Daggett County conditionally approves pit-toilet purchase, OKs excavator rental for shooting range work

Daggett County commissioners voted to conditionally approve purchase and rental requests intended to support improvements at the county shooting range.

County staff presented two requests: a $29,016 purchase order for a prefabricated pit toilet from Boom Concrete of Newell, South Dakota, and a request to rent excavating equipment to dig and add berm material and a pavilion. Commissioners approved the pit-toilet purchase conditioned on receiving TriCounty Health Department approval of the plans and materials. They also approved a rental contract with Weaver Machine for $15,398, noting the county expects the actual cost will be lower because the contractor quoted a month but staff expects about 10 days of use.

The pit-toilet vendor quoted $29,016; staff said the unit includes a ‘‘double plastic fault liner’’ noted in the vendor specifications, and that the health department requires water testing and other measures that can affect final cost. Darren Brown of TriCounty Health asked county staff to send the blueprints and vendor details so the health department can confirm permit requirements and that the unit meets environmental testing standards. Staff said the vendor has about a one-year lead time and emphasized the need to clear health permitting before ordering.

For the excavation work, staff said the vendor gave a one-month quote of $15,398 but expects to bill for actual days used (about 10), reducing the final charge. Equipment operators for the work will be volunteers, and staff said the necessary volunteer paperwork from prior projects is on file. Staff also said trucking costs may add a ‘‘couple hundred dollars’’ to the final bill. Both items are paid from grant funds awarded through the Division of Outdoor Recreation for shooting-range improvements.

Commission action: a commissioner moved and a second carried both motions. The pit-toilet approval is explicitly conditional on TriCounty Health Department sign-off. The equipment rental was approved at the quoted amount, with commissioners noting the anticipated lower final invoice if less time is used.

Why it matters: county officials said the purchases are tied to grant-funded shooting-range improvements and that resolving the health-permit requirement quickly is important because the supplier’s production queue is long.

What's next: staff will send vendor plans and vendor contact information to Darren Brown at TriCounty Health (dbrown@tricountyhealthut.gov) for environmental health review before county ordering. The county will proceed with the vendor purchase order after TriCounty Health issues its approval.