Kootenai County commissioners propose formal communication protocols with cities

Kootenai County commissioners on April 2 proposed developing formal communication protocols so county departments notify cities earlier about operational changes that could affect municipal services.

The discussion, led by Commissioner Bruce Mettari, focused on creating department-to-department channels — starting with Community Development and local building departments — rather than relying solely on elected officials to carry information across jurisdictions. Mettari said the idea grew from an example in which the county solid waste department decided not to pick up Christmas trees and some cities learned about the change at the last minute.

Mettari proposed that department heads identify which events warrant cross-jurisdiction notice and to design a platform that could be used as a template for other county departments. He suggested simple technical options, such as a website to post notices, and noted he had discussed the idea with the county IT department. “It could be something as simple as just having a website where you can post a document, that just describes what's going on,” Mettari said.

Troy Thymeson said his office already sends a daily heads-up to city councils that includes road closures and other items and asked whether the group wanted that level of detail for interjurisdictional notices. Participants said preferences vary by department. Several attendees suggested maintaining an email list of agency addresses to distribute notices tied to specific projects; others suggested push alerts or text messages for time-sensitive items.

David Kellahan, identified in the meeting transcript as the Kootenai County Community Development director, said it would be useful for his department to start the process by working with city building departments. The commissioners agreed, with no formal objection, that the county’s Community Development staff would reach out to city building departments to begin drafting a communications framework.

The discussion emphasized that elected officials come and go but department-level contacts can provide continuity. Several city representatives said existing interagency meetings already address some of these issues and that a hybrid approach (meetings plus an electronic notification system) may work best.

No formal vote was taken. The county will task Community Development staff with initiating outreach to city building departments and returning with a proposed framework for a future meeting.