HomeMy WebLinkAboutclosed_caption09:01:48 Alright, ready to go.
09:01:57 Good morning. I will call this September fifth meeting of the Board of County Commissioners to order. Glad to have people with us today.
09:02:08 We'll start as we always do. By opening up for public comment on any item before us.
09:02:17 So is there anyone we have no one in the room? Is there anyone online and that would like to make public comment this morning?
09:02:26 One hand raised, Kate, you have something to say. Well, while we wait, I will.
09:02:35 I don't know. I know it's the first day of school in Port Townsend at least.
09:02:39 I think other schools started last week but. I don't know. Fall is here.
09:02:44 The seasons have changed. It's already cooler at the worst sweater. Okay, welcome to the new season.
09:02:52 Well, it is the season of Wooden Bow Festival too. I drove into town today and they were putting the banner over.
09:02:57 Go street downtown and exciting. It's official.
09:03:02 All right, well, as is our practice, we will keep public comment open throughout until 9 30. We are going to be joined by Dr.
09:03:13 Barry and Willie Bence at 9 45 for our health update and emergency services update. So I guess we can take a look at our consent agenda.
09:03:25 Any questions or comments on the consent agenda? I was kind of surprised to see the status update briefing on the stock plan.
09:03:35 But I was gonna comment on that. I read through it and there seems to be a lot of, you know, new movement on it and change.
09:03:50 Yeah, so I was a little bit confused by that being included on the. Okay. The title changed a couple times.
09:03:54 Okay, and Mark's now in another country so we can't ask him. Brent is with us.
09:04:05 I don't know. We'll give an option to, Brent is with us. Brent is with us.
09:04:13 Brent is with us. Brent is with us. Brent is with us. Brent is with us. I don't know.
09:04:16 We'll give an option to, Mr appropriate non-consent agenda. Since there's no actual action to take.
09:04:19 Yeah. It was a little strange. So.
09:04:28 Hi, Brad. Okay.
09:04:29 Hi. Just wanted to keep you appraised that the, stop plan, process is moving forward.
09:04:38 We've had, initially from just to refresh everyone and it was stated in the gender request we had initially used another municipalities call for projects and they had a hundred
40.
09:04:56 Submissions and they narrowed it, whittled it down to 10. And then our commission recommended 4 of those.
09:05:03 And then we opened it up so to our community to supplement that. And so we wanted to make sure that.
09:05:12 Of those that were reviewed by the Planning Commission that there was an opportunity for local community members to submit.
09:05:20 And we did hear in advance that a lot of our architects and design professionals were really busy. And they would not likely submit some of them that had initially planned to
submit could not because they're several years out on just projects that they're working on.
09:05:39 Yeah.
09:05:37 But we did receive 3 submissions from 3 firms. And so we have a total of 34 different plans.
09:05:44 And so our goal based upon the direction that we received from the board was to come back once we've identified which plans have community support.
09:05:54 And why. And so we're in the process now of doing that outreach and identifying community members interested in the plans.
09:06:03 And actually tonight, our excuse me, yeah, tonight at the city council meeting they're also having this item before all of the council members because there were a quite a range
of plans and they're also getting some input.
09:06:19 Great. Well, I think, great, you're always welcome to come onto the regular agenda too to talk about the update.
09:06:26 We'd love to hear about it as it moves forward, but appreciate that. And is there a place on the DCD website that people can see?
09:06:31 That you know the larger group that you guys are looking through right now.
09:06:34 Yeah, it's so easy to get there. You don't even you just type in go under Google just type in Jefferson County, Washington and stock plans.
09:06:44 And it'll be the first hit.
09:06:47 Great. Cool. All right. I was really glad to hear about the collaboration with the city.
09:06:52 I hadn't heard that we were doing that together. So good work making that happen. Yeah. Yeah, good stuff.
09:06:56 Thank you.
09:07:01 Welcome.
09:07:00 Alright, well thanks for coming over, Well, return to our consent agenda. Unless there are questions for Mr. Butler.
09:07:08 Welcome, Monte Rinders, Acting Deputy, County Administrator today.
09:07:13 Thanks for being with us.
09:07:16 Oh righty. And question for Monty actually. Oh yes. I'm looking at the agreement with Department of Ecology for the solid waste funding for recycling.
09:07:26 I didn't realize that ecology covered so much of the cost of that program. So it's not a huge amount.
09:07:35 Because it's usually that's a biennial amount so you know we that program for 600,000 a year so 1.2 million over 2 years so they're covering.
09:07:45 What's the amount? 30%? Yeah. But you know, it is.
09:07:52 So. So it's it's already subsidized by the state to some degree. And just thinking long term about how to make that program sustainable after you and Al said last week was that,
you know, it was gonna Continue to cost more.
09:08:10 Is is the state pretty consistent in that funding amount or does it vary? You know a lot of people use that funding for other things like moderate risk ways we chose years ago
to use it to offset some of the costs of recycling because.
09:08:25 Mostly because the Grant billing requires you to submit all the invoices and everything. So using it for the moderate risk waste facility was like every sand of paint you got
rid of.
09:08:39 Whereas with the recycling program, we can submit the 12 invoices we get from Skookum a year.
09:08:43 And say here's our costs and so it makes the administration of the money you know a lot easier that way.
09:08:50 But yeah, you know, recycling is subsidized in many of the programs just because back in the day, shall we say.
09:09:01 There was an interest in getting people to recycle so making it have the appearance of being free was how you did it, but it's not free.
09:09:12 Because the costs are borne by the tipping fee as you know for solid ways they're
09:09:20 You know there there could be other models eventually where recycling is supported by, you know, like a solid waste district, an assessment.
09:09:32 It could be a fee for service, but you know that would take some doing to you know get people to pay for that.
09:09:39 But then, you know, you'd see a corresponding decrease on the solid waste side.
09:09:44 So it's a same amount of money. It's just where you Collected typically people are Maybe, if they're paying for something, they, the contamination rate might go down.
09:09:57 Because usually when you pay for something you Maybe it are a little more conscientious about how you use the system.
09:10:03 And things like that. So. I think it will evolve for our jurisdiction and others over time, you know, there's a growing realization that the recycling message is.
09:10:17 Kind of had a the unfortunate effect of making. Buying lots of plastic feel okay. Which is what the plastic industry intended when they set up the recycling program for it.
09:10:33 Put it on the shoulders of the consumer too, right? Yeah, responsibility. I know having been now involved in solid waste for a number of years and you know, and it's hard if
you're not to see all this stuff, but, For me personally, it's really hard to buy something in a one single use plastic container.
09:10:55 You know, by go to the Delhi at lunch. I'm looking for the thing that's wrapped in paper, which is harder and harder to find.
09:11:04 You know, the everything's in plastic. So anyway, sorry to. Derail the conversation. Yeah, no, no.
09:11:17 We love it. But I am worried you're going to get a neckache using that microphone all day.
09:11:19 Do you want the toller one?
09:11:20 Perhaps. Yeah.
09:11:31 Any other questions or comments?
09:11:37 You know, I mean, we can talk about plastics all day. Okay. I mean, we can talk about plastics all day. Okay.
09:11:45 Talk about plants. Or if they could just do that, I mean, or the sewer. It's great to see the easement go back the other way by the percolation pond for the other way by the
percolation pond for for Schold and everything.
09:11:51 It's a you know, good neighbors. I don't know, not about fencing, but about being able to move vehicles, I think.
09:11:58 Yeah, that worked out. Well for all parties involved there and all the concrete is gone. Yeah, they are, you know, hauling back in the free draining sand to replace all the
unsuitable material that was hauled out.
09:12:16 That'll take some time and We're today guest. Last. When was it Thursday, today and tomorrow we're pouring the cutoff wall in the in the big the big b.
09:12:31 I, it involves a HDPE liner and a concrete mix to make the, the,m completely impermeable.
09:12:41 Although again, we don't expect to see a lot of water lapping up against the inside of that berm anytime soon but so that's a big step and But you know, the contractors crew
is,
09:12:54 For this week and you know certainly maybe a little bit of next week kind of down to a bear bronze crew because they're on the Swansonville project that the state is doing and
they have to That's a 24Â HA day job to get that Beaver Valley road state route.
09:13:14 19 reopened within And is it 10 days, you know, so they have a lot of work to date got their whole crew over there for the most part.
09:13:22 Okay. Is that right? The Beaver Valley closure expected window. I get it.
09:13:32 Except. Yeah, I mean, it starts to start today and goes for approximately, 10 days as I recall.
09:13:36 So. Is impacted with the seventh, but no cars on the Bainbridge Mary lock on the seventh to the Oh, I didn't know that.
09:13:44 Fourteenth or seventeenth. Their, the dates are too similar. I think we're mixed up.
09:13:51 So could the percolation pond be affordable alternative? It took for the swimming pools be a, affordable, alternative it took for the swimming pool.
09:14:04 If I ever saw that much water and I'd be concerned that something's not draining very well.
09:14:10 No. Just trying to save money here. Speaking of parks, I mean get out and see.
09:14:17 HJ Carroll the parking lots looking really great our crew. Sealed it again and it'll get re-striped, I believe this week.
09:14:29 And improve striping. Layout to what we had before. Did some maintenance on the gate at the area at the jump project that looks really nice.
09:14:42 Eric Kuzma and Matt handled that and still looking into some shade structures to mitigate the issues with the some of the play equipment there.
09:14:54 Yeah. Yeah, we're gonna shake them. I was wondering if they're gonna turn to the. Yeah, right.
09:15:04 Well, I think we've determined that Shade has multiple benefits or as painting or because white only has one benefits or is painting or because white only has one benefit.
09:15:08 So we've determined that shade has multiple benefits or is painting or because white only has one benefit or is painting or because white only has one benefit.
09:15:12 Or is painting or because white only has one benefit. So, I did see the, the RCO grants for local parks maintenance.
09:15:22 Is that something we've gotten in the past? I didn't recognize that. That's a new program and I don't know how long it'll last.
09:15:31 I'm not that familiar with him and Matt Tyler, the Parks manager.
09:15:36 I became aware of this new program and applied, you know, it's a small, it's $100,000 per
09:15:45 Per parks jurisdiction whether you're King County or Jefferson County. So. There's but you know not very typical to see grants for just sort of maintenance.
09:16:01 No, I did all the RCO grant emails and so I sent it to him too and he was already aware of it.
09:16:04 So it's great. Yeah. I mean, they should take care of me. I mean, it's reasonable for it to be in there.
09:16:10 Yeah. Do we know how competitive that's gonna be? Is it going on? I think that one's pretty much.
09:16:19 If you apply, well, Matt would know better, but I think there's a hundred $1,000.
09:16:24 Sitting there waiting for us to use it as long as they're okay with the uses that are proposed.
09:16:29 I know he. You know, talk to the our grants coordinator at at our CO about his ideas there.
09:16:38 So hopefully it should just be. There there's another program that is competitive that he's looking into and we'll need.
09:16:47 Workshop with the board on. What it's a new program as well and where we should. Put our efforts, you know, with that grant.
09:17:01 Yeah, so hard to do all this prioritization, the, Parks Recadvisory Board and then it's like, oh, the funding comes up for, you know, something else.
09:17:10 Oh, okay. I think that's always the top of our chip is what's available funding.
09:17:18 That's always the top of our chip is what's the top of our chip is what's available funding. That is the thing.
09:17:21 I mean, with the TIP again, yeah, it'
09:17:21 Almost a hundred percent by what what the state and feds are willing to fund, right, rather than necessarily what maybe our top priorities would be.
09:17:33 And you know, here, here you go with the parks. Grants as well, you know.
09:17:38 Yeah. Well, I mean, so often the parks are not funded at all. You know, like just projects that you can go apply for.
09:17:46 So it's been that the states recognizing. The ongoing maintenance needs.
09:17:52 Alright. Well. Not me. I'm happy to make a motion to approve.
09:18:00 The consent agenda for September fifth, 2023. 1Â s. That's been moved and seconded to approve and adopt the consent agenda as presented.
09:18:10 All in favor indicate by saying aye. Hi. Passes may have a consent agenda. I'm making it a call to the public, anyone with us, we would love to hear from you.
09:18:21 Public comment open till 9 30, but if you're online with us, you can hit. The raise hand button or star 9 if you're on a phone.
09:18:29 And I see no hands yet. So I guess we have, let's see, 9 45 will be joined by Dr.
09:18:35 Barry and Will Events. So I guess we have some time to look at last week and. No, but I wonder, Caroline, do we know if Bill Dowling is joining for the proclamation?
09:18:47 He is, he wasn't going to be available until after 10. Of course, you've thought that true.
09:18:56 Yeah, great question. Do you have access to your calendar, Kate? I do.
09:19:15 So, see last week, Have a good meeting with Gathering Place and Mark McCauley on the potential lease for a building site at fairgrounds and we're able to kind of delineate their
needs.
09:19:33 It was followed by a tour at the fairgrounds which I did not join for but some members of the board.
09:19:39 The fairgrounds, the programs manager, gathering place and mark all identified a site that they thought was most suitable for gathering place needs, which, yeah, yeah, it so
needs to go to the for for for formal approval and I think ultimately we're giving Mark the authority the administrator the authority to approve those decisions at the fair grounds
but seems like there is consensus and that's necessary step for.
09:20:08 Gathering place to be able to get to the next level of design with their architect, to get cross estimates and such.
09:20:16 So really nice to see progress there. Where is it gonna go? So I believe in the.
09:20:24 North. West Corner or somewhere in the Northwest quadrant, which is a parking area currently, but there's some ability to move shift parking around.
09:20:35 There's a lot of open space there. So I think the perception is that the you know value of having a brand new building there.
09:20:45 Is and you know providing a home for a great community partners more important than parking that mostly sits empty.
09:20:52 Right. Throughout the year. Let's see. It's a lot of preparation last week.
09:20:59 The Puget Sound Partnership Leadership Council is meeting at the Skokomish Reservation and the Hood Count Coordinating Council is presenting.
09:21:08 Each leaders, well. To the 2 leadership councils a year we have a local integrating organization present.
09:21:14 And local issues and so we've been working on the coordinating council's presentation. Done a lot of work to kind of craft a case study in message, which, Yeah, we will be talking
about Brennan, some of the challenges that we're restoration.
09:21:36 Interfaces with Lammers.
09:21:42 And the need for, wanting to go back to a watershed planning model that we know that these projects or funding comes up.
09:21:52 Where you know projects really need to be almost shovel ready to in order to be funded and There isn't really a any organization, any entity funded right now to be doing all
of that pre-planning work to have something in the hopper that's kind of ready to go.
09:22:07 So are gonna propose that there needs to be. Some funding for perhaps LIOs to serve in that role, to increase their coordination efforts.
09:22:22 And Part of that the focus of that we are suggesting should really be about addressing the multi benefit issues so almost all projects now are met with a pretty predictable
set of stakeholders with varying interests.
09:22:38 Yeah. And that we actually need better, more sophisticated frameworks for. And of course, Tammy, Picorni's been doing that work for a long time.
09:22:50 And So hoping to pull her into the conversation as well. Typically the local integrating organizations are asking something of the leadership council, that the council is in
a position to kind of advance.
09:23:04 So those are both asks that we could help advance either in the budget. Or the state budget or through how EPA.
09:23:13 Funds LIOs or So. Stay tuned. Per Cardinal is usually good about attending those leadership council meetings.
09:23:21 So she'll kind of be able to carry that forward to the, our other LIO.
09:23:24 So I'll be attending that meeting, that'll be my only other in person meeting next week is down in, Sk for that meeting.
09:23:35 Let's see, we were all at the budget meeting fairly. Status quo there.
09:23:45 Had a meeting on legislative priorities with the leadership council. At a number of legislative priorities meetings last week.
09:23:51 It's. Head is swimming a little bit with various legislative efforts. I'm not ready to go there yet and I know this is when you have to do it during the inter session.
09:24:01 But I'm like, didn't we just wrap up and I'm not ready to think about it but here we are.
09:24:06 I had a good talk with Josh Peters about the Lammers proposal that both of you have seen also legislative ask It's interesting both he and Paul Jewell.
09:24:18 Really feel like the Senator short bill 52 75 from a couple years ago really allows lot of flexibility at LAMARDS.
09:24:28 And My impression has been that it has not been interpreted as such. In Jefferson County and you know that could be different administrators or planners but I mean the hearing
how how both Josh and Paul and interpret it they feel like there's not a need for a change that really we could up zone lamards very easily for more dense residential housing, which
and then Josh talked to commerce too it's not
09:24:56 just local interpretation but also kind of on the statewide level maybe in interpretation is aligned with that. Right, yeah, in the case of the Brandon, the sewer.
09:25:08 Potential in Britain that yes, he did address that, but I had not heard that for. How's that?
09:25:16 We're septic would then be the limiting factor, not the. Oh. Field size.
09:25:23 Yeah, not the underlying zoning, which. There isn't really any lambert apparently, we have a lot of latitude there.
09:25:29 I am doing some more research there and you know trying to wrap our heads around. You know, I think both Chima come and, Brenton are good case to be.
09:25:39 So that so. You know, I'm mostly, away these days and that's the kind of thing I'm hoping to dig into like I'm not gonna do as much day to day work, but yeah, yeah, a lot of
time to.
09:25:52 Digging into stuff like that. So that's one thing I'll be working on. course had our special meeting.
09:26:00 On the drainage district, we decided to declare it inactive but keep it alive and hope that a consensus will form from stakeholders on how to move that forward.
09:26:11 I had a call with our, communications manager, Wendy Davis, and, she's hoping to do a workshop with us and maybe right the markets back.
09:26:22 To, you know, kind of say she's been at this for 8 or 9 months. What's working? What is it?
09:26:28 What are our priorities? What's the best use of her time? So stitch in for that conversation, maybe give some thought too.
09:26:34 You know, what you think has been. Valuable and I think she's looking for a little more direction.
09:26:40 Okay, yeah, interesting to see her name is one of the coordinators on the stock plans. Yeah, yeah exactly.
09:26:48 I think that's you know kind of question that she's like where am I supposed to be.
09:26:52 Worthwhile. Yep. And that's That was my week.
09:27:01 Hi, do you want to take a look? Sorry, wanted to let me make one more call for public comment if you'd like to make a comment about any topic.
09:27:07 We would love to hear from you. You can hit the raise hand button or star 9 if you're on the phone.
09:27:13 It's always funny when I see the names of people who are sitting there on the attendee list and they're so quiet.
09:27:19 Hmm.
09:27:23 Okay. My wife, but I want. Hi, Stacy. So last week, let's see, was with you guys on Monday of course.
09:27:34 And then.
09:27:38 Tuesday the 20 ninth of August is my mom's birthday and I was not in the courthouse on Tuesday.
09:27:46 I was tending to my best my best friend's birthday. And in the middle of the day, I did host a meeting with Senator Van der Wegg who's running for commissioner of public lands
and Some forest interested folks in the county.
09:28:05 And that was an interesting conversation. You know, became clear to me that where his priority is really He's really gonna lead with firefighting, which makes sense based on
his professional background and.
09:28:21 It also. Underscored that there are parts of DNR that you know I'll be working with Kevin so he understands more about in the future.
09:28:34 But I think that. It's gonna be interesting to see what happens with the primary in that race.
09:28:40 Because there's a number of candidates or presumed candidates. I think 5 or 6 so I am withholding an endorsement in Telstra primary, but we'll see.
09:28:52 We'll see how that goes. It's interesting, always interesting to have those kind of open ending conversations though.
09:28:57 And I felt. Glad to have the folks in the room who were asking the questions. I have the opportunity and and to hear the answer.
09:29:06 So. I think Kevin has some frustration and I think he lumps state lands in with federal land saying that there are I think he was saying, 53,000 acres of.
09:29:20 Boris lands. That are locked up. And I don't want to see anymore get, you know, set aside.
09:29:28 And so. If there are proposals to. Exchange or do land exchanges so that There's a, say there's a parcel that we would like to see not harvested.
09:29:41 We need to come forward with the proposal for where We could see a harvest and that's his kind of priority in terms of not.
09:29:50 Setting more acres aside. So, that's the nutshell from that meeting and then budget meeting on Wednesday morning with you all and then.
09:29:59 I was joined in my office by a couple of housing advocates in the community and had a lively conversation with them about some of their priorities and concerns.
09:30:12 A lot of human dignity stuff, you know, and I think I'm not really the housing commissioner and so it's interesting for me every once in a while to have these meetings and get.
09:30:22 Insights from folks that you guys probably hear from once a week but some concerns about how Olicap is running the Caswell Brown.
09:30:34 And what's planned for the permanent shelter there and what kind of. Facilities for people to gather and socialize and things like that. I've heard the same pitch. Yeah.
09:30:50 Kind of setting shouldn't be. It's not appropriate for some people. Well, can I say I think the.
09:30:54 The bigger issue behind that is people wanting an opportunity for input and. So, you know, I think the message I hope Will the Cap is getting is we need to provide opportunities
for.
09:31:08 For community stakeholder input we that is required for all things we do we are a partner in that project and I think we do need to hold them to a standard of
09:31:20 That opportunity, providing opportunities. I mean, they get a voice, not a vote. And, you know, this is an advocate that has hit up every board member at Olicap and is now,
you know, just casting a
09:31:32 A wider and wider net to try to get the chains that they want into a design that's already been funded and it's you know.
09:31:41 I don't know. So I'm being the anti-trans sunshine guy, but I think that you know, we do process everyone's voice and we try hard to do that.
09:31:53 Only cap is not the same as the government. Of course, they are a nonprofit. Quasi governmental and kinda in some weird ways but
09:32:03 The same that Bayside doesn't have to ask. You know, your buy your leave to buy the stare at house only cap also I mean it's County property and everything.
09:32:15 We need to make sure it's used appropriately. But There's a lot of I guess just continuing to complain about one issue to a wider.
09:32:23 NET is not the kind of public involvement that ends up in good projects, I don't think.
09:32:27 But like if there was a design shirt where there was an opportunity to provide meaningful input at least, you know, I think that makes helps people feel heard.
09:32:35 And I know that the timing can be challenging, especially with design funding. And right, you have a funded design.
09:32:45 Do you want to have that? Is that's not the time for your threat, right? Yeah, and I mean it sounds like there's still some opportunity for tweaking.
09:32:49 Some things and that like have been willing to do that and I really appreciate that.
09:32:54 Alright, go ahead. So, then, let's see, Wednesday, May day, strategic plan team meeting.
09:33:03 That was actually the implementation planning meeting. So the meeting to plan implementation meeting. So that's but the strategic plan has the draft has been further refined
and sent out and it looks great to me.
09:33:21 I think the pictures are much improved and anyway really. Happy with the process and product and the implementation will be where the river meets the road and will be interesting
to have that come with our team.
09:33:36 Then, meeting regarding the Chim outreach strategies. Regarding the Chinookum drainage district, so with our consultant further kind of thinking through our how we will do that
outreach, to get the the right quantity and quality of input into the drainage district decision that's ahead of us.
09:34:00 So a lot of interest in having multiple smaller conversations versus kind of large rooms full of people. So. I think that's that's the, approach we'll be taking.
09:34:13 Then Wednesday afternoon. Took the port down and paper corporation up on a tour of the papermail, which was awesome.
09:34:24 Carolyn, myself and. 6 or 7 others from the county family went down to the paper mill and had a really long nice tour with will the, I think he's the CEO, current CEO there
and then you were gonna be doing. Okay.
09:34:38 With a couple of far folks or I shared with no one. Okay. Yeah, we try and try to do it.
09:34:45 I shared with no one. Okay. Yeah, we try to try 2 things. And work out. Okay. So, but it was great.
09:34:47 And you know, it's interesting. Been a military probably 20 years ago and I was saying, do we get to see the big?
09:34:53 The the big there's the part of the process where you go into this. Dark room with huge lids that sit on top of.
09:35:07 Pressurized once the digester and Just these massive bolts and nuts. And I'm like, I'm like, where is the rent?
09:35:17 I want to see that. Right. So it's just the scale of the industry there is a little bit of astonishing.
09:35:24 Yeah. The age of, and all the abandoned place infrastructure, you know, like this big concrete curve place where some giant engine used to go that obviously 10 times, Jack Hammer
that concrete away, but nope, they get, yeah, the use of the term abandoned in place was frequent.
09:35:42 Yeah. But, you know, also good to see, you know, you could see people members of the team working and just the.
09:35:51 I was struck by the precision with the woman who was tearing the paper and folding it so it could run into the next part of the process and it was just like this very exact.
09:36:03 Part of the process so Anyway, you know, they machinists, they're making their own parts because they're 290 people.
09:36:11 Yeah, the majority of the staff are in maintenance, right? Isn't that what we heard? Yep.
09:36:17 So that was interesting and always good to get a look inside of that part of our community and let's see, 296.
09:36:25 Folks work at the paper mill. It's a big, big employer in our community. A lot of cardboard.
09:36:32 Yeah, they do take a lot of cardboard. And then Thursday was a catch up day.
09:36:39 The first catch up they have had in actually many weeks so I was here just working through a stack of papers.
09:36:48 And then Friday morning I went. Out and met with Steve Grace and did a walk on the Quimper lost wilderness again and just let him know that we were going to be pursuing a Trust
land transfer application for that Cape George parcel, so he was excited about that and because the quimper last wilderness is embedded within that parcel.
09:37:09 So. Met with Kerry Hart, regard height. Sorry, sorry, Kerry. Kerry height regarding the pool later that morning just to get an update on.
09:37:20 But what, you know, the plans and what, what we're thinking in terms of funding and the public benefit district versus the Yeah, public benefit district and sales tax not property
tax.
09:37:37 Yep, a vote of the people and yeah question of when So, yep.
09:37:50 So I did ask her for like an executive summary on the pool, so cause I get a lot of folks reaching out about the pool and with.
09:37:58 Varying degrees of understanding of what the proposal is and I said it would be great to just have like a summary of one bigger.
09:38:06 Yeah, and she said she was gonna work on that. Yeah, because the consultants are preparing their final report.
09:38:11 I think we see it on Friday. And this week, and it will have an executive summary and be out with next week.
09:38:20 And then I was on KPTC with Chief Black talking about fire conditions, because despite the rain we've had the last week.
09:38:30 Still really dry. And there was actually in the that crazy thunder and lightning storm we had was it last weekend.
09:38:38 There was actually a, a tree that was caught fire. Yeah, struck by lightning cop fire.
09:38:45 The Water put it out, the rain put it out for a bit, but then once the sun came out It flamed back up.
09:38:53 So even in the midst of that crazy thunder lightning storm, fires can be started. So, yeah. So anyway.
09:39:03 Don't be Don't be miss misled by the wet conditions folks. It's still dry out there.
09:39:11 What song did you choose to play out? Talking heads burning down the house. I just love it. Yeah, it's a good song.
09:39:18 Yeah. Yeah, glad you're embracing that. Oh yeah, no, I've heard of the response.
09:39:24 Every other radio show I've been like, I forgot the song. This time I did not forget the song.
09:39:27 And then we had our little hearing on the drainage district declaring it inactive, but not dissolving it.
09:39:35 And then I met with. Valerie and Katherine about our for trust line transfer applications, which we will be submitting by the end of the month.
09:39:43 And. That was it except through the highlight of me my week I would say was on Saturday. We had our first ever block party in my neighborhood.
09:39:53 And it was great just to meet people who lived there a long time and never met each other. People have just moved to the neighborhood.
09:40:02 People showed up with 6 pounds of pulled pork that they'd made themselves. It was just really.
09:40:07 Fun, good, good and good. And everyone, and we, we did, I printed out a big aerial photo of the neighborhood.
09:40:14 The block that was meeting, which is actually a few blocks and had everyone put their contact information and a post-it note on where they lived and then typed it all up and
sent it out to everyone.
09:40:24 So we started our in Prep. List that day and yeah so it was really really fun and Everyone's motivated to build it.
09:40:32 I said, well, maybe if you know, you can reach out to the neighbors, couple neighbors on either side of you to build the list.
09:40:37 So we'll just keep organizing our neighborhood so feeling good about that. Yeah. Medical devices, propane tanks.
09:40:45 There's a few things they say to put on that map. That's really helpful. Might be good.
09:40:49 Good to check in with the Willie on the, we have that in our neighborhood. That's great.
09:40:54 So. Who needs oxygen? Who doesn't? So the other one.
09:40:59 Good for everyone. Willie with us in just a minute. Oh, awesome. Okay.
09:41:03 So maybe I can get more input there.
09:41:07 Alright, that was your week? Yeah, that was my week. I'll see if I can.
09:41:11 Wrap this up in 5Â min. Let's see with you of course on Monday, Tuesday, the big thing, the left one retirement.
09:41:22 Group that I'm part of. I think I mentioned this before, we're still dealing with one kind of sticky wicket.
09:41:28 This is for firefighters and law enforcement officers. Yeah, retired a long time ago. Basically, there's 9 people in our program, I think 2 of them live out of state so don't
really Use the benefit.
09:41:40 4 towns and in Jefferson County pay for this out of our general fund. The last one I think I told you we had.
09:41:46 There was a helicopter ambulance trip that's like to the tune of $40,000 that will likely have to pay.
09:41:52 So we are moving forward with getting airlift and lifelike for all of the members that are in Washington state.
09:42:00 So, you know, less than a thousand dollars a year to cover those any of those costs. Per person though, right?
09:42:06 It's like a hundred $20 a bit of a group rate. Oh, and there's only like a hundred $20 a bit of a group rate.
09:42:22 Oh, and there's only like, $10,000 a year. It would be 40. If we use it once in 40 years, it would be 40.
09:42:23 If we use it once I was not able to join the budget meeting on Wednesday because, the recompetes coalition.
09:42:30 Despite my best efforts, we have a giant RFP process going, so I was there to help refine the project line.
09:42:38 I can show you my proposal later for Glenn Cove, but yeah, by September the eighteenth, anyone that you know that wants to put in a project where All comers.
09:42:50 Yeah, like we're gonna deal with 50 things 2 weeks before the end of the grant application and then try to make a strategy.
09:42:57 I think all the consultants. Are getting frustrated with me too because I'm as quick you wheel about that and then I keep saying oh you guys keep talking about well we'll figure
it out in the phase one but I want to use this phase one dollars to move the project for and they're like oh well it's only for planning purposes.
09:43:14 It's like they're already looking at I don't know. It's frustrating, but I'm still excited about the Glencoe project.
09:43:18 I'll share. That's what I've been working on a lot is just kind of.
09:43:21 I have a meeting coming up on the eleventh after after we're here. I'll be going and meeting over to Eden Saw and bringing some businesses together and I'm working with one
neighborhood over there as well to have a little.
09:43:33 Community meeting just to assess kind of get the pulse on the idea before we go too far. You know the community foundations over there.
09:43:41 Oh yeah, right, right. And, and even saw it. Yeah. Right, I'll talk to them too.
09:43:48 And then also had, met with Aslan Palmer from the city, so kind of keep them in the loop with that.
09:43:54 And my penultimate anti-racist class on Wednesday. Apparently the jokes I was making at the thing were not appropriate.
09:44:03 I was trivializing the concept of decolonization rather than trying to. Embrace the vernacular.
09:44:09 I kept saying, still gonna repeat the job, but I'm so mad. That was funny.
09:44:14 You know how people just leave those blankets and they're like. Come back later. But I had to stand on someone's blanket, I would say, and decolonizing the spot.
09:44:25 No, no, I feel like using the words and I'm still doing it obviously, but so Maybe I'm not learning a lot.
09:44:34 Well the fact that you're having a conversation with yourself about it means you're learning.
09:44:39 Thank you, And we had our, we're doing strategic planning for early cap, so we had our.
09:44:45 Our annual meeting own person in portangelis with a consultant going through the strategic plan process the big takeaway that we're kind of the external push that we're doing
is trying to really get the door opened, you know, the door has been closed to the public.
09:45:00 You can make appointments and everything and also trying to make it you know you walk through one door once and you'll get connected with whatever services that only cap can
offer or partner agencies can offer rather than I need to make an appointment with the lie that key personal.
09:45:13 I need to pick an appointment with the the housing person, which is kind of how it's. I would say devolved.
09:45:19 Alright, and then we'll have to come back because I see it is 9 45.
09:45:23 Okay, so let's bring Dr. Barry and Mr. Bence over. And welcome the listeners from KPTZ.
09:45:33 Thank you for our monthly. Health and emergency services updates. 440 is it 9 44?
09:45:57 I think it just turned out to be 9 45 so I'm happy to be here to join you all.
09:46:01 Thank you for having me. So today we'll primarily, focus on respiratory viruses, because as many in our community have likely experienced, we are heading into a COVID.
09:46:15 19 surge. We are seeing a rise in COVID-19 cases. Nationally and even at the local level.
09:46:22 And you've likely experienced that in your friend group many people have recently come down with COVID-19 and we are likely to see that get worse as most of our children have
now gone back to school and we're in a different time in the response so we're not seeing really anywhere near the level of masking, so we're not seeing really anywhere near the level
of masking, but we used to
09:46:42 see and certainly not seeing mandatory masking. So, really anywhere near the level of masking, but we used to see, and certainly not seeing mandatory masking.
09:46:49 So Looking at the data on severity, we are seeing an increase in hospitalizations as well at the national and state and even local level.
09:47:00 But nothing like the searches that we've seen in the past. We are seeing an increase, particularly in hospitalizations of people over the age of 70.
09:47:10 Locally, we have seen that as well. We've had a total of 10 hospitalizations for COVID.
09:47:15 19 in the last month. The vast majority of those actually all of those have been in people over the age of 70 and all but one were in people who were not up to date on their
vaccines.
09:47:26 And so staying up to date in your COVID-19 vaccines is critical, particularly for those of us at the highest risk of severe disease, including all of us over the age of 70 and
those of us with significant underlying conditions.
09:47:39 Thankfully though, the character of the hospitalizations we're seeing is very different than we saw in prior rounds of COVID.
09:47:48 19 surges. Back in the beginning of this, I was working in clinical practice and we would see people of any age.
09:47:55 Coming in with severe disease and when they got hospitalized, they very often got intubated and unfortunately very often died.
09:48:03 That is not what we're seeing now. The vast majority of these hospitalizations are short. They very rarely involve an intubation and they very rarely move on.
09:48:12 To death. And so it's very different character than what we were seeing before. What we're seeing in the hospital right now is mostly people who are elderly and have some underlying
conditions and getting COVID.
09:48:23 19 is kind of pushing them over the edge. To needing hospitalization, which is still a serious issue that we want to prevent.
09:48:32 But I do want to emphasize that This is even though we're going into research, we're seeing a rise in cases.
09:48:38 This is not going back to 2020. I am not thinking we're going to. Run our hospital us.
09:48:46 I am not thinking we're going to see a massive surge in deaths that we've seen in prior days.
09:48:48 But I am concerned about it and so it's important that we all take steps to protect ourselves and our neighbors.
09:48:55 And so that means that saying up to date on our vaccines. That means masking if you're in a crowded indoor area and particularly if you're in a high risk group taking extra
precautions right now.
09:49:08 That means if you're in that group, particularly people over 70 with underlying conditions or people with significant underlying conditions or people with significant underlying
conditions or people with significant underlying conditions, making sure that you're wearing a good well-being mask when you're in crowded indoor spaces.
09:49:26 And getting up to date on vaccines will move into that shortly. I do have unfortunately one more death to announce for COVID.
09:49:32 19 since the last time we met as KPTZ. We're up to 41 deaths in this response, which is still quite low, but we did lose one more of our citizens in the last month.
09:49:39 This was a person in their eighties who was actually unvaccinated. Being unvaccinated is uncommon in our community, but it does happen and it certainly puts one at higher risk
of severe disease.
09:49:52 So speaking of what's driving, this rise in cases and hospitalizations, there are a couple of different things.
09:49:59 One is that we are seeing very few precautions so very few folks are masking there's a lot more gathering and it's getting colder.
09:50:09 So we're moving back inside. And we're seeing the large-scale gatherings that come with things like school.
09:50:14 And return to fall activities. We are also seeing new variants in the mix. Though we're still seeing the vast majority of COVID-19 cases in the country and locally are still
Omicron sub variants of the XBB variety, which is hopeful because that is what is in the updated COVID.
09:50:36 19 vaccine that should be coming out in the next couple weeks. We are likely seeing also playing into this waning immunity against COVID.
09:50:44 19 particularly in our elder population those over 65 are less able to maintain, particularly in our elder population.
09:50:51 Those over 65 are less able to maintain their immunity. Those over 65 are less able to maintain their immunity from prior vaccinations.
09:50:53 And so we're starting to see in our elder population. Those over 65 are less able to maintain their immunity from prior vaccinations.
09:50:56 And so we're starting to see that protection fade. Thankfully, we have an updated booster coming out in the next couple of weeks.
09:50:59 We're hearing mid September is the most likely time that that's going to be released. And that updated booster is specifically against XPB, which is what is circulating now.
09:51:08 So that is likely to provide good protection, particularly for those of us at high risk. Really for the whole population.
09:51:14 We're not likely to see enough come out in the beginning for everyone to have access to that vaccine, but we should have it available for pretty much everybody by around October
and those at highest risk by mid September.
09:51:27 And so with that, I'm happy to start with questions from our commissioners and then move into questions from the public.
09:51:34 We do have quite a few questions. From the public this this week. Okay.
09:51:36 Thank you. And I think that speaks to what we're seeing, with increased cases. It's back on people's minds.
09:51:44 And there's a lot of coverage of it. Some of which, which it, some of which is maybe a little overly scary.
09:51:52 I've definitely heard from folks who are scared that we're going back. You know, fall of last year or fall of 2,020.
09:52:00 I don't think that's what's gonna happen but I do think that's what's gonna happen but I do think there's more to happen.
09:52:05 But I do think there's more COVID around that's we know that by the data that we see and, particularly if you're at high risk, if you're in one of those groups, you, you can
develop severe disease and you can even die.
09:52:14 And so taking those steps to protect ourselves. It's very, very important. Thankfully, you have far more tools at our disposal now than we did back in 2,020 to keep ourselves
safe.
09:52:25 Dr. Brady, do you have the, are we still doing the wastewater surveillance and can you talk about what that is currently showing?
09:52:33 Sure, so we are seeing we do still do wastewater surveillance in Port Townsend, so there's some limitations there were only covering Port Townsend doesn't cover South County.
09:52:42 But we have seen a rise in cases in the last few weeks in Port Townsend, but not a massive search.
09:52:51 With port towns and wastewater surveillance as Port Townsend is also a tourist town. And so we see new searches of people arriving in Port Townsend who are also using our facilities.
09:53:04 And so that likely leads to some of the bumpiness. In the, in the cases that we see in Port Townsend, but it's not when we look at the increase, we see an increase, but it doesn't
look anywhere near the size that we've seen in prior surges at least so far.
09:53:19 I do expect the number of cases to increase in the coming weeks because there are a lot more connections happening right now as many of us dropped off our kids at school this
morning.
09:53:27 But, but so far it's not as severe as prior surgeons.
09:53:32 No worries.
09:53:31 Thank you. You started it with bringing up schools. I'm just wondering what kind of additional precautions, you know, we need to take for.
09:53:41 Things like school. Are you still working with the schools?
09:53:44 Yes, so we are still in close contact with the schools. At this point, things like masking are not mandatory at the school level.
09:53:54 But there are some, there are still precautions in place. So there are still tests available at our schools for for kids.
09:54:02 One of, one of the only places where you can still get free test. So any child who's sick, the expectation is that they test before they return to school and if they're positive
they stay out for a minimum of 5 days.
09:54:14 And then they have to wear a mask and they return for the next buy. So there's a lot more testing available.
09:54:21 Yeah.
09:54:19 Hi, Dr. Brett. You say, test before they return to schools, but. Very likely the only place they can get those tests is at school.
09:54:27 Right.
09:54:28 Yeah, so good question. So it's not usually testing on site at this point. So the schools mostly have home tests.
09:54:34 And so they'll send those home, with families if someone is ill. And we do still have, tests available through the public health department for folks who can't otherwise afford
tests and in South County that's primarily distributed through our fire stations so there are still places available.
09:54:48 But yes if you have a kid who is sick and you can't otherwise access the test. The schools do still have access to tests and they can send a home test home with you to test
that kit off before they come back.
09:55:00 So kids do need to stay home when they're sick, especially with COVID around. And then if they don't have COVID, they can come back when they're well.
09:55:09 If they're positive for COVID, they have to stay home 5 days and then mask for the next 5 when they come back.
09:55:12 But it is much less than we were seeing before. We're not seeing mandatory masking and we're not doing the level of contact tracing we were doing before but with the accumulated
levels of population immunity that we are seeing, we do think that this will help protect us.
09:55:27 But as a parent, the biggest thing you can do is keep your kid home and they're sick.
09:55:33 It's really hard. Having a sick kid is so hard on work. I, know that challenge very well in our family, but keeping your kid home when they're sick helps protect everyone else
around them and testing them before they go back.
09:55:46 Make sure it's not COVID. COVID and children can look like a mild cold. And so anytime your kid is sick, you do still need to test them before you send them back to school.
09:55:56 The main reason for that is because there are other kids in that school who have significant underlying conditions. We have kids who are going to school to have leukemia and
we want to make sure and protect them and we want to make sure and protect the other people in their houses as well.
09:56:11 And knowing how difficult it is to have a kid who's sick at home, we don't want to share that with all the other parents.
09:56:18 In that in that room so we can keep our kids home that makes a big difference. Certainly we encourage masking but it's hard to get a kid to mask when the other kids around them
are not masking.
09:56:30 But I think it is worth having a conversation, particularly if your child is high risk, having a conversation with their classroom with the the other parents who have kids in
that class to encourage safety around your child.
09:56:44 Yeah.
09:56:42 Dr. Break and I follow up on that, you know, when I lived in Asia years ago, it was It was just normal if you had a little bit of like the sniffles or something to wear a mask
to do source control as you went to school.
09:56:54 Hmm.
09:56:54 And I guess as we have, you know, I mean, attendance is a real issue at schools, you know, since COVID as well, you know, and and being able to share string together a successful
school year is really incumbent.
09:57:06 In on that is actually going to school. So if you tested your kiddo and they don't have.
09:57:14 COVID, but they do have sniffles. Would you say still keep them home or? Trying to be like the cool kids and wear a mask to school.
09:57:23 I mean, our cool commission is wearing a mask today.
09:57:24 Yeah, I think that's a really good option if you are. If you're very ill, you got a fever, you're really sick, you do need to stay home and rest, so that you can get better.
09:57:38 But yeah, you have mild illness, mouth sniffles, and you're negative. But yeah, you have mild illness, mouth sniffles, and you're negative.
09:57:41 Wearing a mask could be a good way to stay in school. And that's, even what I do.
09:57:49 If I'm feeling a little off, and I'm testing negative, but I don't feel severely ill and I still need to go to work.
09:57:59 I wear a mask and go to work because I know that I can protect the people around me by doing that.
09:57:59 Especially for those in our community where staying home is not an option for you. Not everyone has the flexibility to stay home from work.
09:58:06 So if you have to go to work a little bit ill wearing a mask and protect the people around you as well.
09:58:16 Okay.
09:58:12 Yeah, do you one of the cool kids protect your neighbors and take care of the other kids in your class because we all want to stand.
09:58:21 We all want to be able to stay in school. And when we're talking about school and COVID, I think it is good to address also sometimes there's fears that we might close the schools
again that's not on the horizon we don't think we're going to do that.
09:58:34 It would It would take a true disaster for us to do something like that and I don't think that's gonna happen here.
09:58:41 What we could see though is if we see really market absenteeism of teachers. So all the teachers get sick and they can't staff it.
09:58:49 You could see classroom closures. Related to that. So the best way to prevent that is to not share our viruses at school.
09:58:56 So that we can all keep going to school as well.
09:58:59 Same goes for workplace too, right?
09:59:02 Yes, please. You everyone is short staffed right now after the last few years. There are a lot of different things driving that, including COVID and how many people we lost
to COVID who were caregivers and how many people developed long COVID after the last few years.
09:59:20 So knowing that nearly every business and government office is short staffed right now being cautious to not share illness is a good way to keep everything open.
09:59:29 Cool. Alright, so under the reader, listen to questions.
09:59:33 Yeah, absolutely. So, we got, a few COVID questions. One was particularly around boosters.
09:59:41 So questions about the upcoming booster this fall. So the upcoming booster is against XBB specifically and that is far and away the most common variant that we're seeing.
09:59:51 If you look at the breakdown on the state website you might see a lot of colors but if you look at the key they're all variations on XVB.
09:59:59 They're XPB 1.5, XVV 1.6, just all XPB, which means this upcoming booster should have very good coverage against what's been circulating for the last year and is circulating
now.
10:00:09 So as soon as it becomes available, I would encourage everyone to get it, but save it for those at highest risk for the first couple weeks.
10:00:16 So if you're over 65, you have underlying conditions, go out and get that booster as soon as possible.
10:00:22 If you're immunosuppressed, go out and get that booster. If you are any of the rest of us who don't meet those criteria, we recommend waiting until about October so we can save
availability for them.
10:00:33 I don't I'm hoping caregivers get added to that list. Yes.
10:00:34 Yeah. If you're taking care of someone who's particularly high risk, I think it's very reasonable for you to get your booster too.
10:00:44 I think it's very reasonable for you to get your booster too, because that's a really good way to protect those at highest risk because that's a really good way to protect those
at highest risk, particularly the group that we know who has continuously been at highest risk, particularly the group that we know who has continuously been at the highest risk of
COVID.
10:00:57 19 is people, the group that we know who has continuously been at the highest risk of COVID.
10:01:05 19 is people, undergoing chemotherapy.
10:01:07 Oh workers, caregivers too, right?
10:01:07 Not quite that far. But masking up when we're all together, I think would be a good idea.
10:01:15 We have a public health staffer who's been been caring for her husband with cancer throughout the pandemic.
10:01:21 And so whenever we have a meeting with her, we all mess up. And that's just an understanding we have of how we protect her.
10:01:27 And I think the more that we can share our situation and take in to take that into account, the better we can all.
10:01:34 Get through this search. The other question about that was that I hear is do we get the currently available booster right now or do we wait for the new one?
10:01:44 And at this point the new one is coming so soon that I would wait. So if you haven't gotten I would wait for the new one.
10:01:52 It's coming out in a couple weeks. If you recently got your booster, I have one of the questions was someone got boosted in June.
10:02:01 So when should they get the new one? And the answer is as soon as it comes out, you have to have 2 months between your boosters.
10:02:09 And so if you got it in June, you're good to go to get one now. another good question was what is an underlying condition, which is a phrase I've used a lot so far.
10:02:20 So it's good to define what counts as having an underlying condition that puts you at risk of kovat and severe disease.
10:02:27 And there are a lot of things that count as an underlying condition. This family particularly referenced hypertension.
10:02:36 That counts. And cardiac disease. One of the family members had recently had cardiac surgery.
10:02:41 Having recently had cardiac surgery is a significant underlying condition which puts you at a serious risk of severe disease from kovat.
10:02:52 19 in my family, I have a family member who had cardiac surgery in the midst of the delta wave.
10:02:57 And ever since then, we've been very, very cautious to not share Covid-nineteen with him.
10:03:02 Having heart disease really is one of one of those risk factors that puts you at serious risk of COVID-19.
10:03:08 So if you have either of those things, you count as having an underlying condition that we want to protect you.
10:03:14 There are many many things that count but think of lung disease, heart disease, immune system diseases, which includes any kind of medication you're taking that lum disease,
heart disease, immune system diseases, which includes any kind of medication you're taking that reduces your immune system function.
10:03:26 Neurologic diseases too. So people with MS, people with with history of stroke that puts you at high risk of severe disease as well.
10:03:35 Those are the big ones that we worry the most about. Those are the systems that that really go down when it comes to COVID.
10:03:42 19. And of course any kind of cancer treatment that that someone's undertaking puts you at significant risk as well.
10:03:49 Or just having cancer. Is an immune modulatory experience. All of those Are the folks we really, really want to protect, coming into the fall and remember.
10:03:59 You can't always tell who's in that group. We talk a lot about people over 70, but there are lots of folks under 70 people under 65 who have those conditions and you don't know.
10:04:13 One of the ones that you really can't tell is someone who's immunosuppressed in front of you.
10:04:16 So if you see someone who's wearing an 95 in the grocery store, there's probably a reason for that.
10:04:20 And take extra caution around them. You don't know anyone's life story, either who they're taking care of or their medical issues.
10:04:30 And the more we can all take care of each other as we move into the fall, we're the better we're going to do.
10:04:34 And I think that is something that in Jefferson, we've done quite well in recent years. I think we gotta keep that energy going.
10:04:41 So that we can do well through this next surge. Let's see what else.
10:04:47 One was, they shared an article. It was actually from 2022. That they wanted us to talk about a bit on this program.
10:04:56 And it referenced in that article and they talked about a really good study out of the Yale School of Public Health that looked at how many deaths were prevented by COVID.
10:05:06 19 vaccines. And what they found with their modeling was that between 2020 and the end of 2,022.
10:05:12 COVID-19 vaccines. Saved 3.2 million lives in the United States. And prevented 18.5 million hospitalizations during that time.
10:05:25 Highly effective. Made a huge difference at keeping people alive. They could have kept even more people alive if more people got them.
10:05:33 During that time period in the United States. Thankfully in Jefferson County we had very high uptake in vaccination.
10:05:40 We have the second highest rate of vaccination, sorry, third highest rate of vaccination in Washington state with 84% of our population vaccinated.
10:05:52 And we have actually the highest rate of folks who are up to date on their vaccines, which is just under half of us.
10:05:56 Are up to date on all of our vaccines. That means there's still a good half of our population that could use, to get up to date and I would recommend doing so when we get this
updated formulation.
10:06:08 But the amount of folks who got vaccinated our community was a huge driver of our success in the pandemic.
10:06:14 In that article, they also talked a little bit about some of the vaccine misinformation and confusion around vaccines.
10:06:22 Thankfully, I haven't heard a lot of vaccine misinformation lately. So I'm hesitant to wade back into that right now.
10:06:31 But one thing that they talked a bit about was something called the base rate fallacy. So if you are seeing conversation around vaccines, one PC would sometimes see one piece
of misinformation you would sometimes see is people citing that, the same number of people are dying who got vaccinated as those who didn't, or even sometimes more people, more of the
people who are currently dying are vaccinated than are
10:06:56 not. And that has to deal with something called the base rate fallacy, which is, as we just said, 84% of Jefferson County.
10:07:04 Has been vaccinated, which means the vast majority of us are vaccinated. And that that group tends to skew older.
10:07:13 So more of our elderly population. Has been vaccinated. Those 2 things together are what drive, what drive that, that shift.
10:07:23 When you see, if the vaccine really wasn't doing anything, you would see that 84% of those who are dying right now were vaccinated, but that's not actually true.
10:07:34 As we talked about for those who were hospitalized, the vast majority of those are unvaccinated even though that's a teeny tiny fraction of our population.
10:07:43 They are disproportionately represented among those who are hospitalized and die. So that the data is super clear.
10:07:49 At the time, the last time that we were looking at, differential hospitalization rates, you were 15 times as likely to die of COVID when if you were not up to date on your vaccines
as someone who was.
10:08:03 So it does really make a huge difference, important to stay up to date on those vaccines. Both for yourself and for others.
10:08:10 When you're up to date on your vaccines, you're less likely to get COVID and give it to other people and you're less likely to get severe disease yourself.
10:08:18 That was all the COVID questions and then I had an RSV question as well from the public any other COVID questions from the team.
10:08:27 I think we're good. Please continue.
10:08:25 In in the building. Okay. Alright. So RSV, we talked a bit about RSB on our last, our last meeting and some of the new tools we have available to fight it.
10:08:37 And so one of the most important things we have available now is an RSV vaccine, but there are 3 different products on the market and I think there's a little bit of confusion
about.
10:08:46 About those 3. So the first 2 are regular old vaccines. They're what's called a protein subunit vaccine just like the vast majority of any other vaccine you've ever gotten,
blue vaccines, things like that.
10:08:59 That and they are recommended for people over the age of 60. People over the age of 60 are more likely to get severe disease from RSV.
10:09:08 We talk a lot about RSV in very little kids, which is a very true and serious issue.
10:09:13 But if you look by the numbers, more people get hospitalized and die of RSC in our elder population than anyone else.
10:09:19 And so it is recommended for people over the age of 60. And it's just, it's just a regular vaccine.
10:09:25 I think what this person was confusing it with, which is called synergist. And that is a monoclonal antibody that we've had available for very high risk children for quite some
time.
10:09:37 Available for very high risk children for quite some time. But the vaccine for people over 60 is just a regular old vaccine.
10:09:40 There is also a vaccine for people over 60 is just a regular old vaccine. There is also a vaccine for RSP, is just a regular old vaccine.
10:09:44 There is also a vaccine for RSP approved for pregnant people between the ages of 32 weeks and 36 weeks gestational age to protect their their baby when they're born.
10:09:52 From RSV. That's a really good option because RSV is is incredibly dangerous for newborn babies who are too young to get vaccinated.
10:10:01 The other tool we now have in our arsenal is in monoclonal a new monoclonal antibody for littles and that is one called near 7 app and it's actually just a one time dose and
it looks like a vaccine.
10:10:15 It's just an injection. Cindy just the old version did take multiple doses over time.
10:10:21 It was very expensive. It was very difficult for families. And so Nersava M is likely to replace theages.
10:10:27 There's 7 map, the monoclonal antibody is now approved for all newborn babies and infants up to the age of 8 months going into their first RSV season.
10:10:37 And it's also approved for high risk toddlers, so toddlers who have significant cardiac or lung disease.
10:10:44 The premature kiddos going into their second RSB season. All of these are now approved.
10:10:52 Not all of them are yet available. The RSV vaccines are available now. There's a lot of wrangling right now to figure out insurance coverage.
10:11:02 They're currently covered under Medicare Part B. So if you have Medicare Part D, that should be a covered service for you, but that does leave out a lot of folks who have who
only have Medicar Part B.
10:11:14 And that is a frustrating policy issue from our perspective, we would really like them to cover these critical vaccines for everyone.
10:11:21 But right now they're only covered under part B. Nurse 7 M is covered under the vaccines for children program and so it should be available to all kids.
10:11:30 But the actual logistics of making it available for all kids is going on right now. And I can tell you our colleagues at the state are working very hard to make sure it becomes
a available for kids in our community.
10:11:41 But it's not a available yet. We're hoping to have it available closer to October. I'm happy to take any other questions or go to Willie who I think did get a question from
the listeners or go to Willie who I think did get a question from the listeners this week.
10:11:54 Yeah.
10:11:53 Oh wow, and we don't want to deprive Willie. We could probably go for another 1015Â min though.
10:11:59 He's so efficient. Any other questions for Dr. Barry?
10:11:58 Yes. Yeah.
10:12:03 Nope. Okay. I guess just, do we anticipate people being able to get like flu, COVID booster RSP all at once?
10:12:13 Like. Gonna make this easy or space them out.
10:12:13 Hmm. Yes. Good question. So yes, you can get all of your vaccines.
10:12:22 At the same time. And so say you're, you know, 65, underlying conditions.
10:12:28 What I would do is I would get your, I would get your COVID-19 vaccine. And I would get your RSV vaccine at the same time.
10:12:35 And I would get your flu vaccine as soon as it becomes available and it's just starting to become available.
10:12:40 So I'd say in the next couple weeks you should be able to go in and get all free.
10:12:45 For our littlest residence, the most likely way that we'll see Ner. Saba Mab rolling out is actually in the postpartum unit.
10:12:59 So after your baby is born, if you've had a baby recently, you probably know there's a few different things that they get.
10:13:01 There's aptitis B vaccine, there's some antibiotics, there's, a, a, will likely be one of those as well.
10:13:07 So just something that you get as a part of the normal postpartum course of care. And then for those who were born before it became available through their pediatrician's office.
10:13:17 And we expect that kind of the usual. So, pharmacies. Doctor visits the public health is not planning to do any booster vaccination clinics, correct?
10:13:30 So yes, these are now moving into the normal way that we used to get vaccine. Before the pandemic.
10:13:37 And so that's going to be primarily pharmacies and for your doctor's office.
10:13:40 I know most of our doctors offices are already planning for how to do kind of high volume flu, COVID, RSV vaccines.
10:13:49 And so they are putting in plans to do that so we won't necessarily have to go during one of your visits, but if you happen to go for a visit, then you could have that available.
10:13:56 But we aren't going to see the mass vaccinations that we did before, at this point.
10:14:02 We do, through the public health department, vaccinate, and so we will, keep doing that.
10:14:09 But when and we will likely still be a safety net provider for folks who are uninsured or underinsured for vaccination.
10:14:17 So we still plan to be available for that. Sadly, the RSV vaccine has not been included in that program from the state.
10:14:25 So far not yet. So we don't carry the RSV vaccine right now, but we will still plan to be a source for vaccination generally for those who are uninsured or underinsured in our
community.
10:14:37 And that would be calling the office and making an appointment.
10:14:40 Yeah, give us a call. We have, we have a clinic. And we are happy to take care of you.
10:14:46 The health department.
10:14:49 Alright.
10:14:49 So I should acknowledge we are also working with our schools, to make sure that there are vaccines available, to make sure that there are vaccines available for, to make sure
that there are vaccines available, for kiddos further out in our community, not just in our portc
10:15:03 Great. Thank you very much, Dr. Barry.
10:15:05 Thank you.
10:15:07 All right, Willie, we'll pass it over to you. I think, Commissioner Eisenhower has a question for you too, so, you know, don't use all your time on the first question.
10:15:15 Okay, can do always a big day when I have a question. I'm from the KPTZ listener so much appreciated.
10:15:22 And as the commissioners were talking about about a little bit earlier, even though we did have some rain recently, it remains dry.
10:15:29 Fire hazard remains high. And I think that remains on the minds of our community members as it's reflected in this question.
10:15:35 And so my KPTC question was asking, given the recent fires, around Lord's Lake and then on Beaver Valley, how firefighters actually fight fires in wildland areas when there
aren't necessarily fire hydrants nearby for quick and easy access to a pretty strong continuous flow of water.
10:15:54 And I'm shout out to Chief Black as well as Chief McCearn with Eastchef fire and quilting fire respectively who provided a little bit of input into my answer today.
10:16:03 And basically in short, water isn't the only tool in the toolbox to fight fires.
10:16:09 Obviously, it's one of the most effective and efficient to put the wet stuff on the hot stuff.
10:16:11 Okay.
10:16:13 But when fighting a wild and fire, I'm often the most effective, tactic is to remove the fuel that actually allows the fire to spread.
10:16:23 So they will cut brush, cut trees, cut that plant matter on that the fire actually needs to survive and thrive and grow further.
10:16:30 So we'll cut that plant matter and they'll actually scrape the dirt first with hand tools and then with a dozer later on and what's called cutting line and so when you hear
that a fire has actually been contained that doesn't mean the fire is completely out that they've doneed water on the whole thing to put it out, they've actually cut a perimeter around
the fire until the
10:16:52 fire cannot continue to grow. I'm oftentimes after a fire has been contained, cruise will be on site for several days if not weeks afterwards monitoring it as that fire continues
to smoulder.
10:17:02 There's just been a line cut with no fuel, nothing for the fire to latch on to in spread.
10:17:08 So it's been and therefore in effect contained. So that's really one of the most powerful tools and powerful, powerful tactics.
10:17:14 I'm 4 firefighters fighting a wildland fire is to again prevent its ability to spread by cutting that line around it.
10:17:20 However, water especially for knocking down fires, putting out fires and approximately less than 6 feet or so.
10:17:27 Obviously is still very essential. I'm firefighter, their their apparatus can carry, you know, up to a thousand gallons of water or so, but they do carry tankers and they do
have those as part of their fleet that can carry about 1,000 to 5,000 gallons of water.
10:17:42 And so they will often call in mutual aid from other areas to bring in additional tankers, get additional water on site that way.
10:17:51 And then obviously like we saw during those 2 local fires, I'm eventually they during larger fires they may get helicopter support.
10:17:58 To bring water and dump that on the fire and they'll often draw from lakes. And they didn't draw from Lord's Lake, but rather Lake Leland, during the fire out there in Quill
scene to help support that.
10:18:09 The listener asked if they ever tap into wells. I mean, they don't tap into wells specifically because they can use hundreds upon hundreds of gallons of water per minute and
most private well simply don't produce at fast enough rate to meet that high demand.
10:18:26 So they will look to tankers and they will look to bring in helicopter support for larger fires.
10:18:30 And on top of again, cutting line, and preventing the fires ability to spread that way.
10:18:36 So, excellent question, really appreciate the listener asking. Really appreciate folks continuing to adhere to the burn van exercise caution when you know when grilling when
doing anything like that help prevent the spread of fires.
10:18:50 I will say one part I have been getting asked recently. In light of the fire in Maui, with questions about our usage of sirens, the emergency management agency in Hawaii made
a somewhat controversial decision not to use their tsunami evacuation sirens to alert folks of the impending wildfire and they were afraid that upon activation of those sirens on
10:19:13 the general public's training would kick in and they would evacuate to high ground as if it were a tsunami.
10:19:21 I'm however the wildfire was located in their evacuation route on high ground. So they were really worried that that would send folks actually into the hazard area rather than
away from it.
10:19:32 So they chose not to activate that resource and the questions remain whether or not that was the right decision.
10:19:37 So we'll certainly be looking to see the results of their after action report, likely a couple a year or 2 down the line.
10:19:45 We do have similar tsunami sirens here locally and we have them in the Boat Haven.
10:19:51 We have them at Point Hudson and Point Wilson in town. I'm and those really aren't for wildfire notice.
10:19:57 And those are specifically for folks outdoors in the immediate vicinity to alert them of an impending tsunami.
10:20:04 Since they are, are located on low ground where people congregate outdoors may not have access to a cell phone access to a radio and they may specifically in some of the point
Wilson in Port Hudson they may be tourists and not know I'm of local resources or subscribe for Knicks or things like that.
10:20:21 So. Those are for a very specific purpose. I'm not for general broadcasting of, again, something like a wildfire evacuation.
10:20:31 Those sirens would be pretty useless for the folks, unbeer, a valley in quill scene, things like that.
10:20:37 So in case of a wildfire, and we use the integrated public alert warning system like we did during the Beaver Valley evacuations.
10:20:42 That's the push notification on your phone, similar to an amber alert, and that also activates radio as well as broadcast television alerts.
10:20:51 And we'll use Nixon, which is our subscription based system, on social media, our partners at KPTZ and KRLH and really the general public.
10:20:58 I'm helping neighbors helping to notify their neighbors. And that's really what in Prep is founded upon.
10:21:06 So you might get that alert on check in on your neighbors as you're evacuating or as the situation is developing, especially if they have unique needs that may require a little
bit of extra assistance.
10:21:14 So I'm getting that question a lot lately, happy to talk more about that. I'm one-on-one with folks if you shoot me a note or we may talk about that through in prep a little
bit more since the siren issue has been a big concern here for quite a while.
10:21:27 I mean, that, that is all from me. I know Commissioner Eisenhower, potentially had a question.
10:21:33 I'm not happy to take anymore.
10:21:34 Well, actually, it's more of a report, that we did have our first neighborhood block party.
10:21:39 And we did collect contact information and email and cell phone information for I think, 20 households in our neighborhood.
10:21:49 But there, you know, one, I guess the question from there is, How do we get more coverage?
10:21:55 I mean, how many black parties? So we thought maybe we'll have a block party every year, but you know it would take a lot of years to get complete coverage of.
10:22:04 All the neighbours in the neighbourhood. So I was thinking something like having neighbors who signed up to reach out to, you know, the closest neighbors around them and.
10:22:12 Build kind of pods and then have them get the contact information to build the list. But I don't know if you've seen any great strategies for.
10:22:20 Fleshing out your your neighborhood contact list.
10:22:24 Yeah, no, that right there is an excellent strategy and a grow, kind of creep, outward, using, using the most recent neighbors you talked to.
10:22:37 Feel free to contact, using, the most recent neighbors you talked to. Feel free to contact, us and we can connect you with the in prep leadership, who have, you know, some of
them have 1015 years of experience growing, growing their neighborhoods.
10:22:47 I will say more than anything it is a big time commitment and it can be a big resource commitment trying to get folks on board so more than anything, you know, you mentioned
it might be a couple of years and a number of block parties to get everyone.
10:23:01 That really is the most effective strategy is keeping at it, letting folks know that you're here.
10:23:08 We're here to help you, you know, come and join us. And eventually you'll get everyone.
10:23:11 But in the meantime, I like your strategy of, again, trying to recruit new folks to help recruit additional folks and kind of grow it.
10:23:22 Yeah, yeah.
10:23:20 I'm I don't want to say like a pyramid scheme but it almost is that in a but again, if you need to contact us and our imprep leadership is more than happy to help.
10:23:28 I would just say our neighborhood or the neighbors who did come were pretty excited that we were, you know, getting getting connected in that way and and the idea of having
a community contact this so I you know think that we'll move ahead with you know organizing our neighborhood but I appreciate the inspiration from the imp.
10:23:49 Information that's been shared over the last couple of years and it's taken a while but I feel like we took a great big step forward so it's good.
10:23:57 Awesome. Well, thank you. Congrats.
10:23:59 Great. Are you sure it was Lake Leland they were taking the water out of the DNR helicopters?
10:24:05 I mean it was a grim, a grim sight to see those helicopters going, but you know we were you know down there watching and we thought we they were going over from us from the
north, but I don't know.
10:24:14 It was my understanding they weren't gonna pull from Lord's Lake since that was the drinking water for us here in the city.
10:24:24 But my understanding was that they were going to Lake Leland and said since that was the closest major water source for them, but I may be mistaken.
10:24:31 I'll double check on that.
10:24:31 Largest lake in Jefferson County of course, so it's reasonable.
10:24:36 Great. Well, thank you, Willie. Any other questions? For Dr.
10:24:41 Barry or really on any of the topics we've discussed or any others we have just a few minutes left.
10:24:46 Not for me. Okay. Well, we'll let you go. Great to see you, Dr.
10:24:51 Barry. Willie, glad you're with us. Yeah, good to see you guys. We'll see you next month.
10:24:57 I guess on Monday. Good to see you guys. We'll see you next month. I guess on Monday.
10:24:59 Let's look at the actual day. What's it going to be?
10:25:03 Monday the second. So we'll see you back here. Same time, 9 45 with KPTZ at 9 45 on October second.
10:25:11 Thank you.
10:25:10 Have a great day. Thanks, everyone. Thanks. And thanks to the listeners of KPTZ.
10:25:11 Thanks.
10:25:15 And we'll we'll see you next month. And hello, Bill. Welcome.
10:25:22 Good morning, sir. Thank you so much for allowing the time to come before you today. So.
10:25:25 Yes, absolutely. We have a proclamation in front of us. I don't know, Kate.
10:25:32 Do you want to do any introductions? Sure, yeah. So welcome to Bill Dowling, who's the executive director of Olympic workforce.
10:25:37 As a reminder that is a 3 county effort. Kitsap, Jefferson, and Calam, who manage primarily federal dollars.
10:25:47 To implement at a really robust workforce system. And it's one that's that we we don't see as much kind of boots on the ground here in Jefferson County.
10:26:04 Okay.
10:26:01 In part just we Have an interesting work for us. We don't meet a lot of the same data that other counties within our region.
10:26:11 Do and it's a little challenging, you know, we don't have the kinds of industries where people are necessarily.
10:26:17 You know working traditional 40Â h week jobs so it's it's it's a really appreciate that bill makes an effort to try to meet the needs of our community even though we our job
seekers are not always the, typical job seeker that federal dollars are meant to, serve.
10:26:34 So the workforce professionals that we are honoring today are mostly outside of Jefferson County but they are working on our behalf and so I'll turn it over to Bill.
10:26:45 To maybe say a few words or do you want to do that after the proclamation? We read the proclamation first.
10:26:53 So if you don't mind waiting for just a moment, Bill, well, we'll read through the proclamation.
10:26:55 Presumably approve it. And then we'll we'll turn it over to you to to get some some context about it and hear how your work's going and have a conversation.
10:27:03 Sounds great.
10:27:04 Great. So why don't we go alphabetically by last name, what's that? So, Okay.
10:27:14 So I'll start a proclamation for workforce development professionals month. Whereas the ability for businesses and industries throughout the Olympic region and its surrounding
communities to maintain a competitive edge in the global economy hinges on the availability and quality of a skilled workforce and robust talent pipeline.
10:27:33 And Whereas it is important to recognize and understand the evolving complexities in today's economic reality and to act according to new demands facing employees and employers
at every level.
10:27:46 And whereas collaboration between the workforce system and businesses, educational institutions, and private public partners is critical to effective, effectively align training
and workforce needs and whereas it is necessary to eliminate economic and employment disparities based on race, disability, veteran status or past criminal records by bringing all residents
in need of sustainable employment into the workforce and.
10:28:10 Whereas employers depend on the workforce system to help them recruit and retain competitive and skilled workers and continue to upgrade transferable skill sets of their incumbent
employees and whereas the Olympic region's workforce system remains committed to customer focused and community oriented services with a firm pledge to prioritizing equity at the center
of all of its work.
10:28:33 Now therefore, we the commissioners of Jefferson County do hereby proclaim the month of September, 2,023 as work force development professionals month and do come in this observance
to all residents proclaimed this fifth day of September, 2,023.
10:28:46 I'll move to approve the proclamation as red. I'll second. Okay, it's been moved and seconded to approve the proclamation is read.
10:28:55 All in favor indicate by saying aye. Bye. All right. Well, what do we just do, Bill?
10:29:01 You want to talk to us about this?
10:29:01 Well, first thanks. Thanks for honoring me. I, that's, that's like workforce professional.
10:29:05 Yeah.
10:29:07 I've been at this about 25 years starting many many years ago after I was in ministry actually thinking I wouldn't ever find anything as rewarding as ministry but really have
in workforce.
10:29:18 And I'd also like to state that it's it's really not just about the folks that work in our centers, but workforce professionals really working throughout government agencies,
certainly in our human services partners, our friends at Olycap, and even our friends at the college, even our friends that we work with and participation at Peninsula College. Dr.
10:29:36 Ange and myself, a meeting, you know, it's all about strategy. About where we want to be and where we need to be as a community and workforce helps that.
10:29:46 I do so thank the work the Commissioner Dean has done and working with us and bringing that and I would love the opportunity sometime soon to come and talk to you all about
a little bit more about our efforts and what we're doing.
10:29:56 And how we can better meet those needs in Jefferson County. But I will tell you we've struggled.
10:30:03 It with recruitment of individuals that's that's very true in Jefferson even when we had a president certainly in port Townsend and so we're now we're looking at pod delivery
areas how do we do those through the library system how do we do that up and forks in a different way and so you know our youth provider has already been active in all those areas.
10:30:22 And it's important that we continue to figure out more ways and how to reach people. And we're always looking for that together with the counties information systems as well
to recruit those folks.
10:30:33 We've got some exciting things I think planned. In this next year, really, trying to push some of our dollars toward marketing an outreach and I don't I don't like to say that
we're you know government programs are not supposed to spend toward those things but we also know that we can't just expect people to find us.
10:30:50 We have to go and find them and enable them to know that these free services are available to them. I can tell you about some individuals we've worked with in the community,
residents who have gone from, you know, a retail job at, 1295 or $15 an hour, which we think, you know, it's quite good right now, but we're able to really sustain one individual.
10:31:12 I was looking at just some of these success stories today that, you know, move to 70 some $1,000 a year after a job as a logistics person, which is very in demand in the area.
10:31:22 We have to have these drivers for everything now, including county positions as well. And so we want to be able to figure out how that workforce works for for you all as well.
10:31:31 So I I want to thank you and recognize if you've talked to employers in your area, I'm sure you've heard exactly what I hear every day. Where are they?
10:31:40 Where are folks? And we are committed to being part of recompete, we're competed to be part of anything that can help to build that long-term workforce.
10:31:49 In Jefferson County. It's too important not to focus on it all the time as well as opportunities for our young people to continue to grow.
10:31:58 And flourish in the county as well. Not have to go elsewhere for a great job. That's really what we're focused on.
10:32:04 So thank you.
10:32:06 That's great, Bill. Thanks. I have one question. You mentioned recompete and I'm working on this project for the the county right now to to get you know our coalition up with
a decent application.
10:32:18 And you know, it talks about 1,200 or so Jefferson County residents that are in that prime age employment that are we're trying to get back into the workforce.
10:32:30 And I'm wondering what you would identify as I mean, other than housing, right? Housing is the biggest barrier that I hear from folks all the time.
10:32:37 Okay.
10:32:39 But what would you identify as the biggest barriers? And what, what is that this person, these 1,200 people that are there in the prime age and aren't in the employment sector.
10:32:49 Is there a story that you can tell about them?
10:32:51 I could tell some that I will say that the idea of the grant is to help us to find those individuals.
10:32:57 Thank you.
10:32:57 So, you know, if we were successful at it, we wouldn't need the grant. In a certain sense, although Everywhere I think this grants really a boon especially for the Olympic communities
of Jefferson Clow and because we're you're experiencing while different very similar things as well of this group that's kind of disappeared, you know, we hear about those individuals.
10:33:15 It's less about disappearing, I think, that it's more about people have made choices to their life that they can get by on this and they're gonna decide to do it.
10:33:24 I'm sure Dean kind of spoke about less full-time, kind of more part-time.
10:33:28 So we're working with employers to look at what are the opportunities as well to bring, engage those individuals to bring people who may have left during the pandemic.
10:33:37 Obviously, industries like health care were very decimated, long-term care very decimated, our public working, public works very decimated, including transportation drivers,
various things like that, all of that.
10:33:50 And that's just kind of following the many ways following the pandemic, but it's also been a major attitude change about what's important in our lives.
10:33:58 We just sat through a great COVID briefing from the doctor who really, you know, had us focus on, let's do this together, let's, write, this is something we, and I think that
change has actually made us all consider what's really important in our life and our working conditions.
10:34:12 We now have more remote work opportunities than we ever had. That doesn't help our local need for in-person workers, right?
10:34:18 If they're competing against a job that they can just do online. I would say health care, again, going back to the this sector kind of.
10:34:27 For many of our folks that that is also a barrier to these do these jobs include are they good jobs?
10:34:33 They include not only a living wage, about housing that you spoke of, but also enough to be able to sustain myself and my family with benefits like health care and other things.
10:34:43 Childcare still, we're part of several childcare commissions working on. These were the event of the identity, excuse me, the identified barriers that we just did in our strategic
planning session as we're looking forward.
10:34:56 I will tell you we spoke with employers in Jefferson County. We spoke with public public folks as part of this, our partner agencies.
10:35:03 Folks at the college at Olicap variety. And it kind of we're coalescing around exactly what all those are, but you've hit the nail on the head that housing is the biggest and
just really childcare I think and then just availability of you know how we can have some different type of work environments available for folks.
10:35:20 You know an employer wants somebody there full-time. How can we make that work with 2 individual part-time folks.
10:35:26 We have to think outside the box sometimes with employers around. What that looks like.
10:35:31 And what about remote work? It seems like that is set up some expectations that's created a lot of tension between employers and employees.
10:35:40 I agree.
10:35:40 And it seems hard to reconcile as we come out of a pandemic. I guess I'm just.
10:35:44 Yeah, you know, and everybody's we were kind of like we do our meetings exactly like I'm doing with you right now remotely.
10:35:50 Okay.
10:35:52 You're in person, of course. And having both and we're even looking because a lot of our members were like we don't like this remote thing we really we missed the opportunity
to engage with one another.
10:36:01 Except that we also know that we're 3 counties meeting together and and how difficult that is to make, you know, come to South Kitsap or South Kitsap come to forks or you know
any of that and so when we only meet so it's important we look at that in business we've had a failure with that as well because our primary service or provider is actually employment
security department for our adult and
10:36:26 dislocated worker problem. And they went off in this to retain employees and said, oh, we're gonna allow you to commute 2 days or does work from home 2 days a week.
10:36:33 Great. I can't keep an office open. If all employees have 2 days a week off. And what it should have been was.
10:36:40 One in one day off and one day at a remote location so that we could have you at the station to the library that day.
10:36:48 And so we're working even with them now. I've bringing that back and kind of doing it.
10:36:51 But that's the kind of thinking that needs to happen. We know that people want to, you know, a lot of folks want to do remote work, but we also not every job is a remote work
job or every person is a remote worker.
10:37:04 Just because of, you know, scheduling variety of things. But if we can get around flexibility, I think is the thing to really make all succeed in kind of that negotiation.
10:37:15 Because employers will automatically say, well, just better for me to have everybody here. Yeah, sometimes. Certainly if you're a retail operation, but behind the scenes, what
about your accounting staff?
10:37:24 What about the other? Are you really just paying for space for people that they could actually do that work?
10:37:29 At a remote location. So we want to go that the other thing that we're working on really really strongly and I think we all need to look at this is skills-based hiring.
10:37:38 We've got to stop putting degrees in places and certificates even in places of when somebody can do the job.
10:37:45 When we could teach them those skills. So we have programs where we pay the employer back 50% of their wages for the first 400Â h during that learning curve.
10:37:54 And that enables the employer not to lose money on an employee that didn't have all the requirements at the beginning.
10:38:01 But within 3 months, we'll have I understanding of the job. So that we really want to work with employers and say, don't see you gotta have a degree in this or you gotta have
it because I have a degree in philosophy.
10:38:14 About as useful, yeah.
10:38:17 Yeah.
10:38:12 I don't know what your degrees are. And a master's in theology. So really, that enables me to pardon my French bullshit.
10:38:24 But other than that, not a lot, right? And, and talk about that, which is always nice, but again, it doesn't meet the requirements, but you learn how to do work and it's really
around critical thinking skills that we're trying to develop and really around helping folks to understand the work environment and how to how to be successful in that environment.
10:38:43 And as you said in the proclamation, we're also looking for individuals who have been left out of the system, most importantly, are tribal folks.
10:38:49 Are individuals with disabilities but also individuals with substance issues huge in our communities right now everywhere. How are we getting folks back to work?
10:39:00 In that and we also have to feed that workforce. We have to feed the childcare workforce and the and the behavioral health workforce which are all experiencing those as well
in their great needs so it's a lot of work to do but not something we should be scared of because here's what we have going for us.
10:39:15 We have a passion. You have a amazing community of people that want to change. And, and people that want the community succeed.
10:39:23 They're thinking about the future. And I just think we need to stay focused on that, especially with young people.
10:39:30 Great. Thank you, Bill. Sorry I dominated the questions. I'll just say something that you 2 might not know because I have actually held this is one of the boards I've been on
something that you 2 might not know because I have actually held this is one of the boards I've been on since day one in this job.
10:39:47 I have actually held, this is one of the boards I've been on since day one in this job.
10:39:52 So I' work out of Kitsap County. Bill and and his staff are wonderful. I've had the opportunity to travel with them and Just really admire their commitment to this work.
10:40:03 But there's also a workforce development council, which is comprised of employers and labor and people who work across the workforce in the 3 county region and they are really
helping to set policy and direction for how these federal dollars are spent the little bit of flexibility we have.
10:40:23 It is not a top-down model. It really is taking in feedback from this diverse council. And so really appreciate the time that, that they commit to this work regionally.
10:40:36 So thanks to Bill and his staff and to the council who dedicate a lot of time.
10:40:44 Thank you.
10:40:43 Right. I have one more question for you, Bill, just to let you muse. Philosophically about.
10:40:52 I guess you you talk about equity and then you also talk about flexibility and I find that sometimes the flexibility doesn't end up being very equitable across different jobs.
10:41:02 Inside one business or business line and and what are some of the strategies to reconcile that? If you have some jobs that just can't be remoted, some jobs, some employee employees,
you say that don't drive that way, but they they look and see this is a perk, this is a feature of this job.
10:41:21 And what are the some of the strategies that businesses can use to reconcile that tension?
10:41:26 Well, I think, you know, a smart business, can use a variety of different techniques.
10:41:31 We work with with Danny Stuyker on the board, you know, but Lubbock Traders.
10:41:34 Company owned, right? I give a share of the company partly to convince people that work there every day that they have a say in the future, but they have a say in their future
as well and they're making an investment in their future.
10:41:46 So that's a great model. There are all kinds of models which really allow greater participation of employees in the daily work of the company.
10:41:54 And I would say those companies listen to their employees and they're likely to have their employees there a lot longer, longer term.
10:41:57 Okay.
10:42:00 And that's what really folks want to is retention. But they are looking as well as what's the entire, what's the retirement?
10:42:07 What other benefits? If I was a, you know, I know the health care consortium is really looking at like childcare at the facility, right?
10:42:13 That's an ultimate. If you have that, you really have, wow, I can show up because I don't have to do this and that.
10:42:18 Some people are working and not even making enough money to pay their child care. Because of the cost of it and then you have the childcare workforce we've got to get those
wages up so how do how do we you know do it together?
10:42:29 And I think it really is just about not owning any success really trying to duplicate one-on-one with each of those.
10:42:39 In some way. We don't, we're not going to change the entire focus of the workforce, but we're going to make really big differences.
10:42:45 One on one with companies. Also when companies see their neighbor's success, they want to actually have the same success as well.
10:42:51 So it's again about sharing that and also coming together as parts of businesses, you know, in both in industry, but in, even in area.
10:43:02 You know, if you've got a folks that are going to be commuting from somewhere else. Think about the commuting patterns of your.
10:43:06 Of your other businesses around you, where they're getting your workforce from and can we go together on a van pool?
10:43:11 Can we, you know? Just again, trying to figure out what their needs are and I think that's just really on our side working with your chambers around what they're hearing as
well.
10:43:25 Okay.
10:43:23 And their members, again, members of the of the OWDC in some cases. In other cases, we participate actively in chambers getting those knowledge and then again participating
in all of our surveys about what what are you seeing on the ground, right?
10:43:36 Sorry, sorry. Oh, go ahead. I'm just wondering if you're hearing any innovative solutions to the housing conundrum.
10:43:43 And your networking or.
10:43:45 Well, you know, gosh, I wish. I wish I could see more. I mean, there are things happening in all of our counties around.
10:43:53 I think it is I said when we did a whole we did an entire workforce meeting that was brought up by Danny and actually by Danny Stagger really around the need for a workforce
housing looking at the state level about permitting county levels, what are we doing?
10:44:09 You know, why are we forcing not to have multi-family housing, you know?
10:44:13 Not my neighborhood kind of discussions, all those things. We all have to be open to how we do that.
10:44:21 And you know, it kind of depends what is it, you know, workforce housing I've seen in the past.
10:44:26 I will tell you I came from Colorado. I was the state director of education and training in Colorado. A bigger job as it were, no more important.
10:44:33 I will tell you because the rubber meets the road at our county levels, as you know. But what I will say is that we had, we had, I owned a workforce center, our state owned
a workforce center up in Frisco in a, in Frisco's kind of a That's close to all the ski towns, right?
10:44:50 And sort of a ski town. It's a town where more people can live than they can in veil or other places around there, right?
10:44:57 But it was still absolutely ridiculous, but we own some land and a workforce center and we decided to give that to the developer who put a workforce center, put affordable housing
on, gave us 2 spots for our staff.
10:45:10 Because we have single staff who can't afford to live in their town either and then also and those come with the job, you know, they come with the job so they can't stay there,
they don't have the job.
10:45:19 But then the other part is at the bottom of that center is that they actually kept a workforce center and allowed us to stay there.
10:45:25 So they got 25 million dollars worth of land that was originally purchased for 75,000. Ripped down the building that we owned and now are constructing that.
10:45:38 Hmm.
10:45:35 So that's an out of pop out of a thing kind of idea. Look at your, you know, at what land the county may have its disposal.
10:45:42 What, what builders might be interested in doing some kind of a, you know, a compromise. Maybe it's for itinerant employees.
10:45:50 Maybe it's, you know. Similar to what we've done with agricultural housing, temporal housing for migrant seasonal farmworker communities.
10:45:57 Do we manage though, you know, manage something like that effectively? I just think we have to look wherever.
10:46:04 Sometimes it's railroad cars. I mean, I, I mean, it's different for. The house was population than it is for just workers who can't afford to live where they work.
10:46:14 So I think we have to learn from all those, especially hospitality. You're, you really.
10:46:21 Okay.
10:46:18 Have a lot of hospitality related jobs. Right? And we know They do not pay that well. So what other better what other opportunities can we have to subsidize that through affordable
housing or other ways.
10:46:37 Well, like you talked earlier about trying to struggle the struggle of getting childcare salaries up, right?
10:46:48 Yeah.
10:46:42 And I'm really concerned about the pipeline of childcare workers as, you know, Cleveland County and Jefferson County and I assume Kitsap County are all working to build new
units, but I've talked to the folks that Peninsula College too about that pipeline and there's just It's it's untenable to think that you're going to be able to train.
10:46:59 Hundreds of new childcare workers when you're paid less than you are at, you know, McDonald's or the same, right?
10:47:06 Yeah, yeah.
10:47:06 So. Other than I mean the only solution I could think of is really starting to encourage you know Backyard daycares again and and you know kind of a de-professionalize it almost,
but what are some other solutions that can?
10:47:20 Help with that, what I see the real dearth of a critical workers. As we as we try to, you know, work on this childcare issue.
10:47:28 Yeah, I think I think it's a it's a double kind of way if obviously without employers there it doesn't make sense.
10:47:33 Writers. 10.
10:47:35 The government cannot do everything in this kind of way. But if we can think about, you know, if you have an employee that's also has a child and if you had a childcare center
at your site what would that you know what would that save how do we divide that up if that's an included benefit then again you don't so it doesn't have to be the highest cost.
10:47:51 Okay.
10:47:53 I agree with you about looking. I don't know if I'd make it less formal.
10:47:58 We, I mean, there's always safety. Concerns, you know, obviously with, family child care, just having the ability of something happens, all those variety of things.
10:48:06 But we also know that we all survived. We were part of it. We all survived staying with grandma.
10:48:11 You know, was it always what we wanted? No, but and and then how do we help families to be able to afford if they want to use a family health care.
10:48:18 I mean, a family. Provider, is that something we can figure out a way to help fund as well?
10:48:31 Yeah.
10:48:24 In other words, does that person become part of the public sector. There's been some interesting things nationwide done in a variety of different counties where they see end
up primarily focused on public
10:48:38 I was gonna say like human services funded for childcare of individuals who participate in their programs, but it allows enough dollars to be in the center that then the private
can take over as well and fill in the other costs.
10:48:52 . Okay
10:48:52 So I don't think it's easy. You've got some bright folks working on it.
10:48:56 I'm not gonna you know, call them out individually, but some very bright, bright folks in the public community really are, are trying to figure out ways because they know.
10:49:06 And this really also encourages great diversity in the workforce, both with minorities, but also with women in the workforce.
10:49:17 Yeah.
10:49:13 We want more women in the workforce. That's a big part. One, they're just better at everything and and 2, I'd say that, but they are and there's nicer, right? Yeah, there you
go. Go for it.
10:49:25 Okay.
10:49:25 Not looking you out. But, but I will tell you, you know, I always say that the best man for the job is almost always a woman.
10:49:30 And so, you know, we know that we want to engage more. That's the other part too is we're not fully engaged in our our military families.
10:49:39 We have a lot of trailing spouses that come up to the area and they're not engaged in workforce because of child care or because of other other things.
10:49:55 Yeah.
10:49:47 It just doesn't make it so possible. And We try, but that's a that's a hard recruitment group for us, but we we want more and more of that because we know with some training
and a variety of things they can continue to.
10:49:58 You got you muted yourself, Bill. Just in the very last bit.
10:50:06 Yeah, right the computer said, okay, okay. No, it really thanks for diving into this.
10:50:04 Yeah, I just know when I've said too much, I guess. Yeah.
10:50:12 No.
10:50:12 You know, I don't know. Maybe, bring your kid to work year. I don't know.
10:50:18 Let's look at our biggest department head over there and see what he thinks about bring your kid to work.
10:50:25 Biggest department head over there and see what he thinks about bring your kid to work. Or whatever it takes.
10:50:27 Okay, well, really appreciate your time, Bill, and all your work and helping to develop this critical workforce.
10:50:33 My team appreciates your, your, your assistance with it and really being positive about workforce, as a way to really help and benefit our community.
10:50:43 Thanks, thanks a lot. Nice to meet you.
10:50:46 Nice to meet you. Take care.
10:50:50 Okay, well that takes us through our, timed agenda items this morning. So I guess we can return to.
10:51:01 Briefing and calendaring and take care of that. Anything else that people want to try to address this morning?
10:51:08 I had one question for you. I noticed that the rack is gonna meet. Are you gonna participate on this?
10:51:15 September eighth. Yeah. Anyway, it's on the Monday. I said, oh, September.
10:51:24 Oh, great. So they keep and they posted it with the Federal Registry already. So now I'm not going to participate.
10:51:30 And I keep I am going to read through the proposals and submit notes. Okay but Matt Stewart's on the rack.
10:51:39 Okay. And we have, you know, The way that it's really split up, it's Jefferson County funds go to Jefferson County projects.
10:51:48 Quantum County, PROC, COUNTY, SRS, funds go to the Kalam County project.
10:51:50 So. It's not like we're I will really miss out for my lack of involvement, but I continue to say hey can we do these on Any day other than Monday's because of where all the
meetings have been on.
10:52:03 Okay, well, we do get the biggest chunk of the Title 2 funds, so seemed like an opportunity.
10:52:09 That, but they'll just, they will come to us. That happened in Jefferson County.
10:52:15 I know that happened in Jefferson County. I know that, SS Chapman will be there in his role with Black Country Horseman and they've got lots of a couple projects.
10:52:20 Post. So I I will give notes.
10:52:24 But see, I was halfway through my week. Week.
10:52:32 Okay. Alright. So I think I took you through the only cap strategic plan and the big external thing as I say is we're gonna try to do better better job opening the door for
the public so anyone can walk in any time and that when you come in 1 one interaction gets due to all the appropriate resources.
10:52:58 Do Thursday, so I visited the paper mill too and, I was really impressed and we have new owners in the paper mill this past year.
10:53:06 And I learned what makes paper meals smell too, which was interesting for me. You know, there's kind of 2 things that do it.
10:53:14 One is the all the different chemicals that they use to break down the wood chips primarily but also the OCC and the post-consumer.
10:53:23 And cardboard as well, a little bit. They want to reclaim all those so they put it through this big line kiln.
10:53:28 Did you see that the big spinning cylinder? Yeah, horizontal cylinder, super cool, but I think sometimes those create sulfur smell.
10:53:35 But the kind of sewage smell that we get more often is from you know after they push all the water through and you know they used 13 times as much water as the city, right?
10:53:48 Huge amount of water. So they, it all goes through and it goes to this big holding pond that's 20 feet deep.
10:53:53 And then it goes through a bunch of baffles and then comes back and they pour it into the into the water into the ocean, right?
10:54:00 Out of the, at 78 degrees, no hotter, no colder. I don't know why, 78 degrees seems awfully hot to pour it back into the water.
10:54:07 But That's the temperature they're supposed to do. But that retention pond is 20 feet deep.
10:54:14 And because of deferred maintenance. It's only 3 feet deep right now. So that's where the smell comes from is the retention pot and they're dredging it and they're gonna they're
They're putting out how many millions they said they had allocated for that price.
10:54:31 Oh well, exactly. Always for deferred maintenance, capital investments this year. I think the new company is really trying to make it an ongoing enterprise.
10:54:38 So. Millions and they're just gonna keep. You know, a back out there once they get the permits going, an ongoing process of dredging.
10:54:47 Not just wait until it becomes a problem again. So that's gonna be stinky. It will probably be stinky when they do the work, but I think once you have that 20, the, the appropriate
depth, the stink will.
10:54:59 Supposedly go away. We did ask a question of whether they could recirculate the water that they pump out into the bay and have a recirculating system so they don't have to use
as much water. Yeah.
10:55:09 And they said he said that there were some mills that were closed loop that did recirculate their water but it would be a huge massive investment but it's not off the table.
10:55:20 Yeah. It was crazy. I really like when they were dealing with the post consumer cardboard that first big ban where you got the big Dip.
10:55:30 Different adepting all the plastic and everything and all the different. Progressive filters getting the styrofoam and out.
10:55:34 It was pretty cool learning about different, you know, how water. Resistant is this paper, how, yeah, and all the pulp goes abroad, right?
10:55:43 Right. Yeah, very interesting. I thought it was fascinating. So after that spent quite a while talking about the kind of the Recompute project as well.
10:55:56 And then did agenda planning with Mark. On Friday, kind of the theme the last couple weeks, not a lot of meetings, but they all set happen at the same time.
10:56:07 So I did miss most of the recompete meeting because of our drainage district hearing that we had 20'clock on Friday.
10:56:14 And, and those, those were my high points last week. Monty, you wanna you wanna share your last week with us?
10:56:23 We've rarely, I think we talked for 30Â min last time. You got lots of world fascinated by all the public work stuff.
10:56:32 You know, it's been, really busy for our office. Of course, the sewers under construction and I've actually been out there on that project myself quite a bit because Samantha
and John and others are.
10:56:52 Trying to get the the final plans ready to go out to bid in October. So they've been in meetings.
10:56:59 Daily with the consultant design team and stuff trying to iron out the last details of the of the design, you know, actually our
10:57:11 Even though there's a consulting engineering team, there's. Quite a bit of input that.
10:57:18 Goes into the design from our team is quite knowledgeable about. The operation of waste water treatment plants and and ask all the right questions and makes a lot of good.
10:57:33 Suggestions on how to make the final plans. Better product. So there's big push going on right now which which means I've been out in the field with this.
10:57:42 Earth work phase of the project. So that adds to my duties. A lot right now.
10:57:52 But we're making good progress on on that project you know what are some of the variables that are still remain in the in the final design?
10:58:01 You know, that'd be a better question for Samantha and John, to both mechanical engineers and that's the area and John really to both mechanical engineers and that's the area
and then of course we have Dave Peterson who's the area, both mechanical engineers and that's the area. And then of course we have Dave Peterson who is the city's.
10:58:12 A wastewater expert. I mean, that's how he originally came here. He was, with CH twom Hill and when they built their wastewater treatment plants.
10:58:21 So, You know, there's just a lot of operational.
10:58:29 Things that that need to be finalized with just how certain pumps work and and things like that.
10:58:36 But again, probably better question for those. Guys. I don't participate in many of those meetings because I'm doing too many other things.
10:58:44 And again, I've been trying to cover some of the field work as well, but I can tell you that you know this team has come together kinda as we've gone and and just within the
last.
10:58:53 Year, you know, we added John Black and Dave Peterson and Samantha Harper and it's a it's a really strong team.
10:59:02 We're very lucky that that team came together. In time, you know, because we got A lot of this funding, but it has, you know, deadlines on it.
10:59:12 We didn't have any of this team when we got the funding. And, you know, hiring.
10:59:18 Professionals like that that live in our communities not the easiest thing to do, right? But I've been really, impressed with, with how how they.
10:59:30 Work together on this project. Sam Q and my block party on Saturday. Right. And that worked with neighbors who are eligible to be in the sewer.
10:59:41 So it was a good. Great. Opportunity for folks to ask her questions about the project.
10:59:47 So, yeah. Yeah, but it was great to have her and she Got some barbecue, so I'll as well.
10:59:56 She's a hard worker. You know, she does, she gets a lot. Done and But I mean, you can see like the project.
11:00:03 Schedule it covers one entire wall of her office you know from floor to ceiling and corner to corner because there's a lot of elements to this project you know so And she's
working on all aspects of that.
11:00:20 Project right now. I mean, you know, we have the waste water treatment plant, but we have the collection system.
11:00:26 They've been getting those plans. Trying to get. Many, many comments back to the designers so that they can finalize those plans and then.
11:00:35 John Black has been. Out working on, meeting with some of the property owners to discuss their connections and all this has to come together kind of in a at once, you know.
11:00:50 Is the ordinance mostly at the prosecutor's office now? Or you guys still back and forth between us and them.
11:00:56 I guess, I mean, other areas, you know, the, the equipment that is the waste water treatment plan itself from Ovivo, you know, we're still working with them and all their submittals.
11:01:10 And, And then there's this whole component of the projects that's the.
11:01:17 The skate is system, the controls and programming and electrical. Controls for all these pumps and everything that has to be developed.
11:01:25 So those meetings are on going. You know, I mean the ovivo plant itself.
11:01:32 Is a self-contained unit that comes comes ready to go but it has to talk to all the other components of the wastewater treatment plant you know the equalization tank pumps and
the auto control system and things like that and it's quite complicated.
11:01:51 I forget. Did any of you go to the port gamble plant? Yes, that's right.
11:01:57 So of course ours is Ours is bigger and has more elements to it, but you know you it looks like the Starship enterprise when you go in there so all of that stuff has to be designed
it's not That's custom stuff, you know, so they're doing that kind of stuff every day.
11:02:16 Even the package plan to still you know, on the roadside, we, we wrapped up the seasons chip seal program.
11:02:26 We still have some bog ceiling to go in the couple weeks here.
11:02:31 Damp weather hasn't helped with that. It's gonna hit miss when we can get that done, but we finished.
11:02:38 Nearly 29 miles of chip ceiling this year with a lot of new crew members. So, that's a, that was a lot to accomplish with, new people.
11:02:55 I think we have 3 or 4 open positions on our road crew now and you talk about hiring here with Bill a big challenge for us, you know, rolling into winner with a lot of vacancies.
11:03:06 Same in the. Equipment maintenance department, which isn't part of public works, even though people still think it is.
11:03:16 It's part of central services, but you know there's only a couple of. Mechanics for 300 pieces of equipment.
11:03:22 So, Pretty thin over there. But we lost a person on the west end. That's a 4 person crew, so 25% of our crews.
11:03:33 We lost to another employer out there. And 2 or 3 here in Port Hadlock. So,
11:03:41 Again, that's gonna be a challenge for us. And we have a number of. People out or going out and a solid waste crew as well.
11:03:50 That 2 openings that, yeah, so, variety of reasons there, but, Kind of thin, you know, and
11:04:00 Sometimes I lay awake at night trying to think about where the next group of employees are gonna come from for these positions, you know, we just don't.
11:04:09 I don't know. And again, you know, it's the cost of housing and the availability of it.
11:04:16 That's a big challenge. Are most of the new employees? I guess I assume most of the like for road crew and and transfer station are already already live in the region is that
where they usually come from?
11:04:29 Well one of our vacancies was the person who was commuting from Kitsap County.
11:04:34 I know, isn't working for us now. You know, they They do. I mean, more and more people are coming from like the Brandon Quill scene area up to or had a lot of port towns into
work, cause maybe housing's.
11:04:50 A little more affordable in the South County. So, some areas, but. Yeah, it's, we have people commuting from, county as well.
11:05:01 Challenge. Challenge. And you know, I mean, A lot of the employees even the new ones are.
11:05:12 Of an advanced age. And we have some young people as well, but. I'm concerned about the aging of our workforce as well.
11:05:21 Right. You know, those are the people who have lived here a long time. But, after about 30 years ago you can probably live here.
11:05:31 Well, someone mentioned, you know, the works really good on the contracting side right now and those, you know, they're the private contractor we're working with on sewer has
a waiting list of people going waiting wanting to work for them really high pay you know because it's prevailing wage but they You know, used to be like you went to work for the county
because that's where you, you know.
11:05:53 jobs with benefits and things like that. But the private employers are paying those benefits now too. So it's not a competitive edge for the county as much as it used to be.
11:06:03 Even, yeah, probably not as much but the medical side and things like that. I mean, that's turn 50.
11:06:12 It's start thinking about this thing. Right. Yeah, younger, younger workers don't tend to think about retirement too much.
11:06:20 They're thinking about Friday. Yeah, you know, so you think it's more it's more that pay benefits package than it is actually having skilled people.
11:06:32 Able to fill those positions? I think it's a combination of a lie. It's a perfect storm of a lot of factors that have come together.
11:06:41 If they're making a third more doing, working a piece of machinery for a private. Contractor around here, why wouldn't they do it?
11:06:48 Right. You see that we saw it the last time, you know, 2,007 8, we lost some people to the private sector.
11:06:56 And then they came back in 2,010. Right. You know, the nice thing about best that we with the way that we want to get them back though.
11:07:10 I mean the nice thing about county, county job is you know where You're starting every day.
11:07:13 You're not commuting to.
11:07:16 Sometimes, you know, hopefully Washington to do a job or something like that. But, but yeah, it's.
11:07:25 That's scary. How many openings we have and are going to have, you know.
11:07:33 Leadership positions too, right? Lose to pressure.
11:07:41 So, you know, but, you know, lot going on, certainly with, with all of the divisions in public works.
11:07:52 Yeah, great. Well, thanks for digging into it with us. We appreciate you being here today.
11:07:58 Step in from Mark. Yeah, if I don't know if you had Mark talked about this, but if it's a heavy left to spend a lot of time here.
11:08:07 Be welcome to join virtually too so you can get another work done.
11:08:11 Yeah, I might leave here in a few minutes. Go out to the sewer. Yeah, honest, out there right now.
11:08:18 But, I appreciate that, you know, so yeah.
11:08:24 Or flexible. Okay. And, can often play by ourselves too. I know you guys Yeah, I mean, you know, I just wanna be helpful and I know I'll be over every day or 2 to look at the
paperwork that needs.
11:08:43 Approval and signatures from a county administrator and stuff like that. So. Thank you. Okay, shall we look to this coming week?
11:08:52 See any conflicts? We need help with. I will leave right now. Yeah, please.
11:08:59 I'm just gonna have Monty fill in and all my meetings. Yeah, right, right. Yeah, wait till he leaves.
11:09:06 Wait for 2Â min and then we'll assign him everything. Yeah.
11:09:08 I could start. Please obviously with the holiday. I do have a dinner tonight with a number of folks from coming, we're trying to figure out how we can, Can heal some of the
political divide within the association?
11:09:31 Oh, so that's a big county little county, but the partisan divide. So that's a big county, little county but the partisan divided. Yep. I think all sorts of divides and how
to get.
11:09:37 Folks a little more up to speed too. A lot of, yeah, there's a lot of turnover of commissioners, obviously legislators too during the pandemic.
11:09:47 And so a number of our commissioners on the legislative steering committee. Have never been it never been in person before this session and so this is more of a brainstorming.
11:09:59 I, with staff coming from Osak and then, Commissioner from Island County in Collin County coming over for dinner.
11:10:04 So. Looking forward to. Brainstorming with them.
11:10:11 I will be in Seattle the rest of the week and my husband out on medical leave. Do a few meetings virtually one the public sector cabinet who advises the economic development
council.
11:10:27 Public sector needs is meeting tomorrow midday. Yes, yep, yep, and I've been real involved in a couple of.
11:10:38 Okay, kind of key issues at the EDC. So. Okay, probably would have been there anyway even if Mark wasn't there, but we will miss him, but I'll be.
11:10:47 We're in a couple different hats. Have a weekly child care meeting about the.
11:10:56 Your child care center. I'm going to miss the transit advisory group tomorrow afternoon. I don't know if anyone is interested in sitting in.
11:11:04 I don't. I don't know if we have an alternate position for that or not, but.
11:11:09 You know, they do report back to the authority for it as well. And what time is that at?
11:11:16 3 30 to 5. That's something I could attend. Yeah, I would be interested. Yeah, that'd be great.
11:11:24 Thank you. I will have Kelly.
11:11:30 Send you some, alright, maybe I can just forward this to you.
11:11:36 White. For. I haven't quite figured out the. New outlook.
11:11:42 Yeah, totally. So, but I think. I think it's easy. Okay, awesome.
11:11:51 Have a economic development council board meeting on Thursday morning. And say legislative or sorry, leadership council meeting in preparation for our 2 day meeting next week.
11:12:07 Friday morning and healthier together steering committee meeting like I said our last one we will see a draft of the consultants plan and talk about how we're gonna disseminate
that.
11:12:17 We do have a date on the calendar for the consultants to come present to us in October.
11:12:25 I'm a little uncertain. I'll be able to attend that meeting. I think a lot of the hard work is done.
11:12:33 This is the really just seeing the the draft plan and making any minor tweaks to it. But mornings are not a great time for me to get away the.
11:12:42 Rounds in the hospital are very important. So I everything around when the 5Â min you get to see the doctor it could be in a somewhere in a 4Â h range.
11:12:56 Really annoying. then I have a municipal research service center board meeting. 10 that day.
11:13:04 I'm gonna meet with the new. It's heard from Jessica Lowe.
11:13:11 And Tony Barnett did the introduction. The child advocacy center which is interesting combination of the criminal services and our criminal justice system and the Y.M.C.A.
11:13:22 Collaborated to hire someone to be working within the criminal justice system. I know it's I'm I'm a little Yeah, kind of, specifically for you.
11:13:33 So, meeting with her virtually for the first time to hear about that new role. I will miss the community outreach.
11:13:40 Meeting in Britain on Friday night. I can likely attend virtually. Which, listening mode, you know.
11:13:47 I don't wanna make it clunky. Yeah, it's a challenge. I think down there often the bandwidth.
11:13:53 I know Tammy's been still struggling. So we'll try to have you available. Yeah, yeah, and I can list it in that I really need to be in Seattle.
11:14:03 These are critical days for me to be there. I will join you if I can just roll a little bit into the next week to join you virtually next Monday.
11:14:13 And then Tuesday I will be. And Edith Komesh.
11:14:20 Leadership council so likely to also miss the community meeting and still seeing on Thursday the fourteenth.
11:14:34 We'll just put everything on you. Oh, that's really Kate. I don't take lately missing them, but we'll be really in that depth of meeting.
11:14:46 But we'll be really in the depths of needing, needing care.
11:14:48 So, yeah.
11:14:49 Okay.
11:14:52 Okay, Heidi. So this week, tonight I have the MRC Meeting Marine Resources Committee meeting and.
11:15:02 Would be updating them on our SMP update timeline, which is moved out a little bit. Which I think the MRC team is working on S and P comments is relieved that they have more
time.
11:15:17 Oh good. Tomorrow. I have. A discussion with Elizabeth Kor.
11:15:27 About participating in a
11:15:32 Work group on. Some solid waste issues. At the state level so let's see let me I want to fill you in more on that.
11:15:45 But. I've been communicating with Al, cause We get requests to be on committees all the time, I feel like.
11:15:54 And I was like, okay, so how is this gonna? Is this going to matter to us and The long story short is yes.
11:16:02 And it's about the food recycling. And the bill that passed legislature last year and implementation of that bill.
11:16:11 And how to kind of meet the priorities of our community while addressing the next steps that were laid out in the bill.
11:16:26 Like with our crop. Tool that we use. But trying to keep food out of the waste stream as opposed to, recycling it after the fact.
11:16:38 Food waste. Is really the approach that we've doubled down on. So anyway, it looks like I'm going to be joining this work group for the next 6 months.
11:16:47 So. Did you know Elizabeth Court has Bill Delling's job for many years? I remember her.
11:16:53 And a workforce job, but I didn't know it was his job. So that's tomorrow morning and then.
11:17:03 Not sure if we're doing our weekly strategic plan project team meeting tomorrow or not, but.
11:17:09 It's on the calendar for now and we do have a draft, a revised draft, so that'll be.
11:17:14 Shared with all of us soon. I have the JTA audit exit interview tomorrow afternoon. Immediately preceding the transit advisory group now.
11:17:28 So it'll be a transit afternoon tomorrow. And then Thursday. Is a Is a work task day until the afternoon I'm gonna gonna attend the hospital groundbreaking and I think we figured
that it's fine if we both go, cause we're not speaking and we're just.
11:17:45 I don't even think we both get shovels or anything. We're just gonna be there and support.
11:17:49 So. Greg and I will be at that. And then Thursday evening I'm gonna attend the Wouldn't vote festivals lifetime achievement awards to.
11:17:58 Recognising 2 people have been important in my life, Betsy Davis from the Boat School.
11:18:04 And race back. Yeah, so I'm definitely gonna be attending that and then After that, maybe attending the Jefferson County cohort of the Peninsula Trails Coalition meeting.
11:18:17 Friday. I just put KPTZ as a standing agenda item on my calendar because I'm not sure what we have this week and next week I might have a conflict.
11:18:29 I was going to do the strategic plan. Item. On 15. Yeah.
11:18:36 But might have. Conflict with the Olympic coast sanctuary meeting.
11:18:46 Well, I could switch with you. I'm I have not done any scheduling, but I'm on the on the calendar for this week with behavioral health question mark but I am going to be.
11:19:00 Running out of town next week, but I could do the fifteenth and then. You wanna switch? Sure, you want to?
11:19:07 So I will get with Wendy and see she can do. Strategic plan with me.
11:19:17 Great. Thanks, Greg. Okay, so and I'll let, Jim know. So and then after that I have the NICO Public Land Steering Committee meeting.
11:19:30 So zoom call and then I'll be at the community outreach meeting with Greg and Brennan.
11:19:34 With all of his constituents. Because he's gonna have turnout for his. Oh yeah, I have no, yeah, be prepared to talk about the Brendan Stewart, but yes.
11:19:45 And then I am about to make the phone call to my colleagues at the wooden boat. Festival to see.
11:19:51 That could be useful this weekend because I've heard they are they call a need for more volunteers and.
11:19:59 Anyway, I love going, so. Seems like a good thing to do. So that's.
11:20:04 This week. Excellent. Okay, here with you guys of course today. Tomorrow I'm also getting briefed by Kerry Height about the.
11:20:15 Aquatic Center. It's the same tomorrow. Thursday I have a conflict in the morning.
11:20:24 I was gonna go to the quill scene food big. Food bank are groundbreaking. They've gotten their permit, has been approved at 10 a.
11:20:30 M. But somehow I did not have represented my calendar that we have our annual in person meeting of the Olympic area agency on aging at the cotton building at the same time.
11:20:40 As I am the chair and it's actually in Port Townsend. I, I told, I was not going to be there, but if either of you would like to, Hold the golden shovel down, downtown Quillstein
at 10 am on Thursday morning.
11:20:53 I would love to have you. Happy to do it. Alright, I'll send a few words just because I have been quite involved in helping them.
11:21:00 Get this far? I need a like a mask or a wig or a Greg.
11:21:13 And then I have to cancel my haircut, which is very necessary because I'm gonna go join, INREC, the Natural Resource Innovation Center is having hosting a roundtable Thursday
afternoon, so I wanna least attend by Zoom so I can understand a little bit more kind of the players in that in that group.
11:21:34 I've invited Eden Saw as well because they're going to be hosting me the following week.
11:21:38 Then I think we have a state auditors office conference at 2 and then I'll do these virtual meetings on the way to Port Ludlow so I can join the Port Ludlow Village Council,
which I missed last time.
11:21:52 And then I'll be racing back to the Jefferson Healthcare Groundbreaking at 40'clock.
11:21:57 So kind of a busy Thursday everything happening at the same time.
11:22:02 I was going to go to the radio on Friday, but I will not, but I will do the recompete task force.
11:22:11 Oh no, I'm giving it on the fifteenth. Alright, I got it. Got it.
11:22:13 Yeah, I already put in my calendar. And then doing their recipe task force. Yeah.
11:22:21 Growing. We did invite Susie Ames from Peninsula College in Peninsula Colleges to one of them.
11:22:27 It seems like they're. All the EDCs think that Princess College is probably best positioned, I think, to lead the workforce.
11:22:33 Training kind of component.
11:22:38 And that's my week. Thank you. I will send you the invite for the, Food Bank.
11:22:44 Right. Can I kind of show you what my RFP so far for the Glencove?
11:22:54 I mean, I know I'm kind of pushing this and haven't really talked through the idea with you guys, but as we have a little time, I'd love to.
11:23:00 I can print it out for you as well. But I'll just share my screen real quick. Or I could use a little bio.
11:23:08 Oh yeah, let's take let's take 5Â min. 1130. Thank you. Yep.
11:29:18 Okay, well, it's funny. Thanks.
11:29:25 Okay, welcome back. I will call us back into session. We have nothing else on the agenda, but I was going to kind of share my thoughts about the recompete application and I'm
gonna do one probably for the Brennan, 2 or 2.
11:29:40 So I might. Just get it in kind of under one theme. Here and I'll share this.
11:29:49 I've print it out for both of you guys the copy the same thing I'm sharing but I'm curious your thoughts about the the direction and you know how to make it as competitive as
possible I guess too because we're you know competing both locally and nationally with this.
11:30:03 Hmm. Do you have a sense from participating in these conversations of how many? Projects will be submitted. I could show you the current project list right now, other projects
involved like the Port of Port Angelus wants to get barge loading capacity.
11:30:21 A lot of the projects kind of are on the verge of not fundable. I think I've told you about the Jamestown partnership with Herman Brothers on a biotech facility.
11:30:31 I'm a car tribe wants to develop their.
11:30:38 Their mill like killing capacity by an account for their male, I think. Which will probably on beyond there I think.
11:30:46 You know the city of forks proposed like creating little warehouses and in commercial areas but without really a person that was going to manage them or anything you know so
there's going to be too many applications.
11:31:02 I don't know. We have 15 right now and I am. Guessing and lamented that we will have 50 to sort through on September eighteenth.
11:31:11 I mean Aaron Berg asked, you know, 4 to 4 towns and as long as we're, you know, and not money is like, yeah, we've got.
11:31:17 Some asks that we'll put in there so the port and you know I'm shared it with the mill and It's kind of out there for everyone if anyone wants to see the recompete.
11:31:28 The pitch, I can, I can forward it to you. The RFP process. Yeah, it's a word document basically that is challenging to use our internal systems because it goes to use our internal
systems because it goes to a Google form that you fill out that, a word document basically that is challenging to use our internal systems because it goes to a Google form that you
fill out that, won't
11:31:47 I would like to see it. I wouldn't mind setting it to a couple of people. Yeah, no, it's open RFP at this point.
11:31:53 Is it on Entertc's website? Probably. I will just send it to you though right now.
11:32:01 I love it, but this focus on housing. Oh, yeah. And, housing is not something that can be funded, but definitely the feature, the leverage would be to Right.
11:32:19 And everyone, I mean, the mill can't hire folks. That was something. I mean, you know, they're trying, they're hiring, you know, engineers like.
11:32:25 $150,000 in there you know even those folks when they come over they're like well I would have to pay twice as much for housing as I do now.
11:32:33 So I would be taking a pay cut to take this this promotion. I sure wish we could get some.
11:32:39 Answers on this. Air quality around the mill. Question. It's you see, Department of Health just came out with any report that was totally and inconclusive.
11:32:50 Jefferson House Cated? No, the Washington Department of Health. Oh, I know they're doing one.
11:32:56 Okay, so. It was inconclusive. Apparently the CDC is doing one too, but I think that was, since COVID.
11:33:05 But . Just doing a like a literature review and they couldn't find anything. Inclusive.
11:33:14 So I mean that that inconclusive. Tends to make me think that there will not be. Negative impacts.
11:33:30 Well, it was because the science isn't available. They weren't doing the science. They were just saying there's not enough.
11:33:32 Science to say one way or the other and so CDC is supposed to be doing the science and That's what's that on hold.
11:33:39 I could try and track down the researcher who was assigned to it years ago, but she never called me back.
11:33:47 3 years ago. So I'm not back now. I asked him why it was the Department of Ecology not.
11:33:54 Orca that was the regulatory oversight and he had no idea You know? The type of processing they do at our mill, it falls under federal.
11:34:10 Regulation.
11:34:14 Alright, so.
11:34:17 Oh, I'm sharing my screen still. And, and then my friend assign that to department.
11:34:26 So it would be EPA but they decided to. Ecology to do that. To monitor those permits
11:34:32 And this is the big thing is the map here. Just share that. This is super generic, but.
11:34:39 I mean, we've talked back to Bill's point, you know, about. You gotta put some skin in the game.
11:34:46 We the county does own. 4 or 5 of those larger. Plots right just south of Coswell Brown that if they did turn into high density residential, we really could.
11:34:59 Find partners to, you know, keep them permanently affordable workforce housing for a good time. And I would say, least the way I'm maybe it's just my Pollyanna attitude but
I think designing a whole area that is for denser housing in an area that maybe is not as appealing as some of the other areas.
11:35:21 It has that Georgetown industrial vibe I think might be a feature not a bud for creating. You know, hopefully 500 units of.
11:35:29 We're 4,000. The part on this on the the, east there. I'm meeting with some of those property owners to kind of determine whether I mean over here.
11:35:42 Yeah, whether they should be. Part of. The project or not.
11:35:46 I mean, it could, cause it also could easily go.
11:35:50 To the to the west of Highway 20 as well, cause there is part of that Glen Cove does go on the other side and So I don't know, I work with Kevin to create a couple of different
options.
11:36:02 But. And where's the city on this? Currently? Full throat support right now.
11:36:10 So they're really excited about they've got the money for that lift station up at Evans Vista and that will create enough capacity to get down.
11:36:16 And I think they're really flexible. In working out an agreement with us for You know, maybe it's just an expansion of the urban growth area and eventually, you know, if 60%
of the folks that the property owners petition them, they can get annexed but finding a path that kind of keeps both city and county, you know.
11:36:40 Fairly whole through this process. Is the goal, you know, so whether whether it's just an expansion of the urban growth area and it would probably be this would expand here
and then it would retract in other areas.
11:36:53 So, you know, but Hastings or somewhere where there's more rural applications and people aren't on the sewer or something.
11:36:59 But the current lies that that that would get trunk in basically so the urban growth area would not expand.
11:37:05 It would just reform a little bit. But coming up with the path that Yeah. Made them comfortable and us comfortable going forward to whether or not the mill is included.
11:37:18 I mean, naturally as our only heavy industrial area should be included in the. Urban growth area but whether that actually pencils out is
11:37:28 Okay.
11:37:32 But not discussing annexation at this point. It's just, it's premature.
11:37:39 So not discussing and that's not something that we can easily do without. Without the property owners.
11:37:44 And I think the part of the tension in the in the conversation in the past has been around that and you know.
11:37:48 Bringing an urban level infrastructure increases your cost, making a part of the city really increases the cost. So knowing those.
11:37:57 Those 2 different, I guess pain points before we, walk down either path really, but you gotta walk down the, yeah, expansion of the urban growth area before you walk down.
11:38:07 Annexation. Just but keeping a friend of mine, you know, like I not hiding the fact that this could end up in annexation from the property owners because Yeah.
11:38:19 Good. Some want it and some don't. From my early conversation definitely depending on sort of How long they've been there, whether they're kind of.
11:38:29 Trying to grow or, you know, looking towards succession planning and, and, winding down.
11:38:36 But if you have any other thoughts or notes on this, let me know, you know, that's not due until the eighteenth of September.
11:38:45 I'll get some more data. As I said, I'm meeting with both residential and commercial property owners.
11:38:50 In the next couple weeks. And have you talked to HCD about this? I've talked to DCD about this.
11:38:56 They are the first meeting they were Josh and Brent were on the meeting with me in the city and you know, I talked to Josh again last week about it.
11:39:06 His big concern is, of course, capacity, right? And I talked about and I think I even put in here that we're really leaning on.
11:39:16 Contracts that we've just made that are hopefully beyond the scope of what we need for most planning, you know, so it's the goal with the phase one recompete would be to use
those contracted consultants to do the outreach and planning work for the expansion of the urban growth area.
11:39:34 In parallel with our comp plan. Amendment which has a funding source already and we've already gotten some money from ecology.
11:39:44 On commerce, excuse me. So. That was Josh's big point is that, you know, don't nest the things that have to happen too closely with the project that can't happen.
11:39:57 No, I like the, I like the direction generally. I mean, it's been talked about for decades, so I think it's.
11:40:04 Yeah.
11:40:07 Time to move forward. We got got the. That's where I work. Oh, yeah.
11:40:16 Yeah, don't get off the split or get off the. I will say there's a huge opportunity that
11:40:24 It's hard to wrap our head around, but it has been, I think, some initial, very initial engineering estimates have been done to see.
11:40:33 The the mill creates enough heat to create a district heat zone where that heat would be siphoned off and too.
11:40:43 Even coming into Port Townsend, it still was enough. Yeah, and offset, you know, other energy use.
11:40:52 So it's probably. A little too audacious to try to include that in here, but I wouldn't I wouldn't rule it out as a I sent them, I mean, and again, as the consultants is very
fond of saying, you know, kind of rough outlines into the phase one application if we get into phase 2 those projects can really move a lot so I think I mean, I sent
11:41:18 the same RP to the mill, so if that, you know, I'll mention that idea to Craig, their HR director is engaging with the recompete.
11:41:27 They were at the original meetings as well. And see if that's something that they're willing to push forward now.
11:41:32 I think it would have to kind of. Come from them a little bit. Yeah, this would be new owners since that.
11:41:39 Very preliminary study was done, but the city Jane was involved with it. Okay. And I mean, it's pretty remarkable when you.
11:41:47 Here the volume, you know, It would have the ability to offset a lot of energy use. Interesting. Yeah.
11:42:00 Yeah, but the new owners will probably say, what are you talking about? I mean, in that in industrial uses, it's not uncommon.
11:42:10 And then in that in industrial uses, it's not uncommon. There are a number of district heating systems in the state, but.
11:42:13 Might be this. Okay, well that's what I had. Anything else that we want to address before the lunch break?
11:42:22 Is there a Wasack meeting today?
11:42:27 One of them, Oh, right. It's Tuesday. You're right.
11:42:34 Is that does anyone have a sense of the main consistent lately? I'm pretty consistent and that I don't pay any attention to it.
11:42:44 Yeah. I feel like I saw Okay, because I think there was one last week, wasn't there?
11:42:52 I mean, yeah, I wasn't able to attend. I think made there every other week. Okay.
11:42:55 Yeah. Are you, you're obviously a repping for the legislative steering committee. Yeah, I'm still chair.
11:43:07 So, did we get an email and I'm planning on re-indicating interest in the federal issues committee because I did that last year.
11:43:14 Great.
11:43:15 Since we all got that.
11:43:20 Hmm. Other issues? Anything else? Hanging chads, we need to take care of.
11:43:27 I don't have you ask questions like that. I'm sure there are some but yeah well we have we'll have time our schedule this afternoon let's take a quick look at it we'll have
Tammy with us to talk about the draft agreement for the the Rucksam and Creek Conservation Project that we've approved in the past already.
11:43:45 It's great seeing do other municipalities have such a good
11:43:52 Partner as we do in the land trust. I mean, you just said a good job coming up with 75% of every project.
11:44:02 That normal across others. Frequent, you know, if an organization, if an area has a active land trust they know.
11:44:10 Yeah. What the sources of funding are and what matches what. How to make everything work. But and largely because it's difficult for county use to hold these months way easier
for an entity to.
11:44:23 And for a while it was required that the county hold these. And so it's just where they have that rentals.
11:44:30 Yes, I shouldn't say that so definitively, but I think so, but it's I know that there was a big sigh of relief when our CEO changed there that requirement that the county hold
it, allowed, land trusts too.
11:44:43 But they can be able to connect access so many other types of funding.
11:44:49 Great. Well, we have that and then we'll have an executive session for half an hour and 3 30 and that's what we have on the agenda.
11:44:56 So do we need Is Tammy's rock presentation gonna be 2Â h? So why is there so much time between 1 30?
11:45:07 Oh, okay. Okay. Okay, well, I guess we'll have time to address anything we don't pick up right now.
11:45:16 So if if there's nothing else you guys want to deal with now, break a few minutes early for lunch.
11:45:21 Great. All right. We are recess. We'll be back at 1 30.