>> April 21st 2026. And we will
start with several
proclamations. The first one,
the National Poetry Month. And
Councilor Fuentes will read
that with the Arts Commission
members. Michelle Hanlon and
Susan Dingle.
>> Good evening everyone. I'm
excited to be reading this
proclamation on National Poetry
Month. Thank you for being here.
All right. So whereas National
Poetry Month was created in
1996 by the Academy of American
Poets, and whereas poetry is
the artful expression of human
thought and feeling, and
whereas the appreciation of
poetry nourishes the human
spirit, and whereas the purpose
of National Poetry Month is to
appreciate the legacy of poets,
to encourage poetry reading, to
help teachers introduce poetry
into the classroom, and to
increase support of the
publication of poetry books.
And whereas the Clark County
Poet Laureate serves the county
by cultivating the practice of
writing, reading, and
appreciation of poetry. And.
Susan Dingle is the Clark
County Poet Laureate for the
2024 2027 term. And whereas
Clark County Poet Laureate
Armin Tolentino, 2021 2024
Gwendolyn Morgan 2018, 2020 and
Christopher Luna, 2013 2017
continue to serve the community
as ambassadors of literary
culture through poetry. Now,
therefore, we, the Clark County
Council, hereby proclaim April
1st through April 30th, 2026 as
National Poetry Month. Sign
this 21st day of April 2026 by
every one of our counselors.
>> Like to say something,
please. And. Thank you.
>> Thank you, Counselor Fuentes
and all of the council members.
We are so lucky in this county
to have such an active and
vibrant poetry community. We
have several open mics that
happen on a weekly basis, and
our former and current poet
laureates are out there really
stirring things up and bringing
the word to people regarding
poetry, I wanted to also say my
name, by the way, is Michelle
Hanlon. I am the vice chair of
the Clark County Arts
Commission. I wanted to say
that we are about to open the
search for next year's Poet
Laureate. That person will be
Poet Laureate, I believe, from
2027 through 30. And you should
have the the community should
be ready to look for those
applications or recommendations
you can apply. If you're a poet,
you can recommend another
person. If you know a published
poet, those will open this
sometime this summer. So keep
your eye on our web page on the
county website and our social
media. Right now, I'd like to
turn over the mic to Susan
Dingle, our current poet
laureate. She's doing great
work out on the community, and
I believe she'd like to share a
poem with you.
>> Hi, everybody. I'm Susan
Dingle, and it's really hard to
see everybody. So with your
permission, I will address
myself to the council. After
all, thank you so much for your
acknowledgment of the
importance of poetry in our
community. And in these days,
it seems more important than
ever before that we honor the
diverse voices of people in our
community. And I've I've had
the opportunity to, to support
and encourage so many people as
they have been finding their
voices. And I wrote down some
things that I was going to say,
but of course, I have forgotten
to pick up those pieces of
paper. I am the latest poet
laureate, following Armin
Tolentino, Gwendolyn Morgan and
Christopher Luna, and we have
all seen and encouraged the
development of so many, so many
things within our community.
And this year, somehow it seems
more than ever. There are so
many new poetry readings and
workshops and opportunities for
people throughout the county.
It's really quite amazing. And,
and so you could say that, that
we are celebrating Poetry Month
in Clark County every month.
One of the latest projects has
been something called Z lines.
I don't know if you folks have.
Have you heard of Xianz at all?
So we have some zinesters in
the crowd. So there has been a
wonderful new development
called the Kyniv Zine Swap, and
one of its many headquarters is
down the street on Main Street
at Birdhouse Books. And I just
happen to swing by and I picked
up a whole bunch of zines as a
gift for you. All these are.
These are one poem and one
piece of paper made into a
booklet by people who of all
ages and all walks of life, and
they're really just marvelous.
So I'm going to leave these for
all of you to have. And it
wouldn't really be proper.
Thank you to accept this
proclamation without some form
of a poem, but we do have a lot
of business to get to, so I'm
not going to read an epic. What
I will read is I've been doing
this thing for Poetry Month,
which I recommend to all of you,
which is writing a poem a day.
And I've been writing haiku and
I've just been doing it. And so
today's haiku, this is haiku
number 74, the wind scatters
all blossoms. Petals swirl and
spin, drift toward the curb. I
know it's epic, right? And now
one more. Just just because
this is called haiku 73, a
hydrangea bud between the
opening leaves shows in a tight
knot. So I recommend that all
of you write some poetry. We've
all got poetry in our souls, in
our spirits, as your
proclamation mentioned. So get
in touch with it and let it
come out. And thank you again.
>> Thank you. Thank you, Susan,
and I really appreciate the art.
Appreciate the Arts Commission.
Our paths have crossed a few
times over your term and it's
always been delightful. So
thank you very much. Okay, then.
Moving on to our next
proclamation, National
Volunteer Week, which will be
read by Councilor Ledell and
Shari Braga of the volunteer
Coordinator of Fort Vancouver
Regional Library's Operations
Center, will be accepting.
Welcome.
>> Thank you.
>> Thanks. I'm honored to do
this. I'm a little tall for
this one, so try to steal this
one. Okay? Whereas Clark County
joins other counties across our
great state and nation in
honoring community volunteers
during National Volunteer Week,
we celebrate the amazing
efforts that volunteers put
forth to support our libraries,
neighborhoods, schools, faith
based organizations, civic
groups, government agencies,
and more. Volunteers are
invaluable resource and are at
the heart and soul of our
cities, counties and nation.
And Whereas, volunteers create
positive change in our
communities by bringing their
compassion, their time, their
ideas, talents, technical
skills and professional
expertise to strengthen and
help our county flourish and
create a better quality of life
for our residents. They provide
support to recreation
activities, public education,
health and social services,
housing and food service
organizations, public safety
and emergency preparedness
agencies, literacy, learning,
and to environmental and
economic initiatives. That's a
lot. Volunteers help
communities provide basic human
services, spiritual support,
neighbor to neighbor assistance,
and assist in a power. Those
who have been marginalized and.
Whereas volunteers
contributions improve the lives
of all residents and help
maintain our local economy,
volunteers collectively
demonstrate their power to make
a difference and our
inspiration for all of us to
follow. And whereas Clark
County recognizes that city
volunteers are key to assisting
the county to meet the needs of
citizens and accomplishing our
community goals, we acknowledge
that volunteers help unite our
great county through their
selfless service. And whereas
during the week of April, we
call on all community members
and organizations to help us
thank, celebrate and recognize
the contributions of our
volunteers of all volunteers.
Now, therefore, the Clark
County Council does hereby
proclaim April 19th through
April 25th, 2026 to be National
Volunteer Week, signed by all
the councilors. Thank you so
much for what you do.
>> Thank you so much. We want
to thank all of the Clark
County Commissioners for your
support of volunteerism, and I
know many of you volunteer
quite a lot yourselves, so we
appreciate that. In addition, I
am Shari, the volunteer
coordinator from several
libraries, and in 2025, we had
862 volunteers that gave nearly
38,000 hours. Yeah, we honored
these generous donors of their
time over the last two
Saturdays at Ferar libraries.
These volunteers help with our
read to the dog programs, which
promotes reading amongst our
youngest citizens. Other great
volunteers lead our language
and art programs from
practicing ASL, Spanish,
Japanese, French and English to
line dancing to art shows. And
on the list goes, a lot of our
youthful volunteers lead our
gaming groups, which develops,
you know, creative skills and
wonderful social skills and
just an opportunity as a
community to, to gather
together volunteers also manage
our used bookstores, keeping
all those books, recycling into
good homes all across our
service area. They are
dedicated and they have hearts
of gold. Washington State is a
top performer in volunteering,
frequently ranking among the
top ten nationwide. According
to 2025 data, approximately
32.8% of Washingtonians engage
in formal volunteering, which
is higher than the national
average. Our state ranks eighth
for both total volunteers and
per capita volunteer rates.
These statistics are collected
by Peace Corps. We are also
ranked 14th among the most
charitable state in the 2025
WalletHub analysis. So I know
this room is filled with people
who volunteer, people watching
online, and we just wanted to
do a big shout out. And thank
you to all those that give
their time, that just make our
community a better place to
live and helping one another to
be neighborly and thoughtful.
And I'm a little biased, but
I'm especially thankful for all
those that help at the library.
So thank you for taking the
time to honor all those that
generously give their time
every single day.
>> Thank you Shari. We love our
libraries and the volunteers
are a huge part of making that
successful. So thanks a lot.
Okay, our final proclamation is
Education and Sharing Day. I
will read this one and Rabbi
Greenberg from the Chabad
Jewish Center of Clark County
will be receiving it.
>> As well. Thank you. AM I on?
Okay, here we go. Oh, okay.
>> Here we go. Whereas
education, the cornerstone
stone of a strong and free
society determines what we know
and shapes who we are in that
light, education is important
more than the mere transmission
of facts and figures. Rather,
it must prepare children for a
life of responsibility and
purpose, forming and
strengthening their moral
character. And whereas a global
spiritual leader and leading
advocate for the advancement of
education, Rabbi Rabbi Menachem
Schneerson of righteous Memory
stressed that the moral and
ethical education empowers
every individual to realize
their full potential and make
the world a better place. Such
an education can nurture the
unity of diverse peoples
through encouraging increased
acts of goodness and kindness,
imbued with the awareness that
even a single positive act of
an individual can change the
world and usher in an era of
global peace. And whereas March
29th, 2026 marked the 124th
year since the Rebbe's birth,
from childhood he envisioned a
world of peace and tranquility
for all and advance the sacred
responsibilities and ethical
values that have formed the
bedrock of society since the
dawn of civilization. To honor
the creator, respect life,
reject violence, act honestly,
value family, promote
generosity, and build a just
and moral society. And whereas
education and sharing day is
observed in each. Each year on
the Rebbe's birthday, in
recognition of his outstanding
and lasting contributions
toward the improvement of
education, morality and acts of
charity around the world. A day
to pause and reflect on our
responsibility to ensure our
youth have the foundation
necessary to lead lives rich in
purpose and fulfillment through
service and good works. Now,
therefore, we, the Clark County
Council, do hereby proclaim
March 29th, 2026, as Education
and Sharing Day in Clark County,
Washington, and call upon
government officials, educators,
volunteers, and citizens to
reach out to those within your
communities to work to create a
better, brighter, and more
hopeful future for all. Signed
this 21st day of April 2026 by
the entire Council. So thank
you for bringing this forward.
>> Thank you. Council Marshall.
Thank you. All the members of
the Council. Rabbi Greenberg
from the Chabad Jewish Center
of Clark County. As as the
council mentioned. Rabbi
Menachem Schneerson, the leader
of our generation of the Jewish
community. Of righteous memory
in 1990. In 1974, the rabbi
introduced a powerful idea not
just to give charity, but to
become people who gives,
encourage every home, every
classroom, every office, and
every factory. To have a
charity box as you're going to.
I will share it with all of you
here. Charity box. It's
basically like a piggy bank,
but for charity. That
encourages all of us adult
children to give, but to give
constantly encourage every. And
the goal was not just the
amount. It was the habit.
Because when a child gives
regularly, they go into adult.
Who cares? Over time, the hand
becoming a given hand and a
person becomes a given person.
That is why. So today I will
give this charity boxes the
honor and to celebrate that day.
Of his birthday. As a day that
we are basically start to
practicing this good habit of
giving. Although one day is set
aside as education and sharing
day, this message belonged to
every day of the year. Each of
us has the opportunity and the
responsibility to be an example
to teach by how we live, to
bring more kindness and
goodness into this world. May
God bless you all for all the
work, the important work that
you do for our country. And may
your effort bring blessings,
health, success, and happiness
for you and your families.
Thank you very much. Can I give
it? So just basically for
everybody here when you finish
the meeting.
>> Yep.
>> Thank you, thank you. We we
can we can set that by the back
door and people can pick one up.
And thank you very much for
sharing this with us today and
for bringing your children to
share them with us as well.
Okay. Hi. All right, let's
let's move on then to the
Pledge of Allegiance. If you'll
join me in standing and then
remain standing for the
invocation. Ken Turney from
Cassity Church will be
providing that.
>> Okay, try again here. I
appreciate this opportunity to
be afforded this, and I really
appreciate Clark County's
recognition of the wide variety
of faiths that make up this
this great county. It's not
always a given from government
agencies, and I think it's
commendable to do this. I
always feel it's incumbent on
me before I deliver an
invocation, that this is not
something I just do to be part
of a ceremony or the tradition,
and obviously not eye candy.
I'm just here to speak to you
directly from my heart, and I
sincerely mean the words I'm
about to share with you. And in
doing so, I stay true to my
faith and my conscience without
apologies. And I sincerely
invite everyone in this room to
participate or not, as your
faith and your conscience might
dictate to you. But if you
would join me in this moment of
invocation. Heavenly Father, I
thank you for this opportunity
to be here tonight. I pray that
you'll watch over the various
dealings that the Clark County
Commissioners will be dealing
with. Give them insight, give
them wisdom, give them
understanding, give them the
courage of their convictions,
and give them grace as they
deal with some issues, both
mundane and significant, that
may be divisive. Thank you for
their willingness to serve. I
thank you for every person in
this room and the proceedings
that will occur tonight. I ask
these things in the name of
Jesus Christ. Amen.
>> Okay, we'll move on to the
counselor. Roll call. Counselor
young here.
>> Counselor Belkot present.
Counselor Fuentes here.
Counselor. Little here. Chair
Marchel here.
>> Okay. Thank you for that.
Are there any amendments to the
agenda?
>> None tonight.
>> Okay, then. Moving on. We
have a public hearing on the
franchise agreement for that
beam LLC to operate and
maintain fiber optic
infrastructure in certain
rights of way in unincorporated
Clark County. And I can see the
team is coming forward to brief
us on this before we start
hearing from the public. So
welcome.
>> Udy. Good evening, Council
Chair.
>> Marshall Dean Shaddix with
Public Works. And tonight we're
introducing a request for
franchise agreement with Fat
Beam, another fiber company
entering into our community.
The franchise agreement itself
assists in protecting the
liability of the county, and it
is a relationship that we seek
with all utilities. And
unfortunately, we don't have
agreements with all utilities
within the community. So as new
providers come into the
community, we do seek the
franchise agreement to ensure
that we do have that
relationship with them. So if
there's any questions, we'd be
happy to expand on that a
little bit.
>> Are there any questions from
council? I don't see any. Is
that is that it for
presentation?
>> Yes, ma'am. There is a
representative here from Fat
Beam. If there are any direct
questions associated with their
infrastructure and their plans
to move forward.
>> Would you like to come
forward and say anything at
this time? Sure.
>> I'm happy to answer any
question on this on.
>> I don't know that we have
any questions at this time, but.
>> The CEO of fiber and we're.
Paul Merritt, the CEO for Fat
Beam Fiber. We've been in
business for over 15 years and
our internet service provider
only using the best
technologies. That's all fiber
connectivity. And we won the we
were awarded the school
district Evergreen School
District RFP to provide new
fiber connections to all 41
schools. And that's kind of
what what brought us here today
together. But we also look
forward to using that for
benefit of the community. We'll
be offering fiber services to
commercial service as well,
businesses that are around the
new fiber path, as well as
apartments and condos and
senior living as well. So yeah,
any questions for me? Happy to
answer any.
>> Good. Thank you very much.
No questions at this time. So I
think we'll hear from the
community. Has anyone signed up?
>> We do have one person that
signed up in the room chair,
and we do have a few that have
their hand raised online.
>> Okay. And just a reminder,
keep your comments to three
minutes and, and keep it to the
topic of this franchise
agreement.
>> Carmen de Leon.
>> Hi, my name is Carmen de
Leon and I go by Molodih. So I
read what I what the thing said
and I'm trying to understand,
but what I'm still
understanding is that they're
based out of another state. So
that means that the money is
going to be leaving the state.
And he just said that this is
for the schools. Well, just so
you know, I think it was Sweden
that determined over the last
generation that the children's
IQs had dropped. So they took
away all of the internet
services and decided to go back
to good old books and paper and
pencil and writing and forget
trying to learn online because
it's a joke and it has made our
kids stupid. So even though he
says this is for schools, I
don't know if schools really
need it because it's been
proven to make kids dumb
anyways. And another thing it
says is that it says 1.1 says
hazardous. Hazardous substances
means any substance that has
been determined by state law to
present a threat to human
health or the environment. Well,
I'm pretty sure that has come
proven that pornography is
damaging to the brain, and that
early access to internet. And
what the the brain isn't ready
developed for kids. So is there
anything on here that's going
to protect the children from
getting their hands on this?
Because we need the kids to not
have access to internet. We
need kids playing in the dirt,
climbing trees, and getting on
with real life and not thinking
that these things that they
really do reprogram the brain,
these fiber optics, the faster
they are, they're, they're,
they're rearranging the way
people think. It's affecting
people's cognitive upbringing.
And this is dangerous to rely
on the internet. It won't bring
back your hair or anything, but
it will sure confuse a lot of
people because it's going to
make more people brain damage.
In case you didn't know that,
you get used to getting things
on the internet, then you're
not used to reality anymore.
And that's a damn shame.
Another one says liability to
bodily injury. Okay, well, it's
going to cause brain damage and
we know it. And another one
says A failure to restore. So
after ten years, are we going
to look this back up? Because
from what I see, every time
they do something, it stays
that way forever. And I don't
see these people putting back
all the trees and all the
plants and all the grass after
they come and mow it all down
and built their structure. So
if you really want to help the
environment and stuff, we could
do it without this optic stuff
because we know it is for
control of the population. They
say it's convenience, but it's
actually control. They put up
these little fiber optic things
with the radars, and they said
they accidentally double
charged everybody. Oops. And
what if people didn't notice?
Oops. They just made a double
payment. So go ahead, screw
people over. We know you're
going to do it anyways.
>> Okay. Thank you for your
comments. Is there anyone else
in the room?
>> Nobody else signed up in the
room? We do have it looks like
one caller online.
>> Okay.
>> Caller you've been sent a
request to unmute. Please go
ahead and do so. Go ahead with
your public comment related to
the franchise agreement, only
the Fat Beam LLC and state your
name for the record. Thank you.
>> Good evening. And Jesus is
my savior. Amen. Kimberly
Gavenn Elbon live citizen of
Clark County, Washington. My
concern is that not only has
Fat Beam had no prior
discussion with the Clark
County Council. That's probably
why you don't have any
questions for them, but is now
a public hearing. So we're
having a public hearing when
they haven't presented anything,
any discussion before this
council, and it's the very day
it's submitted to the people.
My concern is not that beam
itself, but with this council
having no prior discussion with
this business and then asking
for a public hearing, I
questioned this form of
government and its process to
be transparent and timely to
the public. Also, we the people
also do not want any
communications in Clark County
that complied to a big
government during the next
pandemic. As Mr. Medvigy
mentioned years ago, we and or
during a lockdown attempt, you
must at that time serve the
people and our will. If
government tries to rule over
the people. And so I do have
some concerns about the
wetlands. I saw the map. It's
quite a large area that they're
going to be taking over. And,
you know, it says it leaves it
to where it looks like it might.
They're going to try to avoid
or minimize impacts on wetlands
located within and near the
right of way of this property.
So I have great concerns for
that. We can't touch any
wetlands anymore. And you take
a little here, you take a
little there, and before you
know it, we don't have any more
wetlands. And that's how it
goes. And we all know that
that's what the government does.
So we want to make sure that we
do not touch those wetlands.
Which brings me to the 5.1
hazardous substances. I mean,
I'm not sure about what's going
to be a hazardous substance
there, but as it reads here,
but since you didn't have any
discussion with this council,
they might not have read this,
that there is a possible waste
or pollutants or contamination
into this right of way, or the
county property that's there,
which is a public health hazard
to the people that will be
around there. Again, if memory
serves me right, I don't have
the map. I'm thinking it
somewhere there in the fourth
Plain Commons area, if I'm not
mistaken. But it's a big area
where there's a lot of people.
So we want to make sure there's
no hazardous substances at all,
and we want to not touch those
wetlands, in fact, build some
better wetland there if there's
wetlands there and make it more
presentable for the frogs and
the bees and the bugs and, you
know, grow cattails for that.
>> Okay. Thank you. Your time
is up.
>> Chair. That concludes public
comment.
>> Okay. Thank you. Are there
any concluding comments from
you folks?
>> None from the p a s office
chair. Happy to answer any
questions. So thank you.
>> Okay. Are there any
questions at this time? I think
it's pretty straightforward. If
not, I'll entertain a motion.
>> Chair, I move to approve
resolution number 2020 6-04-01I
second.
>> Thank you. It's been moved
and seconded. All those in
favor say aye aye aye. Motion
carries. Thank you very much.
Okay. Moving on now to open
public comment and comment on
the consent and separate
business items. So again, three
minute limit and and it's open
now. So anyone signed up?
>> Yes. Chair Jamie Bear.
>> Good evening, Clark County
Council. My name is Jamie Bear.
I am a Vancouver resident. I'm
a registered voter in district
three. And I am here because
I'm a public librarian. And
thank you, Chair Marshall, for
saying that you love the
library because I love the
library as well. I have 16
years experience working in the
public library. A decade of my
career has been spent here,
serving Southwest Washington at
Fort Vancouver Regional
Libraries. So don't take it
lightly when I say I love the
communities here in Southwest
Washington. I'm also a union
member. I represent AFSCME
local 307 L, the librarians
serving everyone across
Southwest Washington. And I'm
also a concerned citizen who is
concerned about the conduct of
the library's board. So you're
probably aware of the library
board setting aside the
strategic plan, which cost our
library district $400,000,
because there's a disagreement
of language, because they voted,
their concerns public came out
in force to talk about why they
supported the strategic plan as
written. The the our trustees
sat there for two months,
listened to hours of
overwhelmingly supportive
public comment, and then voted
on their own third option that
did not have review by the
public, that did not allow
public comment. And you maybe
weren't in that library board
meeting, but I was there. And
you cannot imagine my heart
breaking as a librarian
watching our public leave a
library board meeting,
disheartened, betrayed. The
trust in our library board has
been broken. Do you know how
many libraries there are in
Clark County? There are nine.
And of those nine, seven of
them have really active friends
groups. And if you don't know
who the friends groups are,
they are our most engaged, our
volunteer run. They raise funds
for the library just because
they love the library of those
friends groups. Six of them
voted no confidence in our
library board. These are our
people who do nothing but
things for the library, and
they do not speak up about
things because they trust the
library to do its work. This is
a canary in the coal mine. To
demonstrate the broken trust in
the library board. Now I'm
bringing this to all of you
because you have two candidates
coming up, Skamania County
candidate and a City of
Vancouver candidate. And I know
that in the past it's just been
a yes, we we trust in these
people, but we need you to
build a better board to serve
southwest Washington, where
everyone can see themselves in
the library, where people know
they are heard, where I can do
my work as a librarian. I'm
very excited to start your
Clark County Bookmobile this
year, but I need to know that
this county is actually going
to pay attention to what our
library board is doing, and
take accountability for the
board members they appoint.
Thank you.
>> Great. Thank you very much.
>> Maria Koch.
>> Hello.
>> My name is Marla Koch. I'm a
resident and enthusiastic
library user. I am also here to
speak on behalf of the
library's. I heard about some
rumblings in the library board
meetings, so I started
attending in December and I
listened for three board
meetings in a row as the
community came out strongly in
favor of adopting the five year
plan as written. At the end of
all that comment, the board
voted against it. I was
disappointed because I was for
it, but I was outraged because
they voted against what the
community was saying they
wanted. Now, maybe the whole
community isn't represented
there, but it was hundreds of
people. So I think that's
fairly representative. I know
you had a special hearing about
this, a workshop on on April
11th. And at the end of it, you
concluded that nothing was done
that would justify removal of
your library board members. I
would just like to throw this
out there. The word ethics was
at in dispute. They wanted the
word ethics removed from the
five year plan, and they wanted
to redefine intellectual
freedom to open the door for
censorship. The Library Board's
rules of ethics say that they
will maintain independent
judgment without regard to
personal benefit, special
interests or influence of
partizan political groups. I
feel like the word ethics is
charged because of Partizan
politics. So perhaps taking
issue with a word that buy in
and of itself has a definition,
has no charge to it might be
related to Partizan politics.
They are to avoid situations in
which personal interests might
be served. I don't want to
guess at their personal agenda,
but to vote against the
community might be serving some
personal interest, and they
should be prepared to support
the efforts of library staff in
resisting censorship. They were
working actively to allow
censorship. Another thing I'm
concerned about is you have two
people coming. Before they were
introduced last night at the
library board meeting, I did a
public request records request
on the Skamania County
candidate they're going to put
before you. His name is Richard
Maher. I'm looking at the
letter that he sent to to
promote himself. And he said, I
am committed to representing
the taxpayers in the district,
including the nearly 50% of
Skamania voters who did not
support the most recent library
levy. He is planning to be a
champion for people who aren't
in support of libraries, he
said. There are many ways
people seek out literacy,
education and freedom.
Libraries are one way but not
the only way. I know there are
opposing views, but I would
hope our library board are
champions for libraries. The
community needs them to be
champions for libraries, so
this will probably come up as a
consent agenda item soon. I
hope you'll take a serious look
at that candidate. Thank you.
>> Thank you very much.
>> Please forgive me if I say
this last name incorrectly.
Brad Lasse.p.
>> That's really good. Thank
you.
>> Oh thank you.
>> You. Get this up here, I'll
bend over. Good evening,
Council, I appreciate I
appreciate your time tonight.
My name is Brad Beck. I'm the
co-chair of the Hazuka Prenna
bands and the resolution
concerning non county sponsored
community events happened
because of us. So I thought I'd
give you a little bit of
background. I've been doing it
since 87. Costs go up every
year, just like it does for
everything in the world, and we
struggle to raise enough money
to do the parade every year. We
got an email from Public Works
that stated they wouldn't be
able to support the parade this
year, and it was only for it
was considered a private event.
Our big issue, I think, is that
we think it's a community event.
This year we have 27 bands. We
have 3500 people in the parade.
We have 15 to 20,000 people
that watch the parade. If the
weather is decent. As we know,
kids get to get candy. They do
chalk in the middle of the
streets. It's free to families.
All of our volunteers are not
compensated. I appreciate
county staff's working on this.
We got the point, quite
honestly, where we looked up
what it would cost us if we
could find anybody to do it, to
provide the services that
Public works provide. And it
was was not feasible
financially or logistically.
There was no way we were going
to be able to do it. So we were
going to thinking about
canceling the parade. For the
first time in 60 years, we
decided to throw a Hail Mary.
We contacted Councilor Belkot,
who represents most of our
district, as our district two
rep. She was able to meet with
county staff, the county
manager and give us a reprieve
for this year. And now the
resolution is in front of you.
That would take care of it for
five years. It puts a limit on
it. If it's a little bit over
the limit, we can probably
raise the funds for that, but
it does put a limit on it. We
do consider it a community
event, and we would appreciate
you if you would approve this
resolution. Thank you.
>> Thank you.
>> Carmen de Lehan.
>> Yeah.
>> I'm Carmen de Lehan. I go by
Melo. So it's my understanding
it's open public comment. I
don't have to stay on agenda
items, okay. Because to me it
may not seem like a big deal to
some people until it is. And to
me it is a big deal. And it is
when I look at New York that I
used to love to go to, I
wouldn't step foot there
anymore. They're having Sharia
law prayer three times a day at
Madison Square Garden. And it
sickens me because if I was to
do that, people would come up
to me. All your pushing your
agenda on me. Well, you know
what we need to look at behind
that. It says In God We Trust
in the white House. They're
reading the Bible from start to
finish right now. There's a
reason. Now I know it's not
perfect. I know you lose half
in the translation, but how
many lives have been saved
because it says do not kill?
Because it has given people
some guidance. I know it's not
perfect because it came from
humans. I don't think it's
perfect, but I know that Shari
Aleasha the hell ain't perfect.
Because if you're worshiping
somebody who likes to molest
children, you know, we gotta
have something in our what's it
called? They say it's racist
not to let them into the
country. I say it's protection.
And when our president says not
to let certain people into the
country because they have sworn
to kill Christians, they are
beheading us in other countries.
I worry because they are
outbreeding us. They're making
it cool to kill babies. Oh,
don't get pregnant. Don't worry
about it. You can have an
abortion. They've aborted
hundreds of millions of babies
that we could have used because
these people are having ten
kids. Muslims are having ten
kids, 12 kids. And our people
are saying, don't breed. What
are you, a breeder? They're
going to outbreed us and
they're already taking over one
of the cities I used to love to
party at, and now I won't step
foot. So if you want the United
States to stay the way it is,
we need to do something about
not letting them. Yeah, go go
ahead and talk to the
legislators about not letting
certain people into the country
because they're not here to
join us. They're here to
overthrow us. And the devil is
happy when we don't believe in
God. And I've written that even
the demons are smarter than
atheists, because demons fear
the name of the Lord, and the
demons want you not to have a
god because you're easier led.
So I'm just saying it's not
racist to stand up for being a
us God loving person. And I
mean Jesus Christian faith and
to put a ban on Sharia law
because they say that certain
states are letting people marry
12 year old girls, man, come on.
You know, so it's not, you know,
you say you think people are
hating on you and we're not.
We're just saying, you know
what? In my religion, my God
says, maybe you believe in me,
maybe you don't. But theirs is.
If you don't believe in me, I'm
going to kill you. And I have a
problem with that. I hope you
guys find the same problem I do.
>> Okay. Is there anyone else?
>> I don't have anybody else
signed up in the room. Does
anybody else in the room know?
We do have a few online.
>> Okay.
>> Caller, you've been sent a
request to unmute. Please go
ahead and unmute. State your
name for the record and go
ahead with your comment.
>> Good job. Kimberly. Going
Elbon tho Proclamation on
Education and Sharing Day reads
nicely and has good ideas. But
this is about a man, a Rabbi
Menachem Schneerson, and he did
not teach children and adults
about Jesus our Savior. In fact,
his teachings explicitly
rejected the core tenets of
Christianity under his
leadership. Published materials,
clarified that a Jew cannot
believe in Jesus and must
remain within the bounds of
traditional Judaism. They view
movements like Jews for Jesus
as deceptive and contrary to
Jewish faith. Many of his
followers believe the rabbi was
the Messiah himself. Read up on
this for yourself. But here we
have our local Clark County
Council proclaiming Sek and I
quote education and sharing day.
I call foul consent number nine.
The two watch monitoring
includes an alcohol monitor on
which is called a Scram ankle
bracelet, and this funding is
greatly needed for those who
cannot pay $600 a month as a
release out of jail requirement.
As my son was required to
monitor, but funding had
stopped months ago, or he would
be a free presumed innocent man.
Today, criminal lead prosecutor
Dan Gasperino knows my son
Cleghon Tsarenko is innocent of
wrongful assault. One charged
and his case is my number one
duty for law and justice to
become truthful and
constitutional, which will stop
what I consider a broken
judicial system here in Clark
County. My duty includes
consent number ten and 11 for
the district court as I fell
victim there. And I'm actively
pursuing accountability for my
case. Consent number 14. My
concerns are for Clark County
Fairgrounds is the LED lighting,
and even though it seems like a
great light source, I'm
concerned about constant
flickering that is difficult
for the eye to see, but is
definitely there as it can
cause eye strain, eye fatigue,
headaches, dry eye and sleep
disorders. LED emits high
levels of blue light, which can
be harmful for children and the
elderly. So please take note
and ask questions of health
concerns before installation of
those lights under a separate
business. Number two employment
agreement for Kathleen Otto,
the Clark County manager. First,
and I've said this before, I
believe this most powerful job
must be an elected position.
Then we the people can hold
that job accountable and have
our power back. As a Christian
and a caring individual, I
respect Kathleen Otto and her
knowledge very much. Yet it's
too much power for an unelected
top official, and she'll earn
$20,902 a month, which is
approximately $690 a day, plus
bonuses and comps. Again, this
is a very important position
that must be held accountable
to the people.
>> Thank you. Your time is up.
>> Kaliner you've been sent a
request to unmute. Please go
ahead and do so. State your
name for the record and go
ahead with your comment. Julie
Kapp you've been sent a request
to unmute. Please go ahead and
do so and go ahead with your
comment.
>> Go ahead and move on to
Lande.
>> Wendy Cleveland, we've sent
you a request to unmute. Please
go ahead and do so and go ahead
with your comment.
>> Hi, it's Wendy Cleveland.
I'm calling in tonight to ask
members of the council to pull
separate business item two from
the agenda for further
consideration. It feels like
this is a very important
decision that has been tucked
away into an exceedingly long
list of items scheduled for
approval in mass. The decision
as to whether the current
county manager stays in her
role for another term seems to
be something that should have
been discussed, even voted on
by the council. If that
discussion has indeed taken
place, I would ask if that
violates the Open Public
Meetings Act. Shouldn't the
public be aware of such
decisions and possibly be given
the opportunity for input? Was
anyone in the room there
tonight even aware of this item
listed for approval in mass? I
for one have questions. What
was the process? Were there
other applicants? Was the job
listed publicly for the general
public to be aware of? The
salary for County manager is
currently $238,880, but will be
increasing to 250,000 next year.
Additionally, I'm asking for
members of the council to pull
consent agenda item number 24.
Why is the count? Why is the
council considering allocation
of additional funds to the
cleanup of Camp Bonneville when
we still don't have a progress
report from the last two years,
the company doing the cleanup
consulting work has already
been given 100,000 a year ago
and approval for an additional
year for another 1 to 200,000,
with nothing more to show for
it than a feasibility study,
according to county staff. Last
time I asked the same question,
the Brac agreement clearly
states that no recreational use
may take place on that property
until which time? That that
cleanup is complete. Both the
sheriff department and the FBI
were using it under that header.
The council voted to end the
FBI contract, which they should,
but left the sheriff's
department to continue its use
while breaking the same part of
the Brac agreement that the FBI
was. Now we hear there's even
more money being allocated to
the same property. Finally, we
will be talking more about the
comp plan in the hearing next
Monday at 4 p.m. but before
then, I just want to remind you
that the property that you are
considering expanding the UGA
for in battleground bears
further consideration. BG had
around 100 acres left of light
industrial. Within their city
limits. They sold 60 of these
acres to the same company as
Maddix Industrial. That company
has publicly stated that they
plan to use those last precious
60 acres of light industrial
zoned land to build a church, a
convention center and a hotel
that is non designated use of
light industrial land that can
only be allowed per the GMA in
Washington state law. If the
city can show a surplus of
industrial zoned land, I don't
think the BG has a surplus of
industrial land because if they
did, then why did they give the
argument to the Planning
Commission that they must be
allocated 450 acres of what is
wetlands and land with ag
capability for light industrial
JPG said they needed it to meet
the comp plan goal by 2045 of
7500 new jobs. But I ask you,
how many factories employing
500 workers apiece could they
have fit on the same 60 acres
within their already existing
light industrial area? Thanks
for your consideration.
>> Thank you. And just to
clarify, the employee agreement
between Clark County and the
County Manager is on the. What
is that called? Separate
business item number two, not
the consent agenda. Does anyone
else have two? Okay.
>> Julie, we've sent you a
request to unmute. Please go
ahead and do so and go ahead
with your comment. Julie, if
you could unmute yourself. Okay.
Just mute her. Yep. Caller,
you've been sent a request to
unmute. Please go ahead and do
so and state your name for the
record.
>> Hit it one more time.
>> Color.
>> All right. Good evening.
Hopefully you can hear me.
>> Yes. Thank you.
>> Yeah. It's Rob Anderson here.
Rumors of my demise were
greatly exaggerated. And I'm
speaking tonight to oppose the
proposed employment agreement
for County Manager Otto. That
would raise her pay to $250,000
in 2027. Last fall, Manager
Otto stood before you and the
public recommending a 1%
property tax increase bank
capacity, telling us the county
faced a structural deficit and
we needed to contribute more of
our hard earned money to keep
services running. Now, just a
few months later, she's back
asking you to shift some of
that money into her own pocket
with double digit raise on top
of the 20% she already received
a few years back. So over
$300,000 a year. That's with
salary and benefits estimated.
This isn't public service as we
once understood it. Public
servants used to accept lower
pay than the private sector
because they received
outstanding retirement benefits.
In the rest of us, you know,
mostly don't get. Now, some
public servants want both while
the public is stuck paying the
bill. In 2022, the county
manager made $180,000 in. Now
it'll be 250,000 in 2027, a
huge increase. While Clark
County residents have seen only
three 4% wage growth overall.
Approve this and you send the
message that the rules are
different for the people at the
top. Some of you say you're for
affordability and the working
class or underprivileged groups
while you vote for this and
raising taxes. Vote after vote
really shows your true values.
I urge you to reject this
agreement, or at least just
have an increase of 3%, only
similar to most Clark County.
Thank you so much.
>> Thank you. Is there anyone
else?
>> That concludes public
comment.
>> Thank you. Okay, let's move
on then to the consent agenda.
Are there any items? We have a
long consent agenda. Are there
any items anyone would like to
pull? Councilor young.
>> Yes, chair. I'd like to pull
items 15, 21 and 24. Oh my.
>> Okay. 15, 24 and 25. 21 and
20 oh 21 and 24 okay. Anyone
else I would like to pull five.
Okay. Any other pulls from the
consent agenda? So I would
entertain a motion then for
consent agenda items one
through. 29, with the exception
of five, 15, 21 and 24.
>> So moved.
>> It's been moved. Is there a
second.
>> Second.
>> Moved and seconded. All
those in favor say I.
>> I.
>> I thank you. Item five. So
this I let folks know that I
had some questions or just
wanted to have a little more
explanation of this item
related to the. Amount that to
be used for the fund balance
from the fund balance to the
2026 operating budget. Maybe
I've got that wrong, but if you
could, I don't think the
council has heard about this.
So and the other two items that
we have talked about. So if you
could just brief us a bit.
>> Thank you. Council.
>> Mark Clark, County finance
director with me is Mitchell
Kelly. He is our reporting and
analysis manager. Each year we
come to the council to request
the amount to assign. It's a
designation within our
financial statements that
indicate that there is a
specific amount that we are
setting aside of our fund
balance for specific purpose,
and I'll turn the time over to
Mitchell, and he's going to
explain the components that we
are requesting to have assigned
this year. So this.
>> Yes. Mitchell Kelly
Reporting and Analysis Manager.
So as discussed, we have
identified budgeted capital
projects that will continue on.
And that's the first item. The
second item is for continuation
of projects that were already
approved by Council for the
Arpa. Remaining Arpa funding.
The final one is to be used to
balance the fund balance for.
For the 2026 budget. So we're
designating or assigning that
so we don't overspend our
available cash or available
fund balance, and we're
assigning it to cover what has
been budgeted.
>> And that fund comes those
funds come from.
>> Our our fund balance. That's
remaining.
>> That's remaining.
>> That has been remaining over
time. So we have a fund balance
that's a certain amount. And
we're just assigning this to
cover what has been approved by
council for 26.
>> Okay. Was this anticipated
when we went through our
budgeting? Yes. It was okay.
Great. Thanks.
>> Yes.
>> Any other questions from
anyone? Okay. Well I'll
entertain a motion to approve.
>> So moved.
>> It's been moved. Is there a
second?
>> Second.
>> Moved and seconded. All
those in favor, say I.
>> I.
>> I thank you very much. Okay.
Moving on then to 15 Jaylee
services. Yep. Go ahead.
>> Yes, chair. Thank you. And
and I see director shook online
there. What I would like to
understand is. A little just a
little bit more background
behind this. I mean, this is a
program that we initiated a
couple years ago, I think, and
we've been part of the process.
Now we're canceling that
process because there were some
obstacles that we couldn't jump
through. But I'm hoping that
you can explain this a little
bit more in in detail and help
us to understand what the
impacts are going to be for the
jail.
>> Absolutely. Chair and
Council counselor Young David
Shook, director of jail
Services. So you're correct.
About two years ago, May of
2024, we came to council and we
requested permission to
participate in this reentry
demonstration initiative for
Medicaid through the Washington
Health Care Authority. Part of
being of the cohort one was our
goal was to help to kind of be
a part of developing the system.
When the health care authority
started this project and these
different initiatives, they
came at it or they approached
it from a medical kind of a
format. So many of the jails in
Washington state to include our
own. While we have a vendor who
does healthcare for us, they
are not providing the direct
services where we're actually
getting fully reimbursed for
any sort of Medicaid. And so
there's no other departments in
our county that does provide
direct services where we
already have existing Medicaid
processes in different things.
And so two years ago, we
reached out or we got some
project positions to help us to
build this system. We went
through 3 or 4 hiring processes
and we could not find anybody
to help us with that. We
reached out throughout the
state through different
technical advisor groups and
and again, for the size of jail,
we have the kinds of medical
that we're providing. Some of
the expectations of this
initiative is that once you
started, all inmates that
qualify would actually have
these services because of our
1984 facility, because of the
way that we provide medical and
not having a facility, the
actual how the facility set up
capable of getting every inmate
in to assess, to evaluate, to
get signed up, all those kinds
of things. The other part is
some of the funding that they
provide. Well, you could
actually hire employees to do
it or new like support staff to
accomplish that. Many of the
processes they don't fully pay
for. And so the county would
have had to provide the other
components of that. And so we
approached this with a very
conservative look, because when
we transition away from the
sheriff's office, our support
team was was minimal. And so we
didn't have a lot of extra
staff to throw into this
project to additionally do that.
And again, being careful about
the rest of the system, the
budget and all those kinds of
things. So we took a very
conservative approach. Again,
we weren't able to get the
answers from the state
technical advisors that were
helping to kind of push
different jails. And so the
jails that saw were able to
move forward from cohort one
and 2 to 3. We did that. We
moved along and delayed our
implementation of the program,
waiting for that additional
arrival. The other thing which
we don't have is an electronic
health record. Our vendor has
one, but they don't fully do
any sort of billing to Medicaid
either. And so adding in
different contracts amounts for
that component to be added to
the system for us to buy one of
those systems is estimated to
be about $1 million. And the
state had been working on a
statewide EHR electronic health
record, but it's not going to
be ready until 2020 7th July.
And as you can see, the dates
on this, this initiative, this
initiative goes for three years,
and there is no information yet
that is going to continue
beyond that. And so again, we
didn't spend any of the money
just looking at all the hurdles
that we were trying to approach.
Now, there are some things we
continue to build. Again, we
have some of those project
positions that we continue to
try to get into place to see if
we can build some of those. But
at this point, the state
approached us in January or
February and said, are you all
going to be fully implemented
by July 1st? And we again, we
discuss with them the hurdles
that we as our jail was having.
And they said, if you can't do
it, we need our $150,000 back.
And so that's, that's the, the
position that we're in now. I
don't know if that's helpful.
>> Yes, that is helpful. What I
would like to understand is the.
Because we were pretty excited
about this when when it first.
>> Absolutely.
>> So what direct impacts does
that mean? What does that mean
for our ability to provide
services in the jail?
>> Nothing changes with the
services that we're providing
now. Not all the services that
we actually provide now would
qualify under the Medicaid
waiver. So we wouldn't be
reimbursed for those basic care
procedures that were providing
currently only some of the
services. And again, that's
part of the coordination and
management of that health
system through our vendor.
Again, not everything that we
have to do or required to do to
take care of our inmates would
actually qualify. Understanding,
talking to some of the other
entities around the state, they
were only getting about 30% of
the effort that they were
putting back reimbursed 30%.
And so the counties or the
cities that were actually able
to move forward or did move
forward. So example King County,
they have a full health
facility that already does
billing to Medicaid. So it
really just added to what they
were already doing in that
existing. And we just didn't
have that. So we're not
lessening the ability to do
anything. We're growing our
jail transition stuff. We're
we're adding different programs
with Udy through opioid
abatement and the mental health
sales tax. So we're, we're
definitely growing in those
areas. We just are not able to
fully 100% all inmates take
care of this requirement. That
would be put on us as a jail
director.
>> Shook. This was a pilot
program, right? Because I'm
remembering this from the
legislative conversations with
Wawzonek. Right?
>> That's my that's my
understanding. It's a three
year pilot project.
>> Yeah. And how many counties,
not all counties participated
in it. Right. I'm trying to go
back a little bit.
>> No, actually, many jails
actually have pulled out of
this initiative. I can get you
the exact number if you would
like it.
>> Yeah. No, I recall this from
my legislative conversations.
So yeah, it was like a let's
try and see. Not that we have
lost anything. Thank you.
>> Any other questions? Thank
you for your efforts in this
realm, because it did seem as
though it could be a great
resource for us, as
disappointing and disappointing.
You had to put all the effort
in and it not work out, but
appreciate your your work on
this.
>> Well, we're definitely going
to continue working with the
state in other areas to improve
what we can do. And then again,
if they continue it beyond 2028,
we'll definitely jump in when
we can.
>> Great. Thank you. Okay. If
there's no other questions,
I'll entertain a motion to
approve item 15.
>> So moved.
>> It's been moved. Second
moved and seconded. All those
in favor say I, I motion
carries. Okay. Moving on then
to item 21, councilor Young.
>> Yes. Thank you. Appreciate
Councilor Belkot for bringing
this forward and know that
history. Looking forward to
this. I think that when I first
read this, I'm like, this is
fantastic because I fully agree.
I mean, we talk about for the
greater good, this is
definitely a place where we're
looking at that for the greater
good. My question, there's
actually kind of two questions
with this. One is how, what,
what process do we look at for
people who are organizing
events to be able to see if
they're able to do so at no
charge? I'll just ask that and
go ahead and then I'll come up
a second question.
>> Thank you, councilor Ken.
Later, Public Works Director
And with me is Steve Gallup,
our transportation division
manager, our traffic engineer.
Also available for any legal
questions that might come up.
Kevin McDowell is is back there
and can help us as well. So
Steve, I'm going to let you
answer that question. And then
I assume you might have some
others as well.
>> There. So we have with the
staff report, we list some
eligibility criteria to be able
to have the the waiver of
$5,000. So. I don't know if you
want me to go through that
eligibility list.
>> Well, not so much
eligibility, but more as if I
mean, I don't know how many
venues would, you know, would
attempt to receive these
waivers of fees. And so if
there's more entities than
$5,000 covers, what, what
happens there? And how is
priority determined? Is it a
first come, first served?
>> It's it's not a first come,
first serve. It is based on,
you know, if you're going to
have a parade or a public event
in the right of way, like, for
example, you've heard the Hazel
Dell Parade band of parades or
excuse me, parade of bands.
They, you know, like Hawks and
Funds day parade, the, the
Burst Brush, Prairie car Show
and boy Territorial Days parade.
So it's typically those parades
that we have.
>> I think I read, I didn't, I
didn't make connect the dots on
this maybe is it any entity can
can get up to that makes it
better. Okay, I thought it was
a total waiver, like annually
of $5,000.
>> Okay. That makes.
>> A big difference. Okay.
>> Thank you.
>> And I can share this is
solidifying past practice in
supporting those events in the
unincorporated area. So this is
just formalizing it for record
keeping and for parameters for
staff. If we were to get other
requests.
>> Great. And then the other
question that I had was with
with insurance, and I know that
tends to be a, it can be
another financial barrier to
some of these events. And so I
was just curious if you I know
I'm sure legal team looked at
this, but are we doing our best
to make sure that the insurance
requirements are such that
these organizations can
actually procure that insurance.
>> Is there even insurance tied
to this?
>> Yes, there is, and it's the
second item here on the staff
report. So doing our best to
ensure that they can meet the
insurance needs. I mean, this
is this is to protect the
county of course, as well as
the event holders in in the
event something should happen.
So it's pretty standard
practice for us to indemnify
and have the insurance request.
So I'm not sure exactly.
>> I guess my question would be
are we looking at those, the
levels of coverage that are
required and making sure that
they're appropriate and not way
out of the ballpark?
>> I, I assume so we haven't
done this process yet, though.
>> Maybe. Amber.
>> Good evening. Chair.
Councilor Amber Smith Chief
Civil Deputy Prosecuting
Attorney To clarify, normally
with the processes and what we
look at through contract review
for the legal team or the
deputy prosecuting attorneys
that work for you, we ensure
that there is indemnification
language and there's insurance
language. The Clark County Risk
Management Department, that's
part of HR and risk management.
They are the ones that work
closely with our actuaries to
help figure out what are the
appropriate levels for
insurance based on. Generally
speaking, it's event sizes,
what types of things were bound
to occur. Other factors and
variables. And we asked the
offices and departments to work
closely with risk management
and finding what those
appropriate levels are.
>> Okay, so are those levels.
Can they be different for
different events tailored kind
of to that, or is it just a
blanket policy for all events?
>> I would say presumably, but
I don't speak on behalf of the
risk management team. With
respect to that. I can say from
past practice and experience
that I've had with other
jurisdictions, but not maybe
necessarily directly here, that
the risk team does, in fact,
look at different factors and
variables when it comes to
different levels of insurance,
when it comes to a myriad of
things.
>> Okay. And don't take I mean,
we need to make sure that the
that that the insurance is
appropriate. I just if we have
a one size fits all, it can be
very onerous for small events.
>> Yeah. No, it is, it is
reviewed based on what is being
considered.
>> Okay, perfect. And that's
not addressed in, in the
resolution. I'd just like to
note that the resolution simply
provides that insurance is
required. It also sets forth
who the additional insureds
need need to be named as the
county, the county's officers,
employees. So. So it's simply
setting the framework for.
There has to be insurance.
Here's what the. Here's who the
insurance has to cover the
limits itself. And the type of
coverage is actually not even
addressed in this resolution.
>> Great. Thank you. Appreciate
it.
>> Thank you. Kevin.
>> I'll go ahead and move
approval of item number 21.
>> Okay. Any further questions?
It's been moved. Is there a
second? Second moved and
seconded. All those in favor
say I, I, I thank you very much.
Sorry for any drama that was
created. And thank you,
Councilor Belkot, for helping
to figure this one out. Okay.
Item 24.
>> That would be me again.
>> And council. I again can
later. Public works director.
I'll just introduce Betsy as
she's coming up. This is Betsy
Wing, our program manager for
Camp Bonneville. She'll be able
to answer most of your
questions, I'm sure.
>> So I don't really have any
questions. I just, you know, I
mentioned before, pretty much
any time something comes up on
Camp Bonneville, I, I plan to
pull it just so that it's a
more public conversation and
that the people can understand
a little bit more about it. So
just go ahead and give us a
summary of, of what this
particular item is and what it
means and anything else that
you feel like the public might
need to know.
>> Sure. So this item that's
before you is a request to
approve amendment number 19 for
the Environmental Services
Cooperative Agreement, number
W9128F0620160. For Camp
Bonneville. This is a. This, as
the name implies, is a
cooperative agreement that the
County has with the Army. This
is as evidenced by, you know,
this is the 19th amendment.
This is a process that has been
ongoing and the. This
particular amendment has been
developed in consultation with
the Army. After the county
reviewed spending that has been
ongoing over the past year in
order to implement required
institutional controls for the
property, for the cleanup
actions. And there's been
increased spending. And so one
of the contract line items,
number 11, which is for
institutional controls, we
noticed was dwindling. And part
of the agreement allows for us
to move funds around as needed.
So essentially what this
amendment does is reallocate
funding to allow for the county
to continue implementation of
institutional controls. That's
done through moving remaining
funds and line item number 12,
which was for Clark County
oversight time. Excuse me,
Clark County oversight overtime
that is actually accounted for
and line item 11 already. So
we're just consolidating funds
there. And then we're also
moving funds from, I believe
it's 14, which is the
Washington State Department of
Ecology's line item for their
oversight work. They've been
doing extensive oversight work
of late relating to the
periodic review and. Our UTC,
RAF's work remedial
investigation feasibility study.
We expect that pace to slow
down now that the periodic
review is behind us. And while
they will continue to be
billing again, we don't expect
as high of a billing as we've
been seeing. And then lastly,
we had asked to open up line
item 13, which relates to long
term obligations. This line
item was, I believe in 2011 was
the last time that that number
was updated. And so not only
were we asking to be able to
access these funds to use
towards our long term
obligations, which relate to
caring for institutional
controls, making sure that
they're maintained, but to
adjust that number to account
for inflation. And so that
increased budget is reflective
of that inflation number. So
and lastly, there's an
increased period of performance
for the line item 11 for the
institutional controls
implementation. It just allows
us to access those funds for a
longer period of time. And
keeping with some of the other
line item periods of
performance, I also just
quickly want to note in the
staff report, there's a typo
related to one of the line
items. It says 13. When it says
14, and additionally, the
attached agreement from the
Army, the modification, the
period of performance for line
item 11, it says 28. Now we
actually have a revised version
that states. 2053 I think it is.
And that's what's stated in the
staff report. It's just not
reflected in that attached
table. We have that updated
document. So I just wanted to,
for the record clarify that.
>> So the 2053 is accurate.
>> That is correct.
>> Wow. That's a long time.
>> It is a long time.
>> Yeah.
>> Unfortunately. Yes.
>> Okay. Thank you. Appreciate
it.
>> So just a quick question
just to so this is purely just
a funding contracting
modification, moving things
around and then stating the pop.
As I say, my, this is what I do
for a living. So that's all it
is. It's just to correct the
period of performance at the
end.
>> That's correct. Yeah. And I
know there was a comment that
came in suggesting that it was
for increased costs for
remediation work, and that is
not the case here.
>> Okay, great. Any other
questions? Thanks for that
clarification. Of course. Is
there a motion to approve?
>> So moved.
>> Thank you. Is there a second?
Second moved and seconded. All
those in favor say I. I motion
carries. Thank you. Okay. That
concludes the consent agenda
and moving on to separate
business. And this is from the
county manager. Request
approval for additional full
time equivalents for law and
justice personnel.
>> Yes. Good evening. Council.
So before you tonight is the
request approval to of
additional employees for Law
and Justice using the newly
approved criminal justice sales
tax. Just as a reminder, the
Washington state legislature
approved two additional funding
sources to support law and
justice. One was a local law
enforcement grant program, and
the second was a councilman at
Criminal Justice sales and Use
tax. This request is specific
to the Sales and Use Tax.
Council previously discussed
the specific tax five times in
the last year, recognizing the
need for the sheriff to add
additional deputies and
provided the initial direction
to bring this request back to
council for final consideration.
This request specifically seeks
Council's approval to add
additional staffing, including
26 employees in the sheriff's
office. That includes 21
deputies, one of which will be
dedicated to the heart team.
One sergeant, a volunteer
coordinator, communications
specialist and two support
staff. Additionally, 43 law and
justice employees will be added
to support the impact of the
additional law enforcement that
includes the courts, the
clerk's office, jail services,
public defense and prosecuting
attorney. And then finally,
there will be three central
service positions supporting
this for payroll, HR and budget.
Please note that the Sheriff's
Office deputies will be added
as positions become available,
and then the support or
impacted departments will be
added as the impacts come to
fruition. There is a draft
headcount summary attached to
the staff report that has the
estimated timing. But I want to
be clear though, this is not
solidified in stone as the
Sheriff's office will add new
deputies as they have as
they're ready to become filled.
There's also a draft six year
financial forecast that's
attached for the new tax. This
will be updated annually during
the budget process. Just to
true up, what actually occurred
as positions are hired. And
just further note this does not
fully commit the new tax that
we're receiving. And there will
be discussions with Council for
policy direction on future
allocations, which could
include additional Sheriff's
office employees, law and
justice. Looking at our deficit
and other options. As the
council may recall, Law and
Justice partners have been
actively engaged in discussions
over the past couple of years,
identifying their needs and the
impact to increasing law
enforcement personnel and the
importance of ensuring that
that system is reviewed
holistically to ensure that the
adequate resources are there,
are there to maintain a
functional system. Again,
before you tonight is the
request to solidified the
council support for adding
additional Sheriff's Office
deputies and other related
positions. Happy to answer any
questions Council may have.
>> Questions. Counselor Fuentes,
your lights on. Other questions?
>> I don't have any questions.
Just a quick comment. You know,
I've been on the council now
for close to three and a half
years, and this is an issue
that I wanted to address from
day one. And it is a it is nice
to be able to do this, to add
deputies in law enforcement in
our community. And I'm grateful
for the the revenue source that
was allowed or given us the
opportunity to use from the
state. Otherwise, this would
not be happening because we did
not have the resources. So
happy to give you the the help,
Sheriff, and support the work
you do. And this is the
beginning of a larger
conversation, like you said, on
how we're going to be able to
use the remainder of the funds
to bolster Lannen justice in
our community.
>> I have some questions on the
six year forecast, because as
I'm looking at this and it
looks like. So, so we don't
have a full year for 26, and
then in 27 it looks like it's
close to 15 million. And then
as you keep going out, the
price tag gets it looks like
higher and higher. But the
resource doesn't go up as much
as the, the cost. And I just it
doesn't look like we have very
much really left to do much by
way of either adding additional
staffing besides the headcount
that was put together or. Or
anything we might want to do
related to addressing our
structural deficit. So I just
have concerns that this is a
great kind of windfall for us.
But as we look out, as far as
all of law and justice needs,
it's it's not it's not going to
get us there.
>> Yeah, unfortunately, I don't
it's not based on what you have
seen from, I'm not going to say
just for law and justice, but
for general fund departments
there. It's there is a
structural deficit. This has
the projection, I don't know.
Yeah. Larry still here. They
can help. But this the
projection for the revenue is
in accordance with what we use
for other sales tax. The
expenses on here is an estimate
based on today. But this is
going to change depending on
when people get hired. And we
also have to increase that
because their employees. But
you can see the projecting
ending fund balance there
actually increases over the
years. So so for 2027, it's at
the 11.1 million and it
increases out to 2031 to 37.3
million. Is it going to fully
balance us. No, but it will
certainly make an impact that's
needed. And council is going to
have more detailed discussions
on available funding here on
what your priorities are, as
well as other funding sources
that you may want to consider.
>> When might we have those
discussions.
>> Trying to solidify
everything? I'm hoping within
the next month. But I mean,
because we got Jaylee that we
need to talk about, we got
sheriff's office, we got law
and justice. We've got, you
know, we have a lot. And I
think it's all going to come to
you in a nice little package
that you can have a discussion
to determine where your
priorities are.
>> And including public defense.
>> Yes.
>> Yeah. Okay. Sheriff, would
you like to add anything?
Welcome. Glad you could be here.
>> Good evening everyone. I
know it's getting late. I won't
we've had long discussions
about this over the years. As
we've talked about. I know some
of the councilors are are newer,
but three of you have been
around a long time. I think the
county manager put everything
together in a package. We've
been working on this since you
took the vote last July or
August. We've been working on
this personnel issue, so I
appreciate your tentative vote
in November. And I'm hoping
that assuming that the vote is
positive tonight, I thank you
for that. The employees. Thank
you for that. I know Kathleen
mentioned it, but that
projection doesn't have. If we
do get some of that grant money,
it's a good thing. We put in
for about 6 million and the
jail put in for about 3 million.
And we we can use those if we
get approved for that, for full
time employees until that runs
out or however much we get. So
that's a that's a bonus factor
that's not up there, but we
can't count on yet because we
haven't heard back yet on that.
So.
>> Right. And as I understand,
that can move things along more
quickly in terms of hiring.
>> Yes, exactly. And as of 2 or
3 weeks ago, and I sent you at
least the chair, an email, we
were actually at zero vacancies.
That's the first time I've ever
seen that in 37 years. It only
lasted for about two days
because every organization is
going to have vacancies. But we
actually went to zero and we
were ready to hire had the, you
know, if there was tax money in
there. So we've from 23, 24
vacancies a few years ago, we
keep it within zero to 3 or 4.
>> Thank you.
>> Thank you. Any other
questions.
>> Go ahead.
>> No this is just a long time
coming. I fully support it. I'd
like to move separate business
item number one.
>> So the plan.
>> Okay. Thank you for your
motion. Is there a second?
>> Second.
>> Moved and seconded. Any
further discussion?
>> No.
>> All those in favor say I. I
motion carries. Thank you very
much. Okay then. Moving on to
item two. I have some notes
here I need to refer to. Okay,
so this is request to approve
employment agreement between
Clark County and Kathleen Otto.
I have a little background
information to provide just
just in terms of the county
manager has worked for Clark
County since 2020. And
historically, there's been more
informal performance
evaluations. But this past year,
in 2025, we completed we
established and completed a
more formal evaluation process.
And to ensure that this
continues forward, the chair,
whoever the chair may be, will
initiate the process annually,
and that will be referenced in
our rules and procedures when
we get around to adopting those.
And then also, the raise may
seem high, but to provide some
context, the county manager's
position was not included in
the contract Baker Tilly study
that was done, which was a
county wide assessment for
compensation, because several
years ago we were falling very
much behind. And as a result of
not being competitive in terms
of salaries, we were we were
losing staff. It was having a
significant impact. So for
whatever reason, the county
manager's position was not
included. And then also
something that begins to occur
if that position doesn't keep
up with the prevailing
comparables is compression,
where those who are working
under the county manager are
paid, getting closer and closer
to her salary. So that was an
issue that needed to be
addressed as well. And I would
just say that through the
process, the evaluation process,
which included reaching out to
the all of the department heads
and the countywide electeds to
get their input, the evaluation
was very positive and in most
cases exceeded expectations. So
this was the recommendation.
Maybe I could read the
recommendation in terms of
salary. Well, the terms would
be May 1st 2026 through
December 31st 2028, with an
option to extend one additional
year on mutual agreement and
the salary levels that are
outlined in the report would,
which again are comparable to
public sector organizations of
comparable size and
responsibility. Effective May
1st, 2026, the annual salary
will be 238,880 effective
January 1st, 2027, it moves to
250,824 annually, plus consumer
price index adjustment and the
potential for a merit increase.
And then, effective January 1st,
2028, CPI adjustment plus
potential for merit increase.
We couldn't bring it fully up
to comparables in one year, but
this sets us on that trajectory.
Are there. Oh, and then the
benefits. The employee shall
receive all employment benefits
provided to executive
management employees, which
includes department heads and
deputies of elected departments.
So with that, are there any
questions or further comments
anyone would like to make?
>> Chair. Yes.
>> I just want to say thank you
so much, Kathleen. I think you
are an asset. I know you are an
asset to this county. You're on
a tight ship. Your employees
are grateful for for working
with you. And in the past year
plus that I work with you, I've
enjoyed it and thank you and
you deserve this and more.
>> Thank you for that. Other
comments?
>> Go ahead.
>> Yes, you mentioned tight
ship and I will say the ship
has not been tight. There's
been lots of holes in it and I
feel like the last three and a
half years, we have been one by
one, plugging those holes,
catching things up and bringing
things at the county to very
professional level, to what the
public would expect of an
organization like us. So thank
you for that work. I look
forward to working with you in
the future and setting more
goals. And I mean, I really
feel like things in three and a
half years have really changed
trajectory, and I appreciate
your work and effort on that.
>> Thank you. Other comments?
Go ahead.
>> Yeah. Just want to say how
much we appreciate you and your
work. We know you're modest and
didn't ask for this. We we
decided to do this for all the
reasons that the chair provided.
So thank you for what you do.
>> Thank you. Go ahead.
>> I'll just.
>> Echo what Councilor Young
said. We've made some major
improvements with department
heads and movements on
employees and all sorts of
things, and shifting and
changing. And you're always
very flexible and easy to get
Ahold of. So I very much
appreciate that. Well deserved.
Thank you so much.
>> Thank you all for your
comments. And I would just say
that things have gotten
increasingly complicated and
challenging, and having someone
who can deal with a wide
breadth of issues at the same
time is, has been essential. So
I guess with that, is there a
motion.
>> A motion to approve separate
business item number two.
>> Second.
>> Moved and seconded. All in
favor, say.
>> I.
>> I passed unanimously. Okay.
Thank you. Council. Moving on
to item three approval to
create a capital project and
authorize County Manager to
execute purchase and sale
agreement and sign warranty
deeds. Another closing
documents on a 0.7 acre located
at this address in Vancouver.
>> Thank you. Chair Ken. Later
Public Works Director. I was
going to read that part, but
you took the thunder from me
online is David Stipe and he
will talk us through this one
and then we'll be available for
any questions.
>> Okay. You're on mute.
>> Yep.
>> He's looking. He's looking
for that mute button. There we
go.
>> Well.
>> There we go.
>> I'm I'm having audio issues,
I apologize, Chair Marshall.
Members of the council, as Ken
later mentioned, my name is
David Stipe. I'm the planning
and development manager for the
Parks and Nature Division.
We're here before you this
evening to ask for permission
to negotiate a purchase and
sale of a 0.7 acre parcel in
the northeast corner of an
existing parks and nature
parcel that we refer to either
as the Anderson property or the
Anderson Dairy property. This
is AF5 acquisition to improve
our level of service in this
fifth district and address some
concurrency issues with the PIF
funds. The map. Apologize for
the small text. The map before
you shows approximately where
the 0.5.7 acres is. Again, it
improves the usable acreage of
the future community park on
the Anderson property.
Typically, our community parks
are ten acres or larger, and
this property will just be just
under ten acres. Following this
hopeful acquisition, it also
provides improved access to
this parcel for the future
community park that we're
planning to develop there. You
can go to the next slide, zooms
into the property. The property,
as I mentioned, is in the
northeast corner of the
existing Anderson property,
which is two parcels there at
the corner of northeast 182nd
Avenue at northeast 83rd Street.
If you know anything about this
area, the intersection of 182nd
and 83rd is a non stop right
turn off of 182nd to head east
on 83rd Street. And the speeds
in this area are pretty, pretty
fast. Folks are leaving the
urban area and picking up speed
to head out into the county.
And acquiring this property not
only helps us with the acreage
and the dimensional standards
that we would be looking for to
develop a community park, but
it also allows us to put an
entrance to the future park at
the furthest possible location
from the intersection. This is
the other part of our sort of
normal property acquisition
practice. We, as everyone else
in the county, we're a willing
seller, willing buyer entity,
and the Edmonds family may
actually be on the call this
evening. But we struck up a
conversation. Rick Edmonds and
I did when we were doing some
demolition work on the site,
and Rick had expressed an
interest in selling the
property to the county to
enhance the park, which is a
wonderful gift to the community
regardless of whether we're
purchasing it or not. If you
look at the purchase and sale
agreement, there's a range for
the price for the property of
between 625,000 and $825,000.
This is not uncommon for the
Parks Department to establish a
purchase and sale agreement
with ranges. It gives the
Edmonds the opportunity to. End
the purchase and sale agreement.
If the property appraises below
that $625,000 number, and it
gives us the opportunity to end
the purchase and sale agreement
if it appraises for over
$825,000, regardless of those
those numbers, we pay appraised
value for property, and we work
with the real property services
to get an appraisal and a
review appraisal for all
purchases. So last slide is
just a reiteration. If you can
go to the next slide is what
the council request is, and I'd
be happy to answer any
questions that you might have.
>> Okay. Thank you. Are there
questions?
>> I have a question. David.
Did you say this was the former
Anderson Dairy?
>> Well, there's two different
Anderson dairies. There's
actually three different
Anderson families. This is the
Linda Anderson and her husband
owned the Anderson property.
And this is not the this is not
the larger Anderson Dairy that
most people know in the county.
That's why we typically call it.
Anderson.
>> Okay. That's what I was
wondering. So thank you for the
clarification.
>> No problem. I have a
question.
>> Other questions?
>> Sure. Thank you. What is the
condition of the home?
>> Councilor young? The home's
actually, I've not been in the
home. I've seen pictures of the
home, but it's a a CMU block,
single storey ranch or Rambler,
depending on. You know what
term you want to use. And
they've done a really nice job
of caring for the property. And
the home is appears from the
outside. And the pictures that
I've seen of the inside to be
in really good condition.
>> Okay. Thank you. It's, it's
one of those things that are
the challenge with purchasing
property for parks is you're
paying for the building that's
there, that it's likely to be
demolished. It's unfortunate,
but it there's no way around it.
I mean, everything's developed
everywhere. And yeah, I mean,
it makes sense with this being
kind of a corner carve out of
the existing site that we have,
but it is painful to pay for
that building and only have to
know that we're going to be
demolishing. I'm assuming
that's in the plan anyway.
>> I, I. That's what we have
typically done with the, the
properties that, that we
acquire. That being said, we
have a property on the
northeast corner of the Prairie
Field property up north that we
currently have a host in. We
have a host in the property. We
have a host at at the Harbor
Boat launch. So we do have
homes that we, we keep and, and
we typically demolish the homes
that don't have a whole lot of
value to the park parks and
nature division. It's the, this
property or this home has
potential to be a host house
when the property is developed.
And I wouldn't say that the
foregone conclusion is to is to
demolish the property. That
being said, that the the budget
request is to have $100,000
above and beyond the. The
purchase of the property for
property security and and
potential demolition. But right
now, that's not the plan.
>> Any other questions? Okay,
I'll entertain a motion to
approve.
>> I so move.
>> Okay. Thank you. Is there a
second?
>> Second.
>> Moved and seconded. All
those in favor, say aye. Aye
aye. Motion carries. Thank you.
>> Thank you. Council.
>> Okay, moving on to item four.
>> Thank you chair.
>> I'll let you introduce this.
>> Thank you. Yeah. We're
before you actually to kind of
go with what David just said.
Willing seller, willing buyer.
We're before you here tonight
with approval resolution. We're
requesting that you direct the
county engineer to acquire
proposed right of way and
instruct public works to
proceed with notification and
publication for the necessary
acquisition of additional right
of way for the northeast Hazel
Dell Avenue and burnt Bridge
Creek Trail Crossing. This is
our project that we're doing in
cooperation with the City of
Vancouver to extend the trail
and do that connection, make it
safer through the area. We are
having trouble getting any kind
of contact or feedback from
this property owner, so Laura
will go into that with you and
I'll turn it over to Laura
Henry Sly, our program manager
for RFPs.
>> Good evening. All right.
Good evening councilors. Again.
My name is Laura Henry Sy. And
in the room I also have council
Kevin McDowell. For any
questions that we may have in
this regard. And as Ken did,
state that in front of you
today, we have two resolutions
for you and I'm for the
audience here, I and for your
education as well. I just kind
of want to go over a broad
stroke of what this is all
about. So under Washington
state law, the CW8 .08101. So
every county is authorized to
empower to condemn land for
public purpose. And so the
initial phase, so it's the
condemnation phase is, is in
three phases. The first one is
the initial phase where it's
like you the go forth and go,
go get the right of way that is
needed for the project. And
this is where we are required
to identify private property
for public purpose. We do our
due diligence, we site, we
stake the right of way. We hire
appraisers. We have we hire an
additional appraiser to review
that appraisal. We share all
this information with the
project, with the property
owner. And this is when we
begin our negotiations. And so
this the second phase, which is
very unusual or rare for at
least Clark County, is that we
come to an impasse with the
property owner for various
reasons. And so we're asking
the council to ask to provide
proper notification so that we
can set a public hearing at a
later date. The final and third
phase, which is again, is rare,
is that during the public
hearing, the council would we
would request that the council
declare that this would be a
public use and necessity, and
then direct the PA office to go
across the street and start the
condemnation process on that.
So to be clear, for tonight,
we're asking for resolution for
the initial phase and for the
second phase for it to be able
to set a date for a public
hearing. So let's talk about
the project because that's the
fun part, right?
>> Can I just ask you a
question here? How does it and
I know this occurrence is rare,
but even within that, are there
times when going from the
notification to actually doing
the public hearing and
implementing condemnation
proceedings is sometimes their
agreement that can be achieved?
>> Absolutely.
>> This is a.
>> Good tool to get people to
the table to talk. Great.
Absolutely. This is my goal.
Good.
>> Thanks.
>> All right. The next phase or
the next slide, please. So for
your education in the audience
out here that this is this
project is located in the Hazel
Dell neighborhood. It's along
the avenue and it connects the
Discovery Trail, which is
located within the city of
Vancouver to the Burnt Bridge
Trail, which is a county asset.
The sidewalk will connect. The
connection is mostly inside the
limits of Clark County, and the
county secured the funding and
the county is supporting this
effort by purchasing the right
of way. So would you go to the
next slide, please? So part of
the the next slide. Yeah. So
here you see a street view of
Hazel Dell Avenue. So on the
photo of the on the north on
the upper, the, the top side of
the, the, the slide here shows
that where those blue
apartments are further away,
that is the trailhead. Yeah. So
the okay, the bottom lower
right hand. Yeah. Right down
there. That is the trailhead
where the city is. And it would
right, right there where there
would be a flashing. I'm going
to kill this, a rapid flashing
beacon where it would be safe
for pedestrians to get across
Hazel Dell Avenue. Then on the
east side there, we have a
sidewalk connection up to the
trailhead. The whole project is
very small. It's about 800
linear feet. It's in it, and we
have three property owners that
we're dealing with or two we
have conclusion with. So the
timeline, if you go to this. So
we on a very tight timeline to
make our construction deadlines
is. Tonight we are asking you
to pass the the first and the
second resolutions. The second
resolution would set a public
hearing for June 2nd. My goal
is not to see you on June 2nd,
but that would initiate the
continent. That would be where
you would direct the P a s
office to initiate that. And
we're trying to get this all
wrapped up by the first part of
August so that we can get that
certification. That is an
important trigger for us,
because that releases the
construction dollars for us to
deliver that project. That's
kind of it. You got any
questions?
>> Are there any questions? Go
ahead. Counselor.
>> Is the sidewalk slated for
the west or the east Side? It
must be the West because that's
where the homes are.
>> Yes.
>> It's.
>> The west side, all right.
And he can't go on the east
side. That's not a feasible
option.
>> I believe that is not
feasible. Okay. Yeah, we looked
at both.
>> We went through this when we
went on the the bike tour. And
and I appreciate you working
with the city on this because
we have amazing trails on both
sides of this, of this
intersection here and this
horribly clunky, inadequate
connection between the two. So
this is really a, a great
project for the county and the
city.
>> Bolds one of the things, if
you think about coming
southbound on Hazel Avenue,
putting the connection on the
other side, takes the foot
traffic all the way up to any
traffic traveling southbound on
Hazel Avenue, the sight
distance is pretty short coming
around that corner. That makes
sense. That's one of the main
reasons, but I'm not sure if
there are others.
>> Okay. Yeah. I mean, to me,
this serves a significant
community need and benefit to
the community and certainly
hope that we can work things
out with this property owner
and that everybody can win out
of this. But I would support
moving forward at this time.
>> Thank you. Any other
questions? Seeing none, I'll
entertain a motion to approve
item four.
>> So move item four.
>> Okay. Thank you. Is there a
second? Moved and seconded. All
those in favor say.
>> I, I, I.
>> I motion carries.
>> Thank you Council.
>> Thank you.
>> Okay. And here we are at
item five. Jennifer Daniel is
coming up to tell us about this
one and maybe Ken can introduce
it.
>> Sure. I can introduce this
again. And joining us is
Jennifer Daniel, also with our
real property services section.
Our requests before you for a
separate business. Item five is
to authorize the County Manager
to accept a warranty deed and
temporary construction easement
from Betty J. Tribe Revocable
Living Trust agreement. And the
date is on there as well as the
parcel number. So Jen can
describe this and please ask us
any questions.
>> Hello.
>> Okay.
>> Thank you. Thank you Ken.
And good evening, councilors.
For the record, my name is
Jennifer Daniel. I'm a real
property agent for Public works.
This request before you tonight
seeks council approval,
authorizing the county manager
to accept a warranty deed and
temporary construction easement
from Betty J. Tribe Revocable
Living Trust for the northeast,
1/79 Street at Northeast 29th
Avenue. Intersection
improvement project. The county
needs to acquire a 52 foot
strip of land, or 13,520ft²
along the southerly boundary of
the tribe property, which is
located at the intersection of
northeast one, 79th and 29th
Avenue and at 7280 square foot.
Temporary construction easement.
The owners needed additional
time to review the county's
offer and signed a possession
use agreement to allow the
project to move forward. While
staff continue negotiations.
The council approved and
executed the Possession Use
Agreement on May 28th, 2024.
Just compensation for the land,
temporary construction easement
and improvements being acquired
was established by an
independent appraiser in the
amount of $104,700. Staff
reached a negotiated settlement
for an additional $5,091 for a
final compensation of $109,791.
The project is currently under
construction and will improve
the intersection of northeast
one, 79th Street and Northwest
29th Avenue to reconstruct the
existing single lane, all way
controlled stop intersection to
a roundabout, but constructed
for a multi-lane roundabout to
accommodate for future growth
and traffic needs. Acceptance
of conveyances for county road
projects is completed by the
county engineer. However,
because the total compensation
exceeds $100,000, County
council acceptance is required
under Clark County Code 2.33, a
.090 subsection I. Therefore,
staff is requesting the council
formally accept the warranty
deed and temporary construction
easement. Temporary
Construction easement as a
final step to complete the
acquisition. That concludes my
presentation today, and thank
you for your time and available
to answer any questions you
have.
>> Thank you. Are there any
questions? I don't see any
questions. I'll entertain a
motion to approve.
>> Motion to approve separate
business. Item number five.
>> Thank you. Second.
>> Moved and seconded. All
those in favor, say I. I I, you
can tell this is the last item.
Great. Thank you very much.
Thank you very much. Thank you.
Motion carries. All right. And
then finally, county manager
report.
>> Yes. I just wanted to share
that April the month of April
is National County Government
Month, that it's established by
the National Association of
Counties or Naco. We're
fortunate to have outstanding
employees here who work every
day to support our community,
whether it's law and justice,
community services, community
development, public health and
many more. I just want to say
it's truly a privilege to serve
Clark County and witness the
positive impact that our staff
has across the organization.
Public service, as you know, is
not easy. It's not a we don't
get a lot of thank yous and
it's not for everybody, but
it's incredibly important. So I
just want to personally thank
the council and all of our
employees for their dedication
to our community here in Clark,
Clark County.
>> Thank you very much. And I'm
wondering why we don't have a
proclamation.
>> I agree, but.
>> I think I think we did last
year. Yes, we missed that one.
Oh, well, next year. Okay.
Thank you for that. Anything
else from anyone? I guess we've
concluded our agenda and
without objection, this meeting
is adjourned