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Valley County approves overnight stays for two employees stranded by Highway 95 closure
Summary
With Highway 95 closed between Council and Horseshoe/ New Meadows, commissioners approved overnight lodging at Boulder Creek Inn or a comparable short-term rental for two county employees until the highway reopens.
Valley County commissioners voted on March 31 to approve overnight lodging for two county employees who are temporarily stranded by the closure of Highway 95 between Council and Horseshoe Bend/New Meadows.
County staff described two affected employees: one road department employee who lives in Council and normally commutes about 45 minutes to Lake Fork, and a jail employee, Michelle Ganz, who lives in Cambridge and normally commutes about 90 miles. With Highway 95 closed, staff said the first employee's alternate drive would increase to roughly 200 miles (about four hours), and the second employee's one-way commute would increase by roughly 50 miles.
County staff said they had temporarily accommodated the road employee at Hotel NoVo and were evaluating Boulder Creek Inn in Donnelly as a more central, lower-cost option; Boulder Creek Inn rates were reported at $109 per night. Staff also discussed the potential to use Airbnbs/VRBO short-term rentals for one employee when separate, gender-appropriate accommodations were required.
Commissioners considered alternatives, including mileage reimbursement and county vehicle use, but staff said those options had limitations. Law enforcement and emergency-management representatives present described other short-term transportation options being explored by state or local agencies, including a staged UTV and a possible shuttle on a nonmotorized trail; commissioners voiced concern about relying on a single staged UTV for emergency response.
A motion to approve overnight stays at either Boulder Creek Inn or a comparable VRBO until Highway 95 reopens was moved and seconded and approved by voice vote; the roll call recorded two "Aye" responses in the record. The motion did not name individual vote records in the transcript. Commissioners directed staff to arrange lodging and to seek comparable short-term rentals if needed.
Motion text recorded in the meeting: "I would move that we approve the overnight stays for 2 employees, at either Boulder Creek Inn or a comparable VRBO until such time as Highway 95 is reopened and they can continue to commute to home."
