After consideration, Grant County officials reappointed Bob Quinton to the county’s Budget Committee.

In the Dec. 30 session of County Court, after recently reappointing 20 committee members to various boards and committees, court members considered replacing Quinton.

Quinton, a two-year committee member, had voted against increasing county commissioner salaries. The court members asked Quinton to reapply for his seat as they considered another applicant, Prairie City’s Works Director Chris Camarena.

During the Dec. 30 session, County Judge Scott Myers said appointing Camarena to the Budget Committee could create a conflict of interest because County Commissioner Jim Hamsher, who is also Prairie City’s mayor, is Camarena’s immediate supervisor.

Myers moved Jan. 13 to reappoint Quinton “in the interest of following past practice.”

Hamsher said, although it’s not a written policy, the de facto policy has been to reappoint members to committees who have not reached their term limit.

Hamsher said he thought the county advertised all open positions on boards and committees to the public.

The court thanked Camarena for applying and said they would keep his letter of interest on file for any available seats on other boards and committees.

Camarena said he did not know Quinton had been on the Budget Committee and that he contacted the county because he thought the committee had an open seat.

Camarena said he was unaware of the commissioners’ requested a pay increase and that he would recuse himself if it came up.

The court also moved to reappoint Steven Baldwin to the Planning Commission with a term expiring in June 2024 and to reappoint Caleb Wilson to the Library Advisory Board with a term expiring in June 2023.

Flood ordinance

The court approved the county’s flood ordinance, which will go into effect on March 23.

Shannon Springer, Grant County planning director, said the flood ordinance aims to reduce damage to buildings and government infrastructure and the cost to repair the damage.

She said the flood ordinance is not new, and the county has had one dating back to the 1980s. What changed, she said, was that the Federal Emergency Management Agency remapped the county’s flood zones and included properties that were previously not a part of the flood zones.

She said landowners planning on building within the flood zone would need to obtain a permit at no charge.

Springer said there were concerns from landowners surrounding ag activities and how the flood ordinance might impact them. She said the ordinance has mechanisms and variances that cover several ag activities in flood areas.

Springer said the primary reason that the county issues permits for building in a flood zone is to ensure that builders are anchoring down structures so they do not become dislodged by floodwaters. She said the ordinance does not mean someone cannot build in a flood zone. Springer said she needs to know what the project entails and then see if it fits the ordinance requirements.

Springer said the county must have the ordinance to comply with the National Flood Insurance Program.

Myers said, if the county did not pass the ordinance, many property owners would be unable to obtain insurance or it would cost more.

County Commissioner Sam Palmer said he wanted it on the record that the NFIP does not absolve a landowner from getting insurance.

Springer said participating members of NFIP have access to emergency assistance and other programs that they otherwise would not be able to access.

Search and Rescue annual report

Deputy Sheriff and Search and Rescue Coordinator Dave Dobler presented an annual report.

Dobler said, since he has been at the helm, SAR has been on 91 missions. He said 46 of them came in 2020. He said, despite COVID-19 guidelines and mandates from the state, people still went missing. In his report, Dobler pointed out that rural counties in Oregon, Washington and Idaho saw an uptick in visitors.

“As different jurisdictions started reporting more and more COVID cases,” he said in his report, “Grant and other smaller counties were seen as a refuge and a safe place to come visit.”

Dobler said SAR has been on five missions so far this year and that SAR has a total of 30 volunteers. He said 12 of those volunteers are the most active.

Dobler said anyone interested in volunteering for SAR could fill out an application at the Grant County Sheriff’s Office. He said the sheriff’s office runs a background check on all applicants. However, he said all background checks are judged on a case-by-case basis by him and the sheriff.

Sheriff Todd McKinley said Dobler’s report was thorough and detail-oriented.

“He (Dobler) brought it (SAR) up to quite a level,” McKinley said.

In other county news:

• The court approved the Road Department’s request to purchase a used to tractor for $11,000. Road Department lead mechanic Joe Bennett said the engine in the tractor they have has oil in the water and has been overhauled twice. He said it would cost the county roughly $4,000 to repair. Bennett said the old tractor would be sold at the county’s surplus sale.

• The county approved Economic Development Director Tory Stinett’s request to apply for the Community Connection housing loan rehabilitation program. The program, which the county has participated in in the past, allows the county to offer loans to low-income seniors to make repairs to their homes.

• The Grant County and Bear Creek shooting club purchased 21 acres of land to extend its shooting range. Bob Bagett, the club’s president, said the club would bear the cost as well as the administrative costs.

• The court approved the Grant County Regional Airport’s maintenance contract.

• The court approved three justice of the peace pro-tems for 2021: Vicky Clemens of Harney County, Chris Patnode of Gilliam County and Ron McDermid of Sherman County.