Council asks county for details on river recreation interlocal agreement; vote delayed for more clarity

Chelan County staff presented a proposed interlocal agreement to Leavenworth’s City Council on May 13 that would fund a river recreation manager and related recreation work in the county and city. The city’s share discussed was $50,000 for 2025—$25,000 for staff time (hourly) and $25,000 earmarked for contractual services or infrastructure improvements.

Councilmembers asked for clearer budget controls and invoicing procedures before approving the agreement. Multiple councilmembers said they wanted written assurance that any use of the $50,000 would be invoiced and documented, that hourly logs would be provided for staff time, and that the city would approve specific projects funded from the contractual services pool. Several members said they did not want an open-ended payment without defined deliverables.

Staff indicated the county had backtracked on hiring a dedicated new employee because of uncertain grant funding, and that the county currently planned to dedicate existing staff time to the role; staff said the city would pay half the documented hours. Council asked staff to return with clearer language specifying invoicing, time reporting and approval steps, and to invite the county’s natural resources staff back to answer those questions. The council deferred a decision to a future meeting and asked that staff prepare a tighter cost-accounting and approval process.