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Committee agrees to recruit two members, reactivate subject‑matter panels and seek community input for agricultural capacity position
Summary
Members discussed filling two committee vacancies, reactivating subject‑matter expert groups, and developing a community‑driven scope of work for an agricultural capacity position; committee set a follow‑up schedule and officer nominations.
The committee spent substantial time April 16 on membership, subject‑matter expert (SME) groups and a proposed agricultural capacity position intended to support working lands priorities.
Several members raised the committee’s current two‑vacancy situation and discussed whether to recruit now or wait until after the accelerated grant cycle and onboarding that could follow. County staff said they recommend postponing appointments until after the grant cycle and proposed recruiting with clear qualifications to ensure balanced expertise in agriculture, forest health and recreation.
Members agreed to compile a short list of desired skills and expertise and submit it to county HR and the commissioners so vacancies can be recruited through the standard county appointment process. Committee members also discussed conflicts of interest: the group agreed that nominees who hold seats on related boards (for example, Envision) may create public‑perception issues and should be evaluated case‑by‑case, with recusal where appropriate.
On subject‑matter experts and councils, the committee asked for an updated roster and a small flowchart to show how SMEs would interact with the grants process. Staff explained that planning‑department capacity is expected to increase and that a new staff liaison could convene SMEs more consistently in the coming year.
Working lands: Committee members reported outreach and meetings with agricultural stakeholders. Jim and other local producers are assembling a proposal for the agricultural working group to pursue capacity building, mobile processing, sale‑barn or other infrastructure, and technical assistance. The committee emphasized that the scope must be community‑driven and recommended compiling prior surveys, the comprehensive plan and other inputs rather than starting from scratch.
Officers: The committee elected a vice chair and a secretary (voice votes recorded at the meeting); members agreed to form a small executive subgroup to handle interim items and scheduling.
Ending: Staff will collect member suggestions for desired skills, update SME rosters, and circulate a draft scope for the agricultural capacity position for community review before bringing the final recruitment proposal to the commissioners.
