Thurston County approves slate of grants, code changes and contracts including $1.39M clean-energy grant and $5.24M for housing

Thurston County commissioners on Tuesday approved a series of ordinances, contracts and funding awards that county staff said will support county facility resilience, affordable housing and ongoing regulatory updates.

The board approved a Washington State Department of Commerce clean-energy grant for a solar photovoltaic and battery energy storage system at the Thurston County Public Health and Social Services building, adopted amendments to the county code to add a special disposition process for surplus public property to support affordable housing, passed the second biennial budget amendment for 2024–25 and approved a set of contract awards and staffing incentives across multiple departments.

Items adopted during the meeting included:

- A grant contract (Contract No. 25-922-11A-033) with the Washington State Department of Commerce Clean Energy Communities Grant Program for $1,389,068.50 to construct and install a solar PV and battery energy storage system at the Public Health and Social Services building. The county reported no required local match for the grant.

- An ordinance amending Thurston County Code (TCC) 2.104 to create a special disposition process for surplus county property when the transfer would provide a public benefit, including support for affordable housing; the ordinance adds a 30‑day notification period for nearby property owners and references the statutory framework in RCW 39.33.015.

- Resolution adopting Amendment 2 to the 2024–2025 biennial budget to add approximately $5,031,102 of increased appropriations to all other funds; the amendment was published as required and was adopted after discussion. One commissioner announced an abstention during the vote.

- An ordinance revising the…