Caribou County Commission 2/24
The Caribou County Board of Commissioners held a regular meeting on February 24.
Kevin McClain—Road and Bridge
Road and Bridge Director Kevin McClain spoke to the commission about the Village Road project. Gravel for the project to extend the culverts along the road would involve around five and a half thousand tons of gravel, or 220 loads, which would take about two weeks. McClain estimated the cost as 179K$ worth of county time and materials. That is without any redesign to the hill. McClain noted that the hill was very steep, and changing the grade would be very expensive. “Some roads are just worse than others,” McClain said. The estimate is based on 4 inches of gravel on the section in question.
Commissioner Somsen discussed the road specifications necessary for the county, as well as potential savings for the oil used on roads.
McClain reported that a sander had gone off the road and been removed from a ditch. The sander had experienced the separation of its bed and was in need of repair, which was going to be conducted in house.
McClain explained that the distance from the sand pile to some of the farther areas of the county sometimes meant that the trucks were carrying too much material, causing them to be top heavy and imbalanced. In this case, the welds to the bed frame gave out, causing the bed to separate from the chassis.
McClain noted that his work truck has over 210K miles on it. The truck is about 4 years old, and puts at least 50K miles a year on it. McClain asked whether he could begin looking for a newer vehicle, which the commissioners said was fine.
Sheriff
Sheriff Adam Mabey spoke to the commissioners about a number of issues, including the Next Gen 911 system. While there have been some concerns about the switch over, the Sheriff reiterated his belief that it would be a good change. Next Gen 911 uses coordinated GIS information to more accurately determine locations through the system. This allows responders to more quickly identify the location of emergency call origins.
Sheriff Mabey reported that body cameras which had been obtained by the department are up and ready for use.
He reported that he is currently finishing language for ordinances regarding minors, as well as animals for presentation to the board.
The number of inmates in the county detention facility (primarily from IDOC from other counties) is up, which brings money into the county. There is some discussion of rate increases for the incarceration. Mabey noted that there was a gap between what the cost was and what the state is paying.
The traffic turn-in to the sheriff’s office was discussed. Alan Skinner from the city and the sheriff have discussed the danger of the turning path into the facility as it currently works. Because the state will be conducting a road project on the highway through town, there is hope that ITD can be persuaded to make the area safer as a part of the project.
The Sheriff suggested that he would attend the next ITD meeting in order to convey the concerns to the state.
In communication with Homeland Security and Immigration, the Sheriff was informed by the agent in charge of Caribou County that any changes in policy or incarceration for undocumented immigrants will be communicated to the sheriff’s office before anything happens. “They aren’t going into schools. They aren’t going into houses. It’s the ‘worst first’ they’re doing, so they won’t be doing anything different here, at least for quite a while.”
Eric Hobson
The county will put in for a grant for a new van. The state grant will cover $218K of the cost, which is the majority of the cost of the vehicle. The equipment will be covered for $40K. A baseline firetruck costs around $800K and a 5 year wait, for reference.
The commissioners needed to provide a letter of support for the grant.
Hobson reported on a Western Fire manager Grant for projects in Bailey Creek. A manager for the grant will need to be hired, and SICOG was recommended. A 10% match is required, but can be covered by time used for meetings, and other in-kind matching.
Bailey Creek has a fire district that contracts with Caribou County, although a lot of the work the grant covers is in Bear Lake County. Caribou, as a result of the contract, is responsible for fire mitigation in the area. Brush removal, brush mitigation, invasive species removal will be involved.
“We’ve had a weird winter. It snows, it rains, it melts.” The ten year average for the county was reported to be “not bad, and not great—right in the middle”. Some issues with water run-off as a result of the melting pattern have been reported. Some calls for sandbags have been received.
Justin Hatch
Justin from the Extension Office spoke to the commissioners about the need for new computers at the Office. Two laptops are needed to replace computers that are more than six years old. A price of $3000 for the two was presented. The funds are available in the capital outlay part of the budget. The office will also be able to equip the AmericCorps volunteers. Two ThinkPads for just under $3000 were approved.
Senior Center—ShaLayne Bartschi
ShaLayne Bartschi from the Caribou Senior Center spoke to the commissioners, and brought the commissioners some of this week’s cookies.
A project to insulate the garage and work on the roof was announced. The Center will be pursuing a grant through Bayer.
Bartschi reported on the dripping from the ceiling, which is due to condensation. Vents have been attached to the top to help resolve the issue.
Bartschi has been asked to convey to the county the interest of employees about potentially joining the retirement program the county uses. Commissioner Somsen asked Bartschi to find out what the other senior centers in the region do for their employees as far as benefits go. The commissioners were receptive to looking into the issue and asked ShaLayne to let them know what she finds out.
Helen Barker
A JUB contract from 5K$ for the Oregon Trail Park maintenance was approved.
Professional services with MR&E contract for $14K was approved for garbage and docks.
Barker emailed code for review with regard to the PZ issues related to the Area of Impact amendments. Within the area, the language defining the zones is being adjusted to reflect the county’s position in the relevant areas. A March 24 public hearing is planned to further discuss.
In Chesterfield, the viewshed area has its own set of development regulations. A recently received building permit has raised the issue of enforcement. If the location is determined to be within the viewshed area, it will need to be reviewed by the Historical Site before it can move forward to be approved by the county.
Doug Wood—Attorney’s Office
An uptick in the numbers of DUIs in the county was noted. There was some discussion of using a billboard to raise awareness of the issue. The potential of seeking a grant to underwrite the costs was discussed, and it determined that it would be a good idea. According to reporting, the average cost of a first offense DUI was stated to be around $10K, including legal fees, impounding costs, and more. “It would save me time and money to be an Uber driver for people [who planned on driving drunk]. Don’t make me lose any more hair,” Wood joked, though he underlined the seriousness of the problem.
Wood requested authorization to purchase technology for CaseLaw research. $400 month is the cost of the research access. Currently, Wood uses the free state access to the CaseLaw archive, though the upgrade would provide greater access and functionality, through Lexis-Nexus. The commissioners looked at creating a line item to account for the cost of
CaseLaw Finder.
Jill Stoor—Clerk’s Office
Clerk Stoor spoke to the commission. The Maverik Community Park Committee requested funds from the county for some items necessary for the completion of the park. The commissioners noted that they would like the group to present their needs to the commission itself for consideration.
One certificate of residency was accepted as presented.
Approval for quote for Computer Arts for imaging needed for 1900+.
