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Votes at a glance: Kootenai County commissioners approve budget items, building contracts and appointments Dec. 23
Summary
The board approved multiple consent and procurement items, several facility projects tied to the Justice and Jail buildings, vehicle and equipment purchases for the sheriff’s office, grant extensions and a series of advisory‑board appointments. Most motions passed by unanimous or near‑unanimous votes.
The Kootenai County Board of Commissioners took action on a range of administrative, procurement and personnel items during its Dec. 23 business meeting. Most motions passed without extended debate. Highlights below list the motion wording as recorded in meeting minutes, vote outcomes and key details discussed at the meeting.
Votes at a glance
- Consent calendar (items 1–4): Approved. Motion carried unanimously.
- Payables: "Approve payables for December '16 through in the amount of $697,718.56 and jury panel payments in the amount of $617.58." Approved unanimously.
- Justice Building Change Event number 79 (fire assembly): Approved. Owner's representative David Mendez and the county's owner's rep reported the negotiated change order totaled $155,106 to cover a scope gap related to fireproofing and elevator issues; funds drawn from contingencies (design contingency remaining ~ $343,000; construction contingency remaining ~ $582,000). Motion carried unanimously.
- Engineering services — HVAC replacement (Jail and Justice Building) with Van Buren and Frank (VBFA): Approved. Two separate agreements covering design/engineering for the jail and the justice building were accepted; funding from fund balance/project allocations. Motion carried unanimously.
- Jail pod plan review invoice (City of Coeur d'Alene): Approved. County to pay plan‑review fee for the jail pod submittal; amount reported in packet as approximately $18,300 (about $3,000 under budgeted estimate). Motion carried unanimously.
- Domestic water‑heating upgrade (ETCO Services LLC / Echo Plumbing): Approved. County approved a direct purchase (bid) to replace jail water heaters immediately because one boiler was down; project cost $177,300, funded from the jail five‑year plan. Motion carried unanimously.
- Transit grant agreement amendment (ID Transportation Department, C2273KC Amendment #3): Approved. Performance‑period extension through Sept. 30, 2025. Motion carried unanimously.
- Termination of ground lease ALL2014‑500 (county purchase of land for search and rescue building): Approved. Motion carried unanimously.
- Federal asset forfeiture funds: Approved use for the Special Investigations Unit to purchase electronic surveillance gear (non‑cellular line‑of‑sight equipment) to improve monitoring where cellular service is unavailable; funds are forfeiture funds and will not cost the county additional appropriations. Motion carried unanimously.
- Animal control vehicle purchase (Sheriff’s Office): Approved. Vehicle cost exceeded budget by $2,632; commissioners discussed using fund balance or other savings lines. Motion carried unanimously.
- Paint spray booth (Sheriff’s maintenance): Approved. Budgeted and purchased under budget. Motion carried unanimously.
- Axon contract (taser/tens) for jail (5‑year contract): Approved to fulfill budgeted equipment upgrade and replacement of older tasers. Motion carried unanimously.
- Motorola ALPR software contract (Sheriff’s Office): Approved with conditions (see separate article). Vote 2–1; conditions include county legal review and an addendum about vendor ownership; one commissioner opposed.
- Multiple advisory‑board appointments and reappointments: Approved. Boards included Natural Resources Advisory Board, Parks and Waterways, Noxious Weeds, Snowmobile Advisory Board, Historic Preservation Commission, Board of Community Guardians and Aquifer Protection District. Motions carried unanimously for each set of appointments listed in the agenda.
Selected clarifications from staff and presenters
- Owner's rep David Mendez explained change event 79 addressed a last‑minute code/assembly gap for fireproofing and elevator complexities; the final change order negotiated to $155,106 and credits were applied where appropriate.
- Jeff Vohler (Building & Grounds) presented two VBFA proposals for HVAC design; the county will phase design work to remain within current budget estimates.
- Jail water heaters: one of two boilers was down at the time of the meeting, prompting an immediate procurement recommendation for ETCO/Echo Plumbing to restore capacity.
- Federal asset forfeiture purchase: Detective Bates (Special Investigations Unit) described the equipment as non‑cellular extended‑range surveillance tools to protect officer and confidential‑informant safety in areas with poor cellular coverage.
What the votes mean going forward
Most approved procurements will move to contract execution and implementation by the responsible county departments (Building & Grounds, Sheriff’s Office, Transit). Several capital projects continue to draw from contingency funds and the county will bring further budget and design decisions back to the board as work proceeds.
Ending
The board completed the agenda with a mix of routine administrative approvals and several near‑term capital and technology purchases. Several actions (notably the ALPR contract) carried conditions requiring additional legal review or follow up; county staff were directed to complete those next steps before full implementation.
