HomeMy WebLinkAboutclosed_caption09:01:42 We all good? I wouldn't say that. Alright. Good morning, everyone.
09:01:51 I will call this 8 28 meeting of the Board of County Commissioners to order. Good to see everyone after.
09:01:58 A long festival weekend. We'll, we will start today as we always do with 30Â min of public comment on any items on our agenda or whatever the public would like to share with
us.
09:02:13 So we don't have anyone in the room right now, so I will turn to the zoom room and if anyone with us would like to make public comment, please.
09:02:21 Hit the raised hand button or star 9 if you are on phone and we would love to hear from you.
09:02:30 The raise hand button.
09:02:36 Okay, see no hands raised yet? I will keep public comment open until 9 30 if anyone is moved to.
09:02:43 To comment on anything you're gonna hit raise hand and we'll bring you on over and and process your comment.
09:02:50 So I guess We can take a look at our pretty beefy consent agenda. Any questions or concerns about the consent agenda?
09:03:02 No, I mean. Great to see. The Rp's moving forward.
09:03:09 . Yeah. That's a lot of money going out this year Totally. Sad to see, Wanna lead in the planning commission.
09:03:24 That's a big shift on our team there and She, you know, reached out and. Had an issue with the last against her about her other board that she's on her state board with.
09:03:35 Yeah, we tried to figure out if there was any way around it. Just didn't seem like there seemed like they're this was the best solution.
09:03:50 That's unfortunate. Mark, I'm curious. The hearing examiner. Will be experiencing a backlog there and some of the decisions are taking longer than we would like.
09:04:11 But, you know, he serves, I think, 5 other governments. And that's the lay of the land for hearings.
09:04:19 Exameters anymore. And so, You know, we could. Demand. Quicker turnaround.
09:04:29 But, you know, if we were to put too much pressure on on Mr. Mclean, he might.
09:04:36 Say, maybe drop you as a client. Yeah. So it's unfortunate that some of these are taken longer than we would like them to, but I'm not sure we have.
09:04:46 Much in the way of an alternative. Are they more complicated? Well, certainly it depends on the case before the hearing examiner.
09:04:55 Some cases are pretty clear and some are much more complicated. Oh. Yes, let's bring SVB over and see what public comment they have.
09:05:11 Okay. And the chat box. Audio today. Are people able to hear all right?
09:05:31 Testing, testing.
09:05:34 Okay. Strange SVB doesn't seem to be coming over remote to panelists. Just ask for.
09:05:47 And. Okay. Alright.
09:05:52 You have the floor. We'd love to hear from you. So down at the bottom on the left side, you have an unmute button.
09:06:02 Hmm.
09:06:09 Well, gone fleeing. We don't have any of our office staff on right now, huh? Was, this is yes.
09:06:28 With connect, okay. Good. Okay. Okay, So not not a lot of other options for the hearing examiner.
09:06:40 So you think.
09:06:42 Yeah, last week and he is great. I mean, the way he was, orchestrating the hearing and he's very meticulous.
09:06:54 I was very impressed. Yeah, the other alternative would be for you to act. Actually, hearing authority and then you could we don't want to politic make those decisions.
09:07:10 Yes, we're glad he does our quasi judicial Oh, as then I'm seeing Tom here. So it was probably me, Tom. I'm sorry.
09:07:13 I didn't. Pull my microphone over initially. It's here now though, right in my face.
09:07:19 I'm glad to see another contract for, permit review. Yeah. So community development continuing to try to bring in more help to.
09:07:28 The expedite. That we'll see concrete results in 60 to 90 days. Yeah, and this one specifically for the SDR, right?
09:07:38 For some of that. Planning services. Yeah, I had a number of citizens reach out to me in the last week about the press release we did about kind of the changes that are being
made at DCD and the steps we're putting into place and.
09:07:51 Just all gratitude. Like I'd say, 10 people. Either stop me at the. Democrats fish feast or the.
09:08:00 Thing festival or anywhere that I was food co-OP and you know just said, you know, communication is key.
09:08:08 So I think that was a good move and I'm grateful for Mark and Wendy. Makeaking that happen.
09:08:13 That's great. Good to see the the piff projects moving slowly forward. I was going to give it a grief, you know, about the poplars, but I've been with that.
09:08:29 Poplars, but I've been with that quilting complete. But I've been with that quilting complete streets project for over a decade now.
09:08:35 I've been with that quilting complete streets project for over a decade now. Yeah, exactly.
09:08:39 So Eric Who's was now calling that his legacy project. One property owner. Yeah, and it shifted.
09:08:44 It's a different property owner there was before. Yeah, so they sold the business so they had to redo all the right away and everything.
09:08:49 Yeah, yeah, super challenging. Yeah, and I think the I won't even get into the Boatyard expansion project, but I'm not, yeah, glass houses.
09:09:03 Great to see the overlay on Center Road. You know, that's a significant project and a lot more than than the the usual chip ceiling that we're doing.
09:09:10 Bye, but it will add decades to that road.
09:09:16 I'm grateful that, Grey Shad stepped up to join the Board of Health. Doing that appointment today.
09:09:24 Yeah, I had a former Board of Health member approached me and ask about the border health member that had left and the new one were appointing and if we felt like there was
any more.
09:09:36 Hope for this member saying longer and I said well I know that Public health is doing a. Focused onboarding process with Board of Health members now and that should change.
09:09:48 And how they feel coming into this role. So. I have a lot of hope that Gray will be with us for a long time.
09:09:55 In this role. Oh, yeah. I hope so. Lot of the work we have to do in these boards is bureaucratic and not, yeah, the most exciting, but really appreciate when people step up.
09:10:12 I think we hit most of them. I'm happy to move to a proven adopt the consent agenda for August 20 eighth.
09:10:18 I'll second. Okay, it's been moved and seconded to approve and adopt the consent agenda as presented.
09:10:25 All in favor indicate by saying aye. Aye. Aye. Any opposed?
09:10:30 All right. Let's see. I guess we probably should wait till 9 30 for the proclamation.
09:10:39 You think? Okay. Okay, and we expect at least Apple and onion probably for the second one.
09:10:48 But we don't have any invited guests for that. Okay, well, let's just wait a little bit and maybe we can.
09:10:56 Take a look at our, do a little briefing. 4 9 30. How does that sound?
09:11:01 Sure. That's another call for public comment. Anyone that's with us, we've got public comment open till 9 30.
09:11:09 We would love to hear from you. You can hit raise hand or star 9 if you're on the phone to Make a public comment.
09:11:18 Keep it open and and I. You want to take a look at your your past week? Last week was a blur.
09:11:28 Last week is a blur. So let's see.
09:11:33 A week ago last Sunday was at the All County Picnic, but I think I shared that last week.
09:11:38 So. Last Monday was with all of you of course and then had the experience of. Going to the district court and witnessing a wedding which was super first for me so whenever there's
a new first for me in Jefferson County I get really excited and that was exciting and fun.
09:12:00 So that was, many did a great job. I love the vows that she has. I was like, I wish she had officiated my wedding, although I had a great efficient.
09:12:12 Attended the 2024, 25 budget training with Judy Shepherd and. Bunch of the rest of the county family on Tuesday morning.
09:12:22 Had lunch with our team. Banana leaf last week which was yummy super yummy I'll get 5 stars next time though, Mark.
09:12:34 4 stars wasn't quite enough. Yeah. Got a long overdue haircuts.
09:12:42 And then went to Tuesday evening to the port headlock sewer project groundbreaking celebration, which was fun.
09:12:50 And drove an excavator for the first time in my life and was jealous of my seat mates.
09:12:56 Skills. Oh, we got a second place, I think. I know, but you guys do have to drive an excavator.
09:13:02 I kept looking at Monty and going. Which control? He could go get the laugh or the right or whatever.
09:13:09 Sounds very helpful. Yeah, it was awesome. So I did deliver on my bribes yesterday to representative Chapman and Representative Deringer and will deliver the 6 that doesn't
a half a dozen tamales to.
09:13:25 Monty there in my freezer for you, Monty, if you're listening. And let's see, Wednesday morning we had a strategic planning.
09:13:35 Team meeting. Middle of the day I met with a group of folks at Fin River for a regular monthly lunch we're doing just with the group of citizens from the community and I'm appreciating
those unstructured conversations.
09:13:53 Miss my book group at the library because I was off by a day my calendar when the whole calendar and email.
09:14:01 Moved all of my appointments an hour later. No time. Yeah. So the problem wasn't that wasn't the problem with the library, Miss, but yeah, I was still like my calendars.
09:14:14 Yeah. Then that evening, the employee picnic at HD. Carroll Park, which was a ton of fun.
09:14:22 And, and then. In the middle of that picnic or maybe just after it. Went with public works and we did a little public.
09:14:32 Meeting for the SR. 19 Trail Project, which will stretch from Chimicum schools to HJ Carroll Park.
09:14:39 And planning that's going on around that trail. I don't know, you probably have seen that there's a whole plan of a network of trails that will connect.
09:14:49 All of these public facilities to each other and have back. It'll take a while, probably a decade or more for all these trails to be put in place, but this is an exciting.
09:15:01 Part of that plan. There, Kuzm and I were talking at the picnic. That.
09:15:06 We, I have some great photos of. Doing some of that planning work 8 years ago with him. So great.
09:15:17 With you on the long term nature of these. Yeah, I'm sure I'll be talking about this for a long time.
09:15:22 On Thursday morning, I've met with Ken Huguenot on a public records request from the forest products industry.
09:15:27 They don't like I don't think they like much that I'm doing about forests or DNR even though I have been saying we need to protect our forest products economy in Jefferson County.
09:15:36 They want to know what we're doing to do that. And so it's just. I'm learning about public, complicated public records requests firsthand, jumped into the deep end.
09:15:47 Then we had a PIF special meeting to approve the RFP for 24. And the funding.
09:15:57 So that was a a good meeting and then they did affirm that I'm chair of the Piff board.
09:16:03 So I guess I had kind of been chair of the Piff board for the last 6 months.
09:16:09 Let's see. Yeah, I guess is it, is, have you been a chair of the pass?
09:16:20 Can't remember. You were immediately before me. So I just, I don't know. But anyway, happy to do it.
09:16:29 Right. Went in person to the county coordinated response meeting. Dovehouse, which was great.
09:16:39 I mean, there were people like Steve Eccles who I'd never met in person. I'm like, oh my god, we both did that.
09:16:47 We looked at each other. We're like, you're human form is nice to see you in your human form.
09:16:50 But. And then I picked up my thing wristbands and the rest is history. No.
09:16:59 Then on Saturday, I did roll a few 100 tamales in the morning and then. Attended a great event that the short family hosted at the short farm.
09:17:11 Midday on Saturday. Kind of their I don't want to call the farewell event but you know just marking marking this place in time.
09:17:21 With a short farm and it was super fun. To ride around they had a tractor with a trailer behind it and all of us crawled in there and sat on hay bells and got all over the short
farm.
09:17:32 Which was awesome and spent a lot of time talking with Roger and hearing his thoughts on the drainage district and Yeah, it's just a little bit of a bit melancholy, right?
09:17:46 It's a big transition in our community. Yeah. So let's see. And then.
09:17:52 Gooded my way in for the thing festival on Saturday. Evening and then yesterday I attended the.
09:18:01 Democrats not fish feast. So there was no fish this year that they did host it at the Ericsson building at the fairgrounds and But as we know, the hospital has the kitchen right
now, so we had mochili barbecue, which was awesome and.
09:18:18 Had a series of speakers including. Bob Ferguson is running for governor and it was just a inspiring, inspiring set of candidates and incumbents.
09:18:33 The state treasurer was particularly inspiring to me. Pelicotti, yeah, Michael, but you know, he was, he was saying.
09:18:46 Recounting what his policy changes had done for this kind of the State Treasury and Impressive, impressive results in his first term as treasurer.
09:19:01 Yep, and then it was. Back to the thing. Best of all.
09:19:07 I was running in circles. And making Somalis in between all every. Every second I could find. Wow.
09:19:20 Yeah, you're making me more tired. I felt tired yesterday. Kate, you want to look back?
09:19:24 Sure. With you all on Monday, of course. Tuesday. Long busy day we had a.
09:19:33 Representatives from a number of the Washington congressional delegation and staff touring number of projects in the hook now.
09:19:42 And so I went to the duck a bush and. Good canal bridge. The went to Taylor shellfish, hood canal, to to talk about the linger longer bridge project and green crab.
09:20:03 There haven't been any green background, like 2, but, And what's interesting I had not heard kind of that.
09:20:17 Yeah, there's some question as to kind of how much of an emergency is this. Like they don't really know the impacts that this invasive.
09:20:26 Species could have here. But it very much a preventative. Like, why wait and find out if they are going to, you know, either compete for food or eat juvenile salmon or.
09:20:37 But I assumed it was a foregone conclusion that they were gonna ravage the area and it was it was good to hear just the research you know that's ongoing of we're still trying
to figure this out.
09:20:48 So, you know, if you find 2, is that an emergency or is that a monitor and hope to get as many as you can?
09:20:57 But the feds and the state have been, you know, involved in this kind of quick response along with the tribes.
09:21:04 Jamestown were very successful. They, they harvested destroyed hundreds of green crab in Swim Bay and had not had any sense.
09:21:14 So there is a bit of a success story there, although it has much limited more limited flow in and out.
09:21:20 So,b or less likely to get in and out of. Squimbank. Anyway, because, It was good to connect with, you know, various federal agencies, the governor's office, etc.
09:21:34 I was like, oh, this is actually like, you know, it's in our backyard.
09:21:38 So it wasn't, it was good investment of time for relationship building, but I wouldn't say anything.
09:21:42 Surprising to us. Just after that, met with Kelsey Hulse, who is our strategies 300, and 60.
09:21:52 Lobbyist in the Olympia office and give her a tour she'd never been to Port Townsend.
09:21:57 She lifelong Washingtonia and never been to Port Townsend. Yeah. So we toured from Chimicham North, talked about a number of the projects policy goals we have forestry you know
just really try to fill her in on our.
09:22:12 You know, kind of what we're trying to do as a board. And so, then she, of course, joined at the sewer ground breaking.
09:22:23 Hopefully you got a chance to meet her. Yeah, yeah, former lobbyist who retired and handed it off to Kelsey.
09:22:30 So yeah, I really enjoyed the ground breaking. It was. Hailed it on the excavator.
09:22:39 Thank you. It was held it on the excavator. Thank you champion. Top golden toilet there. It was surprisingly difficult.
09:22:43 I mean, I just, it was a much nicer machine than I've driven. So I am.
09:22:46 At least I was disappointed in my own performance actually. Oh, okay. I should have done better, but I just never had.
09:22:55 Equipment with that many controls. Right. Yeah, I'm like, which one? Yeah.
09:23:00 But you know where the throttle was. That's right. That's what you would have appreciated.
09:23:07 Yeah, Chief, you came in in the midst of this report, but we did compete with each other on driving excavators last Tuesday.
09:23:12 Yeah. Yeah. I can move a very small bit of work if you want. But.
09:23:26 Yeah, just really, really great to see that project happening. I had not been out there. I was kind of waiting until the ceremony to see and a lot more work had been done than
I anticipated.
09:23:39 Yeah, really exciting. Wednesday spent fair amount of time. The fairgrounds. You know that continues to be a bit of a challenge trying to figure out what the best structure
is for that but figure the pressure off now that they made it through.
09:24:00 Yeah, although really that was the like a bit of a test. So are we on the right track or not?
09:24:04 So we had a long meeting on Thursday night. Yeah, more more to come on that but it's Good guy, I think we're, I think we're on the right track.
09:24:15 But I mean really what's hard is that there are 2 very distinct missions. There is the mission of how do we make that facility?
09:24:26 There is the mission of how do we make that facility sustainable so we can continue to make the investments that we can continue to make the investments that are needed to keep
it a functioning safe facility.
09:24:32 And then there is the county fair and there are folks who are passionate about the fair and their folks were passionate about the fair grounds and It's not a ton of overlap.
09:24:43 Yeah, and sometimes they might not even be that compatible. So we're trying to figure out.
09:24:47 Can we be one organization with? 2 missions. Which is tricky.
09:24:57 That's the after a long. And an existential conversation on Thursday night. The interest right now is yes.
09:25:06 I'm trying to. Stick with one and just kind of have clear roles and expectations.
09:25:14 Had a quite a few scheduling conflicts. Somehow it didn't figure out until Friday that our new or newly uploaded calendar was on the wrong time zone, which explains why I was
late to housing fun board, Greg.
09:25:29 Okay. And I was like, 3 30. I didn't know that there was actually some I thought it was just my calendar and done something so it was an actual Yeah, I didn't have a mind. Yeah,
to leave certain events.
09:25:43 So first I noticed I missed meetings all of my recurring meetings were lost. And then.
09:25:54 Was politely told on Friday that I've been showing up an hour late to the other half of my meeting.
09:26:01 So. I know. So I apologize.
09:26:07 You know, any number of lateness and missed meetings last week, but Yes, so here I've like 5 meetings at the same time.
09:26:19 Nothing to report from EDC. Housing Fund board, not to steal Greg Thunder, but we, did, a pro and finalize an RP and application to go out for.
09:26:30 The housing funds which is exciting. I'm seeing a live open meeting. It's always challenging.
09:26:36 Yeah, you did a great job. That I feel good that we continue to, you know, kind of iterate and make that a better process.
09:26:42 And what can I ask the question about that? So there's 220,000 for homeless housing and 965 for affordable housing.
09:26:52 Is that because we've already allocated more money for homeless housing. I can this is I think worth break going into a little more detail.
09:26:59 So there was a substitute Senate bill, 53 86 that came out last year that changed the way the recording fees came in.
09:27:08 Recording fees used to come in and get split into fund 148 for the affordable housing and 1 49.
09:27:13 Yeah. Homeless housing. We added 50 90 on top of that. That also, in 1 48.
09:27:17 53 86 has gone. It didn't change the amount that we got from the recording fees very much like 14 cents but it it put it all into one fund and it kind of changed the rules a
little bit so the decision we made was to Stop splitting that into affordable and homeless recording fees.
09:27:37 And they just really went down a lot. And that's why that I think I'll just because the recording fees kind of fell off a cliff when interest rates went up.
09:27:44 So we are putting all of that into homeless housing. And then the 1590 was, you know, as you know, our sales attached, right, and very robust.
09:27:55 And, and very robust. Right. Just putting all that in affordable. Housing.
09:27:58 There were a few issues, you know, like some of the projects. It's challenging to put projects we've previously funded off of the affordable housing funding from the recording
fees like the emergency house repair and South County and things like that.
09:28:12 But I think we've got it parsed and got a few questions out to commerce to. Make sure we can use $1590 for some of those.
09:28:19 Kind of less capital expenditures, you know, sort of big are they housing related services, you know, sort of big are they housing related services is basically the question.
09:28:29 But so, much simpler in just all the 1,500, and 90 is affordable and all the reporting fees are homeless.
09:28:35 So in the future and let if the homeless housing fund will be lower. For the foreseeable future.
09:28:42 Due to the recording fee versus sales tax. Yeah. Okay. That's the perfect explanation for my question.
09:28:51 This morning. Yeah. Excellent. Hmm.
09:28:57 Well, it's, it's a good example of where the legislature takes action and then doesn't like.
09:29:02 Really, there's not a process for which that information is disseminated. So. Greg and other members of the Housing Fundboard were doing all this research and like trying to
harsh this new legislation and it's like why isn't commerce doing this where like Just like really compress a bill without them being any any plan for how to make it practical.
09:29:25 And then layers of bureaucracy. That always makes things. Yeah, and literally every county is doing this.
09:29:29 Kind of ridiculous. Entirely unclear how to implement it. Then went to the county and play picnic, which was great as always.
09:29:40 Didn't get around to say hello to everybody including our own staff. Too many people. Yeah.
09:29:48 Yeah, exactly. And you know, again, like people I haven't seen probably since before COVID in person, colleagues of ours.
09:29:57 So. It's great. Let's see. Meaning with Cindy Jane on Thursday morning trying to wrap up, you know, so as of.
09:30:07 Thursday I'll be Wednesday Thursday Thursday will be gone basically gone for 2 months so trying to tie up loose ends to climate action committee.
09:30:15 But so will be. That board will be bringing stuff to you later this fall. It's going with the membership there.
09:30:22 Are you trying to get both all positions? Thrilled at the same time. The third time at action. Yes.
09:30:28 Yeah, I think that's the Well, interesting. It's probably something I should follow up because the.
09:30:35 We were deep in conversation about that right what our email failed. So thank you for reminding me.
09:30:44 Cindy is no longer the chair of climate action committee. Many years. Took over from her.
09:30:49 And so we actually didn't talk about that, but you're right. This should follow up and see where we are with that.
09:30:55 Yeah, still discovering things that we lost on the. Outlook debacle. At a good meeting with the Association of Counties regarding the, Bye-laws.
09:31:11 You know, talked about the the struggle we're having with larger counties feeling unrepresented, so running a couple of proposals.
09:31:20 To see if we did. So, you know, King County would basically have I mean, it's interesting.
09:31:31 All you would need is 3 counties. If you're based on population, weighted the voting, any proposal that came before us, just those 3 counties would, could determine the positions
of the state association and, like the rest of this, yes, like the legislature.
09:31:50 So it's really challenging to figure out what's the benefit of. Having 39 counties have a voice.
09:31:57 When you know they actually represent such different right now King County Kings to Homish. Here so I'll have 3 2 votes instead of one.
09:32:08 But that's only 6 compared to, you know, 36. 33.
09:32:14 So. Split are they talking about? Like. We could do a by population and apparently some boards like this.
09:32:23 Only use a waited vote when called for. Okay. So, you know, we could try to use just a We're all, yeah, yeah, could stay as it is, but then use that when needed.
09:32:38 Would be needed all the time, wouldn't it?
09:32:41 I don't know. I mean, there's some things that do affect us all equally, you know, and so there's some talk about should we just be focusing on those things?
09:32:49 We'd just be looking at, you know, the 1% cap and. Behavioral health indigenous parents you know really interesting to know how that would like the way that I experienced it
most first hand was the when I ran for Board of Natural Resources.
09:33:04 And each county got one vote. And I know that some of the larger counties felt like they We're underrepresented in that vote.
09:33:11 Yep. Exactly. We also talked about a weighted representation where large counties could have 3 or 4 members.
09:33:24 To small counties having one, you know, a, of one to 4 people, but that's a huge investment of time.
09:33:32 But that's such a huge investment of time. But county wants to send 4 people to, but that's a huge investment of time.
09:33:38 Wants to send 4 people to meeting full time and be informed and, and it would be that much harder as the chair of the LSC.
09:33:40 I'm like, oh my god, we don't need like twice as many people there. Make those meetings super.
09:33:49 So didn't make any decisions. But good conversation and it was much more constructive than previous meetings and then they have been fairly contentious and this one actually
felt like we were trying to find a solution.
09:34:09 Missed NODC because of that meeting. Went to a reception at the fort for thing, kind of kick off reception and.
09:34:19 It was, you know, it's good to hear that the STG still, you know, really wants to make this happen here.
09:34:27 And they're clear that you know they're a nonprofit they're not driven by private motive and yet they just can't lose.
09:34:37 Yeah, they said about half the participants there were paying. To be there and half were. Neighbors, volunteers.
09:34:44 You know, any number of freebies. Vendors. So, you know, it's a tough business model, but.
09:34:52 It was, you know, it's always so positive. It's just hard to. Well, it makes me think and I said this a number of times this weekend that when we were starting the corner store
in Chemicum the first few years were really hard.
09:35:06 And I was just thinking back to like basic business classes in college and like it takes 3 to 5 years to even, you know, see the hope of profitability.
09:35:14 So. And then through a pandemic in the right, right. So I hope I hope they stick it out.
09:35:20 It was the energy at that at Thing festival is really, I mean, across the board I was hearing really positive feedback from folks.
09:35:27 Except the vendors sometimes. Because there was that there wasn't.
09:35:36 Oh really? Interesting. On huge lines and yeah, I was mostly looking at our local. Yeah.
09:35:46 Like I saw some have a hard time keeping up. Like I saw some have a hard time keeping up. Okay.
09:35:49 Like I said, some have a hard time keeping up. Okay. Good handle the demand. So Is that food or other?
09:35:53 Yeah, I mean, it'll be interesting to hear all the feedback. It seems like the community's anxiety around it has diminished a little bit with.
09:36:02 STGs efforts to mitigate traffic and get more people out of the neighborhoods a lot. A lot of the things they did were great.
09:36:10 Lack of recycling. And everyone was well hydrated with the Topa Chico, the stand.
09:36:17 But there was no I think that was a communication. Yeah, the court and STG both thought the other were handling.
09:36:31 So spent, much of Friday, Saturday and Sunday at the festival was not running around and doing work responsibilities is my birthday weekend so I have a good excuse.
09:36:45 Not working on weekend like Heidi did but a couple things on Friday. We had a meeting with the Aquatic Center steering committee and you know, that there's a final report should
be coming to us in mid September 20 fifth something like that.
09:37:05 And, you know, relates. Gonna be a matter of if the if the if we decide to put it on the ballot and to the voters want to support it.
09:37:14 So. I, well. Wait until the final plan comes out, there will be a recommendation from the steering committee.
09:37:22 And but ultimately it's going to be up to the voters to decide. Mmm decides if we put it on the ballot.
09:37:31 I think it would have to be us. Okay. Well, it would be a county PFT.
09:37:38 Yeah. Yeah, yeah, we've really taken the MPD. It. Off the table just feels like it's not not sustainable but you know the challenge because the city is going to run a transportation
benefit district ballot measure.
09:37:55 In November. Yeah. Both the councilmatic one. And the 2 additional.
09:38:00 21% and yeah. So, you know, those are both sales tax, which. Is you know It's too bad.
09:38:09 I felt like we had this in the hopper for a good long time and then the city came in with it and the hopper for a good long time and then the city came in with that really changes
the I think the feasibility of this. And that really changes the, I think the feasibility of this. Yeah, yeah.
09:38:20 So wish wish we had known that was on the docket because we're trying to sequence things. Yeah, yeah.
09:38:24 So wish wish we had known that was on the docket because we're trying to sequence things. That yeah another wrinkle is the cost of a special election if there's one ballot measure.
09:38:34 I can tell you how much Quinn believes it will cost. 110,000.
09:38:39 Yeah, so where's that money coming from? Yeah, so still, you know, still a lot of hard questions being asked very much with the, you know, the.
09:38:52 Reality of public being. Feeling stretched then. So, so that so it being a county wide vote.
09:39:00 It's gonna, yeah, yeah, Yeah, and you know the nice thing about. Creating a countywide district is that we could also identify other projects.
09:39:13 That would be served by the public facilities district. And so, started talking with Matt Tyler months ago and revisit the idea if we get serious about this.
09:39:26 What is a county project that could also be served? You know, we talked about some sort of improvements at HJ Carroll, but maybe there are others, but you know, try and make
the case for the full count benefit to the full county and the Parks and Rec.
09:39:42 Wouldn't the products need that whole PFT funding for bonding capacity? I mean, is that?
09:39:52 Yeah, I mean, we're There's a lot of timing issues. So, you know, if we were to do a special election in February, if we if it were to pass that would.
09:40:01 Make us very competitive for about 5 million dollars in Department of Commerce funding. So there are other funding sources coming into.
09:40:11 The banding. Capacity or need for the aquatic center is tie but it's not that high because you know this is a a fairly guaranteed revenue source that We could build in a couple
1 million dollars for another project.
09:40:29 Without it, changing the. Course. We are also looking at the the base plan for the aquatic center not not doing a bigger build out.
09:40:39 So that is you know, we're at the more affordable. That's the Only feasible.
09:40:49 Path at this point. I did just tell you all the recommendations you're gonna see in the report.
09:40:54 Great. Are you, was that it or you? I'll just say I've had Shinburns on the radio show Friday talking about, are you, was that it or you?
09:41:07 I'll just say I've had Shinburns. Are you, was that it or? I'll just say we I had Shin Burns on the radio show Friday talking about juvenile services and it was great.
09:41:13 Oh close public comment if you're with us and would like to comment on something please hit raise hand Star 9 if you're on the phone and seeing no one I will close public comment
for the time being.
09:41:25 And we've got a couple proclamations in front of us. I don't see Anya and Apple yet.
09:41:32 So why don't we start with our. Eat local month. Proclamation you guys ready to Read through that and consider.
09:41:41 Yeah, sure. Alright, why don't we go Kate Heidi and then me. A proclamation, eat local moth, whereas the Salish Sea region has provided a rich bounty of local foods from both
the water and the lands, which has been stewarded by the Slalom people and other visiting tribes since time in Memorial and Whereas Jefferson County Washington is home to clean streams,
shellfish
09:42:05 beds, and marine waters. As well as fertile valleys and lush forests and a temperate climate.
09:42:10 Of which contribute to the diverse and abundant wild and cultivated foods available here. And whereas since the nineteenth century this region has been home to many farms producing
a wide range of crops for local consumption as well as for sale throughout the future sound region and beyond and whereas Jefferson County residents seek locally grown, produced and
harvested food products for many reasons, including good nutrition to live in a more sustainable way for our environment and to support our local
09:42:37 economy and communities. And whereas myriad local organizations have worked together for 17 years under the umbrella of the Jefferson Landworks Collaborative.
09:42:46 To preserve hundreds of acres of prime farmland, support environmental restoration, assist in sustainable business planning, and encourage local investment and Whereas Jefferson
County has seen ongoing economic growth in the food and farm sector, which provides employment and keeps more dollars recirculating in the local economy and whereas local food production
leads to greater resilience in food security and reduction of the carbon footprint of our food supply and whereas eating more Jefferson County grown
09:43:15 food. Foods helps preserve Jefferson County's rural working landscape and the way of life we cherish and whereas Jefferson County strives to ensure all of our residents have
access to healthy local food regardless of income and Whereas supporting farmers markets, grocers, restaurants, and institutional buyers who support Jefferson County's local farmers,
producers and fisheries also helps contribute to all of the above and whereas Jefferson County's 20 first annual farm
09:43:43 tour is September sixteenth to the seventeenth, 2 23. Now therefore, the Jefferson County Board of County Commissioners do hereby proclaim September, 2,023 as 8 local month.
09:43:54 Be it further proclaimed that the Board of Commissioners encourages all citizens and visitors alike to join in celebrating eat local first Olympic Peninsula's Eat Local Month
campaign.
09:44:04 Proclaimed this eighteenth day of September, 2,023. I'll move to approve the proclamation as red.
09:44:12 I'll second. Okay, it's been moved and seconded to approve the proclamation is red all and favor indicate by saying aye aye aye aye And we don't have any guests with us on this,
but I think we're all pretty close to this movement.
09:44:25 I know I moved to Jefferson County exactly to get closer to my food and. Between my wife and I my wife that is we raise as much of our own food as we can and it's I feel like
it's a really kind of part of the social fabric in Jefferson County that really that is makes for a healthy community.
09:44:47 I just say it's not last on me that the farmers in our community are the hardest working people I know.
09:44:52 2, I mean, full stop. To a person. Yeah. I haven't been one of those.
09:45:00 I would agree and found it really hard to continue doing for a long time. Yeah, it is. A ton of work and it's just so gratifying to see, you know, so I've moved here 25 years
ago with the hopes, you know, as a farmer in the hopes of really helping grow the local food economy.
09:45:15 And it's just grown by leaps and bounds. And remember the, I think it was in 99 maybe we were so excited the farmers market gross you know between all the vendors at the end
of the season had grossed a hundred $1,000 and that was over like 20 weeks, you know, and and just seeing, you know, they're now millions of dollars in sales.
09:45:38 It's great to see that over a long term how much you can. Really change the way a community does business in a sector.
09:45:48 And very gratifying, really grateful for the people who have stuck with it. Yeah. I am currently only feeding the deer in the food that I am growing and.
09:45:59 Yeah, which I wish I could close that circle by eating the deer at least. That's not I'm in the city limit so I can't do that.
09:46:09 All right, well, yeah, definitely. I think we will all do our best to eat local in September and encourage everyone else to Okay.
09:46:23 Okay. Okay, well let's move on since we do have a 9 45 that we're slightly a late for sorry chief black but we'll get right there.
09:46:39 Bear with us as we read one more proclamation about opioid awareness. I'm sorry, overdose awareness day.
09:46:46 Why don't we reverse it and I'll go and then Heidi and then Kate. So this is a proclamation about overdose awareness day, whereas no community in Washington state is immune
to accidental oriental overdose and drug overdose deaths remain high across the state impacting urban, suburban and rural communities and disproportionately affecting the state, impacting
urban, suburban, and rural
09:47:06 communities, impacting urban, suburban, and rural communities, and disproportionately affecting American Indian, Alaskan native communities, and disproportionately affecting
American, Indian, Alaskan native communities and marginalized American, Indian, Alaskan native communities and marginalized populations.
09:47:15 Whereas in the last year, nearly 3 people have died due to overdoses or suspected overdoses.
09:47:17 Whereas in the last year, nearly 3,000 people, whereas in the last year, nearly 3,000. Whereas in the last year, nearly 3, people have died due to overdoses or suspected overdoses
across Washington state, including 11,000 people have died due to overdoses or suspected overdoses across Washington state, including 11 reported in March, 2023 for the preced whereas
Washington State Healthcare Authority, Department of Health.
09:47:28 and University of Washington Alcohol Drug Abuse Initiative local health jurisdictions, community organizations. Syringe service programs, harm reduction services, and pharmacies
collectively distributed overdose reversal medication, naloxone, to tens of thousands of individuals and.
09:47:45 Whereas Jefferson County acknowledges that there is a need to treat drug related harm as a public health issue and invest in evidence-based practices that save lives and build
communities and.
09:47:56 Whereas Jefferson County remains committed to raising awareness around drug overdose morbidity and mortality by reducing stigma through countywide initiatives related to education,
prevention, treatment, and recovery support for substance use disorder and.
09:48:13 Whereas International Overdose Awareness Day is an opportunity for all people in Jefferson County to grieve the loss of those who have died due to overdose.
09:48:21 Celebrate life and commit to supporting the safety, health, and well-being of people who abuse substances.
09:48:27 Now therefore, the Jefferson County Board of County Commissioners hereby proclaim August 30 first, 2,023 as overdose awareness day.
09:48:34 Be it further proclaimed that the board of commissioners encourage all residents and visitors alike whose life has been impacted by substance use disorder to call the Washington
Recovery Helpline at 18667891511, available, 24Â HA day, 7 days a week.
09:48:50 Proclaimed this 20 eighth day of August, 2023.
09:48:56 I'll move to improve the proclamation as read. All seconds. Okay. All in favor of approving the over awareness day proclamation as read indicate by St.
09:49:05 Alright. Well, I can just since staff aren't here. I did work with both Apple and Anya to refine this proclamation last week and.
09:49:15 I'm grateful for their leadership on these issues. And our community and also. Appreciate and Commissioner Dean's post that she was heading to the thing fact festival with her
3 3 3 day passes and her naloxone.
09:49:31 So I also carried naloxone for the entire fly period all the time now and I think we're all being educated and prepared to respond if we need to in the eventuality of any.
09:49:44 Instances of overdose. Entering our pathways. So it's it's a different time we're living in.
09:49:51 It's a short journey to an overdose these days. With the. Fentanyl everywhere.
09:49:56 Yeah. I usually call out my good friend, died of an overdose. 2,005 and one of my best friends and you know I always felt like I could be there more for him often these overdoses,
you know, they're they're real people with a lot to contribute and he was the most talented musician I ever had the Pleasure to play with and I miss choral to this day.
09:50:22 So it's, you know. Reminds you that. There's always work to do and as you say it is a different landscape now.
09:50:31 No more recreational batteries. Well, and it's not a new problem. In the let's see how old was I 7 so in the in the eighties My uncle died of an overdose and we, you know, I
learned later.
09:50:44 I mean, I was. I think it was 7 years old, so I didn't, I wasn't.
09:50:48 You know, understanding of the causes of overdose or what even what, why he had died. But, I now understand that he was, it was a fentanyl overdose.
09:50:57 In 19880 really? Yeah, so. And, the, family has said, you know, the law enforcement and it was in the Bay Area in Sausalito, California.
09:51:13 Hello enforcement there. It said it was fentanyl and it was one of the first overdoses from that drug that they had experienced in the community.
09:51:21 So it's touched my life for a very long time. I wasn't really aware of it until I was in my twenties but.
09:51:26 When this whole fentanyl awareness stuff has come up over the last few years, I've been like, Gee, okay, here we go.
09:51:32 Here's the time. Here's the title wave. Yeah. I'm reading that book the least of us right now.
09:51:39 It's excellent. I would recommend it. Yeah, I just say I've learned an enormous amount from our public health staff and I'm really proud of how we are to folks who use substances
here and really Just pleased that our community is meeting them with compassion.
09:52:01 I lost a very young friends to Noberdose here in Jefferson County and, 2022 and you know, it's just devastating.
09:52:11 Friends and family and It feels so, so tragic and like such a, you know, a One small mistake.
09:52:21 Forever. Drastically impacted so many others. So. That's why we need to.
09:52:31 To treat people with compassion. Okay.
09:52:38 We got diabetes, you know, refuse to treat someone because they still can't.
09:52:45 Alright. Onward that we're a little bit late for our 945 presentation.
09:52:56 But Chief Black, thank you so much for being here. You want to come up to the table. Beat your microphone here.
09:53:01 We do have a second. You don't have to pass back and forth or lean over. So Chief Black reached out to me about 10 days ago and said, you know, he'd like to come talk to us
about wildfire, you know, to pass back and forth or lean over.
09:53:20 So Chief Black reached out to me about 10 days ago and said, you know And I thought that was a good thing because we're all, I think, painfully aware of how dry it is right
now, but I appreciated him reaching out to proactively.
09:53:27 Address the community on the conditions here. And then we're also going to talk about the community wildfire prevention planning that we're doing.
09:53:36 Thank you, commissioners. Can you hear me okay? Yes, just give me 1Â s to get the presentation.
09:53:44 Since this isn't working. I had to find it on here and then turn around and have to send it.
09:53:49 Outlook on my phone. I'm not a tech guy. I already You're exceeded my capacity.
09:54:00 Well, this thing goes in the trash when I leave the room.
09:54:04 Oh, take it away. Just. That's great. Next slide.
09:54:09 The past month has been really busy for East Jeff administratively and operationally. Since. Since that time I've been asked to do a number of presentations to smaller community
groups.
09:54:23 Such as Call Point, Port Ludo. And others. People are sending a record number of questions through our website to us dozens over the past couple weeks concerned about.
09:54:36 Events locally and regionally and what they can do and how they can prepare and that's really what we're gonna talk about here.
09:54:45 Next slide, please. The next the 2 topics we're going to talk about are the kind of wildfires summary situation report currently of where we're at.
09:54:54 And then review some of the evacuation practices that are on everybody's mind. Coast, For sure.
09:55:05 One of the questions I get without fail, every presentation is how to wildfires start. There's a couple. There we go.
09:55:13 Thank you. Most wildfires are human caused. Doesn't mean there's people. Out there causing them to deliberately, but a lot of our actions or our infrastructure.
09:55:23 Or our negligence or our mindfulness. Leads to wildfires. Wildfires are notoriously hard to investigate.
09:55:32 For instance, along the Beaver Valley fire, you know, we were very confident the fire started right at the road's edge, but in that area there were so many things that could
have caused it that may have been the cause but could have also just burned up.
09:55:44 Cigarette butts, fireworks, carcasses. You know all kinds of other materials. Can start a wildfire in the right.
09:56:00 You can start a wildfire in the right. Fireworks carcass is the show. Okay.
09:56:27 It's like or we know lightning moved through an area in a high likelihood that it was a natural cause fire.
09:56:30 It's really hard to determine the cause of fire, but it never fails. That's the number one question everybody asked me is, how did the fire start?
09:56:37 Can I ask you one question? Kind of around that and that's just about containment. Can I ask you one question?
09:56:39 Can I ask you one question? Can I ask you one question? Lee? Just kind of around that. And that's just about containment.
09:56:43 I know that you guys and other teams stayed around the and that's just about containment. I know that you guys and other teams stayed around the Beira Valley fire for just ages
and ages and I've heard at least preliminary reports about the Lahine out tragedy that maybe it wasn't contained at 1 point.
09:56:52 Completely and I'm just. Hey, talk a little bit about that. Yeah, the containment efforts around any vegetation fire is the most meticulous part of the firefight.
09:57:03 Even the fire we had out at Lord's Lake. They were out there for, I think, just until a few days ago, making sure every opportunity for a smouldering ember to blow out of the
containment line was non-existent and that that containment is really the most tedious and time consuming aspect of a wildfire because we don't want a lina or another and you know the
Oakland
09:57:26 Hills fire of 91 was started. After a small controlled burn was not properly extinguished.
09:57:33 So it is common for that to be the cause. So that's why we're so diligent.
09:57:38 We had firefighters on the Beaver Valley road, so that's why we're so diligent.
09:57:42 We had firefighters on the Beaver Valley Road all night that night with other agencies. Thanks. It's a lot of work.
09:57:45 Yeah. So this is a situation report from August 20 fifth Friday currently in today had 7 the numbers are different this morning they produce this every morning.
09:57:55 This time of year the national interagency fire center had 78 wildfires burning over 600,000 acres in 14 states.
09:58:04 Wildfire fighting resources and personnel were assigned incidents with 20 incident management teams. And a number of crews, aircraft, and military aircraft that the MAFS units
are the C one thirtys.
09:58:19 That get a slide in unit to dispense the orange retardant or the pink red harden that we're all familiar with.
09:58:26 And normally they only mobilize the maths units from the military when all the other normal resources for firefighting are occupied.
09:58:35 So that's this is early to see maths units in play. Normally we don't see those till September, October, but the season started late as well, right?
09:58:43 But it's been. It's that's a really good point commissioner. It is compressed and it is getting intense and a much higher rate than we normally see and we'd only see kind of
a steady increase throughout the West Coast.
09:58:56 But it's been kind of just a sharp incline. We have a person assigned in one of the fires near Spokane and They're already talking about DEMO,ing them just for a couple days
because they're gonna time out.
09:59:11 They're only allowed to be on the incident so many days, but then they're gonna Do you email them for a couple days?
09:59:16 Only a couple days to remobilize them for another heat event that's coming in the next 10 days.
09:59:22 Okay. So overall we have 18,000 plus firefighters deployed. On incidents throughout the United States.
09:59:30 Can you talk about how that affects our local resources because I know I heard that my friend Kevin Vanderwig was deployed to a fire.
09:59:40 He wasn't able to be at the Democrats events yesterday. Yeah. Much better. Yeah, yes.
09:59:49 If you think of our wildfire fighting assets or while firefighting system is a sweater your grandma needed.
09:59:54 Where you know when we have an incident on one part of the sweater, you know, it tugs at the whole sweater.
10:00:02 You know, you're pulling resources. So we try to be really mindful of that. When we get requested to go.
10:00:08 To support another agency somewhere across the state or the country. What is that we look at the local risk that we're facing here?
10:00:15 Because if we aren't mindful of what threat we're facing here, we could easily over commit ourselves and not be able to protect the homeland.
10:00:22 And that's really kind of what. Our balancing act is. We take our units on and off the roster for mutual aid, statewide on a regular basis.
10:00:33 So that's how that system works. And so really it's up to each agency to determine what those thresholds are.
10:00:39 And it depends on what position they're in need of if they're needing engines and water tenders.
10:00:44 Those are those are harder to get back. On a moment's notice as compared to a single individual.
10:00:50 In an administrative position. So you could be can you be required to go? You know like with you know the military or you know
10:01:02 Thanks. So this is a wildfire weather outlook. This is where we're going to start talking about what we're facing or about to face here.
10:01:12 You know, the Northwest region has a significant wildfire potential coming up for the next few months.
10:01:17 The light easterly flow that we're talking about is creating instability and we saw lightning.
10:01:23 Hit parts of Oregon in the very southern part of Washington. In the next few days, you're going to see that paradigm really start to stress our system because there was so many
starts in such a compressed amount of time.
10:01:36 In a geographic region. The ERC values, those are, that's part of the math that we use to predict how big a fire could get.
10:01:44 That stands for energy release component, how much energy is in the fuel. Based on how dry the fuel is or how little moisture is in the fuel.
10:01:54 And for us, we're in the prescriptive area service area, the PSA. Of Northwest 0 1.
10:02:01 But all the areas around us immediately adjacent were predicted to have lightning. Luckily we weren't.
10:02:08 But even an adjacent prescriptive area impacts us indirectly because we may go initial attack to a PSA 2 which is just south of us or PSA 3 which is southeast of us to help
them will launch regional resources a lot easier because we'll know we can get them back quicker as compared to going to like Spokane or something like that.
10:02:29 But the thing that really, is something I want everybody in the commissioners to pay attention to is that last sentence there we're going to have above normal wildfire potential
for our area.
10:02:39 PSA, NN, through the end of October. And that's really kind of a warning sign.
10:02:49 We're gonna see the weather patterns kind of undulate for the next. Few weeks where like tomorrow we're expecting a little bit of moisture.
10:02:56 But it's not enough moisture to dampen down the threat. It's enough to dampen down our dusty roads.
10:03:04 To be great, our vigilance, but not our vigilance. We want to maintain that vigilance.
10:03:08 Nothing is going to resurrect all the dead. Fuel is what we call it and the understory that's dead and very receptive to burning.
10:03:17 And October, I mean, does that mean that the burn ban likely will go later than it normally does?
10:03:23 I would anticipate it will. If you recall last year we had red flag days very late in the year.
10:03:30 Which is unusual for us.
10:03:40 So this is the significant wildfire potential product that we use from NFC, the National Interagency Fire Center.
10:03:48 For this month last year and if you click one more commissioner it'll show you this year's.
10:03:54 So the compare and contrast is pretty obvious and sadly you can see Hawaii. Is also in the red for the foreseeable future.
10:04:04 Next slide. And then the September doesn't get any better. In October is it seems more like punishment than it's just us that seems very strange.
10:04:16 But that's what's going to be very unusual. We're not used to being in that level of threat at that month in October.
10:04:24 And that's where we really are calling to action people's awareness. That's why we're being so vigilant.
10:04:29 What is that? Yeah, that is I've never seen that pattern and we're so we're going to have high fire danger in eastern Washington.
10:04:39 Well, what's the thing to remember is this is higher fire danger than eastern Washington? Well, what's the thing to remember is this is higher fire danger than eastern Washington.
Well, what's the thing to remember is this is higher fire danger than normal for.
10:04:43 Oh, so it's relative to the. To the prescriptive service area, the PSA.
10:04:49 So those are the PSAs along the West Coast, those polygons. There's a number of them.
10:04:54 You can see the little blue lines. And those PSAs are going to have higher than what they normally experience.
10:05:00 It doesn't mean we're going to have a higher risk. Then Spokane, Spokane is gonna have more wildfire because they do, right?
10:05:06 But we're not used to having higher than normal for us. White still means you're gonna have wildfire.
10:05:12 It just means you're gonna have your normal. Threat level that you can expect. So, and is that still related to the the dryness of the understory and lack of precipitation expected
because of the weather pattern where it's the drought that we're in that's been well broadcast you know for months now and then the broadcast you know for months now and then the lack
of sustained moisture, months now and then the lack of sustained moisture
10:05:38 rain. And that's gonna push us to the end of October. It's El Nino.
10:05:44 And we get winds. And the winds are what really caused us to pay attention. That's what pushed the Beaver Valley fire.
10:05:52 It's what didn't push a couple other fires that we're going to talk about here in a minute
10:05:57 So just to review where we were with Lahina, when I put this presentation together. You know, strong ones were a factor, like we just mentioned blowing trees and the power lines.
10:06:07 And then several other fires are still burning across the state. So everyone's focused on the hyena, but there's a number of other fires throughout the state.
10:06:14 That they're encountering. What makes it so hard for Hawaii? Is although they're in the same GAC as California Geographic Area Coordination Center, they can't just call up or
get a Washington. Hey, here tomorrow.
10:06:28 Yeah. It to the logistics to get more assets there is phenomenal. Even between islands.
10:06:32 Yes.
10:06:34 I've heard something at least about Lehina at least that moving away from sugar cane. Plantations I guess and there's a bunch of grasses invasive grasses that have taken over
and I'm just wondering.
10:06:47 Our I guess our natural ecosystems usually more resilient in a particular area. That's where we're sort of at a left field question, but I'm just wondering about planning you
know landscape planning as we go through you know indoor wildfire protection plan and other things and just wondering about the resilience of the natural environment compared to what
we do to it.
10:07:11 I think human it's hard to be specific with a response to that, but I think it is in and refutable that human influence is often very short sighted and our, you know, our intentions
are usually good as the species, but we don't look at the unintended consequences.
10:07:27 You know, for example, you know, logging. We're replanting, you know, polygons.
10:07:33 Much denser than they would occur naturally. So, you know, when we make decisions about policy and.
10:07:40 Our practices. Those are important things to keep in mind is are we unintentionally increasing our threat by, you know, allowing those.
10:07:48 Those well-intentioned practices to persons. Yeah, like building in a in an area that burns every 100 years too, right?
10:07:58 Well, I think, I know, was such a wake up call for us and like it's a community that looks and feels similar to Port Townsend.
10:08:07 It was really drove home and you know being on a on the water and you know just so many similarities.
10:08:15 But there were some governmental decisions that contributed. Terribly to this disaster. Apparently, water resources weren't made available when they should have been and.
10:08:28 The power company. Could have taken some. Preventative measures that they did not. So.
10:08:42 And this is the summary for the whole, you know, North American continent for wildfire assessment.
10:08:49 And you can see. Our friends to the north are also suffering, unfortunately. Next slide. We have towns the size of Port Townsend and bigger that are completely being evacuated.
10:09:00 In preparation for a firefront that is not stopable. With or without water. Once a fire gets to a certain size of wildfire.
10:09:09 There's no water that can overcome the math of the energy that's being released. Really have to remove the fuel.
10:09:17 Yeah. To make a break or wait till the fuel burns up.
10:09:21 Next slide.
10:09:25 Talking a little bit about the Beaver Valley fire. I took this picture while we were in route to the initial.
10:09:32 The initial attack phase of the fire. The battalion chief who's a native Jefferson County resident.
10:09:40 Commented after this was over this is the most extreme fire behavior he's seen here in Jefferson County at a wildfire.
10:09:48 We had mature trees conifers torching which is very unusual. And we also saw spotting where the wildfire jumps ahead of itself outside the containment lines.
10:09:58 Both of those are indicative of what we would categorize in our profession as extreme fire behavior. And those circumstances are what led us to do the evacuation.
10:10:07 Was we we were playing this game of ketchup in cat and mouse with the wind it would it would lay down and then it would start back up and we'd catch up to the fire and then
it would run away from us again.
10:10:20 And finally we got to kind of a go no go. Point where we couldn't you know aggressively protect the homes that were adjacent there so that's where we decided to evacuate them.
10:10:33 We had other contingency plans, but luckily we didn't have to put them in play because of the support we got from our partner agencies and the helicopter really saved the day.
10:10:43 Kept it out of the the stand of mature timber that it was just about to jump into. And the only other card we had to play.
10:10:51 If that had happened, would have been to evacuate Swansonville Road. That was our next card.
10:10:56 And that was DNR. Lord's Lake was DNR too, yeah. The initial attack was not the in that little firefight was quilting us Brennan Discovery Bay.
10:11:10 It took a little while for DNR because DNR is you know, kind of the sweater, they're trying to manage all these fires all over the state.
10:11:17 So they came with initially just some single resources that help direct the aircraft. But it took a little while for them to get engines there.
10:11:26 Well. Yeah. Like I mentioned, 3 things I never thought I'd do when I left California, which was request hell attack, order up strike teams.
10:11:38 And issue evacuations is pretty to my knowledge while my people tell me we've never done those things before here.
10:11:46 On fire. So, on the same fire piece. So I think we just all need to have that mindset of, you know, be ready for that.
10:11:56 And one more click, Commissioner. So a few days later, at a more optimum time of day without any wind.
10:12:04 We did have another potential incident. At cape's trails. But if this incident had happened at the same time as the Beaver Valley fire with the wind, it would be a different
conversation than what we're having now.
10:12:16 Luckily, the crews were standing right there. When the power line snapped and danced around and sparked a bunch of little spot fires.
10:12:24 But had they not been standing there with their hose lines out, which was very vigilant on their part.
10:12:30 It would have been a challenge to catch that fire.
10:12:37 And then we have the port Ludo fire. It happened in the middle of the night. Originally it was spotted by a security officer driving by at around midnight.
10:12:49 This is across the street from the shell gas station on the water side. And the trail goes kind of sneaks between a couple of subdivisions and goes down to some homes.
10:12:59 And eventually the water And then by the time we got there. The fire had grown to about 50 by 50.
10:13:06 Because it was nighttime, because it was moist and damp, the fire behavior did not stand up.
10:13:12 It really just burned the understory. But again, if this fire had been 12Â h later in the day, with sun on it, it would have.
10:13:19 Would have been a different outcome for sure. And when you say 50 by 50, does the material in the middle burn out and then the 50 by 50 is the fire line on the outside of the
burnt area or is it all burning at once?
10:13:37 It depends. It's a variable based on what the fuel is. You can see a little bit of green right in the middle of that black.
10:13:46 That was, you know, probably a very moist plant that had been getting water somehow. So it was more resilient to the fire, but.
10:13:55 What's burning out to the 50 by 50 footprint? Is all of the dead and dry duff and weeds and twigs.
10:14:05 So it'll burn the driest material first. And then once that heat evaporates the moisture in an adjacent plant that might be alive or semi-live.
10:14:15 It's not uncommon to see flare ups in the middle of the black what we call the black.
10:14:22 Well after the fire has been the fire perimeter has been controlled. Because it just it takes a while for that water in the plate to boil off basically.
10:14:31 And then it's dry enough. Yes, and particularly if something's an oily, vegetation by nature, like Firefighters, you will never see a firefighter put a juniper next to their
home for that, because they're like a Roman candle.
10:14:49 So the point of this section we just went through is the holes and this is cheese metaphor I use a lot.
10:14:55 For a catastrophe did not line up on any of these 3, they came very close on the Beaver Valley fire, but we had no injuries and no significant property damage.
10:15:04 And that to me is a win. But the holes came close to lining up and we want people.
10:15:10 And hopefully all of you will help us echo that message. To be ready. Learn what we're going to talk about next about our evacuation practices.
10:15:20 Have a go bag in your car not in your garage. Because Murphy is always watching. You may not be at home.
10:15:24 When we need to evacuate your community and so you can't get home. Once we evacuate, we establish a perimeter.
10:15:31 So that we can reduce the threat to lives. So having it go back in your car is really important.
10:15:38 And, you can click through until they all show up here, Commissioner. These are the 3 levels that we use here.
10:15:45 In Jefferson County, but really the bottom line there that we want everybody to know and I get asked a lot is.
10:15:53 You know, when do I know to go? Do I need what if my phone doesn't have a cell tower that is hitting?
10:15:58 If you feel threatened by a fire, don't wait for government to save you. You need to leave, follow your instincts, drive the opposite way of the fire.
10:16:09 There's a reason we don't have every wildfire evacuation route scripted out.
10:16:12 Because it's 2 variable. A tsunami is very. Two-dimensional even though it's very impactful, we know it's only coming from one direction.
10:16:20 But a whilefire can come from any direction and even spot outside of where we think the fire is like paradise, unfortunately.
10:16:27 Where it cut off the entire escape route for the whole town. So don't wait until you see a level 3 alert.
10:16:34 Leave early and just call it. You know, a shopping day or a vacation day, throw the kids of the family in the car.
10:16:41 Drive across the bridge, go go out to lunch. That's the best thing you can do. Don't wait for us to come knocking door to door.
10:16:51 Do you have any questions on that? Pretty clear. Well, but I mean, I think in the moment it's not, right?
10:16:58 Like if you don't know which direction, you know, I mean, obviously you can see, but like there's chaos, right?
10:17:04 Like your phone's blowing up. There's you know, probably some. Literally back round noise, sirens.
10:17:11 We live on a pencila where there's basically one road off like that feels like such a weakness.
10:17:18 In terms of being able to evacuate.
10:17:21 Yeah, like, you know, I've just been thinking since the high, oh my god, what would, you know, I'd be the one running into the water, which then you hear like, not smart.
10:17:32 But I, like, I often don't have a car. And I'm not at home, you know, so like I've had to think, what would I do?
10:17:38 Yeah, I think it's a paradigm that we have not had to think about here before in Jefferson County.
10:17:43 We traditional weather has kept the understory nice and moist and damp. So any little grass fire that does start.
10:17:50 Doesn't get, to the level of intensity that we're used to seeing in the rest of the West.
10:17:57 Until recently that was the case but. To your point, you know, if you're not in a position to at least evacuate with all, you know, your important belongings.
10:18:07 At least take yourself out of the immediate equation in that geography. Because it handicaps us. When we have civilians still inside the perimeter of the evacuation zone because
we only have 2 tactics that we can exercise life saving and property saving.
10:18:23 And life always comes before property and this is what happened unfortunately in paradise. I don't know about Lahina, but maybe in the hyena too.
10:18:32 Is when you don't evacuate early enough, everybody's gonna get on Beaver Valley Road or Paradise Bay Road at once and then you're stuck.
10:18:42 And then we have to abandon the firefight and protect you. And that is a self-defeating, you know, paradigm where The fire is getting bigger because we're not attacking the
fire.
10:18:52 But the evacuation conundrum is getting worse because we're not attacking the fire.
10:18:57 So that's why we want people. To try to think about empowering us to be more aggressive and assertive.
10:19:03 With the firefight is your call to evacuate or at least get out of the local. Location so that we don't we can reduce that the the obligation to life saving to a minimum and
just go into firefighting mode as best we can.
10:19:21 Yeah, I answer your question. Yeah, and you know, of course it's like there's a million scenarios that could play out here, you know we're a timber county and like so it actually
the main route off the peninsula goes through the thickest.
10:19:38 Timber in, you know. So you feel like you're able to provide evacuation orders that are like super clear, like that tell people where to go and where not to go and like.
10:19:51 Well, Nixel in itself is limited, as you all know, has characters that limit it and that was one of the comments I've gotten a lot with the messaging is we want to know exactly
where the The fire is going, we want to know what exactly we should go.
10:20:06 But when you think of the thousands of people in our community and the unpredictability of the wildfire that I've mentioned.
10:20:13 What I type in the Nixel is going to be stale the second I hit send. And then all of a sudden the wind changes and it changed 180 degrees on the Beaver Valley fire on us a couple
times.
10:20:25 That message could now put you in harm's way. And that's what we don't want.
10:20:31 And then I don't know, Commissioner, specifically where you are, the hypothetical, if you're texting or calling me saying which way do I go, I can't see what you see.
10:20:39 So if you're south of Beaver Valley fire. I'm gonna say keep going south. Right.
10:20:46 But if you just happen to be north of the fire. Sending you south is going to send you through the firefront.
10:20:50 So there's so many paradigms there that is one of the things we want to clarify with the CWP is to give people a clear message on at least the the basics of evacuation, finding
a safe refuge area.
10:21:04 You know, the rule of thumb is for firefighters is 4 times the plane heights is a is a safe area.
10:21:12 Well, we had flame heights of 75 feet. On the Beaver Valley fire. So 4 times that, that's a big, that's a big radius to put a bunch of people.
10:21:21 It's probably a school. Right or a big parking lot at the very least. And But one of the films I talk about at the end of this presentation, Fire in Paradise, talks about how
you shelter they sheltered hundreds of people when the firefront was coming right at them in paradise.
10:21:39 I'm not saying we're going to experience paradise. But at least gives you the mindset of, you know.
10:21:46 You know, looking around and understanding your situation and where you are, maybe a beach. You know, front is the safest spot because There isn't a lot of vegetation that'll
burn there.
10:21:56 But maybe it's not. Maybe the bluffs go right up to the water line with a lot of fuel on them.
10:22:01 Those are things you need to kind of put that equation in your head together quickly. Seems like navigation apps could be leveraged for this you know ways can take you around
traffic jams.
10:22:12 It certainly should be able to come up with an appropriate route to a safe place. That's one of the tools that Zone Haven uses, which is a AI.
10:22:21 Evacuation scheme and that they've adopted almost throughout California. Okay. And that polygons up all of the wildfire threat areas.
10:22:30 It does interface with ways Airbnb. Google all of those and it, knows where you are and it'll tell you avoid this traffic single signal because traffic's backed up for miles.
10:22:42 Right. But it's it's cell phone dependent. You know, and how many areas of our county don't have.
10:22:49 Coverage is significant. I, I can quickly scroll through. I, I can quickly scroll through.
10:23:01 I, I can quickly scroll through. I, I can quickly scroll through. I've got a couple of more. You know, we talked about the go bag. Next slide. There we go.
10:23:04 There's a suggestion for you, you know, if you're If you have mobility issues or you have pets that are gonna take you a while to mobilize.
10:23:13 That's even more of a higher awareness that you should have is I need to get out earlier and again.
10:23:19 Not make myself part of the life safety equation.
10:23:26 Anybody heard about this house? Yes. I read the New York Times article about it. Fascinating.
10:23:35 So it's that what I read. And that's a steel here. Punch line is it was the that they had done some hardscaping around the pro the perimeter of the house.
10:23:46 That's what the homeowner said that you thought had saved the house. The other sprinklers on the metal roof too.
10:23:53 I don't know, I didn't read that, but I just read the hard skating.
10:23:56 There's no fire engine assigned to protect this home. That's what's fascinating to me.
10:24:01 That's normally one of our jobs is structure protection. Yep. This house is a standalone home and they had just remodeled it.
10:24:08 In accordance with the local historical society's standards, which I find even more. Relevant to our commuting because we have so many amazing historic homes.
10:24:18 You can solve it. That is case. And to your comments, Commissioner, they. Hard scaped everything along the drip edge of the roof line so that there wasn't any fuel dried or
semi dried that could ignite and but heat up into the attic space.
10:24:39 And they followed all of the historical societies recommendations. For making this building match when it was built, which is over a hundred years ago.
10:24:46 It's a timber frame home. It's a beautiful home it looks like to me. Sprinklers are and whether you should hose down your your roof or your debt is not indicated ever.
10:24:59 It's not going to do anything. It's in you're putting yourself in harm's way and potentially robbing water from the where it could be used better.
10:25:06 But the amount of energy a firefront this magnitude is going to bring through, will evaporate the water before the flames ever touch your home.
10:25:14 And so it's, it's not purposeful. But this is a really good. Case study for how just a few basic things around your home.
10:25:24 Decisions on landscaping, where to store your you know, things that might ignite can really make a powerful outcome.
10:25:36 It's crazy, it's still green.
10:25:39 You like it more to the story. I mean, do you think that was the only? I mean, it can't be just the hardscaping around it, right?
10:25:46 Because there's That was it. I didn't hear about it. Okay. I'm putting hardy plank sighting on the house.
10:25:55 I'm building in Paradise Bay. That did not have party plank. Hardy places concrete.
10:25:58 They just had the historical societies. I'm reckon for what they did in that era.
10:26:05 And is and that's a metal roof. It is a metal roof. Yeah. Which I've heard is safer.
10:26:10 Safer, a class A. You know, cop shingle roof is also pretty safe, but Remember your roof is only as survivable in a wildfire as your gutters are and if you aren't cleaning your
gutters you might as well.
10:26:24 Not do anything because that's what the empty embers are gonna get right and then Nice. There went the gutter cleaning business.
10:26:39 Maybe that's, maybe that's my next. Yeah, yeah, side job for you.
10:26:47 That ladders. And this this is really following the message we just talked about is we want you to be more assertive, closer to your home with what your decisions are.
10:26:54 And how to protect your own during wildfires. So it is a standalone home where we don't need to put a fire engine.
10:26:59 That's the goal so we can fight the fire.
10:27:03 We can have an urban forest environment. We're not advocating clear cutting, you know, a hundred feet all around your home.
10:27:14 Next slide. Yeah, that's our mantra.
10:27:18 I've got a lot of questions about sirens. I don't know if you have any, but just a little bit of history.
10:27:25 Tsunami sirens were first used in 1949 following World War 2 where we all probably never heard the slang air raid siren.
10:27:33 The technology is very binary. It's either on or off. There's it's impossible to customize a message.
10:27:41 You can have a couple short glass, mean one thing, a couple long glass being another, but really.
10:27:46 There's no way to communicate what specific threat to communities. Being exposed to and really you only see the analog sirens is what I call them used.
10:27:58 In zones prone to tsunamis and in the Midwest in tornado country. And everybody there knows what to do when they hear that siren.
10:28:07 They either go to higher ground or they go underground if it's Iowa. Yeah, so I mean that's the important part is the community needs to be.
10:28:17 Trained to know what to do. But that wouldn't really work for a wildfire because you might have to do different things depending on the situation, right?
10:28:23 So on the next slide, you'll you'll see what they're doing in some communities.
10:28:30 Throughout the West Coast and even on the East Coast. LRADS or something the military has been using for a couple decades.
10:28:38 I've trained with LRADs, Berkeley Fire in Oakland. Fire every year we would do a polygon of the community and evacuate them for a simulated wildfire using Nixon.
10:28:48 In real time, a couple 100 homes because They're still threatened by wildfire even though you would think everything burned up in 91.
10:28:56 But it's still an urban forest. They installed the all ride system and the only thing I could tell you is it was like the voice of God.
10:29:05 It was in your head. Yeah. It wasn't just a loudspeaker and you could hear it clearly.
10:29:09 It's very expensive and it needs more than one tower. You have to have basically triangulate, triangulated coverage across an area that is somewhat terrain sensitive as well.
10:29:22 So although I've heard a couple well-intentioned members of our community say hey we need to use air raid sirens or that we already have wildfire to your point commissioner.
10:29:31 The paradigm is too dynamic. With a wildfire, you know, wouldn't know where to go or what to do.
10:29:37 If anything, it might alert you to turn on, you know, your local radio station, but we haven't trained people that way.
10:29:43 So that might be something. We that might be some add on that we. Could consider but to just say you can use an analog.
10:29:51 Tsunami warning. To say, you know, run this way for a wildfire.
10:29:55 It's just not practical. And LRADs are really expensive. Yeah, even from here the Monday tsunami drills sound like the voice, you know, saying this is only a drill.
10:30:09 Yeah, the school teacher on the peanuts. Yeah, exactly.
10:30:15 Couple of graphics just from the the national messaging. I'd rather throw up there
10:30:21 And really just kind of a call to action. Don't watch this movie with your kids.
10:30:27 It's, it's real footage and it's intense, but. The point is we're not trying to say that's going to happen here, but I think it's important for people.
10:30:36 To your your point, Commissioner Dean is, you know, where your mind needs to go. And how quickly you saw, you know, develop options is not intuitive to us in this community
because we have an experienced it.
10:30:50 We're not going to experience anything to this. Degree, but I think we need to start thinking about it when I'm out without my car.
10:30:55 Where's my nearest safety zone? Is it a beach? Is it a park? Is it?
10:31:01 You know, school. How reliable will cell phones and Nix will be in the case of wildfires?
10:31:09 I mean, generally that would be a very emergent thing that wouldn't necessarily have like burn cell towers, right?
10:31:15 I mean, when you're trying to get information at first, are our cell phones reliable or should we be going to KPTC?
10:31:22 Is that more reliable? I think the more points of messaging the better. Because it depends on where you are.
10:31:32 I won't get texts anywhere. I didn't get any text messages the whole day at that thing for you know And that's, I call that in the city.
10:31:43 Yeah, so I'm not gonna get a nixel at anywhere in that community or the fair.
10:31:50 And then when I got home at midnight, Saturday, All of a sudden my phone start blown up with all the text.
10:31:56 So a lot of it is, you know, coverage. Centric and it's hard to say.
10:32:01 Cell phones are better than KPDZ. I think the more more variety we have the better. Cell phone towers can burn up quick or if we have the big power edge we had a couple winters
ago You know cell phone towers aren't even going to be.
10:32:15 And usable after a few hours. Yeah.
10:32:21 So the question earlier that came up about coordination with. Water and power. I mean, what, what, what can we put in place here?
10:32:34 To make sure that we have the right network of. Community leaders. Up to speed and responding to. Kind of preparation appropriately.
10:32:47 What I would propose, Commissioner, and it'll be the perfect timing because we'll be done with the CWP as next spring we actually do an exercise similar to what we did in my
past when we evacuate a polygon.
10:32:57 Opt in with Nixon, which you can do. I've talked to Willie. And do a polygon or a couple polygons in the spring.
10:33:04 You know, like April, May, when the weather is better. And learn, and you know, know what we don't know.
10:33:12 It is not going to be smooth. And we, but we need to know that. But we need to know how to counteract that.
10:33:18 How do we interact with PUD or if it's a private system. Smaller system, you know, I don't even have a water system where I live in Paradise Bay.
10:33:26 So what do we do there? I think we need to know what we don't know with a real time exercise to better answer your question.
10:33:33 The one if If I don't, if you don't mind me giving a shameless thank you to.
10:33:38 One of your departments, the sheriff's department was pivotal. And a lot of our recent incidents with the Beaver Valley fire having.
10:33:47 The drone there with this infrared camera. Gave us a level of intelligence that we've I have never had before on the initial attack phase of a.
10:33:58 Okay, the deputy city right next to the incident commander right showing him where the heat signatures are and where the structures are thrown was phenomenal.
10:34:07 So please keep that program.
10:34:12 Cool. It's just, list of resources. Yeah, a lot of a lot of the community likes to know where I look for my I just thought I put all those hyperlinks in there.
10:34:21 Can we get this list up on our web page, Mark?
10:34:27 Pardon. Can we get this list of, web resources up on our web page? So people can just link on them, click on them, click on the links.
10:34:36 Cause now that the slides gone. No, no, I mean, but no, in general, when we're done with this topic, right, it would be nice for people to have somewhere to go.
10:34:45 Yeah. You have a up on that presentation. We do. We have a lot of resources on EGFRs website.
10:34:54 Maybe just linking to the resource page of East Jeff would be the best thing to do.
10:35:02 I still don't feel clear about evacuation. So pay attention to. Nixel radio.
10:35:09 Look around, see if we can figure out where the fire is and try and head the other direction. But like how do you know if you're going to leave to some massive traffic jam?
10:35:19 You know, and be sitting there like. Pray, you know? Yes, that is the challenge. But the the message that we're trying to share that unfortunately has been learned by communities
that have gone through this is the longer you ponder the better in the worse off you're going to be.
10:35:37 So if you have that voice in your head saying I feel threatened. Just grab what you can and your you know friends or neighbors alert them as you're leaving to do the same volunteering
the uptown area for the, yeah, stick my polygons. Yeah.
10:36:00 Well, I think to your point though, it would be fascinating to do a couple of these in different.
10:36:04 I think all 3 of our, we have a diversity of challenges and. Interactions with different agencies, the city is going to be different than Doing it in Chimicum or Iron Dale and
then where I live or you know shine.
10:36:19 Sticks for Greg Liz. We have a plan right now to put all of our goats and chickens and everything and boats in the lake. I like that.
10:36:25 Is that a reasonable plan? You'll save the chickens and go. Okay. So we might be out there too.
10:36:33 Well, depends on how urgent it is, but. The biggest lake in Jefferson County.
10:36:36 Yeah, which one? Lakeland? You've been there, Mark. No, I haven't.
10:36:43 No, he hasn't. I always have to go. I'm thinking, can my camera take my camper van down to beach at Fort Warden? Yeah.
10:36:58 Pretty clear, right? Just not fuel down there. Yeah. Pretty clear, right?
10:37:01 There's not fuel down there. Although unlike, you can't actually get in the water, not fuel down there.
10:37:03 Although unlike, we can't actually get in the water because you get hypothermia. You can't actually get in the water because you get hypothermia.
10:37:08 We got an email about that this morning somebody saying, you know We're not gonna be run into the shoreline and swimming in the water for 8Â h, like some folks in behind it
did.
10:37:15 Yeah. But the thing to think about is a lot of people in the water for 8Â h like some folks in behind and did.
10:37:23 Yeah, right. But the thing to think about is a lot of people in structure fires and wildfires don't succumb to the fire itself.
10:37:25 They succumb to my book. You know, that's important to remember. The smoke is also a threat.
10:37:30 At the end of the day on Saturday, I had this headache. And my throat was hoarse, it's still a little horse, all the smoke in the air.
10:37:35 Yeah. Well, it's a hundred times worse in a wildfire because all that particular is going right in.
10:37:42 Yeah. Which shoreline is probably good for. Clearing the air a little bit. A little bit, but it's not, you know, it depends on the way the wind's blowing and Yeah, there's a
lot of variables.
10:37:50 Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Chief. Yeah, you know vigilance is the watch word now, right?
10:38:00 And really understanding the main take home message is the watch word now, right? And really understanding. The main take home message is that our seasons lasting longer than
we might have otherwise assumed, right?
10:38:06 The message that you were primarily bringing today is we need to be. Vigilant much longer than we ever have before.
10:38:14 Well, Chief, thank you so much for taking the time today. It's been really educational and a little chilling.
10:38:21 Alright, you guys have a good week. It's a quiet week for you. Yes.
10:38:30 Okay, let's take a little stock. Should we take a little, just a little break?
10:38:35 I think we have an 110'clock. Oh yeah. All right. Well, let's take 5Â min.
10:38:41 Let's actually let's come back at 1045. Let's take 7Â min recess.
10:49:05 Nice to have a full house. Yeah.
10:49:10 There is talking to just these 2. I'm gonna listen to it. She'll be down with that.
10:49:20 Well, I will call this meeting of the Board of County Commissioners back into session. Thanks for indulging us for a brief break.
10:49:28 And we're going to start with our, I guess we have a timed. Agenda item at 110'clock so we'll wait for just a few minutes then we'll invite Tammy up to to join Mark at the table.
10:49:39 And I think we could probably add a public comment to that 110'clock briefing too in case there's any other of the other.
10:49:45 You mean, site volunteers that have anything they'd like to share with us? So for the remaining 10Â min before that, 110'clock briefing, I guess. Okay, did you finish getting
back?
10:49:57 I don't think I've looked back at my week yet so I was just waiting for a crowd.
10:50:01 Hello, But you mean there was more than the, the, the fog haze of the thing?
10:50:11 I did a few things before that but once it started I was I was not much good. So I was with you guys, of course, last Monday.
10:50:18 And I was curious, you said you went to the budget training. I mean, I did not go to that.
10:50:24 I was thinking about going, but since I didn't actually. Well, Judy was just providing a budget and kind of, overview for all department leads who are preparing a budget and
kind of Munis overview for all department leads who are preparing their budget so.
10:50:33 I just thought it would be educational to know what, you know, what was part of that training. Have you logged in the Munich yet? Nope.
10:50:43 Have you logged in? I assume they didn't want us in there. Yeah, that would be that's the smart thing for sure.
10:50:46 Okay, I was curious. No, I have not. But did AI do it for you? I wouldn't know.
10:50:53 You know, we have actually just intelligent people to do that. So that's, I've not.
10:51:01 I've, no, I, you know, we have actually just intelligent people to do that. So that's, I've not, the intelligent people are being told, yes, by the most intelligent budget writer
we have.
10:51:03 So, right, that's why I went Great. And that I joined, you know, supporting our staff at the banana leaf.
10:51:08 The ripple effect mapping of the South County harm reduction meeting was canceled because one of the critical members was not able to join because they're going to have a baby.
10:51:19 So, props to Holly for. You know, bringing more, great kids into the world.
10:51:23 So we've reschedule that for September on Wednesday. I was not able to make it down to Brendan for the dose of Walps River Collaborative Meeting.
10:51:30 Approved that they got some of the design money for that for the the Lynn or not the Linda Reach.
10:51:38 I guess that was a linear, but they're I think they've gotten some for the power lines reach on the dose of wallups as well.
10:51:43 I met with the recompete consultant on Wednesday, Ted's third event, had a good conversation.
10:51:49 But we talked about process and I said, well, as long as there's not a bunch of endless RFPs and then it is going to be an endless RFP, ultimately on Friday I had meeting with
Josh the DCD director talking about the recompete options to making sure I wasn't getting us too far over the skis with kind of proposing the site-specific infrastructure projects
10:52:14 in. Glencoe to consider and I've also kind of at least for the time being tapped on the Brennan sewer since it just kind of lines up with infrastructure.
10:52:22 Sewer and we have a lot of it's also our most distressed area and it's There's a lot of support for the brethren sewer right now.
10:52:30 And Josh said what to you? And he wore over your skis? No, he, I mean, he was nervous about, He had some good suggestions about not.
10:52:41 Like It's proximity to the comp plan. The periodic comp plan is great and it's important, but you don't want to say that we're using the planning dollars and recompete.
10:52:51 For our comp plan update because we've gotten to call you dollars already. So you don't want to, you know, you just want to say that this is.
10:52:58 It's strategically aligned, but not, but, specifically. Individual projects. That are happening at the same time.
10:53:05 So that was the big takeaway from that. And then Friday afternoon at the thing I did do a recompete task force meeting.
10:53:12 It's growing, I think. Ted is doing a good job and not letting more members join the Recompete Task Force, but we had a lot more stakeholders involved, including a couple of
grant writers that are going to be putting it together.
10:53:24 And Suzy Ames from Peninsula College, it seems like I actually said, hey, we should bring her into the task force because both EVCs.
10:53:30 And the NODC seem to really lean on some of the programs that Peninsula College is doing as the way that we can really hit that workforce.
10:53:46 You know, both I think they talked about the boost program that I hadn't heard about that is. Training.
10:53:47 Financial skills, you know, like a quarter intensive financial skills and also they're looking at ways to create new kind of resource industry.
10:53:57 Natural resource industry locations. So that seems like a pretty logical combination as well. So good stuff happening on the Recompete task force and we approved our RFP. So
it's gone out.
10:54:12 Yeah, when you say endless RFPs, can you explain what you mean by that? Well, you know, we're looking for somewhere between 3 to 8 site specific projects that will be the phase
2 projects that will be the phase 2 projects that will be the phase 2 projects. Well, you know, we're looking for somewhere between 3 to 8 site specific projects that will be the phase
2 projects, right?
10:54:25 There and then you can either have some planned site specific areas that you want to go, though it's not absolutely defined, how defined they are is kind of up in the air.
10:54:34 And you know we had a list of of site specific projects that was that grew the double from last week.
10:54:42 And so we had basically a form that we all agreed on that was a. Project description. So how does it hit the recompete, you know, prime age employment gap?
10:54:54 How does it what are the other contributors to contributors or you know matching funds who's going to be a project lead who's going to do the groundwork and all that.
10:55:02 So we have. Fairly simple 6 questions that you can just validate a project so we can choose the projects.
10:55:11 And, you know, Port Angels wants to submit a project. You know, I talked to, I had lunch with Aaron Berg last week and he was like, you know.
10:55:20 First he was bragging about the new Lyft money that they got and I said, oh yeah, Port Ankles is putting in for an infrastructure project at the port down there.
10:55:27 He's like, oh well. Fear of missing out came instantly and all of a sudden he was thinking well we'd like we'd like to get in on that too.
10:55:34 So. It's open to everyone and we're going to consider the projects and one of them down at our next week of meeting this Friday.
10:55:43 Okay, so one RFP, lots of proposals coming in. Okay, thank you. And then let's see, I'll try to finish the rest of this up met with the, olecap is doing our strategic planning
this this week.
10:55:58 And so I met with the Mackey Smith. He had a good line. He was like, you never, never trust anyone with 2 first names.
10:56:04 You can always trust someone with 2 last names. But, so I had, had to talk with him about.
10:56:11 All the cap and that you know it's Sometimes the tripartite board structure is really, it's it's really validating because you have the people that you're serving on the board
that is a real challenge to get those folks that aren't don't have as much board experience to be vocal participants in it, then they end up.
10:56:27 Just quietly sitting there and raising their hand when votes come up. So. Do they get compensated for their time at all?
10:56:36 And they have to be democratically elected. In their organizations and in HOA or something. So it's a challenge to get the.
10:56:43 The folks with lived experience on the board. But it is a, you know. Federal congressional requirements. So gotta do it.
10:56:50 And it's really, really we've had a couple that have been.
10:56:54 Really good at pointing out, you know, I think AJ when who's left our border health was really good about pointing out barriers that we were inadvertently putting up in front
of some of the folks that had to work for a living.
10:57:06 We had a couple members that are really, really good at that too. Housing fun board, we've talked a lot about really enjoyed the employee picnic.
10:57:14 And the groundbreaking was great and it was the first time I was in a mini excavator too. A mini.
10:57:24 No I know I we are I carry things around on my shoulder. That's, no, no, that's control.
10:57:30 I know. I, I've carry things around on my shoulder. That's, no, no, I, control.
10:57:35 I think it was probably video game experience. Okay. Sorry. Sorry. I'm in.
10:57:39 Yeah. That's okay. I think it was probably video game experience. Okay. Sorry.
10:57:45 Sorry, I'm in. Yeah. That's okay. And then, I did try to, zoom into the, interest exam with the state, accounting office and was unsuccessful as I was doing my volunteer shift
exam with the state accounting office and was unsuccessful as I was doing my volunteer shift or getting on to my volunteer shift or getting onto my volunteer shift, as I was doing my
volunteer shift, or getting on to my volunteer shift at Fort Warden.
10:57:56 So I hadn't So, Mark, Ably filled in for me. Give me an update, but we're well well represented.
10:58:01 And, we had our Jeffcom meeting. Matt is, He's doing Yeoman's work out there.
10:58:10 He's a really it's He's doing collective bargaining right now. And Oh, it's, if you got any, Kids that wanna be Jeffcom, 9 1 one dispatchers.
10:58:24 It's a it's a career path. That's pretty short. Stressful. It is stressful.
10:58:33 And he's, he's been really good about, getting mental health services for folks after big events.
10:58:37 So, get everyone. Access to counseling which is a step in the right direction still 365Â h of overtime.
10:58:48 Per pay period.
10:58:49 So they're about half staffed right now.
10:58:55 And those were the high points. Agenda planning with Mark.
10:59:03 And. Yep, on Jeff, come too, we're gonna probably have to redo the ILA between all the user agencies.
10:59:11 And our ILA is from 2,012 that kind of talks about how the you know most of the fees that come in there there's a little bit of sales tax there's a little bit of a state grant.
10:59:24 But by far most of the money that comes in is paid by the Jefferson County Shares Office, which has the most.
10:59:31 4,000 police and East Jefferson fire and then. And then that close in Discovery Day and and Brennan as well are all.
10:59:39 Contributing so when cost go up it's directly on their shoulders. So it's really, I mean, it's very logical.
10:59:45 Logically formed organization. I know there was some lamenting losing that as a county department, but it seems, I don't know, seems pretty strong right now.
10:59:54 I think it's functional. Yeah. I did. Take a look at the proposed fee for Jefferson County next year.
11:00:01 And it's like a hundred $20,000 increase. And so one thing I think we need to look at is.
11:00:08 Maybe using a 3 year average to to dampen or prevent sizeable increases year to year and what we pay.
11:00:18 Yeah. And then I think under share of Pern Steiner has a proposal. He pits me a little bit.
11:00:25 Yeah, a controversial proposal that I think he'll float at the next meeting or at a meeting in the net near future that would.
11:00:33 Redistribute user fees and a dramatic way. Right now it's kind of very base based explicitly on number of calls for service.
11:00:44 But there without regard to complexity of the calls. Right. So, so, you know, Beaver Valley fire that had multiple back and forth conversations all day long would be one call
and a traffic stop would be one call.
11:00:56 Right, so, so whether or not there's an equitable way of doing that, we'll see, but everyone.
11:01:02 That's to agree, right? And second. Yeah, you know, it could be, yeah, yeah, there's lots of different ways to, yeah.
11:01:10 Split the baby. All right, well, 11 am. So that was my week and we will, invite Tammy.
11:01:18 Please join us at the table. Great to have the new. I mean society director Tammy Hanks with us and I don't know Tammy you want to take us some take a moment to take us some
take a moment to tell us about yourself I don't know how long you've been in this role even but it's a.
11:01:31 I don't know how long you've been in this role even but it's a year and 2 weeks.
11:01:32 A year and 2 weeks. All right. Welcome. Thank you. Great.
11:01:37 Do you have a slide deck that you want to share anything? No, I'm just gonna blur things out.
11:01:56 All right. I do have some paired comments. Mind. Yeah, I can put that on the screen.
11:01:59 You just want to talk. Prepared notes, but first I'd like to say thank you for inviting us.
11:02:03 As you can see, we have a very dedicated crowd of volunteers. This is only part of them. We have 74 altogether.
11:02:07 Okay. And from a purely financial perspective, even though we love and value each one of them. They did over 5,070Â h of community service with or not community service.
11:02:19 They're not criminals. But volunteer service with this last year. Okay. If you valued that at $20 an hour, that'd be a hundred $1,000 that otherwise we would have to hire more
staff.
11:02:33 So they are very valuable and If any of them want to speak when I'm done, if that's okay, I'd, I'd like for that weapon. Thank you.
11:02:41 Yeah. Okay. Chris Goy suggested I start with a little bit of history.
11:02:50 So I don't know how much you know about the history of the human society. In N in New Mexico.
11:02:57 That's where I'm from. Sorry. Washington State. Yeah, basically there's a history of the county and different nonprofits going back quite a few years running the shelter.
11:03:13 We are currently running it. We ran it. Back in the fifties. And I just have a little, comment from that time.
11:03:22 It we found some old paperwork from when it was I think, 1,957 one of those years where 600 animals came into the very small shelter that was on Hastings Avenue.
11:03:34 I believe it was 16 by 28. Very, very small. Things were different in those days and animals weren't as part of families as they are now.
11:03:45 So, and what I read, they took in just over 600 animals that year and of those 600.
11:03:51 500 were euthanized. Which was very powerful thing to read. You know, thankfully times have changed.
11:04:00 We hopefully do a much better job. Right now. But I've noticed that in the.
11:04:10 In the ensuing years, there have been other nonprofits that took over for a while.
11:04:17 There was one called Bay Shore that wasn't very successful. Seems like, financially that's been the main problem of running.
11:04:23 The shelter in the in the county. I'm sure when the county ran it there were some issues as well financially.
11:04:30 Mark, I don't know if you can speak to that before my time. Well, yeah. I've seen no records to that effect, but I don't doubt that you're right.
11:04:42 I've seen no records to that effect, but I don't doubt that you're right. Yeah.
11:04:43 And I do know that in our current iteration, which began in 2,012, there have been.
11:04:47 Some conflicts between the county. And the Humane Society and I'm here to say that we don't want that.
11:04:54 We're not here to argue. We want to be your partners. We want to be equal partners in ensuring that the people of our county have access.
11:05:02 To animal services. So if you'll allow me to talk a little more, I'll tell you a few things about what's going on now.
11:05:12 Let's see.
11:05:15 First of all, I'd like to mention that from 1,990 to 2,001 the population of Jefferson County grew by 64%.
11:05:24 I'm sure that's nothing you all don't know. That's that's a large increase even.
11:05:30 Let's say that one more time between 19 and 90 and in 2,021 the population of the county grew 64%.
11:05:36 30 years. Yeah, okay. Yeah. And it's my understanding that the current shelter was built around 1,995.
11:05:44 Very similar to the time when the transfer station was built as well. So both are showing their ages. I've realized that you guys are working on some new project for the transfer
station.
11:05:58 Our building too needs some, some help. In fact, in 2,005.
11:06:05 There was a leader article about the shelter that said that it was already too small. And 18 years later it is really too small.
11:06:17 Somehow in that time, we now managed to serve an average of 650 animals a year.
11:06:25 In the small outdated facility. That many still refer to as the pound because frankly it was built for to be a pound and it looks like a pound.
11:06:36 It's some things you just can't change. We even had somebody come in the other day looking for animals and the man that was with the woman that came in said, oh, this is where
dogs and cats come to die.
11:06:50 And we really. Fight back hard against that stereotype. You know, every person in here cares about animals or they would not be devoting so much of their time to animals.
11:07:01 So the facility is just over 2,000 square feet. I would dare say that the average port towns and house is about that size.
11:07:11 And I couldn't imagine having 650 animals come through my house even though I do have several dogs.
11:07:18 Not quite that many. So. So it was built to house straight dogs for a short period of time originally.
11:07:25 And what's happened is there's only 10 kennels inside. We also have 3 makeshift kennels outside that.
11:07:32 Frankly need to be torn down and rebuilt because anytime we put an animal out there, they've escaped until recently.
11:07:40 So we just don't. Put anybody out there very much. But what we do have since we are an open admission shelter is we do have a lot of animals come in that are very dangerous.
11:07:51 We have bite quarantine dogs that come in. We have strays that come in that, you know, have never been in a house.
11:08:00 They don't know how to be. Rehabilitated. So to say to be a pet. So we find ourselves many times with about of those 10 kennels we have.
11:08:14 4 to 5 of them are filled up with animals we can't adopt out. Which is not only sad, but it's also a financial matter, right?
11:08:22 We can't recoup any money on those kennels as long as those animals are in there.
11:08:27 So, we have also seen. And I'm sure you see this in other. Areas.
11:08:35 That. The fact that there is such a housing shortage right now. We see a lot, probably the majority of the animals that have come in since I've been here a year and 2 weeks
have been animals that their owners have to surrender because they're moving and they can't the landlords won't let them have pets or you know they they just can't have them.
11:09:00 And it's that's the status thing we see because these animals come in, they've been with their humans, the humans are suddenly not there, they're confused.
11:09:09 They're scared, and above all they're just sad. You know, and that's it's really difficult to do this job.
11:09:16 I think I think you guys would agree to see these animals. They just don't, they're just lost.
11:09:22 They're just lost. That's the best way to put it. So What I would like to suggest is that We need a new building.
11:09:31 And how we come to get to that new building. I think we should talk about. I think it's important that the county's involved in it.
11:09:39 I think it's important that we're involved in it, that we all have a little skin in the game.
11:09:44 We need one that's That's larger. Or we need. The current facility to be remodeled into a cat facility and then on the same property market I've talked about this, we could
invest in building a new dog barn.
11:10:00 That's that's a possibility, but we there definitely needs to be a humanely designed facility.
11:10:06 That's a complete remodel and expansion or or replacement. Another problem we have that I don't know that you guys are aware of.
11:10:17 Is that as a nonprofit, humane society. We operate under this. Important but stifling mandate from the state, which is Washington state RCW, 18.92 point 2 60.
11:10:30 Which dictates that humane societies can only serve low-income residents. Now I know a lot of places don't really adhere to that, but that's the letter of the law and that's
what we need to do.
11:10:43 That means that we're only legally able to. So. Bay and neuter the animals of people who meet the national definition of low income.
11:10:52 We can still adopt out to the. You know, people of greater means, but. But my concern about this is we can't.
11:11:03 The way that we're going, there's just no way to make enough money to make us.
11:11:07 Financially viable for the long term. We do have an endowment of some money. But that's going to go really fast.
11:11:15 If we can't get some help from the county. We lose a significant amount of money on each animal that comes in each dog and cat.
11:11:24 Probably if you include salaries and everything, you know, spay neuter, vaccines license, all that, we probably spend over $500 per animal.
11:11:35 And we take really good care of them. There are a lot of the animals that are on special diets.
11:11:40 That we pay extra money for those special diets like kidney cats, cats that have kidney disease and things like that.
11:11:47 So it's, you know, it's not a cheap Investment that we make every year.
11:11:54 We, our current budget is just shy of half a million dollars a year. That includes paying some paying one of our best.
11:12:01 She's now on, she's now part of our actual payroll. We have luckily too volunteer vets including Dr.
11:12:10 Johnson who I saw just come in who help us out. Out of the kindness of their heart and their love for animals, which we couldn't do it without them.
11:12:18 We really couldn't, especially financially. I also wanted to tell you just a little quick story about a gentleman that came in.
11:12:27 Oh, probably 2 months ago. Big large gentleman, very sweet. He had 2 kittens who were probably 4 or 5 months old.
11:12:36 And he was surrendering them and he had tears in his eyes and he said, you know, I have their 2 siblings.
11:12:43 And I was being responsible and I took them to the vet to get them fixed. He said the spay for one of them was $700.
11:12:52 The neuter for the other one was $400. And then he started crying and he said, I'm on disability.
11:12:58 And I can't, we couldn't afford that, but I paid it anyway because it was the responsible thing to do.
11:13:03 And he said, but we had to eat. Ramen for the rest of the month. And that, you know, in a county that is this vibrant, that should not happen.
11:13:13 They just shouldn't happen. So at some point we want to figure out some way to be able to serve those people in the middle.
11:13:20 Not the wealthy people who can afford to take their animals to a private vet now because those prices are outrageous.
11:13:27 And you know we're already serving the low income but there's a big hunk of people in the middle that we just can't serve.
11:13:35 And what is the definition of low income according to that? There's there's there's a national standard of if we make this much money in your family is this size.
11:13:45 Regardless of the the local economy. It's not the like the local area. I mean, no, it's they mentioned RCW something something.
11:13:57 There's also a state limit. But we go by the national limit just because it's changed every year.
11:14:03 So, you know, that story about that gentleman, that's not a unique story. A lot of people can't afford their animals right now.
11:14:12 Since 2,020 the price of dog food has gone up 45.5. We're fortunate in that we have tremendous donors who if we put out the call.
11:14:21 On Facebook or the website or whatever. We get all kinds of dog food. Cat food, you know, donated.
11:14:28 But I just the average person can't really afford their animals even though they love them. So. Tammy case you have a question.
11:14:38 Are you required or do you feel compelled to check income limits then? Yes, we do.
11:14:47 And they they also, in they tried to repeal that law last year and it didn't get repealed.
11:14:53 They added new. New. What's what am I trying to say? New restrictions on it.
11:14:59 Now we have to actually send them. Show them at the end of the year. We, so we have people bring in like there's a security check or some, you know, bank statements, something
to prove that.
11:15:13 And they always do because they want our services. You know, I feel like that's maybe a little bit infringing on them, but you know, they need the services.
11:15:24 Yeah. It's been repeating the RCW is 18 dot 92. Let me go back and see.
11:15:33 3 62. 92.2 62 60. Thank you.
11:15:38 And I don't have with me the one that. Made it mandatory for us to start reporting yearly but I can get that for you if you'd like.
11:15:48 I do. Appreciate the fact that the county and the city. Both allow us to keep. Buns from licensing.
11:15:57 But, you know, with such a small county. And so many people not licensing their animals and not really a whole lot of consequences if they do.
11:16:07 Or I mean if they don't license them. Those funds together have never made up more than $30,000 worth of income.
11:16:16 And a year. We spend that more than that in a month. So, you know, that's it's it helps, but it's not a driving factor in our financial success.
11:16:28 Another difficulty that Mark and I talked about to the fact that we're contractually obligated to pay the county to come and do.
11:16:36 Repairs. That resulted in a couple of months ago, we had to pay $375 for a faucet.
11:16:45 That frankly, you know, some of our wonderful volunteers could have put in for us for free. And that just seemed.
11:16:55 Extreme. We also had to pay $4,800 in for septic work that we were given no notification was happening.
11:17:04 I just showed up at work one day and there were 6 guys out digging up the septic.
11:17:08 And now that our septic system is unique. And it has had, you know, several issues.
11:17:16 And but they came out again a couple of weeks ago. And we're doing some other stuff to it because the alarm kept going off.
11:17:23 And I don't know how much that's going to be, you know, and with a very limited amount of income.
11:17:31 It's really hard to plan for things like that. So it would be nice if that little caught us a little of our contracts.
11:17:37 Can somehow go away. I don't know how possible that is, but that would that would make things much easier on us.
11:17:45 Plus the fact that since, 2,017, we've paid. Little over $38,000 for repairs on a 28 year old building that's falling down around us.
11:17:57 There's it leaks in the front. And the county has checked to see what that would cost.
11:18:03 $57,000 just to replace the small part of the top of the roof. So I, you know, I don't know that it makes a lot of sense to keep pouring a lot of money into this building.
11:18:15 On either of our parts, right? So, Tammy, I just, yes, not to put to final point on.
11:18:26 I mean, I first I really appreciate your I guess entreaty to a more harmonious working relationship between the humane society and the and the county and I think we all agree
with that so we definitely want it.
11:18:38 It sounds like the ask that you're bringing is mostly assistance with the capital facilities. And I guess we want to, I just want to be really clear and understand what you're
looking for and whether there's operational ask or I have 2 asks.
11:18:52 Okay. Like I mentioned, counties around us. Or maybe I didn't mention it yet, actually.
11:18:58 No, I haven't. Oh, sorry. I didn't mean it. No, it's fine.
11:19:03 The county is around us. I'll help their humane societies. Kids have had 452,000 and changed last year.
11:19:10 For their humane society. Now granted they are building a new 6.8 million dollars building. That helps.
11:19:17 But. And are 10 times the size. Yes, exactly. But Colum County has long been paying their humane society for services.
11:19:27 And they recently just. Renegotiated their contract to 125,000 a year.
11:19:34 Plus. I forget what it's called. It's not a cost of living increase, but similar to that. CPI.
11:19:41 Yeah, it just if prices go up they will also pay more each year. Escalation close.
11:19:48 Yeah. So. Yes, sorry, jumping ahead here.
11:19:55 Yeah, no, I didn't mean to. You can, I didn't need to interrupt you.
11:19:58 No, it's quite all right. Okay. So yeah, so basically if we wanna.
11:20:04 Jump to. Because I'm probably running out of time. You got all the time you need.
11:20:09 Okay. Okay, well then I'll just. Solutions to the building problem If anybody has another one, I would be.
11:20:27 Glad to hear it. We're open to anything. One of them would be the possibility of I believe you guys call it surplus out the building, which basically means it's not worth anything
to you anymore.
11:20:41 Got all the depreciation you can out of it and it's it'll cost too much to fix it.
11:20:45 If y'all would be willing to do that. Surplus out the building and give it to us.
11:20:52 Much like you did a building for Alicap. Few years ago, then we would either We'd have to see if it needs to be torn down or if we could renovate it for the cats.
11:21:05 If we could renovate it for the cats, that would probably be best. Because you know dogs and cats aren't supposed to be in the same buildings and it's very stressful for them
and for us when you try to take a dog out.
11:21:15 The one or 2 doors that we have and they have to go by cats to do it each time. Yeah.
11:21:22 You know, some dogs are very reactive to those cats. Yeah, and vice versa. Yeah, true, true, very true.
11:21:29 So then we, like I said, we would assume ownership of the current shelter renovate the building.
11:21:36 We would probably need to have a capital campaign. A very short one to get money to build a new barn for the dogs.
11:21:43 We wouldn't build anything fancy like they are in Kitab. You know, we still a little country shelter.
11:21:50 Yeah, or you know, some metal something, steel, yeah, that wouldn't be that expensive, but would be adequate.
11:22:00 The place that the marking them have suggested that we build it is just up from where our current building is and in between that and the current transfer station.
11:22:14 So that would be good and you know It really is a good site because. Nobody's going to want to come in and build right there between the gun range and the transfer station.
11:22:27 You know, and occasionally you hear the fire trucks going around. So it's a unique location. And you know, were we to try to find another location, that would have to be a consideration
for people.
11:22:39 I'm not so sure even I would like to have. A dog shelter next door to me, from barking dogs all the time.
11:22:45 So I get that. That could be difficult. That might be what we have to do at some point.
11:22:52 I don't know. But I think I think that's probably the best option is that if you all could anyway surplus that building out, give us the adjoining land and just let us.
11:23:04 Let us go. And I just want to be clear. We're listening. These are the first time we've heard all of these ideas.
11:23:09 So we definitely are going to give them a consideration. We've got to talk with staff and everything.
11:23:16 Yeah, the other option would be. If we had a 40 year lease on the property. And we could try to work out something there.
11:23:26 My only concern about that is just now finding out about the transfer station. I'm wondering who would be our neighbors, right?
11:23:33 But I don't know what you all plan to do with that land. Still up in there. Yeah, I'm sure there's lots of options.
11:23:40 So I mean, it's a closed landfill, so there's not a lot of options.
11:23:43 No, but But that's basically all I have to say. I don't know if anybody.
11:23:54 I mean the operational side you were talking about. All I have to say, I don't know if anybody. I mean, the operational side you were talking about.
11:24:03 Do you have a specific idea in mind? Do you have a specific idea in mind? Or? Well, you know, if, Clem County has been paying.
11:24:05 They've been paying a hundred 5,000 for years. I don't know how many years exactly and they just raised it to 125.
11:24:11 Probably something similar to that little bit less since they are larger. 3 times the size. Yeah. Oh, I thought they were only like twice this.
11:24:20 We need 9 people. We're third of the 2 county. So they're 2 thirds.
11:24:28 Yeah. The third of the 2 county. So they're 2 thirds. Yeah. I, yeah, I, yeah, I wrote the hate.
11:24:34 I'm listening. We tend to be 1 30 on this one. And frankly, you know, anything helps.
11:24:40 But if we're to have a modern Convenient, well run shelter. We need to have some funding.
11:24:48 I personally have written a lot of grants in my life and since I've been here I've written several grants and at least 2 of them, possibly 3.
11:24:58 Have written back and said, we love what you're doing. We'd love to support you, but you're too small.
11:25:04 You know, they they are right now supporting humane societies and other animal organizations. That are doing high, high, high levels of spay and neuter that we just can't do
yet because of, you know, we only have that little small trailer.
11:25:22 And they're focusing on that because during COVID, when everything else went to hell, so did animals services.
11:25:29 Nobody was getting their animal spade or neutered. It's estimated that 2.5 million animals weren't fixed during that time and then they just exponentially exploded.
11:25:40 Last week we had 31 cats come in on one day. All from Quill C. So when we take out our trailer, once we get our new truck that thankfully you guys approved our grant.
11:25:53 We're gonna go to quilting first. And see what we should do about that. Maybe just one house.
11:25:59 Yeah. But I mean, you know, what we do, may not just be as important as the things that are done for children.
11:26:10 You know, I've worked in children mental health. I have a whole life. But it is important and it is important to those children, right?
11:26:19 Who of us can't remember having a certain pet that we loved so much when we were a child?
11:26:23 And it's really important that we offer these services. Where most people can't afford them. And will do the right thing and get their animals fixed because if we don't, I don't
know what's gonna happen in Quill scene or any other part of the county.
11:26:40 So for many people in the community, our pets are our kids. Yeah, they are. They are.
11:26:45 Definitely. So I appreciate you guys listening to me. Does anybody else want to say anything? Let's we'd love to hear from from anyone but let's see if there's any other questions
for Tammy or before we open it up and then maybe we'll bring the microphone up here.
11:27:00 Great. Yeah, just thinking about. Like Greg said, first time we're hearing this, so it's.
11:27:07 Lot of questions and I don't know that we need to get this level of detail so it'd be a lot of we'd be doing a lot of analysis.
11:27:14 And looking at different options. Just thinking about the Here's how the lease. Does the lease work?
11:27:25 I mean, I assume right now you currently lease. From, lease, on County land and for the building.
11:27:31 I'm just curious why if that needs to change. Okay, much like with Onlycap, they needed positive control of the property.
11:27:43 You know, it's in our value, state money. And so anybody who would contribute to a capital investment such as a new building would want certainty that that investment would,
dividends for an extended period of time.
11:27:54 And have there been funding sources identified that would be a good potential for funding some of the capital needs? Well, we have, like I said, incredible donors.
11:28:04 That's pretty much what's kept us going all these years. We, we get a lot of estates.
11:28:10 That helps. There is state money to, but you have to build the building first and then you can get up to a quarter of that back.
11:28:19 So I don't know how that would work, but. I feel like, you know, we have enough support in the community.
11:28:27 That were we to have a capital campaign it would be successful pretty quickly. Yeah, just just trying to think through the different options for you know.
11:28:37 Who's applying for funding. We have this essential facilities zoning there with the the transfer station. Positive that you're under the same overlay for central facilities?
11:28:53 Do you know, Mark? I think it's the same parcel. Just, okay. Yeah, I think it's part of the 160 in a hundred 65 acres.
11:29:00 So the zoning would apply to that. Okay. Yeah, and I just think it's a really big decision. So the zoning would apply to that.
11:29:06 Okay, yeah. And I just think it's a really big decision. Like that is a very critical.
11:29:07 Place for us I agree and is currently really compatible so I'm I'm a little cautious about wanting to carve that up and lose any of that ground that we have just for really
long term important services that we provide and and it's nice that the impacts are kind of you know in one area and not getting spread across.
11:29:27 So I'm interested in seeing you know really really flushing out the pros and cons of some of the different models that you mentioned in seeing, you know, really, flushing out
the pros and cons of some of the different models that you've mentioned. Yeah.
11:29:42 And Chris, Chris Goy and any future expansion of the transfer station to any significant degree. And does Public Works agree with that assessment?
11:29:51 Do you know? I haven't yet, talked to Al or Monty about this, but I suspect, I suspect they would agree.
11:30:04 We can't really expand the transfer facility about this, but I suspect, I suspect they would agree.
11:30:06 We can't really expand the transfer facility there because there's not a. I suspect they would agree.
11:30:09 We can't really expand the transfer facility there because there's not a corridor to add another lane or a bypass for the scales.
11:30:11 Like they would agree. We can't really expand the transfer facility there because there's not a corridor to add another lane or a bypass for the scales.
11:30:16 So that's the real because there's a wet bypass for the scales. So that's the real because there's a wetland, right? Yeah. Squeezed up to that.
11:30:22 So I don't talk about a different entrance potentially Yeah, I've been been through this a lot recently.
11:30:26 Yeah, I don't think there would be a lot of conflicting uses for the parcel, part of the parcel that the buildings on or put in their building.
11:30:32 That part of our due diligence. Hi, any questions? The duration of the lease is 40 years.
11:30:40 I mean, in terms of control. And fundraising. You're mentioning that you want insurance or the donors or the funding agency would want a assurance that you have control of that
property for an extended period of time.
11:30:53 It's 40 years the threshold. Wasn't it? 50 years the threshold wasn't it? 50?
11:31:02 Yeah, yeah, and I know can't boast. I'm sorry. I know Camp.
11:31:04 Both site has a similar. Agreement and the treating range. Yeah, oh boy. And then the second part of this, you know, the county I came from before coming to Jefferson, Clark.
11:31:18 We actually, reimburse the Humane Society per animal and we had a schedule, a dog was XA cat was X, and we even paid for birds and lizards and other things.
11:31:32 And so that nothing for possums, I won't be a dime. That's, that's a common. Let, let them die.
11:31:42 So, Anyway, there's a great deal of staff work to do. We just thought it important that Tammy have an opportunity to address the board and just lay out the difficulties that
they're experiencing and fundamentally animal control is a governmental function.
11:31:59 Yeah. Our code that you guys are enforcing. So the next step is that you guys will come back with a more specific set of consideration.
11:32:06 That's what I would recommend. Okay. And I must say, Mark and Chris both have been wonderful to work with.
11:32:12 So it's been good. I really appreciate that elimination of the challenges and the work that you guys are doing and we do want to give everyone else a chance unless there's any
other questions from Just appreciate the work that all of you do.
11:32:27 Bring this up and anyone that would like to speak would love to hear. Yeah. I do need to be wrapped up at noon.
11:32:36 I think the limit. Time. And come up please. I'm sure you're gonna make me nervous up here.
11:32:46 We'll say 3Â min just so we can give everyone a chance. This will just be a matter.
11:32:52 Okay, I want to give a sort of a flesh and blood perspective. What these people do. And I was in Air Force all my life when I moved here over 12 years ago.
11:33:00 I was very impressed and blown away with all the people with animals. You go up on Warren Street or something, they're all over and the animals are walking to people, people
are walking the animals.
11:33:10 So it's really a top to bottom where there's income, education or anything of a service and a flow.
11:33:16 And I have friends who have gone out to the Humane Society and said, I'm ready for a dog or my dog died or my, you know, friend needs one.
11:33:25 And the psychological sort of wholesome impact, you know that's good. We have all these wonderful for festivals and everything during the summer.
11:33:35 The animals are here, 35. The whole year. They're on the job doing. They don't cause any trouble and they give.
11:33:44 So I'm taking a perspective not only from needy people who really can't take her of an animal literally and would love to have one.
11:33:51 I'm talking also God forbid, middle-class people who live here pay taxes and love the idea of having a service like that.
11:34:00 We've gotten rid of puppy mills and a lot of that terrible stuff. And so we have the service.
11:34:05 And I think of Jefferson County Humane Society when I naively came here, I said, oh, I bet this is a really cool operation.
11:34:14 And I hate to use the word, but it looks a little shabby out there and it's a mismatch.
11:34:18 To me with the the county and the vibrancy and the need with what that facility can really do for people.
11:34:27 So my final little thought is I have a good friend over here, Judy Derby, that this year, earlier this year, and I was over her house at 19.
11:34:35 Kittens 4 letters because these people were spilling over and they were desperate. Wow. And they don't dump animals.
11:34:44 And her whole house was in date with him. I was there. And it hasn't recovered. I think that Judy and other people do a great job, but I think in a way ethically is a little
unfair to sort of put part of the operation out in people's homes when the community really ought to say this is a kind of a vital ongoing service.
11:35:06 Of who we are. And that's into my pitch. All right. Well, thanks a lot.
11:35:11 Appreciate it. And, yeah, also, yeah, please. Come on up. You have 3Â min.
11:35:19 I'd love to know too if you're obviously a dog person, daughter cat person. A little both.
11:35:26 I have both dogs and cats at home and I am the cat care trainer person. And I've been a volunteer there for about 6 years and I'm also currently a member of the board.
11:35:38 So I just wanted to reiterate some of the things Tammy said and perhaps out a little bit more.
11:35:44 Bottom line is this shelter was built in a different time in place, a smaller population of people.
11:35:52 A time when animals were impounded briefly, so strays could be claimed and the rest were euthanized.
11:35:59 And that's just no longer the case. So we don't have room for all the animals that come to us and amazingly somehow we make it work.
11:36:09 We have we have a dog named Dudley who's been with us since January. We loved Dudley.
11:36:15 He's not highly adoptable. He's a bit bow mix. And but he's a great dog for the right person.
11:36:23 But anyway, just to make the point, we take care of those animals for as long as they need care.
11:36:27 Not only are the canals for both dogs and cats do not meet the current standard of care. Our kennels are too small.
11:36:38 For the current standard of care and we don't have enough of them. Dogs and cats dogs go through the cat areas that is not the standard of care.
11:36:47 But it's the best we can do. In addition to that, let me talk about storage. There is none.
11:36:53 We have shelves in the dog wings. We have storage shelves in Tami's office.
11:37:00 We are just bursting with shelves everywhere, holding the stuff, the animal food. The supplies, blankets, everything that's needed for the animal care.
11:37:11 We have 75 volunteers. We have a very small staff of 5 wonderful people. Not highly paid and no benefits.
11:37:20 And that's huge. We want those people to get benefits. They deserve them.
11:37:27 As a landlord myself, it astonishes me that the tenants, us, pay for the maintenance of a building that we don't own.
11:37:36 I don't, I don't get that. I don't know how that happened. I'll just throw that in.
11:37:41 I had another thing. Oh! Back to storage. So we do the spay nuder.
11:37:50 We have this beautiful spay neuter shell. Trailer. We have a laundry room that is approximately 12 by 12 and I want to tell you everything happens in that laundry room.
11:38:00 You walk in in the morning and no kidding, there's a pile. It's like rumple still skin every morning to get that laundry through and those machines run all day.
11:38:10 In the same room, there's a bathtub sized sink. For washing all the dishes.
11:38:16 So we washed dishes, we fold laundry, occasionally animals get bathed in that sink or there's an animal exam on the same table where we put the clothes to be washed and dried.
11:38:28 And we clean and package, I'll wrap it up. We clean and package all the surgical instruments in that same room.
11:38:35 We sterilize them in a machine that's sitting in the dog wing. So just saying, I wanted to make the point because I don't know if Tammy did.
11:38:43 There's a huge disparity between the amount of income we get. And the cost of running the shelter.
11:38:50 We couldn't do it without the big donations. We received. So even with county health. It's gonna be not enough.
11:38:57 We still need those donations. Thank you.
11:39:01 Let me touch that. I know when in all the considerations. You're going to be realizing that this isn't.
11:39:11 An endeavor for a special interest group. It's not for Tammy and yes by the way her office is a shed.
11:39:20 It's not just for Tammy, it's not just for. People that like animals.
11:39:26 I hope we can all see it as a complete. Complete county interest, not special interest group.
11:39:35 But something that benefits the entire county. All the residents, whether they like animals, love animals. Are allergic, you can't have animals.
11:39:46 It really benefits everybody because without services like this. The pet over population would be. Ridiculous, uncontrollable.
11:39:57 And you would have. The police officers I can imagine would have many, many more nuisance calls and it all it all works together just like we would say funding schools is not
a special interest group.
11:40:13 Funding libraries is not a special interest group and this really isn't either it goes across the board.
11:40:18 So thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you.
11:40:22 Email, please. And we hear you. I think it is part of the social fabric that we are, you know, it's definitely government responsibility. Public safety.
11:40:32 Yeah. Yeah, definitely. I'm Pam Colesy. I'm currently the president of the Board of Directors.
11:40:38 I'm a former city clerk and I I really appreciate brief comments so might be free. I just wanted to say on behalf of the Board of Directors that we're going through.
11:40:50 A lot of changes now, we're very excited to have finally gotten an executive director. And our fundraising efforts are starting to ramp up.
11:41:02 But the fact, once we know what our situation is with the county, it's going to help us a lot to know whether, you know, what sort of capital campaign we need if we need a capital
campaign.
11:41:15 And it's great to see these negotiations going on because I think I think they're long overdue.
11:41:19 It's a very vital service but I wanted you to know the board of directors is completely on board.
11:41:26 We're waiting to do our part and hopefully in the next several weeks. Will have a better and clearer idea of what our role is going to be.
11:41:35 But we do, we do value the partnership and we do intend to do our part. Thank you. Hmm.
11:41:47 I'm someone I'm super grateful for.
11:41:54 Getting Johnson, a local veterinarian. And I, spay and neuter is really dear to my heart, near and dear to my heart.
11:42:01 And I've watched the shelter for the 25 years I've lived here and What we have today is the best we've ever had.
11:42:07 We have an executive director who's very dedicated. We have amazing staff. Volunteers that the place could not run without them.
11:42:16 And it's just made everybody's working hard to make this better. Tammy alluded to last week and a half ago, 32 cats came in within.
11:42:27 Day or 2. And last week, Dr. Kraft and I stayed a neutered 45 of them because we had an event on Saturday.
11:42:34 To clear the shelter and 17 kittens and 3 adults. Yeah. Something like that. Got adopted.
11:42:42 We, we have to have a better place to do this. The van is the trailer is very good.
11:42:48 It's it's I do some private things there and I volunteer at the shelter and it's amazingly equipped.
11:42:56 It's very good. But the the ship people who do space and neuter packs that they do they do a in a in a tub.
11:43:05 And we just have to have a better place. So that we can do better for the animals. The animals cannot be turned away.
11:43:12 The shelter has to take them in. They could only do low-cost basinuters for the public, which I'd love to, we're going to ramp that up.
11:43:21 We're working on doing that and we're going to start doing that more and more. So that we get animal spade and neutered.
11:43:26 When I had my clinic, we did, I gave a special rate to. Rescue groups. And now veterinary care is just through the roof.
11:43:36 I suspect you have animals and you know you walk in and say okay here's my wallet how much of it do you have to have and so we have to have some places for other animals to
get help.
11:43:49 Part of the reason we have so many kittens right now is because as Tammy said kittens and dogs and cats didn't get.
11:43:56 State and neutered during the epidemic very much. So we just have to do better. And I want to come back and just say the other part of.
11:44:05 I don't know if it can be changed with the county, but when they have a maintenance person come out, they have to pay astronomical amounts.
11:44:19 If that could be part of the change that would help the budget as well. We have some amazing people at the shelter that I'd really love to give them.
11:44:20 More help and the get the animals more help to. So thank you. Good morning. And I think we're definitely interested in looking at that.
11:44:34 The lease and how we can make that. Reduce that. Barrier. My name is Bill to instrument.
11:44:44 I'm a retired veterinarian moved here about 3 years ago from Anacortis. But I would just like to personally just back up everything Dr.
11:44:52 Johnson just said, Tommy just said and the others too. I have worked with other humane societies in my career.
11:44:58 And all of them have been county sponsored. So the county pays for animals that come in and they meet the needs of the building and take care of the building.
11:45:09 So that's a that's a big help, obviously. And that is something that's been addressed.
11:45:13 Speaking of I'm also volunteer with head helpers which takes care of low income and homeless pets and I will have to say that People that are home care more probably than their
pets than let's say us that live in more affluent areas.
11:45:33 It's everything to them. It's a security issue if you're sleeping in your car at night, as a blown person.
11:45:42 Let's just say it's The, will never give up on him. So Dr. Johnson has used a lot of the facilities there to help with pet helpers to pay for veterinary bills.
11:45:52 And we really feel great about that. I will say the building is a interesting building. If you haven't been there, you should go visit.
11:46:01 We eat lunch. Beside the tub. Then, that's in the laundry. Yeah. In a lot of the room.
11:46:14 We also, we do a little physical. We also, we do a little physical.
11:46:16 I've been doing vaccination clinics there for, we do a little physical. I've been doing vaccination clinics there for the past few months and we do a little physical of all
the animals that come in.
11:46:19 Want to make sure they're okay before they get their shots. We have to turn the dryer off or the washing machine, any instruments that we use or anything has to be washed in
the tub that the May their animals in.
11:46:32 We also eat in the same area. We have to find a chair somewhere to set down in because it's pretty small.
11:46:41 But we need a new building. There is no doubt in my mind. And for the dogs to walk by others the cats are just filling up the whole front entrance and every dog that comes in.
11:46:53 The cats are they're petrified. Their clouds are out, you know. So, it's a tremendous group of people.
11:47:01 They are really dedicated. I'm so impressed by the. Nature of them and how much work they put into it.
11:47:09 But anyway, anything you can think of that would improve it. Thumbs up. Yeah. Thank you.
11:47:18 Good morning. Anyone else like to make a comment say please? Make a quick comment. I'm Nancy Craig.
11:47:27 I'm a retired R and I worked with humans for. And now I walk dogs. That's wonderful.
11:47:35 We had an event this year though that was pretty Awful. We had 3 puppies come in from forks.
11:47:41 And they had Parvo. So we had to shut down one wing of this small small building to take care of them and it took 10 days 2 weeks it was a long long siege so to just take nail
it. We need a new building desperately.
11:48:00 Thank you. Thank you.
11:48:04 Anyone else like to make public comment today on this matter?
11:48:09 Good thing. All right. Everything everybody says and I'm hoping that everybody says and I'm hoping that it's looking like you.
11:48:18 Are taking that in and I really appreciate that. I'm just going to give you a little different perspective.
11:48:24 I've been working at the shelter for about a year. Partly because I spend part of my year in Baja, California.
11:48:31 And if you want to talk about a dog problem, talk about a third world country. And Baja is pretty good compared to other places.
11:48:40 But if we didn't have a shelter and if we didn't have a spanuter clinic, we would have dogs everywhere breeding everywhere, dogfights, rabies.
11:48:49 Bites everything you could think of and we're lucky that that doesn't happen here. We have a dear problem, but they don't tend to bite and kick.
11:49:00 They eat people's flowers. But, but I think that's the service that the county really needs to think about.
11:49:07 You don't want that. Improve the shelter and prevent dogs running astray in packs and and the issues that causes, I think, is a really important thing to keep in the back of
your mind.
11:49:23 And I just want to say kudos to the staff, the volunteers and especially to Tammy.
11:49:29 I'm really impressed with what they do there with the short amount of. Facilities and monies that they have.
11:49:35 So thank you for listening to us. Thank you.
11:49:43 Anyone else like to make public comments today? So that a few months left. Oh, online.
11:49:49 Alright, we'll go to the Zoom room here. And if we live a few minutes for response.
11:49:56 Yeah, we're still I think we'll do okay.
11:49:58 Alright, Okay. Dog lover. Yeah, dog lover. I don't know.
11:50:07 She may be a cat person too.
11:50:04 Good. You know me too well. Thank you. Commissioners.
11:50:08 Yeah.
11:50:10 I would like to thank everybody for their comments today and the presentation. I'm not going to restate the things that have been said already about the social fabric and the
public safety, but fabric and the public safety.
11:50:24 But I see this as an essential fabric and the public safety. But I see this as an essential public service.
11:50:26 To ignore the need for animal care in a shelter type facility and to ignore the staff's needs I think is irresponsible and inconsistent with the values of residents of Jefferson
County.
11:50:39 And I know I'm preaching to the choir. But I am grateful that you are considering this issue and I know that you will do what you can to help support these people and these
animals and I thank you for that.
11:50:56 Thank you very much, Jean. Anyone else online that would like to make a public comment? Hit the raise hand button or it's like we got one more.
11:51:09 Let's start a store.
11:51:18 Greetings, Patricia. When you get yourself unmuted, you have 3Â min to make public comment on this on this briefing with the Humane Society.
11:51:25 Oh, thank you, Greg. And hi to Greg and Iy and Kate. And the staff. I'm My comments are kind of a reiteration of what's been said, but.
11:51:35 I will save them anyway. So thank you for the time. To present the facts facing the Humane Society of Jefferson County.
11:51:41 I've been a volunteer dog walker for about a year and a half now and much has happened in that time to make it a more viable, compelling organization for bringing unwanted dogs
and cats into the poor towns in in Jefferson County community as pets to responsible citizens.
11:51:58 Focus is on animal health. On spaying and neutering on training for the dog walkers to encourage consistent positive behavior in order to make the often problem dogs more adoptable.
11:52:11 And on socializing cats and kittens. Do you mean society is not a foster home. It is intended as a way station to bring its charges rapidly back into caring society.
11:52:23 Staff and volunteers are doing their part, but it needs your help. No one expects a 5 star hotel.
11:52:29 But overcrowded conditions, kitten cages lining the leaky entryway. Interior dog barriers that don't function properly.
11:52:38 That does not sound like the animal care facility port towns in Jefferson County could be proud of. Or the building itself needs a major upgrade or better yet a new facility
with more room.
11:52:49 The local homeless are not just people. And care for them is needed. The location is suitable. I think you'd agree that not much would be happily placed.
11:52:59 Between a well-used gun range and the city dump. So what can the county do? Or what is the county willing to do to make it citizens proud of the Jefferson County no kill shelter?
11:53:11 And done now before rains take down the whole front of the current building. We look to you for affordable help.
11:53:17 We know you care about the animals. Please don't turn your backs. Please work with our director and doing what is needed.
11:53:24 Thank you for all the good work you always do. Patricia Ernest, Volunteer Dog Walker from Nordland, Washington.
11:53:32 Thank you, Mr. Ernest. Nice to hear your voice again. It is. Okay, I'll make one more call and then I think we're gonna have to wrap it up.
11:53:41 To give a little response time to the commissioners. Hey, I don't see anyone else online.
11:53:46 I'll make one more call in here if anyone like to make public comment. Well, alright. Because it's you.
11:53:55 I just wanted to bring up a couple of things that I think are important. One is something was made made comment was made about fostering.
11:54:04 Fostering is an important element. Of any animal shelter, even a well-run one, especially little kittens that come in, that need bottled feeding or need extra care, sometimes
little feral babies that.
11:54:13 Need a little cuddling and pretty, they love everybody. So fostering is amazing and amazing thing that people do.
11:54:21 2, there's a group that you've heard of called pet helpers. I have just gotten in touch with him, working with them for about 8 months.
11:54:29 They help their private groups that help people with their low income that need help with their animals. And I'm, I'm amazed at how many people need their help.
11:54:39 And so they're filling another. Niche that helps us all. And one more thing I was gonna say.
11:54:48 Oh dear. Oh, feral cats. You know 20 years ago we had a terrible feral cat problem in this kind they were everywhere and then some of the veterinarians we got in there and spade
and neutered them all and volunteers trapped them and brought them in.
11:55:03 And now we have very few feral cats. We're starting to see a few more lately, probably because of the pandemic.
11:55:10 I don't know or maybe it's that prices are getting high. But we need to keep that under control because that helps us all too.
11:55:16 Okay, thank you. Alright, I'm gonna close public comment now and I guess that's I don't think we have anything to deliberate per se, but to respond to the comments as well as
the presentation today.
11:55:30 Sure, yeah, I'll jump in and say I have adopted 2 senior dogs from the Humane Society and 4 kittens, 2 right from foster care.
11:55:37 So big fan of what you do and very much believe that this is an issue of social fabric public safety and just you know everything that's been said and in alignment with our
values I am I my 2 cats now currently live in a paradise they probably go to Bess's house to get fed across the street.
11:56:00 And but I have lived in places in this county where that's not true where you know stray dogs are killing livestock and cat fights traffic accidents you know and just seeing
an enormous amount of suffering and in certain parts of the county and, you know, that's not how we want to live.
11:56:16 It's not safe. So. I definitely hear the need here and, and really appreciate your willingness and partnering and some of the fundraising involved.
11:56:26 You know, it's hard because there are. So many. So many community groups, not to mention county departments that have enormous needs right now.
11:56:37 And we see it in our unsheltered human population as well. So just know that we will need partnership in in fundraising.
11:56:47 I think that you'll probably hear from all of us that we are committed to trying to help come up with the solution here.
11:56:54 So thank you for being here.
11:56:56 I would just add is you know, my past past and one of my past lives, I've worked a lot on capital campaigns and would be happy.
11:57:04 I am profoundly in love with with the services you provide the community and my pets are my kids because I don't have kids of my own and my godd's actually raised my last puppy
for me so I would be happy to help with, you know, structuring a capital campaign and figuring out, you know, the different sources of revenue that might be available because I do know
that different
11:57:30 sources of revenue can really leverage each other so if you have people who donate private dollars to your capital campaign.
11:57:37 It can leverage public grants and would be good matching revenue. The county funding could be good matching revenue for other federal or state sources of funding that might
be available.
11:57:50 So. Behind the thing through it with you guys. Yeah, I'll just say it.
11:57:56 You know, obviously support the services that you guys offer and any time you have such a huge volunteer core, you can, you really.
11:58:05 It's easy to support the mission, you know, and it does seem like we haven't been pulling our weight as the county.
11:58:13 So I think both to facilitate the capital campaign with the lease. I'm really committed to making sure that that straightens out in a way that you guys can move forward.
11:58:21 And I will we'll figure out what we can do to sport operations too. And I thought I was a dog person my whole life.
11:58:29 That's why I asked it, but I could only raise pathological farm dogs, but tap training is right up my alley.
11:58:36 I think herding cats is kind of this job. So, you know, 5Â min of affection and leave me alone for the rest of the day.
11:58:42 That's really the perfect animal, it turns out. So I am a cat person. So and road control.
11:58:48 And road and control. Absolutely very critical. As long as they don't bring them inside the control.
11:58:52 Yeah. Okay. Well, any last thoughts? Well, thank you so much.
11:58:56 It's been a pleasure to spend the time with you, Tammy and me too, and thank you guys all.
11:59:01 We'll talk soon. And I think we are at the the noon hours. So we will recess until 1 30 and we'll we'll be back here then.
11:59:09 So everyone enjoy the lunch hour. Thank you guys.
13:30:19 Okay, I will, welcome back. I will call this 8, 28 meeting of the Board of County Commissioners back into session.
13:30:28 And we're immediately going into a executive session for 30Â min with the county administrator and the chief civil deputy prosecuting attorney regarding potential litigation,
exemption as outlined in the Open Public Meetings Act, RCW, 42, dot 30, dot 100, and 10 parentheses one, parentheses I.
13:30:48 I'm when we return to public session, we will discuss and any potential action, we will make opportunity for public comment before we take final action.
13:30:57 So now I, we will, leave this room and, we will go into executive session at 1 31 coming out at.
13:31:07 20'clock. 29Â min.
14:01:37 Alright, welcome back. We need to extend for 5 more minutes. So we're going back in at 100, and, 11, min, so we're going back in at 1, point, 4, 5 more minutes. So we're going
back in at 1, point, 0, one, coming out at 12.
14:01:48 I mean, so excuse me, 200, and one coming out of 200, and 6.
14:01:50 And regarding as before. Regarding potential litigation, exemptions outlined in the Open Public Meetings Act, RCW, 42 dot 30 dot 110 parentheses one parentheses I
14:08:07 Hello. Thank you. All right. We were we need to extend a little bit more.
14:08:14 We're coming out of our executive session. We need to go back in for 5Â min more. With our deputy chief deputy prosecuting attorney and county administrator regarding potential
litigation, the exemption is outlined in the Open Public Meetings Act, RCW, 42 dot 30 dot 1 10 parentheses one parentheses I we're going back in at 208 and we'll come out at
14:08:36 2 13 and then we will address our 20'clock issue talking about the solid waste fee schedule implementation.
14:08:42 At when we come back into open session. And it gets And then. Letting them know we're running fine.
14:14:54 That is, I wanna see it. Where is a month to cover? About half of my last one. Yes, yeah.
14:15:07 I've seen that. I got some drone footage of it when it's I'll share it. I got some drone footage of it when it's I've seen that.
14:15:11 I got some drone footage of it Yeah, left over from their stockpile. That's how close they are.
14:15:19 Wow, that's great. Alright, let me know when you're ready. Okay, great.
14:15:23 Sorry, we're coming back out of exact session. There is no action taken, so we are going to continue on to our our schedule for 20'clock discussion regarding the solid waste
fee schedule implementation.
14:15:36 We're joined by our county engineer and solid waste director. That's always manager. Excuse me, Al Karen.
14:15:43 So, Al, take it away. We're talking moving dates or what's what's up?
14:15:46 Yeah, we're looking at moving it back one month. October, yes, was it second I think it is first.
14:15:53 First effectively Tuesday in October. We've, we've got, thank you. Okay.
14:16:02 Yeah, we've, the implementation of the software is really complicated. There's just a lot of moving pieces to it.
14:16:10 Is really complicated. There's just a lot of moving pieces to it. We need to set up an entirely.
14:16:13 Different, multiple servers, printers, credit card readers, in our break room.
14:16:22 And run that parallel for some time until we work out all the bugs. And then we need to move all that equipment into the scale house.
14:16:30 On a Sunday, test it on Sunday and a Monday make sure we've got all the bugs worked out before we go live.
14:16:38 We're not gonna, we're not gonna experiment with our customers. Obviously. And so there's just a lot of permutations to getting that done.
14:16:46 IT staff have been unavailable at 2 critical points in this whole process. And so. It's pushing us back a little bit.
14:16:53 And, and so we're, we've revised the schedule of implementation. We vetted that with IT staff.
14:17:01 They've agreed that and see that there they've agreed that they can make IT staff available on those critical points.
14:17:12 And dates and get the work done so we only need a a 30 day additional window to implement the whole software.
14:17:22 And of course the new fee schedule has functions in it. That are dependent on the updated. Software can't do those without the new software that current version won't support
those functions.
14:17:32 Really? Okay, so low income discount, we had to do a lot of somersaults within the software to make it.
14:17:42 Work like that. How will the low income discount work? What's going to be the, you remind me what?
14:17:47 The discount will be it'll be for minimum wage customers that will essentially hold the current fee schedule to those customers.
14:17:56 So it'll be 50, 50% off on the minimum weight customers. What about the yard waste?
14:18:02 Yard waste will be included, so will refrigerators. Making the software think. That way was a little challenging.
14:18:11 The city had adopted a minimum weight. That was illogical and so the software wouldn't process it.
14:18:19 So we had to revise that. So there has to be a relationship on a per pound basis between the minimum fee and the per ton fee.
14:18:28 Okay, so that was a neological function and we just couldn't make the software think illogically.
14:18:34 So yeah, there's a lot to it. We're finding out. With IT staff made available now we can get past those critical junctures.
14:18:47 With IT staff made available now, we can get past those critical junctures, mostly owing to do with the firewall and permissions.
14:18:51 In order to get access into our current system, you know, and the network so we can field trial all this.
14:18:58 So hopefully it's just 30 days. 30 days. That's how you had to have low income.
14:19:06 Well, that was that was a small complication. I'm very glad that's going to be added.
14:19:13 Sorry, that's all we have. We just wanted to brief you. I mean, if the board adopted the new fee schedule and we had a pledge date on when we were going to roll it out and we're
gonna we're gonna miss that so we wanted to revisit this with you.
14:19:26 Okay. It's like there are a lot of extra steps in here. So yes. That extra steps, but a lot of steps.
14:19:34 That extra steps, but a lot of steps. Operations coordinator is a very app description for what he does he's pulled together a couple of different vendors.
14:19:46 Couple of county agencies and to pull this off really. He's figuring it's about 50% of his time right now.
14:19:55 So yeah. Great. Well, appreciate the, you know. Letting us know about the change in the rationale behind it.
14:20:03 . For out do you need us to take action to revise it or is it just? I don't think so.
14:20:10 We don't anticipate customers complaining about not paying. No, I never know. Right.
14:20:18 Right.
14:20:20 We have to in that.
14:20:24 I don't know. Interesting question. We have to amend the resolution if the date changes in it, Mark.
14:20:32 It's a pain because we actually like do a new resume. Yeah, I'd have to read it.
14:20:40 We can double check if we have to do that. Obviously, we have time, right? We do.
14:20:45 Website. We have revised all of our notices. Okay. Of the new date.
14:20:52 Great. I'm sure you'll get a lot of thanks for doing that. Yeah, flooding us right now.
14:20:58 Oh yeah, that it had already taken effect because of the next door flurry of activity about it.
14:21:05 There's a letter to the editor too in the paper I think that prompted a lot of notes to us.
14:21:10 Particularly about the yard waste is what I'm getting a lot about. Yeah, minimum yard waste increase.
14:21:15 I don't know. Do you have a canned answer for, I mean, share your load with your, you can certainly repeal the, the yard debris fee.
14:21:26 And only accept commercial loads Tuesday through Friday and move all of the other. Self-all transactions to Sundays.
14:21:36 I would reduce our queuing line by about 20 some percent. We'd be happy to entertain an idea.
14:21:46 Doesn't seem too practical. Okay.
14:21:52 And, you know, our fees, the new fees are, are, out of line with the. What other transfer stations are charging.
14:22:04 I'm sure you can find some that are charging less and you can find a lot that. Charge a lot more too.
14:22:09 We're hovering right around the average fee with our new fee schedule. Yeah. And the minimum load size as well.
14:22:19 You know, the minimum load size was not designed around. The trunk of a passenger automobile.
14:22:26 It's designed around you know, people bringing your debris in in in trailers or pickups and things.
14:22:32 So, I mean, you can. You can look at what other. Other transfer stations are doing and and and see that we're just, you know.
14:22:40 Not on bar. Yeah, we're on par, you know. There are several that don't take yard debris at all.
14:22:48 So, I mean, again, Changing habits is tough. I think that's really what we're encountering right now and a lot of people are, you know, they've got a process that works and
you know, the art doesn't stop growing.
14:23:01 So I think we're, I know, I'm willing to absorb the, you know, the frustration that I'm getting and try to help.
14:23:10 People understand the rationale behind it, you know, it's all part of a system. We're all cogs in the machine.
14:23:15 So understanding what the machine supposed to do is important. So understanding what the machine supposed to do is important.
14:23:27 I just want to clarify as well to our minimum fee isn't going to have the CP like the per ton fee does.
14:23:30 So I'm sure that, you know, when you make a jump like this, you move up the list, you move up the list of what you're charging, but then you stay there and other people start
coming up around you.
14:23:38 So. it just again, will be at $20 for quite some time on our, our minimum fee.
14:23:47 And the discount for income qualified folks will be 50% so that would be like a $10 minimum for garbage and a $10 minimum for a yard ways.
14:23:56 That's correct. Yep. And then for the refrigerators, the income threshold will be The income threshold was determined by the state agencies that issue the UBT card, provider
one and Apple health.
14:24:12 So yeah, we. No, we didn't, we didn't include it there.
14:24:22 I think I did have a conversation with the assessor about that they don't issue it there.
14:24:27 And I think I did have a conversation with the assessor about that. They don't issue any.
14:24:31 And I think I did have a conversation with the assessor about that they don't issue any. Right.
14:24:36 So we needed something that was easy for the scale attendance. Right. There's no right. Yeah. So we needed something that was easy for the scale attendance to ID.
14:24:38 They'll compare so that we don't have anyone cheating the system that we anticipated we might get large loads of refrigerators, someone doing the route.
14:24:47 Yeah. And so it applies only to one refrigerator, one refrigerator appliance.
14:24:54 And what we'll do is we'll have the environmental fee. Have the same effect, $10 discount on that.
14:25:00 So it's $20, which is Regally one of the lower environmental fees in Western Washington. $20.
14:25:08 We didn't want to include, raising that higher because it's kind of a high risk item for us.
14:25:14 We want to make sure that those items are coming to us. And not alternatively disposed. On the end of county roads.
14:25:23 Yeah, right. Let me go back to the question of seniors though. I'm trying to think where we would capture low-income seniors that probably aren't enrolled because they'd be
in Medicaid, not in Apple Health.
14:25:35 Okay, probably less likely to be EBT, you know, WIC is such an entry point for EBT.
14:25:43 Snap, yeah. Would I learn from DSHS was that the the provider one and the Apple health our Medicaid umbrella program.
14:25:55 So we are They would be in medication like that one. I think we have good cover at John.
14:26:05 Oh, you know, seniors want to, they're, yeah, excited to sign up for. Yes.
14:26:16 Funny, we do like entitlement programs. First started working on this too. I just wanted to remind everyone will be the Only the second county in the state that has a program
like this for solid waste programs.
14:26:31 So we're kind of on the leading edge. Let me. Yeah. So yeah, it was all I don't know me. Yeah, it was all I don't know me. Yeah, it was. Yeah, thanks for the suggestions.
14:26:43 Squeak, I was I'll cap the wheel rolling. Cool. Anything else you want to talk about solid waste related?
14:26:51 No, I think, you know, in, as to the question of like a canned response, I would remind our customers that that minimum fee stayed the same for almost a decade.
14:27:01 And we didn't. Usually get thank yous year after year for doing that. Right.
14:27:08 And so when you see a large fee increase here, it's because we didn't adjust it for 9 years.
14:27:12 Yeah. Yeah, stick a shock. Okay, thanks. Oh, I, yeah, thanks, money.
14:27:21 I, we just got notice from, Skookum Contract Services today. That, you know, most of our commodities, unlike a lot of other single stream counties, we get some revenue back
and we don't have to pay to dispose of the material.
14:27:38 Excuse me, that's not the case anymore with the 10 aluminum plastic mix. We're now paying $13 a ton to dispose of it.
14:27:45 Right. So recycling for us has finally gone upside down. And we may want to consider the future of that program here.
14:27:54 It'll be based on 2020 20 two's numbers for tonnages. It will translate into about 28.
14:28:03 26 or 28 cents per transaction or customer. Is now going to fund 10 aluminum plastic.
14:28:11 To recover those funds. So yeah.
14:28:18 5, 5,000 a year. 100,005, $5,000 a year just to get rid of tin aluminum plastic.
14:28:27 Program overside. A whole road. That's close to 600,000 a year now. Yeah, 5 91 and this year.
14:28:37 But 100 20,000 in commodity receipts. Would it be any different if we were sorting the?
14:28:46 Aluminum from plastic or is it just? It couldn't I just put feelers out to the regional murphs about what a tin a loop.
14:28:55 10 aluminum paper mix. Good game would be the first to do a mix like that, what it would look like if we pulled the the number one contaminant plastics out of the mix and whether
whether it would be worthwhile with a Total revision to our thinking about it.
14:29:13 You know, we've got 30 years of education campaign from the single use package industry to counteract that's really hard to do.
14:29:23 I could spend a lot of time educating our customers about that. We spend about $60,000 in the last 2 years on an education campaign about just plastic and the audit that we
did last month on them showed no decrease in contamination.
14:29:40 In fact, Quill scene got worse. Closeing was the leader at only 15%. Now it's at 30%, Ludlow hasn't changed at all.
14:29:49 So that's a it's a question of how much. Money you wanna keep pouring into that hole.
14:29:55 But for us, we're kind of done with education on that. What we've. What the direction of our recycling education is going to be for youth.
14:30:05 You only. We've lost the other generations and it's just such a Epic battle to counteract what industry is telling people.
14:30:15 Yeah, you did. Yeah. I that was the cool late. I drank it.
14:30:22 Let's do it. Cool. Yeah, we'll give some thought to that. We'll probably have a recommendation sometime in the next few months.
14:30:31 Okay. What to do with that program. Right. So about 15 bucks.
14:30:34 Out of the tipping fee. Per ton. Yeah, a lot of it. Okay, well gentlemen, thank you.
14:30:45 Thanks for, you know. Keeping ahead of the issue.
14:30:51 I have a delivery for you. Oh, rant, bribery. Right. Winners.
14:31:00 You, and groundbreaking. Yeah, she got tamales coming your way. And Sarah, we're running a little bit late.
14:31:09 Can we, we've got one more item that we should take care of. We'll give you a jingle when we're ready to go into that.
14:31:17 Alright. Thank you guys. Okay. Building back up.
14:31:33 Looks nice. Thanks guys. Okay. After they're in there, so we're running a little late, so we're gonna push our 2 30 scheduled executive session and we're going to push our 2
30 scheduled executive session and we're going to catch up with our trust land transfer project.
14:31:53 The applications that we can apply for and Heidi, you want to tee this up? I see we're joined by Mallory Weinheimer as well.
14:32:03 Hi there.
14:32:00 Good to see you. Well, good to see your your box, Mallory. She comes. Hi.
14:32:07 Okay. I'm gonna bring anyone else over.
14:32:10 I think.
14:32:11 Katherine, would you like to come over? . One
14:32:17 Sorry, I was okay. So I did a fairly detailed agenda request for this item. But I can describe what we are thinking we would like to do.
14:32:31 Probably in shorthand. So. Some of the parcels that we've been talking about.
14:32:39 With the Department of Natural Resources. Over the last year. Seem to be really good candidates for the Trustland Transfer Program.
14:32:50 Whereby they would come and they would be transferred to the county. And there are 4 parcels we're proposing.
14:32:58 To do trust land transfer applications for. So we. As you know, for the last year and a half I sat on that work group and we revised the Trustland Transfer Program.
14:33:08 The first round of applications under the new program is our due. On the thirtieth of September. And so we would like to get some projects in that queue.
14:33:20 It's, the very first step and I'm very long process. So. You know, the application process that DNR does it's but it's best interest of the trust analysis, which takes a number
of months.
14:33:32 And they get in queue for the 2527 biennial budget setting process. If they make it on the list.
14:33:41 So this is just the very first step, but these 4 parcels, seem to have qualities in them that make them good candidates for being in county ownership.
14:33:52 And I was gonna ask Mallory to talk about each of these parcels and why. We're proposing these 4 for trust line transfer and the reason we're bringing it to them to us now is
that we need the time to do the applications for the program.
14:34:07 And can we also just spend a little time talking about? This compared to the previous trust land transfer program.
14:34:14 So they're gonna come, this is not of course reconciled. So what would be the management these would still be these would still be DNR parcels that would be they'd be nope they
would be county parcels they would become county land Okay.
14:34:33 For educational recreational conservation. It's not reconvance. Nope, it's trust land transfer. It's definitely going to reconvance.
14:34:37 Right. And much like the 2 parcels, we are in the process of transferring to the county right now in the Kuemper Wildlife Corridor.
14:34:45 Yeah, right. But different than any other trust land transfer that we've done. Because those did not end up in county hands.
14:34:53 They will. That was like. That was like will end up in the county house. I thought I know I'm talking about the Clember Wildlife.
14:35:02 Yes, right. But that was like will be a DNR national area. Right. So these will not be DNR lands.
14:35:08 These would be county lands. And our responsibility for them would be.
14:35:13 Well, to holding them in, you know, opportunity. Yep. But for those limited purposes, conservation education.
14:35:21 Recreation. I mean, they would be these lands would be open space land so Mark and Mallory and I met with.
14:35:29 Monty and Matt last week and these would not be active park lands. They would be open space lands.
14:35:35 That and some of the units of forest on them could be. Targeted for selective thinnings.
14:35:45 Some of them could be just kept for open space. Good one, do management plans for them. That would be part of Mallory's work.
14:35:52 So. Thank you. And then, one other question. The.
14:35:57 The funding from the state then would be used to purchase replacement lands or they may put their money in their land bank which is the new Avenue that was developed through
the revitalized trust land transfer program is that DNR can.
14:36:13 Hold the funds in a land bank until the right lands become available for them to purchase too. Make the trust healthier over time.
14:36:25 So in the same junior taxing districts or in anywhere if they're holding on to that. They They would be anywhere.
14:36:36 But under trust and transfer, unlike Reconvance, we can ask for abortion. Of that legislative appropriation to come to the county.
14:36:48 Okay, but. So this, you know, this is 1,400 acres. Ish. So some of the funding could come to the county, but then then would we purchase other?
14:37:02 I'm a commercial timberland or. Or what's, we could DNR if they could find other replacement timber lands.
14:37:10 They could do that with the funding that the segment of the funding that they get. That they manage through their land bank.
14:37:17 Or in the replacement land program. The 50 billion and the portion of the funding that we would get. We would need to decide what we're gonna do with.
14:37:28 We could distribute it to taxi and districts. So we would the county would get. Paid out for the cost, the price of the timber.
14:37:35 Not the total price. I can't remember what the percentage is. It's not. The same ratio it's not the 80 20 of the old trust land transfer program okay So we can.
14:37:47 Still keep the junior taxing districts whole, probably not the county hole on these transfers. Probably not whole.
14:37:55 Because the percentage that we get back from the Trustland trans the revised Trustland transfer program is not the full timber value.
14:38:02 Okay. But that's why we're targeting. Lands that are not in the junior taxing districts that depend the most on.
14:38:12 Right. North, 100, and 4. Right. Now, that's, these are also 4 parcels that D and R for various reasons has had a hard time managing.
14:38:18 We talked, Valerie and I met with Brian Turner, the straight district manager. And I'd actually identified these parcels with him.
14:38:25 He's saying, you know, we, some of these have been cut over recently. Some of these we have can't touch because of neighbor issues.
14:38:33 And you'll, I think you'll pretty quickly see why. Let me talk about the 4 parcels.
14:38:41 Clear fine question. Start your screen. Mallory, do you want to share the document that you sent to talk about the 4 parcels?
14:38:53 Or do you want me to? Okay.
14:38:53 Sure. Do you mind doing it? Can't be trusted with Zoom.
14:38:57 Nope. No. Okay, let's see.
14:39:03 Thanks. You guys are the pros.
14:39:06 Sorry, I asked Mallory and Catherine. Right up summaries of the 4 parcels for us to look at.
14:39:19 Screen.
14:39:29 You can see that this is so the 4 parcels. That I put in the agenda request where Beaver and Anderson Lake, Beaver Valley.
14:39:40 Kate George and Jacob Miller West.
14:39:44 We're gonna start.
14:39:44 And yeah, go ahead.
14:39:47 Go ahead, Mallory.
14:39:50 Full disclosure, these, the, Hey, not Cape George. They, Beaver Valley and, Jacob Miller are not included in this list.
14:40:01 They had i don't have the details on them i was on the east coast for work and a family visit for the last week.
14:40:08 So I have not. Gone and gotten that data before this meeting, but we do have a lot of details on the Anderson Lake and the, Cape George Castle.
14:40:16 So, and I put through the scenarios, for future harvesting on there. In this document and this was from the report that I put together with Katherine from earlier this year.
14:40:29 So.
14:40:30 Right, and I and I did include the acreages of Beaver Valley and Jacob Miller West. The request.
14:40:36 Yeah.
14:40:38 And we can talk briefly about those, like what the benefit of. County ownership for those would be.
14:40:45 Yeah, and I mean Katherine and I have walked those we I can speak more to them, but I don't have hard data on them at this point.
14:40:54 So. Yeah. Yeah, so do you wanna go through this one by one or how do you wanna?
14:41:00 Yeah, let's I've got Anderson Lake up here.
14:41:03 Yep, okay. So Anderson Lake is, I think it's the largest one, is that? Right. Let me see.
14:41:10 Yup, yup.
14:41:11 Let's. Yeah, just yeah and Anderson Lake was part of the carbon program. And it has, various ages of stands in it.
14:41:23 Let's see.
14:41:25 Go back, Mallory, what do you mean for the carbon program? The proposed program that didn't launch?
14:41:31 Yes, yes, yes. So I was looking pretty closely at the stands that they were submitting for the carbon program for that.
14:41:39 Okay.
14:41:41 And, this one has 200 acres of, timber that was harvested between 2,005 and 2,010 so a lot of like really young timber another 75 acres that was harvested in 2020 that was basically
that's all just replant it and then stands 3 and 4 a bit older there's more commercial timber on them so this is a really
14:42:12 nice stand. Part of the reason that we chose this one was because of the continuity with. Anderson Lake.
14:42:19 State park right across the way. Also, I think, Kate, you're still working on the ODT and the PNT trail connection through there and this Thanks.
14:42:30 Yeah, all are, but I've found that bored now.
14:42:32 Okay, I don't know. I can't keep track of. But this was provide more continuity in there.
14:42:41 And this would provide more continuity in there. And a big thing we were looking at in, in these parcels was continuity to other conservation areas and public lands.
14:42:47 Providing more green space and more wildlife habitat and conservation areas basically. And this is also you know what I'm proposing is a working conservation land.
14:42:58 So for this stand. What I see needing to happen in the next. Oh, 5 years.
14:43:07 There's It doesn't need to happen, but we can do some selective timber harvesting.
14:43:12 And in this stand 4, which is 200 plus acres. These are just very rough scenarios.
14:43:19 We could harvest 50 acres and 7,004 feet per acre. This is again a whole lot less than what DNR harvest but we're not trying to compete with DNR.
14:43:29 These properties are less productive and harder for them to manage and we're trying to demonstrate a different type of forest management.
14:43:37 And this was a good stand and this was a good property all of these properties that we're putting forward are more ideal for demonstrating different forest management and aligning
more of the county goals.
14:43:50 The bigger, okay, go ahead.
14:43:50 So, would you rather questions throughout or at the end? Is there, New statute that dictates uses on these lands once they've been transferred in terms of We're going to do
some force management.
14:44:09 No, Right, but not trust on transfer. Okay, so in the gender request it talked about the kind of 2 different purposes that DNR has for holding land and I thought this was saying
that this program was focused on the conservation education.
14:44:28 That's the natural areas program. Okay, that focuses on conservation and education. Okay, but we could do whatever we wanted with this land if they were chosen for the trust
and transfer.
14:44:41 No.
14:44:43 We would still need, we could do like forest health spinning, but we still need it to be.
14:44:48 Forget what the language in the statute is I can I can look that up but it's not we can do whatever it's but it's It's not.
14:44:58 As narrow as it has to become a county park, which is what we conveyance. Requires.
14:45:05 Okay, but so that this First management that Mallory is talking about is you think is consistent with what the statute allows.
14:45:15 Yeah, okay. Thank you.
14:45:22 And part of it is like the PCT pre-commercial thing that would need to happen probably around 2040 is is something that inevitably even if these parcels are taken back through
reconvene, they've been planted and, managed as commercial stands and so like both, like Gibbs Lake, and like Cape George, we've, they're getting to a point where
14:45:47 there's really high fire danger. They were always intended to be thinned. So we need to do that work to maintain their health and not have a trailhead park situation on our
hands.
14:45:57 So that one should be done by 2040, but these are just. Asstimates like so the 50 acres if there's more reason for more or less kind of harvesting in there to improve forest
health or achieve other goals.
14:46:17 Especially like if the trail is going through there and we wanted to help Utilize.
14:46:25 You know, machinery going in there while there's trail work going on, that may, that might make sense for some other timber harvest.
14:46:32 So this was just to give some examples of. What we can do. Yeah.
14:46:37 And point out too that it is common school trust, you know, it seems like over 90% of it's common school.
14:46:45 So that could. The replacement line could be anywhere and it doesn't really impact our junior taxing districts or the county that much but it's the Capital school construction.
14:46:56 Yeah, it's not as direct. Yeah. This looks like a great option, especially with the ODTs proximity and the, you know, the uses and.
14:47:01 Yeah, seems ideal.
14:47:04 Yeah, and just from a like personal standpoint, looking at this for us, Katherine and I were really impressed with this for us and Katherine, please chime in if you have anything
you want to share here too.
14:47:14 But there were some really diverse stands in there part of this for us was actually set aside for marvel near habitat in the future. It's high diversity.
14:47:26 There's, you can see in the, management considerations, there's large 40 inch plus diameter western run cedar and they're from Alder Harvest.
14:47:33 Let's preserved. A lot of like good mix stands that have big leaf maple duck for Western and seater, hemlock and I think grand fur in there as well.
14:47:47 So it was just, beautiful forest.
14:47:47 Great.
14:47:48 Yeah.
14:47:51 On to the next one. Do you want to talk? I'm sorry, I'm looking for the answer to Kate's question because I know where it is, but.
14:47:58 Let's see, let's go down to.
14:48:02 Kate George. Yeah.
14:48:02 Okay, George. Yeah. Before we move on, Katherine, did you have anything else?
14:48:08 You wanted to add about the Anderson link. Since she worked on this.
14:48:10 Not, sorry, I think you got it covered. That's good.
14:48:16 And so keep George. Cape George, I think was the one that Diana wanted to get rid of the most honestly.
14:48:23 This is in the rain shadow the most. There's the waste rain. It's It's a different quote, parcel to manage.
14:48:30 It has the
14:48:32 I think it what's the pocket left 5 acres that is classified now as old growth that we wouldn't be touching obviously that's locally called the quinper lost willingness.
14:48:42 And then there's a Cape George road goes through the middle of this parcel. All through the lower right corner, our eastern corner and.
14:48:54 Most of that upper, northwestern chunk has been managed pretty heavily. It's younger and will need more management in that.
14:49:06 In the near future. It's a lot of 30 year old timber. So this one is something that we would invest in, but It I think this is a really interesting parcel because it's in the
rain shadow.
14:49:19 There is western white pine that grows in there and we don't have many parcels like I've only seen Western white pine really growing up on North Quinper Peninsula.
14:49:31 You know, much in the area and this one has some natural region of that. In there and yeah, I think this is a great parcel too because there's so many people around it there
is a lot of trailees in there to demonstrate.
14:49:45 A lower impact. Mixed use kind of forest management. And demonstrate, especially like working with the fire department, thinking of the CWPP, I keep thinking that this would
be a really nice one to do kind of a pilot project on to talk more about virus reduction because there is you can see there's young stands on there that would need to be thinned PCT
pre-commercially thinned around 2030
14:50:09 5. So focusing on this because it really educational component with that old growth and then with these younger, this younger for us that we can manage into more, naturally.
14:50:21 Occurring kind of forest. Seems like a win win all around. And it's not a high timber producing property for DNR.
14:50:31 So I think they're pretty happy to get rid of it.
14:50:40 Okay.
14:50:33 So one thing I would add is that. One of the areas that DNR sees as challenging are places where there's quite a bit of residential development.
14:50:45 And so in the case of Cape George, there's, you know, pretty dense neighborhoods.
14:50:51 Right around these parts, this parcel and The road splits. The quinper last wilderness from the rest of parcels.
14:51:07 I think so.
14:50:59 So the part that's south of the road. Is about 33 acres I think Mallory the Quimper lost wilderness piece is that And then the rest of the parcel is kind of north of the road,
northwest of the road.
14:51:13 And it's actively used by residents of that area. Just passive recreation. So that's where as part of Trustland transfer, they will.
14:51:26 . Once the program or the projects make it through the screening process, they'll be kind of ranking them in terms of ecological values and public benefits.
14:51:35 And this is where we see this parcel has both those ecological values and the public benefits. So. The quinper lost wilderness is something that we probably would just leave
There, you know, and the other, the rest of this parcel could be managed for more public benefits.
14:51:51 Including selective timber harvest and Passive recreation. How about carbon sales? Yeah, DNR can get their carbon sales program together or could we?
14:52:02 Yeah. And could we sell on a Some market. Yeah, if we could sell it, particularly on some of these older stands structurally.
14:52:12 Complex forests that have more carbon. Sequestered in them. That would be an option. I mean.
14:52:20 Yeah, awesome. Oh, go ahead.
14:52:22 I just thought after you did a trust land transfer it would be Not a lot of additionality with those carbon.
14:52:33 Yeah. Go ahead.
14:52:30 Right, you're right. Yeah, you're right. Even with the young stance, I mean that they do, a lot during while growing.
14:52:40 But I mean, when we're taking and we're saying we're not going to do a commercial harvest, right?
14:52:43 So what's the additionality? Well, if you are planning to do sustainable September harvest on them, like Selective Harvest, you are planning to take trees down and Let them
grow back, that there would be additionality there.
14:52:59 I mean, that that's that's like level 2 level, I mean that's like level 2 level, level 4, next level, Commissioner Dean.
14:53:07 But yes, good question. No, just like we in weighing the benefits, we have to like be explicit about what those are aren't.
14:53:15 From the public. Again, common school too. But you can do trust and transfer out of any.
14:53:23 Now you can do it out of any trust. Out of the university, any of the dress. I like this.
14:53:28 Okay.
14:53:26 I like seeing. I guess one other strategy conversation or question before you go on Mallory is These 2 seem really ideal.
14:53:35 Is there, should we put all 4 in? Is there an advantage to put it all for? Because you get in the queue and then you're gonna get spored independently or what's the the best
approach to this request or what are you guys thoughts being closer to it?
14:53:48 Okay.
14:53:49 Well, I can say that I, For these 4, they felt like ones that were.
14:53:56 I don't want to say low hanging fruit, but. Ones that we identified with DNR as ones that they've had constraints that they couldn't manage them.
14:54:05 So, they felt like logical. Candidates for the trust land transfer program like you know the easiest ones to tee up early right okay
14:54:17 And you and Katherine know the TLC process more. So is it? Does it make sense to apply for all 4 of them at once or?
14:54:25 Should we? I agree with you. I think they are all ideal properties. They are all low hanging fruit, but they are all there's really good reason to go for all 4 of these parcels,
but.
14:54:37 Is there is there an advantage to just choosing 2 of them and doing those now or yeah.
14:54:43 Well, once parcels get. Get applications get submitted for parcels. They will be, you know, on a list.
14:54:52 Because the list will be ranked, right? And so depending on where these parcels rank against all the other parcels from all the other counties in the state.
14:54:59 Okay.
14:55:04 What we're trying to make sure happens in this first round with the program. Is that there's a robust set of applications.
14:55:14 Sure.
14:55:13 So there's a big list of projects. But I don't think there's any downside to doing the applications now and getting them in.
14:55:19 And seeing where they rank on the list. I think it's prudent for us to actually.
14:55:25 Put our foot, but this. These 4 toes in the sandbox.
14:55:30 Great. I'm here for it. Yeah.
14:55:31 Ahead of the care of other justice. Yes. So we might get to. Agreement, you know, on a strategy sooner than other, yeah, counties are able to.
14:55:43 Yeah, and I guess it demonstrates too that we're interested in more. Even if some of them aren't ranked as high.
14:55:50 Yep.
14:55:49 So. Cool. Just wanted to clarify.
14:55:54 Yeah. And yeah, so that's the Cape George there. More questions, discussion, Katherine, anything you want to weigh in on that one?
14:56:03 No, just to clarify, Greg asked a detail about the trust type since this time this particular parcel is part of the kind of complicated exchanges of trust types so it would
potentially be a state force transfer type rather than common school by the time we move forward.
14:56:23 Thank you.
14:56:27 So briefly, do we want to talk about Beaver Valley?
14:56:32 Yeah.
14:56:32 We don't have we don't have a Sheep gend up for Beaver Valley or we could talk about Jacob Miller West first because we're kind of more geographically close to it right now
and it has some of the same.
14:56:45 Constraints that this parcel does, which is more. Community use and residential development around it. So that's that's the real kind of interest.
14:56:57 From the community side. And including this this parcel on the list is that it's used actively by the local equestrian community and sits between fairly.
14:57:10 Dense neighborhoods of albeit rural communities, but still dense neighborhoods west of Port Townsend.
14:57:21 Yeah.
14:57:22 It's also adjacent to our solid waste facility. Right. So yeah. As we go through that process.
14:57:25 Central piece. How are you and talk about the characteristics of the forest there at Jacob Miller?
14:57:30 Yeah, so this one is also, it's similar to, Cape George and that it's very dry forest it has been harvested and it's more sparse It's much more open for us.
14:57:46 It was, I can't remember. Kevin, do you remember when it was last harvest that I feel like it was like 30 years ago?
14:57:53 Yeah, that sounds about right. It doesn't sound like it was clear cut at that time, right?
14:57:57 Yeah.
14:57:58 It was a more mindful type of farmers harvest.
14:58:00 Yeah, and my Cronin was heavily involved in that one. along with the 40 or 80.
14:58:10 I always forget if it's 40 or 80 acres just south of the solid waste facility. So that's another area along with this Cape George parcel and the Quimper Wildlife Corridor that
it creates this continuity, this green space that I think is worth preserving, especially with all the development around port towns and, and just this habitat, wildlife corridor.
14:58:31 And, greenway, people use it a lot. There is a big look that you can do from the quimper.
14:58:38 Live corridor and that new parcel that the county is acquired. At Biomira and including this.
14:58:47 So it's used by a lot of wildlife. It's used by a lot of humans.
14:58:52 It's dry and not high timber producing and it does have some interesting characteristics because it wasn't clear cut it was selectively cut so there are different age trees
in there.
14:59:05 It's not going to be a major timber producer for us either. But it's also along with Kate George and these other properties helps us.
14:59:13 Increase our portfolio of what we can manage in a different way and demonstrate that. There is this middle path of forest management for the community.
14:59:22 So I think it's a good fit.
14:59:24 Yeah. And what trust is the Jacob Miller personally?
14:59:28 It is.
14:59:28 . It's on my list
14:59:38 Okay.
14:59:32 It is also in that category currently it's common school but it's on the list of of parcels that will be switching to state forest transfer.
14:59:44 Yep.
14:59:42 As part of the Dave, that one is? Okay, that he was okay.
14:59:50 Okay. And then also no page for Beaver Valley. Do you want to talk about that?
14:59:57 Mallory?
14:59:58 Yeah, so Beaver Valley you all probably remember from last year, because this was one of the ones that was scheduled to be harvested and thanks to you all.
15:00:10 And several community members that that Stan was protected. And this is one that, my mentor, Macron, has told me a lot about.
15:00:19 Katherine and I went and checked it out last. Earlier this year, early last year? I don't remember.
15:00:25 Okay.
15:00:27 But I've been up there a couple of times now and it is another really beautiful unique stand.
15:00:32 It's absolutely worth protecting. It is a special place that's just kind of another hidden gem kind of like the quimper last wilderness in our community.
15:00:40 And it also is an interesting stand because it's, you know, it's what is the acreage of this 1, 2 20.
15:00:47 No, 5 23. That has capacity for more diversified forest management.
15:00:56 There are recently just like Anderson like there's recently cut stands in the last 5 years. There's a pretty big clear cut on the east side of the stand and then there's some
Kind of overstock second growth.
15:01:10 It's. I would. How's your to guess at 60 to 80 years old? I think that's just west of the really nice, protective stand and then There's like 30 to 40 year olds.
15:01:24 Commercial d for a stands. I think that's probably making up 200 acres if I had to, if I had to guess.
15:01:32 So there's, so it's a stand that we can protect that we can have more passive recreation on and do more forest management on.
15:01:39 Same goals as the other ones that it's protect this older stand have more diversified forest management and demonstrate a balance of ecological and ecological values in a bit
of timber revenue.
15:01:58 So. The other, I noticed you included. So those are the 4 that we included.
15:02:06 For consideration for us to do the trust and transfer app application process with.
15:02:13 There's some other parcels. This that we've talked with DNR about. That they're interested in us considering we conveyance of or we could.
15:02:23 Expand our list of parcels to do trust and transfer on. And I think that's why you included Tea Lake here.
15:02:30 Mallory.
15:02:30 Yeah, yeah, and this is from, I, again, this is from the report. So, I've had my eye on more because knowing that we have Anderson Lake that we have.
15:02:42 The North Jacob Miller and the Cape George parcels that are lower timber producing and that will need more for us management.
15:02:51 I see TL Lake as one of those properties that can help. Be a bit of a bank.
15:02:57 For doing some timber harvesting. A bit more regularly in there and very like small selective harvest, same kind of thing, but it has Just more commercially viable.
15:03:12 Timber in it. So knowing that we have to do some investments in pre commercial thinning on a couple 100 acres throughout the county.
15:03:21 This would be a way to offset some of those costs too. And there Teletic, both there's a Tea Lake, East and Tea Lake West.
15:03:30 Both of them are nice for us. They're down by, Port Ludlow.
15:03:35 So there's a lot of, residential. Development around it it is still north of the 104 corridor but it is Like.
15:03:46 Slightly better at timber production in there. And a lot more, 30 to 50 year old Douglas for, so we can do that selective thinning.
15:03:56 It's as with most commercially managed forest like for DNR, it makes more sense for them to skew, like for DNR, it makes more sense for them to skew more heavily, it makes more
sense for them to skew more heavily towards.
15:04:08 And we can. Selectively thinnies to improve diversity structural diversity biological diversity and just have more recreational trails but also a little bit more timber producing
but in a little bit more of a diversified way than DNR is going to target.
15:04:25 So. That's the call.
15:04:28 Oh, thanks.
15:04:25 So I shared, I shared the map, I shared the map. Showing where these 2 parcels are west and east and then.
15:04:32 Yeah.
15:04:32 The other one that we've talked with. These these are all the, this is are also parcels we've talked with DNR about.
15:04:38 That they would be open to us taking over management of and then also the termination point. Parcel, which I loved how Brian Turner said.
15:04:50 That's where you guys need to put your welcome to Jefferson County sign. That's right.
15:04:52 When you come off the bridge.
15:04:54 Yeah. And then, the point is in there directly in North. I think that one's an 80 acre.
15:05:00 So there is adjacency. In this area as well. So, you know, when Katherine and I were looking at this and, Heidi, as we've looked at this with, advisors as well.
15:05:15 It's like trying to take a higher level view of the county. Especially North once we determine north of 104 was our focus area.
15:05:23 What are the area like what are the strategic moves we want to be making on the like, more local level and then on the more landscape level of this, area and so There's the
the Beaver Valley is slightly unique, but it's also in farmland and the with the Chimican Ridge project next door that there's that kind of adjacency.
15:05:46 There's a lot of adjacency between the telepoint termination point and then this Tale Lake property and then the Cape George properties.
15:05:56 And then the Anderson Lake property so we there was a lot of intention and trying to group and cluster these and protect some green space and have some.
15:06:07 Conservation goals in there too.
15:06:10 So there's Beaver Valley in the map. And then I'll scroll over to. Up to where there's Anderson Lake.
15:06:18 Yep.
15:06:19 And the hot pink shading is part of. Acreage that was included in the DNR carbon project on this map.
15:06:28 So there's Anderson Lake and then. The Anderson Lake State Park is right here across Anderson Lake Road.
15:06:37 And, Yeah.
15:06:37 So that would be. Pretty big. Right. Pretty good continuity through these parcels.
15:06:43 And then the ODT route is. Slated to go something like through Anderson Lake State Park on the west side.
15:06:51 And then out this way, sort of. So, provides opportunity for that and then. Scrolling up to.
15:07:00 Here's the Cape George parcel.
15:07:05 And the West Jacob Miller. West Jacob Miller. Yeah, and these are the 2 Quimper Wildlife Corridor parcels that are in their final stages of transaction.
15:07:16 Work with DNR and the civil deputy's office right now.
15:07:24 And Jefferson Land Trust, of course, has a lot of. Preserved land up there as well that isn't shown, but there's a lot of, continuity.
15:07:34 Through there as well.
15:07:36 So what we're looking for today is just your guys' thumbs up or thumbs down or some sideways on.
15:07:42 Us moving forward with doing the Trustland transfer application process for these 4 parcels. I have one more question.
15:07:50 That's how will it work with this ongoing inner trust transfer with the DABAA? I guess I was a little dis, I just am finally groking that.
15:08:00 For those Deba Bay parcels they're trading them for. Parcels north, 100, and 4, I guess, cause that's what they could find.
15:08:08 And maybe then tell me if I'm misunderstanding something. But so, this would happen after those are back into the.
15:08:16 Force board for. That they would be indifferent during your taxing districts than they previously were. These are some of the parcels that have been identified for potential
interest in your trust exchange.
15:08:29 For day Bob, yeah. But they haven't been finally decided yet, is that? No.
15:08:35 I mean, all the stuff's kind of. Like we're in the very early days with this stress and transfer application process.
15:08:42 And we're working on another part of the day, Bob.
15:08:47 The expansion that's already been authorized is in the process now and then Peter has designs on doing a future expansion.
15:08:58 So, you know, whether whether these lands will actually be part of an inner trust exchange or not. If they are.
15:09:06 Exchanged then We would get some sort of pay out for the ones that were in the forest. We can request a portion of the trust land transfer.
15:09:17 And that's what the benefit of having these interest line transfer because with reconvance you don't.
15:09:22 Right. So that's the benefit of pursuing trustland transfer with these parcels is if they are in the state forest transfer trust.
15:09:30 We can request a portion of that funding to come to the county. Okay, great. Thank you. Just wanna make sure I understood it clearly.
15:09:38 Yeah. I generally agree with the concept and the analysis. I would like to better understand the financial.
15:09:49 . And, you know, I don't know if that's information we can get before making a decision, but.
15:09:58 Thanks. Yeah, that's the thing was we don't even know when we'll be in queue.
15:10:03 Yes.
15:10:02 We might. These parcels will be a part of a big list of projects. How many of our parcels would rank high enough to be.
15:10:10 Considered for actual transfer, that's a whole another. Process. So we won't know the answer to that question.
15:10:20 Down the road quite a bit. Yeah, if they get. Funded or not or chosen for the program but if they do it's the that's where I would be nice to know what the financial arrangement
is.
15:10:33 With DNR and is that anywhere is that like No, and understood. Is that in line?
15:10:40 The trust land transfer program, the updated statute. Allows for counties to request a portion of the proceeds. From the legislative appropriation for a parcel.
15:10:51 If those lands were in the state forest transfer trust. That is not part of reconvance.
15:11:00 But we don't have any idea how much that is. No, not they'd have to, you know, do.
15:11:04 Appraisals and If it's in 4 years, the value can be very different than, you know, we don't know today.
15:11:11 And we don't even know if these lands are going to end up in common school or state force trust.
15:11:14 Right, right. I brought over a Cessna Chapman, had his hand raised. I don't know.
15:11:21 Are you were you done with that Kate? Yeah, yeah. And I'm sorry that I haven't read the new statute yet, so if it does describe in there like.
15:11:31 But it feels a little risky asking Kenny's to put their day, you know, raise their hand up not not having any idea what the what we're.
15:11:40 Bargaining for.
15:11:44 It was kind of always the day, so, Well, I mean, the trust line transfer programs always been that way.
15:11:51 It's just never been. Counties have never been eligible in this way yeah yeah except it would be replaced with other timber lines, right?
15:12:03 Jeff, did you have a question or a comment?
15:12:05 Yeah, this is more of a public comment that, you know, I did send this out to, as Heidi pointed out, it, some of these areas are very popular right now with community and recreationalists.
15:12:19 There was some and again it brought up a whole lot of questions. As well, you know, you've got existing uses that DNR has allowed.
15:12:29 On, like the West Jacob Miller and the Anderson Lake parcel and the Cape George parcel. That have been going on for many many years for decades and you know the West Jacob in
fact West Jacob Miller was identified by Drew at 1 point as that DNR wanted to they called it the landfill parcel what that they wanted to see if the county was interested in taking
it on.
15:12:55 That was a year ago or 2 years ago. You know, I guess it isn't that we have a lot of objection from talking to different recreationalists.
15:13:03 It's that we don't know what what does it mean if the county takes us on and allows passive recreation I think was in in the email that will existing uses that DNR have been
allowing on these properties.
15:13:19 Be allowed to continue. I mean, the West Jacob Miller property, as you know, is north of the horse park or what was a horse park.
15:13:25 It is used as a community connector from Cape George up to indeed the Kuiper Wildlife Corridor and in the Port Townsend.
15:13:33 It's being used by a lot of folks right now. And, and Anderson Lake, as you pointed out, is near where the trails going through.
15:13:41 In fact, if you take the whole property I shown on this map, it includes where the trail is going to go through.
15:13:47 But also we've been maintaining the questions and maintaining the roads and trails on that property again for decades to get up to the top of the hill across from Anderson Lake.
15:13:57 We have a trail access into there. So I, and then why wasn't like, we have a trail access into there.
15:14:08 Semiconductor.
15:14:04 So I, and then why wasn't like, we have a trail access into there. So I, and then why wasn't like the egg and I parcel considered, which is the, and then why wasn't like the
egg and I parcel considered, which is the Jason Equip, I mean the, The, the center Valley Ridge and the problem with Center Valley Ridge right now with the land trust
15:14:14 and everything is it does has limited access off be. Valley where this parcel will allow high access off A and I and could allow parking and in from the question point, you
can allow trailer parking, which they don't have now.
15:14:28 So I guess that there's no real objection to this. As long as existing recreational uses can continue.
15:14:33 But that uncertainty is what I'm commenting on now.
15:14:39 And we appreciate that, Jeff, and that's part of what we're trying to protect is long-term recreational use.
15:14:45 Some of these parcels have had timber harvests on, on the schedule on them.
15:14:51 And these particular 4 parcels are ones that we know that there's active. Well, passive recreational use, not, you know.
15:15:01 Officially developed trails but And we want to make sure that that kind of use is. That opportunity exists long into the future.
15:15:11 So where we see timber harvest scheduled for some of these parcels, we're like, hey, wait a second, A lot of residents that use those lands for.
15:15:20 Right, and so that's part of what a big consideration. In the conversation is Mallory and I have been having with DNR.
15:15:28 But I think that, you know, fundamentally these lands will need some kind of management plan, you know.
15:15:33 So that so that there's that assurance, but there isn't that. Real assurance now and we all know that there have been timber sales drawn up for parts of Cape George.
15:15:46 I think West Jacob Miller at 1 point had Timber Sale plans in it. Mallory might remember.
15:15:51 In West Jacob, no, I, you know, I live near there and long before it was logged and this trails all over that.
15:16:00 You know, their social network of trails plus the main DNR roads. And the problem with that property too is it's landlocked.
15:16:08 So the only official way to drive in there is through the county facility. And that's always been an issue.
15:16:15 That this would cure, you know, because the county would control. So it makes perfect sense.
15:16:20 It's just I think that we we just all want to be sure that the existing recreational uses.
15:16:26 Are allowed to continue that's all
15:16:28 Yeah. Yeah. Thanks, Jeff. Well, and I think that's related, Jeff, to.
15:16:33 You know, question which is how, manage the property so that they don't become an attractive nuisance, dumping theft, shooting.
15:16:44 You know those are all Well, shooting is, hunting isn't in loud use on the DNR land, right?
15:16:51 Yep. Yeah, yeah. So that's something. And this one's landlocked.
15:16:59 So there's not a real dumping opportunity, although it's adjacent to the dumb.
15:17:00 West Jacob Miller, that is. But you know, is that a liability? We would want to take on is that covered by the passive recreation.
15:17:08 Liability protections Yeah, we just heard Dana talking about theft, like in the more, you know, I just think we have to be thinking about if we're managing 4.
15:17:19 Some of those risks, which we know do happen and publicly owned lands, then is it still available for recreation if it's, you know, like DNR keeps eyes on it to some degree
and they're still struggling and how can we keep eyes, in a way that keeps it.
15:17:35 Safe and and well managed and not fire risk and you know. So good question.
15:17:45 Yeah. None of it's time is moving forward with these trust land. I mean, we're still early in the process, right?
15:17:54 The very beginning of raising our hands. So we might not and if we don't make it in the first round for the next biennium, I mean, you know, it could be multiple biennia out.
15:18:08 So we're kind of in a long-term committed relationship with DNR about
15:18:13 Being in conversation about the priorities for these parcels of land that are. Near where our residents live. And I mean, what the thing that drives me.
15:18:25 Crazy sometimes is you know, these places. More people are gonna move here. We have an opportunity right now to kind of say put our put a flag in the ground and say we want
Recreational opportunity we want.
15:18:41 Open space. We want wildlife. Corridors and the wildlife connectivity we want. Active management of these forests.
15:18:48 But if we don't have the forest to manage or to recreate in or, you know, these these lands over time.
15:18:57 I'm just thinking, 100 years out, what's this place gonna look like? I want us to have you know, left a legacy that allows for wildlife and Recreation that way down the road.
15:19:10 You know, where we can't even imagine what. What that looks like right now.
15:19:18 The Beaver Valley, am I missed remembering, but unit one from Beaver Valley was the one that we've protected.
15:19:27 This this whole This is larger than what we. Yeah. That's about fever. That's about unit one.
15:19:41 So a lot of this rest of this was harvested as an and is in different ages. Just harvest.
15:19:43 Yes, just last. Gotcha. Like this year. Right, okay.
15:19:49 So I was trying that.
15:19:50 Well, any objections, I, we don't need action on this, but it seems like a well thought out.
15:19:57 Well, to me, I'd say, you know, continue. Okay. Yeah, and it seems to that the, you know, this is.
15:20:04 As Mallory is working on kind of our forestry plan. For the county, like this is a whole new.
15:20:13 Big, you know, like if we were to end up with 1,400 acres, like that changes. Yeah, a lot.
15:20:23 Cut these up in tiny tiny parcels. So, Mally would still be used to working on.
15:20:25 Thank you.
15:20:27 You should see the, the timber harvest she's working on right now, and, and you guys.
15:20:30 Yeah.
15:20:32 It's. Oh, I don't know. Just approval for us. Proceeding with the applications.
15:20:42 That's all I was wanting to run this by you guys and say. So you didn't see something in the DNR, you know, annual report and go, what are they doing?
15:20:52 No.
15:20:53 And I would just wanna reiterate, based on Jeff's comments as well, that this is recreation is absolutely a goal.
15:21:01 We are not trying to lock up lands to keep people out. I mean Being on the parks board, I know that recreation and visitation to the county has increased like 200% or something
in lot since COVID.
15:21:14 I do feel like the recreation economy is is an economy for the Olympic Peninsula. I know Katherine works very closely on this for the Olympic Peninsula and so Hi, I have a deep
love of open spaces and want people out on the land.
15:21:32 So we are definitely not trying to eliminate people from these landscapes. I think the this is triple bottom line kind of forestry.
15:21:38 We're trying to have ecological goals. We're trying to have some revenue goals and we're trying to have more recreational goals and people out on the land.
15:21:47 So this is No, definitely for the people for the land. And you know, conservation. So I think we can strike all of those and I think this is a much bigger vision that these
are some of the first steps and it is a long process, but I think there is a a good vision here that we're working towards.
15:22:07 I think we're pretty clear on those goals. And, yeah, it's gonna take time, but we're, trying to think big picture.
15:22:15 And all of this. So. Yeah. And, the egg and I.
15:22:20 Sorry.
15:22:18 Okay. Good to see that the difference with parks is that we do have staff and a budget for managing them and this, you know, we do have staff in a budget for managing them and
this, you know, we would not.
15:22:28 So having more people where we don't have staff or budget for managing them. And this, you know, we would not.
15:22:33 Yeah.
15:22:33 So having more people where we don't have staff or budgets can be a real liability and taking on as well.
15:22:37 And often public access does is the part that doesn't end up being done. You know, and it's awesome.
15:22:41 All risk, right? Adding parking is expensive when you're talking about these facilities. So. Often if you stop managing land, you know, we've got a we gotta continue to manage
all these lands I guess is really what I'm saying for all those uses, which we don't have.
15:23:00 Okay.
15:22:58 Absolutely. Yeah, and already having parks. You know, budget under funded and then strapped. I do not want to like put more burden on the Parks Department.
15:23:10 And I've talked to Heidi repeatedly about part of the timber harvest revenue. I think it would be great if there was a dedicated portion of this going towards parks towards
management because it is going to be putting more of a burden on our or could potentially be putting more of a burden on our department and public works depending on how this is all
structured.
15:23:34 So it's definitely on my mind. I do not want, I love our Parks, whoever Parks staff, I do not wanna over burn them.
15:23:40 So. Yeah.
15:23:41 Great. Okay. Well, thank you very much. Thanks a lot.
15:23:47 Thank you all.
15:23:49 We'll see you soon.
15:23:51 Okay, so. We're going in, I guess, at 3 25 and we're going to executive session to review the performance of a public employee.
15:24:09 No discussion of salaries, wages, and other conditions of employment to be generally applied within the county and no final actions on the hiring, setting the salary of an individual
employee or class of employees or discharging.
15:24:21 What's that? Or, or discharging or disciplined employee. Exemption is outlined in the Open Public Meetings Act, RCW, 42 dot 30 dot 1 10 parenthes one parentheses G we'll be
joined by our human resources director, Sarah Melonson and our county administrator, Mark McCauley.
15:24:39 We're going in at 3 25. We'll plan on coming out at 400, and 5.
15:24:43 30Â min.
15:24:46 3 25 to 3 after 405.
16:05:54 Yeah, it's hard if you're not training.
16:05:58 So next year we're going to do the lavender ride, 33 miles and then, schedule flats, 25 miles.
16:06:07 So you'll train for it. Yeah. All right. We're coming back out of executive session.
16:06:14 I will no action to be taken. I will, no action to be taken. And as a reminder, we were in executive session to be taken and as a reminder we were in executive session to review
the performance of a public employee.
16:06:22 There was no discussion to be taken and as a reminder we were in executive session to review the performance of a public employee.
16:06:26 There was no discussion of salaries And no final action and
16:06:30 No one election in the hiring setting the salary of an individual employee or class of employees or discharging or disciplining an employee exemptions outlined in the open public
meetings act RCW, 42 dot 30 dot 110 parentheses one parentheses G.
16:06:44 Okay, well we have made it through our agenda. We haven't done any calendaring. I don't know if we can spend a few moments on calendar, especially if there are any conflicts
and a reminder who's doing the radio this week since we've been.
16:07:01 Okay. But, do we, well, I guess first Mark, did you want to do any report back briefing from what your activities last week?
16:07:11 I can do that. Do you want to do any report back briefing from what your activities last week? Sure, I can do that.
16:07:16 So on Monday, of on Tuesday the 20Â Si attended the budget training. I thought Judy did a fine job.
16:07:23 Little technical but she's available to follow up with people that have follow-up questions. And then of course the banana leaf.
16:07:32 Bunch of staff. That was really a really a nice event. I enjoyed that. And then later I met with Brent.
16:07:41 And then, Matt with Carrie Benz and Sheriff Knowle to discuss some provisions of the Sheriff's Admin contract.
16:07:51 We wanted to get his read on a couple of
16:07:55 Negotiation items we didn't want to agree to something if it would if he would object to it and so that was useful.
16:08:05 And then, the headlock sewer, event, which, you know, I sent a note to staff saying that's one of the best events, maybe the best event of that sort I've ever attended.
16:08:17 It was just. Great fun. And then on Wednesday the 20 third, I thought we were going to negotiate for.
16:08:27 A short amount of time, but we went the full 4Â h with. Turning it into a sticky wicket.
16:08:35 Was thinking more time than the 100 plus bargaining, you know, member bargaining unit called UFC W.
16:08:42 So and then I missed the childcare. Family support meeting with the why in the hospital.
16:08:51 Due to the calendaring. Mountain time problem. But then I met a recurring meeting problem, wasn't it?
16:09:02 Yes. Right the other. And, yeah, I'm the one that was notified by.
16:09:05 Linda Rosenberry that
16:09:08 What the problem was. And I'm like, oh, that's great. I love being told what my problem is.
16:09:15 Somebody who's not even in the county. So, and then at 30'clock, Greg Ballard, Josh Peters and I met with Kevin Street and Aaron Berg.
16:09:28 And a number of staff members from the port and the PD. They're interested in rejuvenating the RV park at the Herbeck.
16:09:39 What do they call? Arena down there in quilting. Good meeting. We think we can accommodate the reason that it's urgent is that Kevin Street when he goes out to bed for fiber
work he wants to be able to say that we have an RV part that's got water, sewer.
16:09:57 Empower to help induce people to bid on the work. He says that experience is showing that that's an important aspect of bid solicitations anymore.
16:10:12 And then the county picnic. What Heidi said was was really good fun. And then.
16:10:24 On Thursday, one on one with with Josh Peters. And then I sat in on the Jeffcom board meeting for a little while, but had to jump off for the special meeting.
16:10:35 Sydney Brooks from EDC, I gave a report to the to the board.
16:10:40 We approved, well, you approved the amount today for an RFP, so that was a good meeting.
16:10:49 Then agenda planning with with Greg and then the entrance conference with the state auditor and then some encouraging news there.
16:11:02 The cash balancing issue that we've had for 2 years. Appears to have been resolved.
16:11:08 In it in total. According to Stacey, there's like a $300 difference rather than hundreds of thousands.
16:11:18 So largely because we're on one system now because 2022 is the first year. All on me in this, right?
16:11:28 And then of course I met with Chris Goy at 3 in the afternoon. Then I attended the Healthier Together Steering Committee meeting an hour late and then that was.
16:11:38 Stacy and Judy to look at revenue projections for their upcoming budget. And then I met with Willie Dence. I think I reported to you.
16:11:50 I was meeting with him and the outcome of that meeting was to my satisfaction and to yours. I think Willie is going to be a long-term member of our.
16:12:01 Our county staff. So anyway, that's. That's good news. And that's the week.
16:12:08 Yeah, he's just going any issues coming up this week. Of course today with you, tomorrow, a recurring meeting with, Apple Martin.
16:12:19 I'm gonna sit in, Brent Butler is presenting to the hearings examiner, the Caswall Brown case.
16:12:30 For the shelter. He's done a pretty fine job. Preparing for that. Ask Barbara Ehrlichman for her read on the materials and she thinks Brent's done a fine job.
16:12:47 So hopefully we'll get a favorable. Decision out of the hearings examiner. And then 18 meeting tomorrow if it's not canceled.
16:12:57 And then. On Wednesday we have our budget committee meeting. And then at 110'clock from 11 to one, we have the strategic plan implementation planning meeting.
16:13:12 That's going to be quite a slog as we're going to assign. Who is responsible for which objective it will be.
16:13:18 And Good. And that'll form the basis for reporting to you, the board, and to the public on the basis for reporting to you, the board and to the public on the plan.
16:13:29 And I'll be participating in that meeting. Yep. And then at 10'clock, we're meeting to discuss a Chimicum drainage district and I guess we're talking about outreach strategies.
16:13:43 With a bigger group of residents at the valley.
16:13:47 Then. Tour of the paper milk? Yeah.
16:13:54 Tomorrow at 2 30. You guys are visiting the paper. It's so cool. I'm going this week too later in the week.
16:14:04 2 or? I'm going this week too later in the week. What do you know? 3 of the 3 of us all 3 of you Oh yeah.
16:14:15 What was the genesis? I was meeting with the paper mill around forestry issues with Mallory.
16:14:20 And they offered it. And so I thought, well, it seems like a good thing to extend. The invitation to more of the team too.
16:14:29 So. I invited a lot of other people. The name. I can get the name.
16:14:42 I'll look. Great.
16:14:52 Yes.
16:14:59 Mallory? Okay. Oh, and that's work.
16:15:09 Let's do it. Not at Kanna. We thought, I mean, very inclusive. I appreciate it.
16:15:18 It could be far. You know, if that plant were to have a serious emergency, then that would be involved.
16:15:24 Okay, continuing on Thursday. I don't know. A meeting with Stacy Predo that go over budget talking points for September.
16:15:33 20Â s because I get back on the 20 first and won't have much preparation time for the. KPTZ.
16:15:40 Budget talk on Friday the 20Â s. Then at 9 30 I'm meeting with Josh and Brent and we We talked to make sure that what Brent's doing Josh knows about and the We're all happy
with.
16:15:59 Progress. And then from one to 3, there's a retirement event for Lou Johnson, the fleet manager.
16:16:09 I at the headlock shop. Yeah, following that, I'll have my weekly check-in with Chris Goy.
16:16:16 And then on the first.
16:16:20 Should we do agenda prep? Our calendar entries falling off. But yeah, we should do that. I'll plug that in.
16:16:30 And then on Friday the first we are having the hearing on the Thank you. And,
16:16:41 I'll show the same pitch I showed previously and you can take public comment and hopefully you'll decide to not dissolving the district so that we can do the work that we need
to do.
16:16:56 For the future of that special district. And then, I've been invited Jamie M.
16:17:06 I'm not going to try to pronounce her name. I'm from habitat for humanity.
16:17:08 And yes. And thank you. And her staff to meet with Josh and Brett Ballard. Sort of talk about creating a team to assist them with their development of the 120 or 200.
16:17:26 You know, we're going to talk about that. And then we're going to assist them with their development of the 120 or 200.
16:17:34 You want to get rid of those 0 lot lines for If they're gonna have.
16:17:36 For 200 units, they're not going to have 200 unique units. I would imagine that they'll have 20 of these.
16:17:44 And 20 of those and they'll sprinkle them about. And I would like those all to be permitted in a block.
16:17:51 Development agreement. Not as individual houses. Because if and that would speed up permitting and so on.
16:17:58 And so, That ends my week. Busy week. You wanna take a look at your week?
16:18:09 No. I'm just still calendar problems. So now I have a ton of calendar invites. With both a Pacific time and a mountain time.
16:18:22 Right next to each other and don't know which one. And they don't say on it what time zone it's in.
16:18:31 I have no idea where they came from. Wow. Yeah, it's a And frustrating. Just, just simply with your phone.
16:18:39 Oh god. Yes. I'm well, I'm already looking at some. I just found another conflict that I missed like between the 2.
16:18:50 Alright, so. Tomorrow, Mark and I are gonna get together to discuss the gathering place lease at the fairgrounds.
16:19:01 I will be. In Seattle much today on medical stuff, but take that meeting and a couple of leadership council meetings for the future on partnership.
16:19:13 Tomorrow then Wednesday budget committee. Followed by childcare meeting. And then legislative priorities for leadership council eventually leadership council stuff this week
Thursday I will be.
16:19:28 That's today head to Seattle for chunk of time. So, I don't have any.
16:19:35 Anything scheduled for that day and will generally be out of commission. And then our special meeting Friday afternoon.
16:19:46 So this is going to be a first couple days in the hospital. So. Don't expect to hear a lot from me.
16:19:53 Hoping the next week to be. Little more available and kind of be. You know, label things on my calendar as sensitive if they truly are.
16:20:05 I'm worried about both a Brennan and Quill seeing community meetings. Is it gonna be hard for me to get back for and.
16:20:14 Carolyn, are we planning to do virtual options for? Community. Community outreach meetings.
16:20:22 With Wi-Fi. Okay. And like Brennan, it's been pretty good.
16:20:30 It's they fix the problem with the camera and suck it all up. Okay, so but it's still it depends What other activities happen?
16:20:36 I mean, I have high hosts, but. We can't always guarantee you. Yeah, okay.
16:20:46 Yeah, so. So begins my couple, you know, 6 or 8 weeks. So yeah, just being removed.
16:20:54 Yeah, remote. And yeah, and I'm trying to put stuff in my account like accept things that I know that I will prioritize and try to be at.
16:21:04 Some stuff is tentative and then we'll you know ask for help for the stuff that needs coverage.
16:21:09 So far so that I haven't gotten a
16:21:13 Is there a workforce or? Do you see? So I totally missed that. That was one of my, oh, it did happen last week.
16:21:23 It was one of the recurring meetings that was not, you know, that fell off my calendar, so I just spaced up.
16:21:26 Matt and then. And, I do know that September one I am not able to attend because I have to be at an LSC meeting.
16:21:35 And, I do know that September one I am not able to attend because I have to be at an LSC meeting.
16:21:36 So for the special meeting. You know, DC. NDC meetings. The 20 first of September at 2 p.
16:21:43 M.
16:21:46 Be thrilled if you were able to cover for me. Yeah I could do that. Great. Thank you.
16:21:52 . P.
16:21:57 Oh, it's like me crazy.
16:22:02 And we'll go from no recurring meetings to now having. Recurring meetings at 2 different times.
16:22:08 Yeah, right. Just to
16:22:13 Okay, Heidi, you want to take a look? Here with you today, tomorrow I'm going to be out of the office most of the day.
16:22:25 It's my mom's birthday and I'm hosting a dinner for. I may be hosting a forestry conversation in my yard with Senator Van D Wigg at midday tomorrow, but I'm not sure.
16:22:37 So I think he's out fighting fires, so. That would be my one meeting on my calendar tomorrow and I just ask Julie to move a meeting with Julia Cochran.
16:22:46 To Wednesday or Thursday. So. Wednesday's budget meeting. Do you are you able to take minutes this time or do you want me to do that?
16:22:56 I am able. Okay, thank you. Strategic plan implementation planning meeting, that's Wednesday from 11 to one.
16:23:07 And then at 2 I have 2 meetings, but I will only be attending one at 2 or no at 10'clock.
16:23:15 11 to one is strategic planning implementation. 10'clock is drainage district meeting planning. And the Olympic Peninsula Tourism Strategic Plan.
16:23:25 Check in meeting, but I'm gonna forego that one. I have already led Debbie Wardrobe know that.
16:23:32 We have our, paper mill tour. At 2 30. With Laurie Megan, their communications lead down there.
16:23:43 And, Thursday I'm meeting with Terry McCauley from the historical. Society about her new role on LTAC, which she's now an LTAC member.
16:23:55 And I will be on KPTZ with Chief Black. Covering a much of what he covered today.
16:24:02 About fall conditions and then also talking about our community wildfire prevention planning and the survey we currently have out.
16:24:12 You haven't taken that already. I encourage you to spend the minutes needed. Friday we have that special BOCC meeting regarding the drainage district and then I have a meeting.
16:24:23 With Mallory and Catherine to plan for our meeting. We have next week. And then Saturday, super exciting.
16:24:30 We're having a block party in my neighborhood. I think a lot of my neighbors, I'm gonna.
16:24:34 Be hanging out with a lot of my neighbors on Saturday, which is great. We're gonna. I'm gonna begin in prepping my neighborhood.
16:24:41 Yeah, that's the way to do it. And then Shamus, for my husband, he curated an art show at the Were a Loop Gallery.
16:24:49 He doesn't have any art in it, but it opens on Saturday. At 5 if anyone's up in the.
16:24:54 Business Park. He curated one of my friends so I'll be there. Oh great and we'll see you there.
16:24:59 That's my week. Right. Okay, I'll be brief. We're almost at the heart out to 4 30.
16:25:07 Tomorrow we have a special meeting of the left one retirement board. We're still dealing with some sticky wickets, getting some benefits to some law enforcement officers there.
16:25:18 And that's all I have on my calendar tomorrow. That's what. On Wednesday lots of conflicts, you know, not a lot of actual dates that I can go to, but lots of conflicts.
16:25:28 I will miss the budget meeting this week. I both have a project review the RFP that happened despite my best efforts for the recompetes.
16:25:39 We're doing a project review at 8 30 then. And then I'm gonna have to leave that early because Aselen Palmer from the city is coming to chat about Housing stuff and and, Glen
Cove stuff.
16:25:53 Then I'll go into the anti-racist clubs where I decide if I'm going to use my question of If I stand on someone's blanket, they left.
16:26:01 Just, at the thing and walked away from, but I can't see unless I stand there.
16:26:08 Decolonizing. That's it. The joke. Oh.
16:26:17 Is it decolonizing? I think it is. I think that I think that laying your blanket down in the prime area is a settler colonial in the venue.
16:26:29 Oh. And that, standing on it would be. I had quite a few conversations about it over there. Yeah, no, I thought about it a lot too.
16:26:36 I still, I resisted doing it. I couldn't do it. It's hard for me.
16:26:40 Game up a lot. And then we have our annual, only cap. Meeting we're gonna do our strategic plan is we have a good 4Â h meeting Wednesday afternoon and Okay, 7 seaters.
16:26:52 On Thursday, I'll be visiting the paper mill and, no Jeffcom meeting that we're likely going to have a special one to deal with the budget.
16:26:59 I think. So we do have, we have a special meeting coming up. Then I asked for the conflict with the our special meeting for the Drainage District on Fridays at the same time
as the normal weekly recompete meeting.
16:27:13 I rarely have things at 20'clock on a Friday afternoon, but I will. Course, do the hybrid meeting and then join the recompete group as I can.
16:27:21 We'll try and be as quick as possible. Yeah, I'm hoping that don't dissolve the drainage district.
16:27:25 That's, I mean, don't, don't dissolve the drainage district.
16:27:33 That's, I mean, that's not fellow state almost as long as any of us have been alive.
16:27:37 Right. Or maybe even longer than Kate's been alive. Yeah, deal with the normal site. Yes.
16:27:46 It would only be in their district in the district. Oh, right. Yeah. It would only be in their district in the district.
16:27:53 Oh, right. We don't have 4Â min. I've heard that you have a letter percent and then there will be a public comment.
16:27:54 And also for Oh, thank you. Yes. Can we take what ICG meeting too?
16:27:57 We don't have to do it today, but next week. Let's talk about ICG.
16:27:59 And I will share my screen. I think, I mean, I, they said I could just sign this with my letterhead, but.
16:28:08 Yeah, this is a letter supporting Habitat's application to the Commerce Housing Trust Fund.
16:28:15 Or for money.
16:28:23 What are they applying? Specifically in Brennan and Quillcy and this is the critical care program.
16:28:30 And move the way. Sign this letter as a board. Yeah. Sign it.
16:28:39 Happy to second. Okay, because we did not have this on our agenda. Anyone that's with us, we'd love to hear your thoughts about us signing on to this letter of support for Habitat
for Humanities application for the commerce for funds to take out their South County Critical Repair Program.
16:29:02 I will make one more call for public comment. If you're with us, you can hit raise hand or star 9.
16:29:09 Seeing no hands, I will close public comment and call the question all in favor of signing on to this letter of support as moved, Bye.
16:29:21 Okay, thank you. Here's a little more weight. Yes, I agree. That's what I told them I would do.
16:29:27 And then boards and committees. I failed again. I've tried 3 people to get them going for the noxious weed board.
16:29:33 I'm just, I'm back in myself. I'm gonna fill out the application. That's okay.
16:29:40 Okay. I'll do it. Okay. Hmm.
16:29:42 Looks like I need to find a district 2 planning commission member now. Oh yeah. And I already asked Scott Rogers who had applied for originally, but we put him on the Piff board
and now he's too busy.
16:29:54 He's full up now, so. Excuse me, I don't know if it's still on here.
16:29:58 I do have some, it's one great for district one. It is still on there. So, planning commission.
16:30:06 No planning commission. Josh has just been busy. Looks like Joel is advertising. She might reach out.
16:30:12 Control. Okay.
16:30:20 . We still need a district 3 and work on that district 3 p.
16:30:32 Okay. And district one and district 3 for MRC now. Cause we saw that Celine resigned and Sheather resign, right?
16:30:43 I think so.
16:30:46 Okay, well it is 4 30 now, so we'll work on those vacancies unless someone has anything for the good of the order.
16:30:53 We've used all our time for today, so this meeting is adjourned. We will see you not next Monday, which is Labor Day, but because it's a holiday, we will reconvene the day after.
16:31:04 So we'll see Tuesday, September fourth. Same channel. Will Dr. Barry be here for that meeting?
16:31:09 Yes. Okay. It's Tuesday the fifth. Tuesday the fifth thing.