The Coos County Board of Commissioners approved multiple procurement, grant acceptance and intergovernmental items during a single session, voting to proceed with vehicle and equipment purchases, small grants, job‑description changes and cooperative agreements with neighboring cities and state agencies.

Votes at a glance

- Beaver Hill pit roof project — approved change proposal with Ordell Construction LLC for retaining wall and driveway widening, amount not to exceed $159,119.76.
- Purchase of Hitachi ZW120 loader — approved purchase from Columbia Western Machinery for $172,372.88 (includes extended warranty, solid tires, grapple bucket and cabin filtration additions).
- 2026 Ford F550 4x4 SD crew cab work truck — approved purchase from Landmark Ford for an amount not to exceed $85,000.
- 2026 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 4x4 crew cab half‑ton — approved purchase from Decanna Chevrolet for an amount not to exceed $45,000.
- Support truck replacement policy/procurement discussion — board asked to limit total and approved a not‑to‑exceed amount for the F550 purchase.
- Sheriff’s traffic‑safety grant (NHTSA/ODOT) — accepted grant of $72,153 and authorized Sheriff Fabricio, Melissa Hager and Captain Sanborn to sign where appropriate.
- Outfitting invoices for two previously purchased sheriff vehicles — approved payment of $6,751.82 and $6,460.44 for a total of $13,212.26.
- Network monitoring sensor (CIS Albert SM) — approved purchase for $11,772 and authorized the chair to sign.
- Dogami landslide hazards mapping CTP project — accepted interagency agreement and $5,000 grant for landslide mapping and technical assistance; authorized Jill Rolfe, planning director, to sign.
- Cloud permit intergovernmental agreement — approved an IGA with the cities of Coos Bay and North Bend for shared permitting software (contract amount listed at $63,210; county share described in back‑page breakdown; county staff indicated the cost will be roughly $40,000 across the term). Delegated signature to department head Bill Ruhl.
- Oregon Educators Benefit Board IGA — approved yearly IGA for employee health insurance coverage effective Oct. 1, 2025, and authorized the chair to sign.
- Consent calendar — approved as presented.
- Late agenda item: amendment to access agreement for Inglewood School Site — approved substitution of the insured party name in the access/hold harmless agreement to match the contractor who will perform cleanup and site preparation; board said the city plans to convey the cleaned site to a developer for housing and that the developer now expects about 30 homes at roughly 1,000 sq ft each.
- Job description revision — approved revised job description for Mental Health Specialist 3, Adult Team Program Manager and authorized posting retroactive to Oct. 5, 2025.

Details and context

Roadmaster and public‑works capital items: Road and Solid Waste staff presented the Beaver Hill pit retaining‑wall and driveway widening as a timely corrective change discovered during excavation for new roof footings. Staff said the work will widen the access road by about 2–3 feet and is intended to improve emergency access and accommodate a slightly larger loader the county plans to purchase. The board noted the work will be paid from Solid Waste funds already set aside for the pit roof replacement and pit improvements.

Equipment purchases: Staff said a recently demoed Hitachi ZW120 loader offers roughly double the bucket capacity of the county’s current loader and will improve loading efficiency; the quoted price included accessories and an extended warranty. Staff reported the county had auctioned an older Volvo loader for $50,000 and that replacement funds are from Solid Waste reserves. For the Ford F550 replacement support truck, staff said Ford and Ram dealers provided written towing‑capacity confirmations (Chevrolet did not) and that the board approved an amount not to exceed $85,000 to allow for taxes and fees.

Public safety and technology: The sheriff’s office accepted a federal traffic‑safety grant that includes 45 overtime hours and totals $72,153. The sheriff’s office also received approval to pay invoices to outfit two patrol vehicles. The information‑systems director requested purchase of a CIS Albert sensor for network monitoring at $11,772; the board approved the expenditure and authorization to sign.

Planning and grants: The board accepted a small $5,000 interagency grant from Dogami for landslide hazard mapping to support Coos County planning and code review. The board also approved an IGA with Coos Bay and North Bend for shared permitting software to improve permit processing and customer service; the contract total was listed at $63,210 with a county share described in the contract breakdown.

Inglewood School Site amendment: The board approved a clerical amendment substituting the name of the insured party for the firm that will perform site work at the former Inglewood School property. County staff said the property, taken for tax nonpayment and cleaned at the city’s expense, is intended for housing; the board said the developer now expects roughly 30 homes of about 1,000 sq ft each, and that the county will convey the property to the city, which will convey it to the developer for construction.

Process and fiscal notes: Multiple presenters emphasized that the purchases and the Beaver Hill change order are to be paid from departmental reserves or budgets set aside for those capital projects. Several agenda items were approved by voice vote; formal roll‑call tallies were not recorded in the meeting transcript for many of the items.

Ending

The board moved through a packed agenda of routine procurement, grant and intergovernmental items and approved the majority of requests. Commissioners and staff repeatedly warned of a difficult fiscal year ahead and urged departments to conserve resources while preparing for next year’s budget process.