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Board agrees to explore county partnership for O'Bannon Elementary walking trail after $50,000 Blue Cross grant offer
Summary
Western Alliance Schools sought county support to expand a $50,000 Blue Cross Blue Shield grant for O'Bannon Elementary into a community walking trail using county land and in-kind services; the board approved moving forward but asked county counsel to confirm legal authority for in-kind county work.
Dr. Lawrence Hudson, representing Western Alliance Schools, told the Washington County Board of Supervisors the group had secured a $50,000 grant from Blue Cross Blue Shield to build a project to promote healthy schools at O'Bannon Elementary and asked the county to partner by allowing use of land behind the school's ballfields to construct a walking trail for the wider community.
Hudson said engineers had prepared sketches and an estimate for contractor-built trails. He told the board that with county in-kind contributions of materials, equipment and labor, "some of those costs could be decreased, and we could possibly make this project happen." He said the grant funder needed a written project plan by the October deadline so the check could be issued.
County staff and the county attorney raised a legal question about whether the county has authority to provide in-kind services to a school without quid pro quo. County Attorney Griffin said he wanted to "take a look at it and see whether or not we got the legal authority to do it." The county engineer likewise asked staff to identify which line items could reasonably be covered in-kind by the county and to return cost estimates.
Board action: Supervisors voted to allow staff to work with the school district and engineering consultants to refine a scope and to move forward with the project development and to prepare cost estimates so Western Alliance Schools could meet the Blue Cross Blue Shield timeline. The motion passed with the board also asking counsel to review authority for in-kind county contributions.
Why it matters: The requested county partnership could extend the benefit of the $50,000 grant from a school-only improvement to a public walking trail accessible to the community. The county's ability to provide in-kind labor and equipment is subject to legal limits and may affect the county budget and operations, so the board asked for a formal legal review before any firm commitments.
Next steps: County staff will return with specific cost estimates that distinguish items that could be donated in-kind from items that would require cash outlay. County Attorney Griffin will review the county's legal authority to provide in-kind services to the school district and report back; if authority is confirmed, staff will provide the project description to Blue Cross Blue Shield so the grant payment can be released.
