***Monday, May 04, 2020, at 9:00 a.m., Commissioners met in regular session with Chairman Dan Dinning, Commissioner Wally Cossairt, Commissioner Walt Kirby (via telephone), Clerk Glenda Poston, and Deputy Clerk Michelle Rohrwasser.

Commissioners gave the opening invocation and said the Pledge of Allegiance.

9:00 a.m., Commissioners held an elected officials/department heads meeting via conference call. Present were: Chairman Dan Dinning, Commissioner Wally Cossairt, Commissioner Walt Kirby, Clerk Glenda Poston, Deputy Clerk Michelle Rohrwasser, Courthouse Maintenance John Buckley, Treasurer Sue Larson, Assessor Dave Ryals, Sheriff Dave Kramer, Prosecutor Jack Douglas, University of Idaho Extension Educator Amy Robertson, Road & Bridge Department Co-Superintendents Renee Nelson and Randy Morris, Veterans Service Officer Ron Self, Chief Probation Officer Stacy Brown, Planning and Zoning Administrator John Moss, and Emergency Manager/Boundary County Public Information Officer Andrew O’Neel.

Treasurer Larson, Prosecutor Douglas and Mr. Self said they had nothing new to report for their offices.

Assessor Ryals said his offices are still working split shifts, but he’s looking at possibly opening up these offices a bit more.

Clerk Poston informed everyone that budgets are due in a couple of week. Chief Deputy Clerk Tracie Isaac is retiring on May 15th so the Clerk’s Office may have a get together for her, but it would be held outside and done in staggered shifts. The armory remodel is progressing with drywall work last week and plumbing and tiling this week. There will be court held today and on Thursday so other offices within the Courthouse will want to keep their doors closed.

Sheriff Kramer said the Driver’s License Office is going to open again and appointments need to be scheduled. Most of the Sheriff’s Office staff is back to working the normal schedules. National Police Memorial Week is the 15th of May, but the public awareness ceremony will be postponed for now. Sheriff Kramer said otherwise the Sheriff’s Office is doing okay.

Ms. Robertson said she had nothing new to report for the Extension Office. Extension program related meetings will be held throughout the week to see what the 4H program will look like going forward. Chairman Dinning said as we go two weeks out, we will see what allowing public into offices will look like.

Mr. Morris said there isn’t much to report for Road and Bridge. Road and Bridge is sweeping, patching and getting brush cut.

Ms. Brown said some probationers are starting to come into the office, but the process is being monitored.

Mr. Moss said Planning and Zoning is business as usual. His office doors are closed to the public and people are sending him applications by mail. There are no public hearings scheduled at this time.

Commissioners stated that the Courthouse will be reopening to the public on some basis on May 18, 2020, so they’re looking at developing criteria for that. The Supreme Court stated in their order that came out a couple of weeks ago, that everyone in the Courthouse needs to wear a mask, not just people associated with the courts, so be prepared for that.

Commissioners asked Assessor Ryals for the status of licensing vehicles. Assessor Ryals said the public was given an extension to the end of June the last he heard. Vehicle registration can be done by mail on the Idaho Transportation Department website or calling in with a credit card. Matters pertaining to processing titles is at a standstill for now.

Mr. Buckley said he’s busy building extra splatter shield partitions, but there are some offices that he’s having trouble determining how to place the shields between employees, such as in the Appraisers’ Office and the Extension Office.

Mr. O’Neel said Boundary Community Hospital has conducted 58 tests with 54 tests coming back as negative and four tests have results pending. There are 22 new cases in Idaho as of Saturday. Kootenai County has 61 cases of the virus and there are four cases in Bonner County, which means Bonner County has not had any new cases for some time now. There are still no cases in Boundary County and nobody is being monitored in Boundary County. We are now in stage 1 of the Governor’s reopening plan. This is a two week stage and it will be re-evaluated toward May 15th. It’s a matter of looking for a downward trend of hospital visits for Covid-19 like symptoms. The hospital system is also being monitored for personal protective equipment so we’re looking at trends.

Chairman Dinning urged those on the call to not let their guards down as we go into the next stages. There are fears that somehow through associations and no longer being cautious that we would infect healthcare workers and others.

The elected officials/department heads meeting conference call ended at 9:15 a.m.

Commissioners tended to administrative duties.

9:30 a.m., Road and Bridge Department Co-Superintendents Renee Nelson and Randy Morris joined the meeting via conference call to give the department report. A written report was submitted. Ms. Nelson informed Commissioners that she doesn’t yet have the professional services agreements for the Westside Road/Trout Creek Bridge project and when she does get those documents she will need to send them to County Civil Attorney Tevis Hull for review first. Ms. Nelson said there are no costs involved with this project as the county has already paid the project match. The date for the preconstruction meeting has not been set as the documents are needed first.

Ms. Nelson and Commissioners discussed matters regarding construction and approach locations as it pertains to the Road Standards Ordinance. There had been discussion regarding a variance for a type of culvert at an approach. The Road Standards Ordinance was adopted in February of 2007 so any approaches after that date should meet the Road Standards Ordinance, but Road and Bridge has seen different scenarios that have been happening. Ms. Nelson asked if something could be put in place so Road and Bridge knows the best case scenario when this happens. Ms. Nelson mentioned having seen documents being processed that never went through Planning and Zoning so there were no conditions placed for access. Ms. Nelson mentioned that the county mapper will process the deed and there will be a reference made that there was not an application for the parcel split. Ms. Nelson said if they see a residential placement permit that has been approved and they know it didn’t go through the correct channels, they refer it back to Planning and Zoning Administrator John Moss as it pertains to the parcel split that had not gone through the process. If a property owner was not notified of approach conditions, would the county need to grant a variance? Ms. Nelson commented that we might need to make things a bit simpler. Chairman Dinning said what we want is something that will give the public an understanding of what can be done.

Mr. Morris and Chairman Dinning discussed the status of repairing some of the pavement at the armory and Mr. Morris said he would contact Woods Crushing and Hauling to see if they have a time line yet.

The call with Road and Bridge ended at 9:51 a.m.

Commissioners discussed rescheduling their public hearing to consider Planning and Zoning Application 19-177 to a date in June.

Commissioner Cossairt moved to continue the public hearing to address Planning and Zoning Application 19-177, to consider proposed changes to the county’s Land Use Ordinance, to Tuesday, June 16, 2020. Commissioner Kirby second. Motion passed unanimously.

Commissioner Cossairt moved to approve the Findings and Decision for Planning and Zoning Application #19-177 as it pertains to urban subdivisions only, creating Ordinance 9B18LOV3 to be adopted. Commissioner Kirby second. Motion passed unanimously.

10:00 a.m., Solid Waste Department Superintendent Claine Skeen contacted Commissioners via conference call to give his department report.

Mr. Skeen informed Commissioners that he received the cost information on the roll off containers. The roll off price from Bucks Fabrication for nine roll off containers came to $98,850. Rule Steel out of Caldwell, Idaho, had a total of $102,532.00. Mr. Skeen commented that the biggest thing is freight, but Delton Amoth said he could deliver them for $5,000.00. Mr. Skeen explained that freight consists of only two roll offs at a time and he described the design of the recycling roll offs versus regular roll offs. Chairman Dinning asked if there are any used units available and Mr. Skeen said not really.

Mr. Skeen said he was contacted by Tim West of Westwood LLC. regarding a heavy demolition charge as Mr. West had noticed a difference in fees posted at the landfill versus the fees listed on the county website. Commissioners said they would honor the difference and charge Westwood LLC. the amount of 10 cents versus 16 cents for their heavy demolition for that particular trip.

Mr. Skeen said in the letter from the Department of Environmental Quality it references that the county is looking at exceeding 20 tons per day at the landfill and is asking what plans the county has in place for taking care of the difference. Mr. Skeen said he has a copy of Commissioners’ meeting minutes from March 17, 2015, at 1:30 p.m., in which the county was told it can bury 20 tons of garbage and ship the rest out and it was not said the county would lose its exemption.

Mr. Skeen said he is playing the market with recycling. Mr. Skeen informed Commissioners that he has an employee who will be retiring soon so he is looking to rotate some of his other employee positions, which will leave an open position at the Paradise Valley site. Clerk Poston questioned if Mr. Skeen had any employees who would be interested in a position as a greeter/monitor at the Courthouse when it reopens. Clerk Poston explained that the Courthouse will open on a limited basis on May 18th and she’s looking at having a person out front to keep count of the number of people coming into the Courthouse to do business as well as help direct the public to the offices they need. Mr. Skeen said he will check on that, but he is utilizing all of this part-time employees.
The call with Mr. Skeen ended at 10:15 a.m.

10:17 a.m., County Civil Attorney Tevis Hull contacted Commissioners via telephone to provide an update on various matters he is working on. Commissioners informed Attorney Hull that they did sign the Findings and Decision for Planning and Zoning Application 19-177 and now they need to adopt the ordinance once it’s ready. Attorney Hull mentioned the questions he had regarding the draft ordinance. Attorney Hull listed various documents he’s working on to include the Tihonovich easement, a question on a recorded document, etc. Chairman Dinning said Road and Bridge Co-Superintendent Renee Nelson had talked to them about matters pertaining to the county’s Road Standards Ordinance. The situation is that any parcel that was split prior to the date the Road Standards Ordinance was adopted was somewhat exempted from the approach process, but then Road and Bridge has noticed some issues concerning properties. If Planning and Zoning Administrator John Moss approves a property split without including the Road and Bridge Department’s comments or criteria of approval and the property owners find out they have road approach problems, Road and Bridge questioned the ability to utilize the variance process. It was said there is a process for those lots created prior to the adoption of the Road Standards Ordinance, but not for the lots after the adoption of the ordinance. Attorney Hull said he would contact Ms. Nelson. Chairman Dinning informed Attorney Hull that Road and Bridge is running into issues where their recommendations are not being listed on building location permits so they are questioning what to do. Chairman Dinning added that he knows the county needs to have a formal variance process and public hearing.

Commissioner Kirby moved to change the public hearing date to consider Planning and Zoning Application 19-177 from Tuesday, June 16, 2020, at 9:30 a.m., to Monday, June 15, 2020, at 1:30 p.m. in the Extension Office meeting room. Commissioner Cossairt second. Motion passed unanimously.

The call to Attorney Hull ended at 10:30 a.m.

10:30 a.m., Chief Probation Officer Stacy Brown contacted Commissioners via conference call to give a department report. Ms. Brown provided Commissioners with the number of those on probation, updated Commissioners on cleaning measures her office is taking, Zoom meetings, and talking with other agencies about matters for when the office is reopened.

The call with Ms. Brown ended at 10:32 a.m.

Commissioners tended to administrative duties until their next meeting.

10:58 a.m., Courthouse Maintenance John Buckley contacted Commissioners via conference call to give a department report. Mr. Buckley spoke of working to get employee partitions done for the various offices. Chairman Dinning commented that Mr. Buckley had mentioned not knowing how to go about installing partitions in the Extension Offices, but he was thinking that each desk in that office should have one. Chairman Dinning asked Mr. Buckley to put up the partitions in the offices at the armory as well. Clerk Poston mentioned having heard about people using clear shower curtains to separate areas.

The call with Mr. Buckley ended at 11:00 a.m.

Commissioners tended to administrative duties.

Commissioners received a telephone call from county resident Steve Tanner who had questions regarding re-opening the Courthouse with regard to voting, the current phase of restrictions and the Governor’s Order. Mr. Tanner commented that he would like to see the Courthouse open now.

11:23 a.m., Boundary Economic Development Council (EDC) Director Dennis Weed contacted Commissioners via conference call to update Commissioners on various EDC projects. Also on the call for the meeting was Boundary County Emergency Manager/Public Information Officer Andrew O’Neel.

Mr. Weed informed Commissioners that the block grant for the amount of $500,000.00 was awarded to the City of Moyie Springs for the regional sewer project and the city originally had the grant from the Department of Environmental Quality in the amount of $700,000.00. Mr. Weed said there is a good chance the City of Moyie Springs can apply for the second round of the block grant in the fall as there is more block grant funding for waste and drinking water purposes than there are applications for the grant. Also with the price of oil going down, the overall cost of the sewer project is probably lower than originally anticipated. Mr. Weed said in the fall a grant through the Army Corps of Engineers will be applied for totaling over one million dollars. The Department of Commerce is increasing funds for infrastructure projects so if there is a shovel ready project, there will be more funds available in the summer or fall to do those projects.

Mr. Weed commented that the Economic Development Professional (EDPRO) grant application became available last week and it’s due by June 1, 2020, so he started working on it last week. Mr. Weed said he’s thinking of possibly reducing the entities contribution by $1,000.00. Chairman Dinning asked Mr. Weed how his travel budget is for EDC. Mr. Weed said once the pandemic is over he may be traveling a lot as training courses were pushed ahead to the fall. Chairman Dinning suggested Mr. Weed keep the budget the same for the entities so he can put those funds into the travel budget.

Mr. Weed mentioned the phases of reopening the economy and he said the main issue is getting restaurants and hospitality businesses back open. The mills, cabinet shops, etc. are still doing fairly well.

Mr. Weed informed Commissioners that he is on the Innovia Foundation Grant Board and the foundation is allotting funds to counties in Washington State and Idaho. Mr. Weed said we received approximately 36% of the funds, which is more than if you go by population. The funds were distributed to places such as the Senior Center, Ministerial Association and Food Bank, etc. The foundation will issue another allotment in June and then again in August or sometime this fall. Mr. Weed said a good job was done the first time around in getting the funds to the right places and overall, it’s just coordination within the county so we don’t miss a group of people.

Mr. Weed mentioned that the unemployment forecast it up to 32% unemployment nationally, which is quite a bit higher than the great depression. Most of the unemployment is in the hospitality and medical fields, etc. Mr. Weed said he didn’t have the updated unemployment figures for Boundary County so it’s still showing at approximately 4% unemployment. The mills are still going strong, according to Mr. Weed.

Mr. Weed stated that there could be some food shortages, such as meat, in different areas and with the pandemic you never know if people are hoarding. Costco is putting a limit on how much meat a person can purchase. As we get close to summer we need to be cognizant of food shortages. Chairman Dinning mentioned there had been an issue of that nature for the Restorium. Mr. O’Neel asked if it’s worth the effort to contact grocery stores about placing limits. Mr. O’Neel spoke of different supply lines between grocery stores and restaurants and Mr. Weed spoke of how restaurants weren’t placing orders through supply businesses and that some restaurants were selling their inventory to individuals.

Chairman Dinning said getting back to the EDPRO grant, Mr. Weed should keep the budgets of $8,000.00 for each Boundary County and the City of Bonners Ferry. It was said the Tribe provides $4,000.00, the City of Moyie Springs provides $2,500.00 and North Idaho College contributes $5,000.00.

Commissioners asked if Mr. Weed had received an update from Verizon regarding their service. Mr. Weed said he did talk to their engineer who is stumped at what is causing the issue, but it’s the Paradise Valley site where the issue is occurring. It was said someone is on the wrong frequency in Paradise Valley and it’s causing issues. Mr. Weed said the older equipment will all be sold once Verizon gets 5G equipment on the tower. The antiquated equipment is causing a problem. Mr. Weed said he’s also speaking with the Canadian Consulate about allowing more coverage further north. Commissioners and Mr. Weed discussed writing a letter to Senator Risch about this issue as the Senator is on a board that is connected to this type of matter.

Mr. Weed mentioned receiving notice that North Idaho College is thinking about closing its Bonners Ferry satellite campus so he will reach out to them about that.

The call with Mr. Weed and Mr. O’Neel ended at 11:58 a.m.

Commissioners recessed for lunch at noon.

1:30 p.m., Commissioners reconvened for the afternoon session with Chairman Dan Dinning, Commissioner Wally Cossairt, Commissioner Walt Kirby, Clerk Glenda Poston, and Deputy Clerk Michelle Rohrwasser.

1:30 p.m., Restorium Administrator Karlene Magee contacted Commissioners via conference call to give her department report. Commissioners and Clerk Poston reviewed the quarterly report for the Restorium. Food costs have increased, but that had been explained prior. Ms. Magee said she has a two month supply of dry goods built up now. Chairman Dinning mentioned a possible food limitation regarding meat so she may want to stock up on that as well. Ms. Magee commented on her ability to get face masks through Sysco so she placed an order for 50. Commissioners and Clerk Poston suggested Ms. Magee order additional masks. Those present reviewed the information provided in the report.

Clerk Poston spoke of budgets in the Restorium’s line items for capital construction and capital furniture and suggested not using those budgets for the moment. Ms. Magee mentioned the purchase of the dishwasher and the call system was already in progress from those budgets.

Chairman Dinning mentioned that Restorium employees still need to be mindful of being around large crowds after the pandemic seems to have subsided.

The call to Ms. Magee ended at 1:43 p.m.

1:50 p.m., County Civil Attorney Tevis Hull contacted Commissioners via conference call.

1:46 p.m., Commissioner Cossairt moved to go into executive session pursuant to Idaho Code 74-206(1)b, to consider the evaluation, dismissal or disciplining of, or to hear complaints or charges brought against, a public officer, employee, staff member or individual agent, or public school student. Commissioner Kirby second. Commissioners voted as follows: Chairman Dinning “aye”, Commissioner Cossairt “aye” and Commissioner Kirby “aye”. Motion passed unanimously. The executive session ended at 2:18 p.m. No action was taken.

Commissioners continued their executive session to Tuesday, May 5, 2020, at 1:30 p.m.

The call to Attorney Hull ended.

Commissioner Kirby moved to continue the executive session until 1:30 p.m., on Tuesday, May 5, 2020. Commissioner Cossairt second. Motion passed unanimously.

2:24 p.m., Commissioners contacted University of Idaho Extension Educator Amy Robertson via telephone to inquire about hiring an applicant to work at the entrance of the Courthouse to monitor public access and direct the public to the offices they need when the Courthouse reopens. The call ended at 2:30 p.m.

Commissioners tended to administrative duties.

2:45 p.m., Sheriff Dave Kramer and Sheriff’s Office Administrator Crystal Denton joined the meeting via conference call to discuss quotes for fiber and connectivity for the Sheriff’s Office. Also on the call were Eric Lederhos and Seth Brown with EL Internet. It was said that the Sheriff’s Office received three quotes for internet service and fiber. Two of the quotes were sent over to Commissioners, but the third quote was not due to having a higher amount. Chairman Dinning said that is the purpose of the meeting as in the future, Commissioners need to receive all quotes that had been submitted. Commissioners asked for the information from the Frontier quote. Ms. Denton said Frontier submitted a quote for a five year contract at a rate of $699.00 per month for internet and fiber from the Sheriff’s Office to the armory at a rate of $600.00 per month for a total monthly charge of $1,299.00 or internet and point to point connection. The quote from EL Internet was for the dark fiber optic lease between the Sheriff’s Office downtown and the armory for $100.00 per month and internet service at the armory at $450.00 per month for a total of $550.00. Ms. Denton said the quote from Fatbeam was $795.00 for internet and the fiber between the Sheriff’s Office and the armory. Chairman Dinning said we had failed to discuss the quote from Frontier.

Commissioner Kirby moved to reaffirm Commissioners’ motion to select the quote from EL Internet for internet and fiber for the Sheriff’s Office. Commissioner Cossairt second. Motion passed unanimously.

The call to Ms. Denton and Sheriff Kramer ended.

Commissioners asked Mr. Lederhos if he had any update pertaining to the issues with Verizon’s cell service. Mr. Lederhos said Verizon is to have new equipment installed on the Black Mountain tower once the snow melts to help them see what the interference was.

The call to Mr. Lederhos ended.

Commissioners approved the purchase of masks from Belden Nu’Uvali totaling $5,442.12.

3:00 p.m., Idaho Public Defense Commission District Liaison Aaron Freudenthal contacted Commissioners via telephone to provide an update on Public Defense Commission matters. Supervisory Court Clerk Della Armstrong joined the meeting. Mr. Freudenthal said he received a copy of the annual review and he mentioned a matter regarding first appearances by the designated attorney. Ms. Armstrong asked how that information is obtained and Mr. Freudenthal said he can only check the court minutes. Mr. Freudenthal stated that if the designated attorney for first appearances is not available, a clerk can note in the record that another attorney was available so to clarify, the clerk can just list whether or not the attorney was there. Everything else looks great and public defenders are working on their credits, according to Mr. Freudenthal.

Mr. Freudenthal discussed educational requirements for the public defenders and how the county could set up a training fund for this. Mr. Freudenthal and Commissioners discussed budget matters in relation to property and sales taxes, budget line items used when hiring investigators, financial assistance, and having a new record keeping rule for attorneys.

The call with Mr. Freudenthal ended at 3:23 p.m.

3:30 p.m., Commissioners held a conference call with the elected officials having offices within the Courthouse to discuss what reopening the Courthouse may look like. Taking part in the discussion was: Chairman Dan Dinning, Commissioner Wally Cossairt, Commissioner Walt Kirby, Clerk Glenda Poston, Treasurer Sue Larson, Prosecutor Jack Douglas, Sheriff Dave Kramer, and Assessor Dave Ryals.

Assessor Ryals said his staff are and have been protected to this point and he added that when the public starts coming back into the Courthouse, his staff will wear a mask and he expects the public to wear a mask as well, but if no one is in the office, his staff probably won’t as they’re not wearing them now when they’re alone. Chairman Dinning said when the public has to wear a mask into the Courthouse its respectful if county employees do so as well. Commissioners are looking to implement this plan on May 18th and at that time all employees will need to be back at work in the office. If employees are not back, they will need to use their vacation or sick leave. Assessor Ryals said, unless they bring in a doctor’s note.

Chairman Dinning reviewed the restrictions for stage 2 and he stated that this is making the assumption that stage 2 will occur. Those present discussed if a county employee is medically vulnerable and has a doctor’s note. It was said that stage 3 is basically the same and in stage 4, everyone comes back. Chairman Dinning said if employees are not coming back to work on May 18th, we need to set them up to be able to work from home.

It was said that if we continue to leave the document drop boxes outside for the public to use, we’re going to need to hire someone to deal with that, other than the Clerk’s Office as they’re getting busy. Commissioners said they will figure that out. Commissioners said we have until 8:00 p.m., on May 19th for absentee ballots. Sheriff Kramer said his office is going back to normal hours next Monday and it’s been working well with appointment scheduling for the Driver’s License Office.

Commissioners discussed putting down directional stripes on the floor and having signage in place so large lines of people don’t develop while waiting to be assisted.

The call to the elected officials ended at 3:42 p.m.

There being no further business, the meeting recessed until tomorrow at 1:30 p.m.
***Tuesday, May 5, 2020, at 1:30 p.m., Commissioners met in regular session with Chairman Dan Dinning, Commissioner Wally Cossairt, Commissioner Walt Kirby (via telephone), Clerk Glenda Poston, and Deputy Clerk Michelle Rohrwasser.

1:30 p.m., County Civil Attorney Tevis Hull joined the meeting.

Commissioner Cossairt moved to go into executive session pursuant to Idaho Code 74-206(1)b, to consider the evaluation, dismissal or disciplining of, or to hear complaints or charges brought against, a public officer, employee, staff member or individual agent, or public school student. Chairman Dinning yielded the chair to second. Commissioners voted as follows: Chairman Dinning “aye”, Commissioner Cossairt “aye” and Commissioner Kirby “aye”. Motion passed unanimously. The executive session ended at 2:20 p.m.

There being no further business, the meeting recessed until Thursday, May 7, 2020, at 9:00 a.m.

***Thursday, May 7, 2020, at 9:00 a.m., Commissioners met in special session with Chairman Dan Dinning, Commissioner Wally Cossairt, Commissioner Walt Kirby, Clerk Glenda Poston, and Deputy Clerk Michelle Rohrwasser.

9:00 a.m., Commissioners held an elected officials/department heads meeting via conference call. Present were: Chairman Dan Dinning, Commissioner Wally Cossairt, Commissioner Walt Kirby, Clerk Glenda Poston, Deputy Clerk Michelle Rohrwasser, Assessor Dave Ryals, Prosecutor Jack Douglas, Undersheriff Rich Stephens, Treasurer Sue Larson, University of Idaho Extension Educator Amy Robertson, Chief Probation Officer Stacy Brown, Solid Waste Superintendent Claine Skeen, Maintenance Supervisor John Buckley, Planning & Zoning Administrator John Moss, Restorium Supervisor Karlene Magee, Road & Bridge Co-Superintendents Renee Nelson and Randy Morris, Veterans Service Officer Ron Self, Emergency Manager/County Public Information Officer Andrew O’Neel and Boundary County Victim Services Advocate Becky James.

Chairman Dinning reviewed plans for stage 2 for reopening the Courthouse. Everyone, including the public, will have to wear a mask when inside the Courthouse. This requirement is from the Idaho Supreme Court. Social distancing will still need to be observed and signage will be posted and directional markings will be placed on the floor. One person is allowed at the counters at a time and any business that can be taken care of by mail is encouraged. The back door of the Courthouse will still be locked, but the front door will be unlocked and we have hired someone to be at the front entrance of the Courthouse to assist the public and monitor how many people come inside. The document and payment drop box outside the front of the Courthouse will also still be available to receive documents and payments. Commissioners ask that anyone from the public go straight to the office they need to do business in.

For employees who need to stay home due to having school aged kids, that is still allowed and those employees need to work with their elected officials or department heads regarding being available and at least come to work on Fridays. This provision will be good through the end of the school year.

Mr. O’Neel said on the mask issue, he assumes the county is not providing the masks and the public needs to provide their own. There should also be some standards as people will not be required to wear an N95 mask, but it probably should be more than a bandana tied around their head. Mr. O’Neel said he could look up the Center for Disease Control (CDC) for guidance on that. Chairman Dinning explained that the public is required to provide their own masks and he added that the Idaho Supreme Court just has it listed as face coverings. Mr. O’Neel recalls that Mr. Buckley was going to put down some tape markings on the floor designating where the public should wait before being helped. Commissioners said they would wait to see what Governor Little decides before posting the new notice.

Ms. James said the Victims Service Office plans to allow only one participant in the office at a time and she will keep that plan unless there is another suggestion. There will also be only one advocate and herself in the office at a time. There is a sneeze guard in the office and they do have masks. Ms. James commented that a lot of her work can be done from home and she can come in when needed for hearings.

Assessor Ryals said he had nothing new, but his plan is to go back to regular office hours and staffing on May 18th.

Chairman Dinning said Chief Deputy Clerk Tracie Isaac is retiring and on May 15th employees are invited to the lawn of the Courthouse sometime between 1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. for cake and to visit with Ms. Isaac. Employees will need to stagger their visits with other offices and everyone needs to keep social distancing in mind.

Prosecutor Douglas said his office is doing fine.

Undersheriff Stephens said the Driver’s License Office is back up and running by appointments only and serving one person at a time. There is an online appointment method in addition to calling to schedule an appointment. The Dispatch Center is easing back into the full staff schedule. There are currently four inmates in the jail.

Treasurer Larson said her office mailed out tax reminders yesterday so the office should start getting busy.

Ms. Robertson said she had nothing new to report. Ms. Robertson asked, for the public coming into offices outside of the Courthouse should the public wear masks as well. Chairman Dinning said yes, and he mentioned staff should also be mindful of spacing.

Ms. Brown said there is nothing new for the Probation Office. Ms. Brown said her office will limit the number of people coming in by having scheduled appointments.

Mr. Skeen said his department is staying busy.

Mr. Buckley said he’s busy getting partitions up in various offices and he should finish by the end of this week or the next.

Mr. Moss said the Planning and Zoning Office door is closed and locked and he asked if the person hired to assist and monitor public traffic at the front of the Courthouse could explain to people that the Planning and Zoning Office can assist one person at a time and when someone is in the office, they must keep six feet apart.

Ms. Magee said there is nothing new for the Restorium other than they’ve established a way for residents to be able to visit with their families at a safe distance. Ms. Magee informed Commissioners that the additional masks ordered for the Clerk arrived.

Mr. Morris said Road and Bridge is brushing and getting the Durapatcher going. Chairman Dinning said during Stage 2 Road and Bridge employees will still need to maintain social distancing and have only one person in a county vehicle.

Mr. Self asked if Mr. Buckley would contact him regarding a plexi-glass shield for his office.

Mr. O’Neel said Boundary Community Hospital has tested 66 people for COVID-19 and 61 tests have come back negative with five test results pending. The hospital is testing people daily. There have been no changes in the number of positive COVID-19 cases in Kootenai County and Bonner County. Kootenai County is still at 61 total cases and Bonner County is still at four. Mr. O’Neel mentioned having not seen a spike in cases the state is putting on their website and it’s still at 20 to 30 cases per day, but that is in a steady range. The State of Montana has pretty much flattened out and Washington State started Stage 1 of reopening on Tuesday, May 5th.

Mr. O’Neel said the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is shipping a 14 day supply of personal protective equipment to a large number of nursing homes, etc., so the Restorium may receive some of this.

Mr. O’Neel commented that Verizon plans to install new equipment and 5G service, but the snow on the road to the tower still impedes their ability and he asked if there is anything the county can do to help get that road cleared. Chairman Dinning explained the terrain of the road with steep drop offs on each side so it may cause issues to open that road right now.

Chairman Dinning informed everyone that it’s possible that we may see a resurgence of the virus in the fall and how there may not be various community events taking place this year.

The elected officials/conference call ended at 9:23 a.m.

Chief Deputy Sheriff Stephens and Commissioners resumed the discussion on access to the cell tower on Black Mountain Road so Verizon can make their improvements.

Undersheriff Stephens left the meeting at 9:32 a.m.

Commissioners recessed until the Idaho Association of Counties conference call with Governor Brad Little.

1:00 p.m., Chairman Dinning and Commissioner Cossairt participated in the Idaho Association of Counties conference call with Idaho Governor Brad Little, who held a press release regarding COVID-19 matters in relation to Idaho. The call ended at 1:30 p.m.

There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 1:30 p.m.

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DAN R. DINNING, Chairman
ATTEST:

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GLENDA POSTON, Clerk
By: Michelle Rohrwasser, Deputy Clerk