2012-05-14 Board Meeting Minutes 1
BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
LEWIS COUNTY, WASHINGTON
BOARD MEETING MINUTES
May 14, 2012
The Board of County Commissioners for Lewis County, Washington met in regular
session on Monday, May 14, 2012 at 10:00 a.m. Commissioners F. Lee Grose, Bill
Schulte, and Ron Averill were in attendance. Chairman Grose determined a quorum,
called the meeting to order and proceeded with the flag salute. Commissioner Schulte
moved to approve the minutes from the 10:00 a.m. meeting held on Monday, May 07,
2012. Commissioner Averill seconded the motion.
Motion Carried 3-0
EMPLOYEE RECOGNITION
Commissioner Grose stated we have received from the State of Washington
recognition of the Lewis County Road Department with a Certificate of Good Practice.
Commissioner Grose read the Certificate of Good Practice into the record.
Commissioner Grose announced the Employee of the Quarter Nominees
Teresa Wollan, Fiscal Office
Facilities Maintenance Staff
Gabe Anzelini, IT
Jonathan Linder, Assessor’s Office
The Lewis County 2012 Employee of the Quarter is Jonathan Linder. Jon has adapted
to the upgrades of having technology in the field. The change from “field sheets” to
having laptops in the field for immediate data entry was a complete change of
processing. Jon has converted to the new system quickly and is able to use this tool
exceptionally well, so well that he is the “go-to” guy when others have questions.
Statistically, Jon’s daily totals of completed appraisals are more than any other
Appraiser in the office. More is not better unless done correctly…. And they are! He is
conscientious of the details of his work, is polite to the taxpayers and is thorough with
his work. This idea he shares with his supervisors show his desire to continually
improve systems and processes and his contributions are relevant and respected.
Commissioner Grose announced the “Above and Beyond” Awards
Cheryl McGee, Community Development
Cheryl has been instrumental in working with both the vendor, Community Development
Department and the Lewis County IT Department in making the Adept Software
Community Development permitting program module successful. Her knowledge of the
software and issues that have surrounded this program have been instrumental in
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bringing the program from stalled status where it was useless, to its current status of
near full completion. When asked if she would assist in the “front lines” of the
integration of the Public Works module, Cheryl didn’t even hesitate and agreed to spend
her time working on the project for the good of the County. Due in part to the efforts of
Cheryl McGee, we are anticipating having a fully functional and successful installation
and integration of the Adept permitting software system very soon. During the project, I
have been advised that Cheryl has really defined what it means to go above and
beyond, something that wasn’t her responsibility or task, yet she was willing and able to
help out to make a difference.
Amy Hanson, Animal Shelter
The Lewis County Sheriff’s Office responded to a call on Shorey Road after normal
business hours, when passer-by found an injured dog over an embankment that
appeared to have been possibly struck by a vehicle. It is unknown how long the poor
animal was there, but estimates are that the dog may have been there almost a week.
At the request of the Sergeant on duty, Amy responded afterhours to collect the starved
and injured animal since no owner could be found. Amy took the dog home and cared
for its injuries as best she could until the next morning. The next morning she took the
dog to the shelter for a quick bath, and then delivered the animal to a veterinarian’s
office which had special funding from outside sources for cases such as this. Later that
afternoon the veterinarian’s office called Amy to give her the bad news that the dog’s
injuries were so severe, that there was little chance the dog would live a normal life
because of some spinal damage. In many ways, I think Amy has the most difficult job in
the world because of the emotional stress situations like this have on a person.
However, I think her ability to help so many animals in need often overshadow sad
situations like this. Many of her happier stories are cataloged in the Health Department
quarterly Newsletter under an article she writes, rightfully called “Happy Endings”. The
citizens and animals of Lewis County are very lucky to have a compassionate, caring
and dedicated individual like Amy, who will go the extra mile to help the animals in
Lewis County.
PROCLAMATION
Commissioner Averill moved to approve Proclamation Agenda item one.
Commissioner Schulte seconded the motion. Commissioner Schulte read the
Proclamation into the record.
1. Proclaiming the week of May 13-19, 2012 as WSU Lewis County Master
Gardner Volunteer Week.
Sheila Gray, WSU Extension Office, stated we have 78 active Master Gardner’s in
Lewis County. Their activities range from plant sales and the gardening for everyone
program. Lewis County puts in over 10,000 hours to its community citizens in regards
to gardening and related topics. They also have been going into the grade schools and
providing additional science lessons related to gardening to children in Lewis County
Schools.
Motion Carried 3-0
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NOTICE
Commissioner Schulte moved to approve Notice Agenda items two and three.
Commissioner Averill seconded the motion. Candace Hallom read the items into the
record.
2. Notice of Hearing: Regarding a non-exclusive franchise to Fatbeam, LLC, to
construct, operate, and maintain fiber optic networks in areas of Lewis
County. Hearing will be held on or after 10:00 am on June 4, 2012. Resolution
No. 12-151
Tim Elsea, Director of Public Works, stated Fatbeam, LLC, has requested a non-
exclusive franchise for the construction, operation and maintenance of a fiber optic
network on a portion of Bryden Ave, Mt. Vista Rd. and Eshom Rd, in Centralia. The
Company is installing a fiber line to serve the Centralia High School. The franchise is
proposed for a 5 year term. This resolution will set June 4, 2012 as the date for hearing
on the franchise and call for required postings and publications by RCW 36.55.040.
3. Notice of Hearing: Regarding a non-exclusive franchise to Harmony Park Lot
Association to construct, operate, and maintain water facilities in areas of
Lewis County, Hearing will be held on or after 10:00 am on June 11, 2012.
Resolution No. 12-152
Tim Elsea, Director of Public Works stated the Harmony Park Lot Owners
Association has requested a franchise for the construction, operation and maintenance
of a water system on Lake Road, Steelhead Drive and Silver Lane, Silver Creek. This
franchise would replace the existing franchise scheduled to expire on July 8, 2012. The
franchise is proposed for a 5 year term. This resolution will set June 11, 2012 as the
date for hearing on the franchise and call for required postings and publications by
RCW 36.55.040.
Commissioner Averill stated this is a renewal of a franchise. There is no construction
anticipated. We as County Commissioners discovered that there were a number of
commitments made, some of which were 20 to 30 years old. What we have done is
asked that these franchises be renewed every 5 years so there is someone around that
knows that they exist.
Motion Carried 3-0
CONSENT
Commissioner Averill moved to approve Consent Agenda items four through eight.
Commissioner Schulte seconded the motion. Candace Hallom read the items into the
record.
4. Resolution No. 12-153 Approval of warrants for payment.
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Commissioner Averill stated this Resolution approves 239 warrants issued by the
Auditor’s Office totaling $654,793.00.
5. Resolution No. 12-154 Amendment to Resolution No. 10-100 regarding
Gambling and Fraud Enforcement Fund No. 165.
Glenn Carter, Prosecutors Office, stated back in 2009 the Prosecuting Attorney’s
Office, the Sheriff’s Office, and the Chehalis Police assisted the State Gambling
Commission in recovering approximately $4 million. The Prosecuting Attorney’s Office
applied for an allocation from those funds. The Grant was granted in the amount of
$643,000.00. The Grant was of such magnitude that the Prosecutors Office was not in
a position to spend all of that money. As a result the funding was shared with other
departments specifically the Sheriff’s Office because they had assisted in the
investigation that lead to the prosecution and successful recovery. In addition it was
shared with the Superior Court, who deals with Drug Court and individuals who engage
in forgeries and or other kinds of crimes of fraud. The Superior Court was also unable
to spend the money within the time limit given to them so at the end of 2011 there was
additional money that became available to be spent by other agencies and among those
is the Sheriff’s Office. The Sheriff originally had a deadline on their expenditures of
December 31, 2011 and now by this resolution it is proposed to extend the time to
December 31, 2012.
6. Resolution No. 12-155 Approving an inter-local cooperative purchasing
agreement with Cowlitz County to utilize each other’s procurement
agreements.
Crystal Partee, Clerks Office, stated Cowlitz County would like to utilize one of the
contracts that the Clerk’s Office has with a local firm who does collections of our legal
financial obligations that are not being paid.
Commissioner Averill stated this agreement is a little broader and allows both Cowlitz
and Lewis County to piggyback on each other’s contracts.
7. Resolution No. 12-156 Approving a contract with Human Response Network
(HRN) to provide domestic violence prevention services for victims of
domestic violence.
Crystal Partee, Clerks Office stated this is an annual contract in the amount of
$2,000.00. We receive funds from surcharges on Superior Court domestic filing cases
which are divorce cases. A portion of the money goes to the Human Response
Network.
8. Resolution No. 12-157 Approving a contract with the Lewis County Bar Legal
Aid to provide basic services to pro se litigants in family law cases.
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Crystal Partee, Clerks Office stated this is an annual contract with Lewis County Bar
Legal Aid. They provide basic services to pro se litigants which are individuals who
don’t have attorneys representing them. The amount of this contract is $12,636.00 per
year. The funds for this are also derived from Superior Court surcharges on dissolution
cases.
Motion Carried 3-0
HEARING
Hearing: Open Space
Chairman Grose announced the hearing and asked for a Staff Report.
Dianne Dorey, Lewis County Assessor, stated there are two owners who applied with
the Public Benefits Ratings System (PBRS) which is part of the Open Space or Current
Use programs. The first is Helsum LLC, this parcel was scored at 60% reduction by the
PBRS. The parcel provides an area of flood storage, a riparian buffer and protects soils
along a river, and protects wetland and provides habitat for critical native plants. The
second is for Robert Smarz, this parcel scored a 40% reduction. The parcel protects
traditional farm and agricultural land in a condition that allows for immediate resumption
of commercial farm and agricultural uses when purchased by another farmer.
Commissioner Averill stated this Open Space designation is different than Agriculture,
Timber, or Forest designations. A property going into Open Space designation gets less
of a break then if they were going into the Timber, Agricultural, or Forest designations
The criteria is restrictive and this time the PBRS had applications and they are only
awarding this to two.
Chairman Grose asked if there were any more questions. There were none. He closed
the question and answer portion of the hearing and opened the formal hearing.
Dianne Dorey asked that her previous comments be adopted into the record.
Commissioner Averill stated he is the representative from the Commissioners on the
PBRS and they looked at these applications very carefully. This subsequently went
before the Planning Commission who also recommended this be approved.
Chairman Grose asked if there were any other statements for public testimony. There
were none. He closed the hearing and asked for a motion.
Commissioner Schulte moved to approve Resolution No. 12-158. Commissioner
Averill seconded the motion. Candace Hallom read the item into the record.
Resolution 12-158 Approval of Open Space Designation and Assessed Value
Reduction For Property and Property Owners.
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Motion Carried 3-0
Hearing: Non-Exclusive Franchise to National Frozen Foods
Chairman Grose announced the hearing and asked for a Staff Report.
Tim Elsea, Director of Public Works, stated National Frozen Foods Corporation has
requested a franchise for the construction, operation and maintenance of irrigation
water system facilities on a portion of Airport Road, Chehalis. This non-exclusive
franchise will authorize the use of road right of way for 5 years for this purpose.
Resolution 12-127 passed by the BOCC on April 23, 2012, set May 14, 2012 as the
date for hearing on the matter. This franchise is being granted pursuant to and in
conformance with RCW 36.55 and Lewis County Code 12.25 through 12.50, for a non-
exclusive franchise to construct, operate and maintain irrigation water lines within
Airport Road Right-of-Way. RCW 36.55 requires that no hearing be held on a proposed
franchise grant until 5 days after the last publication date, and 15 days after posting of
the notice thereof in three public places. Publication must be twice in the official
newspaper for publication in the County. Publication occurred on April 25 and May 2,
2012 in the East County Journal and April 26 and May 3, 2012 in the Chronicle, and the
franchise was posted in three public places. This is part of the Airport Road
reconstruction. We worked out a three way deal with the airport on Nation Frozen Foods
and the County because National Frozen Foods had an irrigation line that was within
the County rights-of-way and also within the boundaries of the construction limits.
National Frozen Foods is moving their irrigation line into the new rights-of-way.
Chairman Grose asked if there were any more questions. There were none. He closed
the question and answer portion of the hearing and opened the formal hearing.
Tim Elsea asked that his previous comments be adopted into the record.
Chairman Grose asked if there were any other statements for public testimony. There
were none. He closed the hearing and asked for a motion.
Commissioner Averill moved to approve Resolution No. 12-159. Commissioner
Schulte seconded the motion. Candace Hallom read the item into the record.
Resolution 12-159 In the Matter of a nonexclusive Franchise to National Frozen
Foods Corporation to construct, operate and maintain an irrigation water pipeline
in Airport Road Right-of-Way; and setting forth conditions accompanying a grant
of a nonexclusive Franchise; and providing for County Administration and
regulation of the nonexclusive Franchise.
Motion Carried 3-0
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There being no further business, the Commissioners’ public meeting adjourned at 10:55
am on May 14, 2012. The next public meeting will be held Monday, May 21, 2012, at
10:00 a.m.
Please note that minutes from the Board of County Commissioners’ meetings are not
verbatim. A recording of the meeting may be purchased at the Commissioners’ office.
BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
LEWIS COUNTY, WASHINGTON
ATTEST: F. Lee Grose, Chairman
Clerk of the Board P.W. Schulte, Commissioner
Lewis County Commissioners
Ron Averill, Commissioner