gutter in the storm water has to go somewhere, so there's no you can't just throw a
standard out there that says you must build.
12:04:55 Curb got her sidewalk because it it it in our case, is more of a case by case basis which is best handled through the sepa process right now
12:05:09 So we did say we were gonna take public comment on this item.
12:05:14 So I am going to invite anyone who would like to comment on the discussion.
12:05:19 We're having about updating county road standards to raise their hand, using the raise hand button at the bottom of the zoom screen, and we'll bring you over in the order that.
12:05:28 The hands go up, and I see Mr. Tears has joined us. Tom. You'll have 3Â min for public comment, as you know.
12:05:38 Oh, okay. Here I am. Thanks. I'm I'm really in favor of this idea of of payment.
12:05:48 Requiring the paving of of the private gravel roads and driveways, shared driveways you know, where wherever they join the county's paved road system, our little private road
took that upon itself a couple of years ago paved the first 30 feet or so and
12:06:04 it's a good thing it really pays off. It's it's made our road actually much better, and a lot safer also in terms of when you pull out onto the paved section, you know, longer
spitting gravel all over the place so it helps preserve the county roadway as well.
12:06:20 as the underside of your car. One suggestion I have, though, is when, when putting this out as a requirement, if the county could find a way to put together a program so that
group groups of such driveways.
12:06:37 Or roadways could sort of join together as a collective effort, and maybe, the county could could round up some grant funding to help pay for for the that.
12:06:47 Paving of those those gravel approaches cause it is expensive, and it's a few $1,000 each time.
12:06:52 So if they're a way of combining those, and you know, maybe getting a contract, the contractor to do a lower price based on volume you know we're going to do. Hey?
12:07:02 We're going to do 6 of them in this. Along this one stretch of county road, something like that that might help minimize the the financial burden on those that are gonna have
to pay for this thing.
12:07:18 Thank you. Anyone else with us this morning or this afternoon. Now, who would like to make a comment on the updating of county roadstandards?
12:07:28 You can use the race hand button at the bottom of the zoom screen
12:07:32 Okay. I'm not seeing any other hands go up, so I will close public comment on this item and entertain a motion from my.
12:07:45 I just want to make sure it's clear we're we're requiring, you know, paving the approaches of newly permitted driveways.
12:07:51 We? We don't really have a mechanism to go back and require existing driveways to be paved at this point.
12:07:59 It'd be nice when we do a project like the Center Road Overlay Project that was on our 6 year tip.
12:08:06 We tape about 10 feet of the approach of a road to try to protect the edge of the county road.
12:08:17 You know, essentially out to maybe, where the estimated edge of the public right away is, you know we will behave those approaches.
12:08:27 But as I mentioned earlier, we don't get a lot of grants to do paving projects.
12:08:31 So that's kind of few and far between. But when we when we do, we try to take care of some of the intersecting driveways the existing driveways
12:08:43 Thank you, Mandy. Thank you for that. Well, I'm happy to move that we approve the resolution in the matter of updating the county road standards as presented, and I'm happy
to second that all in favor.
12:08:59 Hi, okay. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Monty, and thanks for being here.
12:09:03 Eric. We have one additional item on this morning's agenda
12:09:14 Okay. I'm seeing one specific item: discussion and potential action regarding exception of the county personnel.
12:09:20 Administration. Manual regarding conflicts of interest. Section 4.
12:09:26 And Mark, are you gonna okay, to talk about that? Okay, okay, are we waiting for? Do we want to wait for some
12:09:39 Thanks
12:09:42 Keep up the good work, gentlemen, we want to do. You want to kick them till after the break or
12:09:53 I don't have a lengthy presentation on this topic.
12:09:56 Let's just fairly simple: yeah, why don't you go ahead?
12:10:00 Okay, commissioners, as you know, only Cap has been constructing the Seventh Haven project on Castle Hill just inches away from our Community Development Department and Public
Health Department and the employees of those 2 departments have had to endure some inconveniences namely the Limited
12:10:26 Parking noise, dust, and and actually some safety concerns because of the height of the building and the potential for objects to fall on people and the break area at the back
of community development has pretty much been rendered unusable because of the risk of things falling from the construction
12:10:47 Site, and so in appreciation for the patients of the employees at Castle Hill, regarding the construction only Cap wishes to gift our county employees to give certificates one
from Mochilling Barbecue for $25 and one from the mean being coffee stand for
12:11:10 10, add those together. You get 35. Our personal manual section 4 point.
12:11:19 One talks about the limit, you know. Non nominal gift would be any gift in value more than $25 that $25 standard is decades.
12:11:32 Old and much like our procurement, ordinance.
12:11:35 We updated it so that to account for inflation, and we plan to do the same thing with the personnel manual and and raise the limit and and sort of link it.
12:11:46 To Rcw. The Rcw. Limit is $50, and when I say Staff recommends it's it's really me recommending that you Grant an exception to the Personnel manual in this case pending the
update to our our personal manual to raise that limit
12:12:07 It's a really nice gesture and good faith on the part of only Cap, and I think her employees would would appreciate being able to accept those gifts
12:12:17 Yeah, this shouldn't take too long I you know I we ran into this last year, too, with the with the sheriff's office and some folks trying to appreciate work.
12:12:25 But this is a very clear-cut case of there's no benefit.
12:12:29 They're just saying, Thank you for your patience. So yeah, it's not to influence future behavior.
12:12:34 It's it's a just a gesture of gratitude.
12:12:38 Yeah, I say, let's yeah. Adopting getting making our policies by reference to the Rcw.
12:12:43 Is is good to work on in the future, but for the time being I am happy to move that we approve the resolution in the matter of granted an exception to section 4.
12:12:50 Of the county personnel, administration, mantle manual as presented today.
12:12:54 And I'm happy to second that and public comment and we'll take public comment.
12:13:01 And is there anybody with us this afternoon who would like to make a public comment on this E exception to our policy regarding gifts to the county team and in this instance
we're asking for your generosity and join us in generosity because we'd like to allow only Cap to recognize
12:13:28 The tolerance of our county team throughout the entire construction of the Seventh Haven Project.
12:13:33 Yeah. And I might add that the the monies that purchase these gifts certificates, are not taxpayer funds.
12:13:40 They came from a donation right, a specific donation to an individual.
12:13:44 Yeah, thank you. Mark: so not seeing any hands go up, wanting to comment on this.
12:13:50 So I'm gonna close public comment on this matter and just clarify that we're gonna update.
12:13:58 Add this to the future updates of the personnel manual to make it like instead of W.
12:14:02 Well link it to the Rcw. So as it changes our changes with it. Right?
12:14:09 Okay. I'm happy to call for the vote all in favor of this.
12:14:14 Aye. Hi. Okay. Okay. So we have no time for our commissioners.
12:14:20 Briefing session we do have one more item on the agenda, though we can take care of this really.
12:14:26 I'm looking at my my older version of the agenda.
12:14:30 Let me get. Okay. So we are we have one more item discussion, and potential action regarding approval of the 2,023 housing fund board.
12:14:40 Funding recommendations, 4, 5, 1, 40 48, and 49.
12:14:47 We will, we will take public comment on this.
12:14:50 After Commissioner Brotherton, give us a little briefing on it.
12:14:54 Great, so, as is often the case, the Housing Fund Board had more applicants more qualified appointments for the 1 41, 49, a dollar than we had the solution that the housing
ford fund board came up with was a recommendation that we approved most of them
12:15:13 At at 75% and try to find the money to make all of the projects whole in 1590.
12:15:21 After talking to legal staff and getting a recommendation, we we absolutely need to have an Rfp.
12:15:29 For any dispersed $1590, and unfortunately, they so I've this was going to be on the consent agenda.
12:15:36 I asked to put it here, and there's 2 charts.
12:15:38 The first chart shows the 1,590 recommendation based on the recommendation.
12:15:42 The Housing Fund Board made many of these projects. Probably don't qualify for $1,590, so the kind of the current staff recommendation is that we don't approve the awards recommended
from the housing fund board there's a special meeting of the housing fund board to
12:16:00 Look at a 1,590 Rfp.
12:16:03 On November, the thirtieth at 1 0 Pm.
12:16:06 And we can ask the Housing Fund board at that same meeting to refine this recommendation.
12:16:14 So it doesn't is an incompatible with with the awards that could be made in 1,590.
12:16:19 So the recommendation is just to do nothing, but wanted to make sure.
12:16:23 We had a moment to talk about this and open session, and go through the issues.
12:16:28 So everyone is informed. Thank you. Are. Are there other issues that we need to discuss?
12:16:34 No no! Is there anybody with us online? Who would like to make a public comment on this matter?
12:16:44 If so, use the raise hand button at the bottom of your zoom screen.
12:16:50 This is about the allocation of fund 1 49 49 for for 23, and we're delaying that approval of the recommendations based on the discussion we just had I should add these are for
2,023 the funds would be
12:17:06 Available January. So there's no functional deficiency.
12:17:11 That's happening by pushing this off a little bit.
12:17:13 So we're we'll have a another presentation on how how we actually make all of these.
12:17:20 Proposals whole yes, following. I mean we won't.
12:17:24 I mean the Rp. Process for 1,590 will still, even if it's abbreviated, we're trying to make the application identical to the 1, 48, 149 okay, application so it should it should
be quick.
12:17:39 But we it'll it'll it'll still be tight and'm not sure what I'm trying to say, except that we need to do over okay, okay, so we're not taking action. And I don't see any hands.
Going up regarding commenting on this item
12:17:56 So if there's nothing else we'll recess
12:18:03 Were you gonna say something, Mark?
12:18:07 Approve a motion to affirm we're not going to not going to.
12:18:13 We just wanted to put. This was the original request that has been shown to be not quite kosher by our legal staff, so we wanted to make sure that was out there, but we do not
recommend this recommendation still a lot of work with into the discussion of the allocation of fun.
12:18:29 So we want to recognize all of that work of the committee and say that it's not waste of time, and we are gonna get it right and bring it back. Correct. Okay.
12:18:37 Thank you. Everyone.
12:18:41 Okay. So we are now going to recess until 1 30.
13:31:33 I'm gonna winter. Yes, men tied up
13:31:38 Leads the other way. They tied us. Good morning, good afternoon, everybody.
13:31:44 We're back. Start my video. Okay, we have one agenda item on our agenda before we go into executive 2 executive sessions.
13:31:56 So mark are you gonna kick this one off? Yes, thank you, Commissioner Eisenhower, a new tradition here is to recognize in public when we bring on a new department, director,
and I'm happy to say that after what a year and a half or so of me moving down the
13:32:18 Hall to take on county, administrator duties. Yeah. We we finally replaced me as the Central Services director and a year of that delay was because I was interim.
13:32:32 And we fully expected that I would go back to being the director.
13:32:36 But Chris's good fortune that didn't happen, but I'm happy to introduce to to the community.
13:32:44 Chris Coy, who previously hailed from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and you might want to sit over here and I'll AIM my camera at you.
13:32:54 There we go. Good afternoon. Yeah. He and his partner, Alex are New Jefferson County Heights.
13:33:03 Chris was prepared for this role, having served as a policy analyst.
13:33:09 If I'm mistaken anything, let me know for the Philadelphia Municipal Government most recently for the President of the Council.
13:33:19 I believe, and that was like 7 years worth yeah, it was just director of policy for 7 years. Yeah.
13:33:24 And so that department's got a new infusion of energy and talent, and following on the heels of crusty Macaulay, we've got a fresh new face, and I'm really delighted to have
Chris on board and in the short time, he's been here.
13:33:41 He's messed very well with the with the Commissioners, and I think with Staff and and with his peers on the senior management team.
13:33:48 So I'm going to give the microphone to Chris so he can say a few words or this microphone.
13:33:55 Indeed, a a special pleasure to be living on the Olympic Peninsula.
13:34:02 I've taken many trips here in and past lives, and it's it's just a genuine treat to be able to be a public servant in this in this part of the country.
13:34:14 We've we've long wanted to move out here, and when we saw this opportunity it it was a it was a no, brainer.
13:34:22 For my family, and I I'm just really excited to get to know everyone, and it's a it's truly humbling.
13:34:27 So thank you for the opportunity, and ready to get to work.
13:34:31 What's the biggest surprise in your first couple of weeks on the job?
13:34:35 Oh, gosh, well, I will say this. I have a tremendous amount of respect for public servants.
13:34:43 I'm it's a it runs in the family and in small governments in particular.
13:34:50 People have to wear lots and lots of hats, and you know, in a in a city government of 30,000 employees.
13:34:57 There's a lot of specialization and learning all of the different hats that each individual employee wears to keep this county running and to serve our residence well is it's
always eye opening and it's humbling to see so, that's been that's been a big surprise.
13:35:16 Oh, just just welcoming. Thank you, Chris, for for being here.
13:35:20 We're really excited to have you join the the county team and yeah, and you know there's a lot of work to be done.
13:35:25 So you know it's as as Mark said. It's a role that has been vague, for you know, half a year fully and really, you know, it's it's a lack that that person that's focusing on
it so really really appreciative to have you here, and your your resume and the energy
13:35:40 That you brought has been just, has been fantastic so far.
13:35:44 So I'm really excited. Thanks very much. Thanks, Chris.
13:35:49 Hey? Well, so to our guests on the public public on the attendee list today we are going to step out of this room and go into exact couple of executive sessions. And we'll be
back around 2 30 come back between them right so we'll see you back here.
13:36:15 Oh, right? Right? Well, yeah. Everyone else can leave we have 2 different links I don't have the link for the second one that's that explains it.
13:36:28 Yeah. Okay. So the first, executive session we're going into is with the county administrator.
13:36:33 Chief civil deputy, prosecuting Attorney Department of Community Development Director Department of Community Development, Planning Manager regarding potential litigation, exemption,
is outlawed in the open Public meetings Act rcw 42.100 and 10 parentheses one
13:36:50 Parentheses. I we're going in at 1 35, and we will come back at 2 O.
13:36:58 5, 135 to 2. O 5,
13:37:07 Okay.
14:06:50 Yeah.
14:06:54 So so so have to wait. Okay. So we are coming out of executive session, and we are taking no action.
14:07:05 And we will be going into another executive session.
14:07:09 No actions.
14:07:14 Oh, right yeah, we are coming out of that executive session and taking no action.
14:07:20 So there is no need for public comment, and we are going to clock out and go into another executive session, and we will be back from that one, at 2 36.
14:07:33 Oh, sorry. Yep! We are going into executive session with our human resources, director to review the performance of a public employee.
14:07:43 No discussion of salaries, wages, and other conditions of employment to be generally applied within the county, and no final action on the hiring setting up the salary of an
individual employee or class of employees or discharging our disciplining an employee exemptions as outline in the open
14:07:59 Public meeting, Sorry Open Public Meetings Act, Rcw. 42, point, 1 10 parentheses, one.
14:08:07 We'll be going out at 2 O. 6, and coming back at 2 36, see. You then
14:40:57 Recording and progress oops better audio. There
14:41:12 Testing testing 1, 2, 3, testing testing 1, 2, 3,
14:41:22 I was back in the session
14:41:26 Oh, okay. We are coming out of executive session and taking no action.
14:41:33 And we will resume our regular session. We have one more item on our agenda for the afternoon, and that is discussion and potential action. Regarding the 2023 of lodging tax
funding recommendations from the logic tax advisory committee and we will have public comment on this item
14:41:53 So I we should wait for Mark to get back, though I think
14:42:06 Still no audio
14:42:09 Julie, can you hear me?
14:42:13 We missed you guys we've been done for a while.
14:42:18 We've been sitting down here like, are they coming back?
14:42:29 So, Mark, I just announced that we're gonna talk about Lpac
14:42:33 The last item yeah. So that's that's what we were waiting for you to get back until we I came.
14:42:41 As soon as I got the word, so so I can take this one off the lodging Tax advisory committee met 2 weeks ago, and went through all of the funding requests for 2023, and we knew
we had about $950,000 in funds to
14:43:08 distribute, and so we had well, more than that, I think it was like 1 point.
14:43:14 2 million in requests. So we went there the list, and we made a few.
14:43:23 We made scenarios based on different funding levels, and then I came back to Mark and said how much money do we actually have?
14:43:33 And we were able to increase. I think we're initially we're targeting 850,000, and we were able to increase that based on the tax revenues in 2,022 it's.
14:43:44 Higher than had been projected, but we even even at that we had to fairly significantly reduced the allocations to certain organizations.
14:43:58 So in the packet that you have today. You'll see there's a table of the funding request that the organizations each made, and then the recommendation after 2 reviews of those
those requests and I would just say that the committee emphasized full funding for entities that
14:44:20 Provide visitor services because they're they're really unique to to meeting travelers 2 and through the county, and most of those we were able to recommend and maintain full
funding.
14:44:39 For, and we did consider the
14:44:44 Historical Society as their 2 locations as essentially visitor centers, because Jefferson Historical Society is a museum in downtown Port Townsend.
14:44:57 That is very much a focal point for visitors to our community.
14:45:02 So the the ones that you'll see here that we recommended less funding for or let's see, the farmers market and Chicago.
14:45:17 We gave them half their funding the the shrimp fest that was kind.
14:45:22 That's a we had a discussion about that being a one.
14:45:24 A one off event so it's not like a 365 day a year always open, or you know, you know, 5 days a week, or whatever whatever the various schedules of the visitor centers are they
provide, more coverage in terms of the number of people who can come
14:45:40 through their door. We had a couple of new proposals this year one from the Peninsula trails coalition to do some actually some baseline user counting to figure out how many
people are actually using the trail and then in future years they'll be able to compare to see if
14:46:00 there's an increased use in the trail, and they've never really been able to do that very consistently before, and that was a compelling central part of that their request for
support, how are they gonna do it counters and trail monitors people and then you know those little strips
14:46:18 yeah, that. Count the number of bike tires across the trail.
14:46:24 Let's see what else will I say? Here, foundation looks like they got it, you know.
14:46:31 70% or so yeah, like over 1 one time thing
14:46:38 Those were the big kind of rational considerations, for how we would reduce the total requests.
14:46:45 I mean one idea I had was pretty reduce them all by 25, but then, once we got into that there was, we realize that would be cutting cutting people off at the knees in some cases
because like the couple of the chambers of commerce we are their only source.
14:47:01 Of funding or their their principal source of funding.
14:47:06 So I think we feel we I'd say we feel good about this list, but we we wish we could have fully funded everybody at the amount they requested of course I look through some of
them what was the winachi valley tread that was it's at an app on the phones.
14:47:23 That is customized to the geography, where so the Olympic Peninsula in our case, and it's something that's Steve Shively from the Tourism coordinating connect Council knew about
and he's Gonna you know see if he can figure out how
14:47:41 To engage with tread a little bit. I think optic.
14:47:45 The Olympic Peninsula tourism Council uses, tread a little bit, so there's a little bit like dipping our toe in the water with tread.
14:47:53 And it's been done in other regions of the state successfully.
14:47:56 Okay, where they kind of customize stories that go out across the inner webs to folks about the region
14:48:10 But other than there's other questions from you, Greg, otherwise I entertain a emotion.
14:48:20 No, I mean alright, we'll do public comment first.
14:48:23 Oh, yeah, like I don't have a lot of questions.
14:48:29 I look through some of them, you know, been through this boat a couple of times.
14:48:33 It's good to see some new players on the on the beat, and that always makes it a little harder to get everyone funded and it's a it's a real challenge, you know.
14:48:40 We? We go through this with a lot of different things, but this looks like a real equable split support.
14:48:45 The kind of distribution that you have here, so I I will be happy to move that we I would move, that we affirm the 2,023 hotel Motel Fund expenditures as recommended and follow.
14:48:58 Through on, and I will second that, and I will open to public comment if there's anybody online who's joined us online this afternoon and would like to comment on the motion
on the table.
14:49:13 Mark you have your hand up. You want to make a comment
14:49:21 You have to accept the promotion to panelists, so is there anyone else online with us this afternoon who would like to make a comment on the proposed funding levels for the
lodging tax advisory or the logging taxes for 2023 so that's next year's
14:49:38 Funding anybody wanting to comment on our proposal.
14:49:43 Looking back to Mark's comment. Earlier in the day. I think the the 56 attendees we had during Dr.
14:49:50 Barry's address was by far. It went down to 23 immediately after, for hearing on ton on property taxes, so
14:49:59 Okay. I'm not seeing any hands go up, so I'll close public comment and call for the vote on the motion.
14:50:07 All those in favor. Bye. Bye, okay, lodging tax funds are allocated for 23
14:50:16 Thank you team. I mean, you know, just in a final comment I would say it was.
14:50:22 It's always astonishing. Looking at the entire requests from organizations.
14:50:27 You know, the the level of need in our community, just to keep ourselves on the radar with the rest of the world seems so.
14:50:36 It's surprising to me
14:50:39 Any other.
14:50:43 Business additional discussion items that anyone has. Mark Greg
14:50:53 No, I've got lots to do, and 3 more meetings tonight, so I wouldn't mind getting out of here really.
14:50:59 Well, if there's nothing else, I will adjourn this November twenty-first, 2,022 meeting of the Jefferson County board of Commissioners at 2 49