Pursuant to notice made to the newspaper of general circulation throughout Grant County, the radio station in Grant County, and to interested persons on the Grant County e-mail list, a regular meeting of the County Court was held at the County Courthouse in Canyon City OR.

9:02 am — Called to Order. Present were Judge Mark R. Webb and Commissioner Boyd Britton, Secretary Mary Ferrioli, Sue Newstetter and Pastor Mike Teague. Commissioner Scott W. Myers was excused today for Circuit Court Jury Duty. The Pledge of Allegiance was given to the United States flag. An opening prayer was given by Pastor Mike Teague.

CLAIMS. The court had approved claims submitted by the Deputy Clerk-Bookkeeper.

Public Project Coordinator Sue Newstetter requested time to update the court on the Dental Clinic Project at the Health Department.

9:05 am – Kathy Smith entered.

PROGRAM. MSP: Webb/Britton — to accept the program with the addition of the Oregon Parks & Recreation ATV grant, the probationary wage for the Deputy DA position, a report on the Dental Clinic Project, and signature on a Road Vacation Order.

ANNOUNCEMENTS.

Britton reported that he was an honorary pall bearer at Clyde Holliday’s funeral this weekend at Holliday State Park.

Webb reported on September 22nd meetings he had about the Dental Clinic then with Community Counseling Solutions and Blue Mountain Hospital reps to talk about some mental health issues.

MINUTES. MSP: Webb/Britton — to approve the September 17th Minutes as amended.

DENTAL CLINIC. Dental Clinic Project Coordinator Sue Newstetter referred to a September 15th letter from Oregon Housing & Community Services Grant Project Manager Loren Shultz outlining some of his concerns. Newstetter also reported on a September 22nd meeting she had with the building codes inspector, where she learned that a structural permit or formal plans were not required for the small remodel project at the health department for the Dental Clinic. Electrical and plumbing permits would be necessary. She said she could provide answers to all of Shultz’s questions in the form of a letter to Judge Webb. Time to respond to issues raised in Shultz’s letter expires on October 29th. Newstetter and Webb spoke about current understandings among members of the Healthy Smiles Dental Clinic Committee. She also reported on the Dental Clinic meeting that took place September 16th. Newstetter said the Hayden Dental Clinic trailer that has been operating in John Day has been very successful. However, it serves Oregon Health Plan clients, not children and the uninsured. Some discussion followed about possibly relocating the Hayden trailer to a site across from the Bowling Alley. Newstetter said that additional dental needs exist, demonstrated by phone calls received by local contacts about when the Dental Van would be in John Day for children and the uninsured. She added that moving and setting up the existing sink & cabinet in the lactation room was suggested by the group. But, the court felt it was unnecessary to move the old sink & cabinet.

GEODC BOARD. The court noted that Economic Development Coordinator Sally Bartlett was interested in filling a Grant County vacancy on the Greater Eastern Oregon Development Corporation Board of Directors. According to local GEODC representative Sondra Lino, having the county’s economic development staff on the board would not create a conflict. MSP: Webb/ Britton — to appoint Sally Bartlett to the Board of Directors of the Greater Eastern Oregon Development Corporation.

CR 69 & CR 69-A. The court reviewed and signed Order 08-13 Vacating a portion of County Road 69 and all of County Road 69-A based on the public hearing held September 17th.

COMMUNITY COUNSELING SOLUTIONS. The court continued their review of a Contract with Community Counseling Solutions, Inc. to provide mental health, developmental disabilities, and alcohol and drug treatment services to Grant County citizens effective October 1, 2008. Questions previously posed by legal counsel, that received a formal response from CCS Executive Director Kimberly Lindsay, were reviewed and considered. Webb asked if the court would allow him to sign the contract after today’s meeting, but before October 1st, to allow him time to visit further with the CCD Director about some of the issues. Britton said that would be fine.

9:45 am -Dana Brooks entered.

US SENATOR. US Senator Ron Wyden’s aide Wayne Kinney announced that the Senate passed the county payments bill (that includes PILT) which now goes to the House. He said the money is a little less than last year, but PILT has a lot of support. Britton asked about Wyden’s forest thinning bill. Kinney said it is still being worked through and hasn’t been filed yet. An informational exchange took place about a variety of county and federal issues. Webb explained that, if county payments go through again, this county would like to see if we could use Title II or Title III funds to do some infrastructure development, to actually use some of the bio-mass that is available on the forest. Otherwise, the county doesn’t have much ability to take steps toward altering the way we generate revenue. Discussion followed about a variety of current forest health issues and associated with natural resource management.

CHILDREN & FAMILIES. Commission on Children & Families Director Dana Brooks recommended signature on a Partnership Agreement with the Oregon Commission on Children and Families. Brooks pointed out that the agreement outlines lists of Local Expectations and State Expectations associated with state statutes and federal regulations. The board’s recent Self-Assessment that was conducted during their regular meeting on September 2nd was included. MSP: Britton/Webb – to authorize Judge Webb to sign the Partnership Agreement with Oregon Commission on Children & Families. Britton asked about the successful outcome of the “Family Fun Day.” Brooks and Kinney exchanged some information about the Commission’s federal Drug-Free Communities Grant.

10:00 am – Steve McGuire and Kathy Smith entered.

BID OPENING. At 10:00 am the court opened the only bid received for bi-annual window cleaning services at the Courthouse, Library, Health Clinic, and Commercial Buildings at 530 E. Main. The bid, submitted by Hoffman’s Yes We Do Cleaning, was for a total annual amount of $2,378 for all buildings. MSP: Webb/Britton — to accept the bid submitted by Hoffman’s Yes-We-Do Cleaning for a total of $2,378 for the year.

VACATION HOURS DONATION. Jail Manager Steve McGuire requested approval to donate 40 hours of vacation time to new employee Ben Thompson for the month of October, because of a recent illness. McGuire explained the nature of Thompson’s medical condition and said he’s still in the hospital at this time undergoing diagnostic procedures. He said the goal is to save the employee and his family worry over income, benefits and insurance for at least the month of October. Grant County Police Association employees are allowed to donate comp or vacation hours through the association leave bank. McGuire was aware of the budget implications and had visited with Treasurer Smith about defining a certain period of time for donation. It was understood that vacation donations would likely not extend past the month of October. Smith pointed out that hours may only be donated if they exist on the books; hours over the 240 hour cap cannot be transferred. She also noted that the person is a probationary employee and hours would cross from a county employee to a union member. McGuire said the whole staff has been quite generous for this cause. MSP: Britton/Webb — to grant Sgt. McGuire’s request to donate 40 hours vacation time to Mr. Thompson. McGuire updated court members on the current level of staffing and inmate population at the jail.

10:25 am – Sheriff Glenn Palmer entered.

ATV GRANT. Court members considered the Sheriff’s request for permission to begin purchasing equipment and advertise to hire an employee under the Oregon State Parks & Recreation Dept (OPRD) ATV Grant for Law Enforcement award. Funds were awarded on July 24, 2008 and an ATV Grant Program Agreement was subsequently signed. Now, 25% of the funds are available upon request to start the purchasing process. Costs for the 4 x 4 patrol truck, ATV, radios and 18 ft. travel trailer would need to be updated to be sure they are still within the budget. The grant was scheduled to begin July 2008 and run until June 2009 with plans to hire an employee from July – October 2008 and from May – June 2009; however, a job description has not been written or approved at this time.

No action has been taken to move forward with the project since the July 24th award. However, Palmer said the State Grant Coordinator said there was no penalty if all of the funds aren’t spent before June 30th. Remaining funds would carry over to the next year, if the county was to reapply.

Palmer expressed concern about current prices changes for equipment and stated that the camp trailer was something that may not be needed if funds run short. Webb suggested that Palmer check the prices and report back since it would be nice to know the total cost. Palmer said that much of the county match was in-kind. Webb asked about ownership of the equipment. Palmer understood, unless the grant is extended or if an employee is not hired, the equipment would go back to the state. He preferred to wait until spring to hire an employee. Webb asked if it was worth going through with the grant at this time. Palmer believed it was important to move forward with purchasing equipment within the award period. He thought that more issues would develop in the future around ATV activities on all public lands and saw a need to continue pursing other grants funds. Treasurer Kathy Smith asked about our chances for award in the next grant period that begins in July 2009. Palmer and Webb both felt that OPRD has plenty of funding for these ATV law enforcement programs. Palmer indicated that he would be finding out more at workshops during October and November. He felt that a sample job description might be available through OPRD or another county. Palmer stated that quarterly reporting would be done by the Sheriff’s Office since that is defined as part of the match. Smith asked to be provided with a copy of any reporting. Palmer planned to see if the county would be reimbursed if equipment purchase costs run over the 25% that’s available now. General discussion followed about travel costs between Grant and Morrow counties and the idea of reimbursing Morrow County if we have trouble hiring someone to work in that area. Palmer planned to ask the State Grant Coordinator if the county could contract to provide that service. Webb preferred having a county employee.

Georgia Patterson and Stan Horrell entered.

DEPOT PARK. Prairie City Public Works Director Georgia Patterson requested $5,000 in funding assistance for drilling a domestic well for irrigation at Depot Park. Mayor Stan Horrell was also present. It was explained that the city has over-used their budget this year and is trying to find alternate ways of watering to keep the park attractive and bring in more users. Pictures of Depot Park were presented to the court. Horrell stated that pumping water was less expensive than using city water. Patterson said the creek is used for irrigating and would be expanded to the covered picnic area, east side of the museum and 5 spaces in the back. But the other spaces cannot be reached with creek water. Patterson said the cost to drill a well would be about $50 per foot for a distance of between 75 and 100 feet, to cover a one-half acre area. The city would purchase the necessary pump. Britton did not intend to use $5,000 in county funds for the park. He suggested that we wait until the Depot Park project is completed, and possibly enough park funds may be left in the RV fund. Horrell said they’re done irrigating this year anyway. Webb asked how much savings are possible with a well. Patterson reported that costs for irrigating with city water

during the month of July cost approximately $8,000. Webb confirmed there would be no negative impact by the installation of the well. He inquired about the availability of funds from the city’s park fund. Webb pointed out that one month’s water cost would cover the well drilling cost. Patterson said that fund has already been overspent and it would be difficult to meet electricity costs. Horrell noted that some people in Prairie City feel Depot Park belongs to the county. Britton said the county could certainly take over Depot Park and keep the receipts. Horrell replied that Prairie City just wanted to do the best they can for the park. The group agreed that we would wait to see if RV funds are available for well drilling. Some discussion followed about the current operations at the newly remodeled Depot Park building / DeWitt Museum.

10:45 am – Assesser Lane Burton and Commissioner Scott Myers entered.

200 S. HUMBOLT. Assessor Lane Burton and the court talked about the value of county property at 200 S. Humbolt, recently assessed at from $75,000 to $80,000 in its current condition. The Blue Mountain Hospital District Administrator had expressed interest in purchasing the property for their Home Health & Hospice services. Burton stated that he is in favor of keeping the property for future use since it is in such close proximity to other county services. He felt it would be easier to keep and lease the building, than to try and locate additional property if needed in the future. Burton felt the building would only rent for about $500 per month in its current condition. But, if remodeled it would rent for much more. Burton planned to provide more details on comparable per square foot rental costs. Available parking may be a problem on certain days when Circuit Court trials are conducted. Treasurer Smith asked the court to keep in mind that remodeling for both 200 S. Humbolt and the 530 East Main St. Suite 1 & 2 has not been budgeted. Britton suggested leasing to the hospital with the condition that their remodeling investment would be distributed over the term of the lease.

11:15 am – Shannon Springer entered.

EXECUTIVE SESSION. At 11:15 am court members entered an Executive Session under ORS 192.660(2)(h) to consult with legal counsel regarding current litigation or litigation likely to be filed on a land use matter. Judge Webb recited the State Attorney General’s Sample Script to Announce the Start of Executive Session. Assistant Planner Shannon Springer was present. Planning Director Hilary McNary and legal counsel participated by teleconference. At 12:15 pm the court returned to General Session. No motions were made.

12:15 pm — Ryan Joslin, Brenda Percy and Kathy Smith entered.

DEPUTY DA WAGE. District Attorney Ryan Joslin met with the court to discuss the county’s one year probationary wage policy that has been established for all new employees. Personnel Manager Brenda Percy and Treasurer Kathy Smith were present. Joslin is currently in the process of advertising to fill the federal grant-funded Domestic Violence Deputy DA position. Joslin said about one year’s funding is left in the grant and he would like to use those funds to pay full wages, if policy could be waived. He noted that the rate is one of the lowest in the state and it has been difficult to recruit for this one year position. Beginning and base rates for this position were compared and the difference was about $190 / mo. It was not known if the pay difference would increase the likelihood of hiring for this position. Myers stated that, regardless of who is hired, there would be a training period for the Domestic Violence grant. Webb pointed out that positions were reviewed and placed on the wage scale by LGPI for this area. He did not want to make a decision today, but if he did, it would be no. Britton supported Webb’s position. Myers said it would be different if the request were made after an employee has been hired, if they had a lot of experience. The Personnel Manager pointed out there is a history of employees returning to their previous position who also had to return to the probationary wage. Myers added that wages were previously increased in an effort to recruit a Family Nurse Practitioner. Joslin said the Deputy DA position would handle all DV cases, but would also assist with other cases.

530 E. MAIN. Webb explained that the Extension Director asked this week if volunteer labor could be used to frame in the walls at Suites 1 & 2. Myers reported that more details are needed about the volunteer work. However, plumbing and electric would be a major component of wall construction. At this time, use of Title III funding incorporated as a forest education classroom project is being considered.

12:35 pm — Adjourned

Respectfully Submitted,

Mary R. Ferrioli

County Court Secretary