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Del Norte supervisors approve $50,000 for repairs to non‑county roads, authorize county engineer to spend funds
Summary
The Board of Supervisors approved setting aside $50,000 in next year's recommended budget to fix non‑county maintained roads and authorized the county engineer to expend the funds for selected projects, with staff directed to explore longer‑term funding options.
The Del Norte County Board of Supervisors on a 4-0 vote approved setting aside $50,000 in the recommended fiscal year 2025–26 budget for repairs to roads that are not part of the county-maintained system and authorized the county engineer to expend the funds for selected repairs per county policy.
The county engineer presented photos of recent short-term repairs, including grading, ditch clearing and rock placement on Darby and other local roads, and proposed a package of near-term projects totalling about $35,000 with a $15,000 buffer. The board approved the plan and explicitly authorized the county engineer to spend the $50,000 and to include the revenue in the recommended FY25–26 roads budget.
The engineer said the work was intended to make private or unmaintained roads passable and reduce impediments to emergency vehicles. “If it goes five years with no maintenance, that would be outstanding,” the county engineer (John) said, describing the expected life of modest repairs.
Project-level proposals included roughly $10,000 for Lake Street (grading and ditching), $5,000 for Childs Avenue (rock and minor grading) and $10,000 for additional drainage work on Darby; State Street work was scoped for ditching and rock with no permanent solution proposed due to coastal‑zone permitting and wetlands constraints. Supervisors asked staff to consider adding other candidate roads such as Carroll (Carol) Lane raised by members of the public.
Board discussion also reviewed options for sustained funding and maintenance responsibilities. Staff outlined private options (road maintenance agreements, homeowners associations) and public mechanisms—county service areas, permanent road division, road maintenance districts and Proposition 218 benefit assessments—each requiring differing levels of public vote or permitting. The engineer suggested a revolving‑fund model or an upfront county “carrot” to leverage homeowner commitments for longer‑term maintenance.
The action: motion to set aside $50,000 and authorize the county engineer to expend those funds was moved and seconded and approved unanimously. The board also directed staff to bring back implementation options and to coordinate with code enforcement where cleanup or access control is needed on project sites.
The measure is intended as a one‑year allocation to address immediate safety and access problems on non‑county roads while the county explores assessor/district options to fund ongoing maintenance.
