Kootenai County commissioners approve grants, contracts and budget adjustments including trail, airport and wildfire projects

Kootenai County commissioners on July 7 approved a package of grants, contracts and budget adjustments touching parks, emergency management, wildfire mitigation and airport operations.

The board approved payables for the week of June 29 (paid 07/03/2026) totaling $1,607,530.74 and accepted an engagement letter for the FY2026 financial-statement audit by Baker Tilly at a base fee of $71,000, with an additional $9,500 contingent fee if a second federal major award requires single-audit procedures.

County staff and commissioners highlighted several project approvals. Staff said the county secured a $125,000 Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation grant (RT27-1-28-1) to fund phase 2 of the Centennial Trail asphalt replacement; if work proceeds as planned, roughly two more miles of trail will be paved, bringing about four miles of new asphalt within the county. The board voted to accept the grant and associated match arrangements.

Andrea Littlefield of the Office of Emergency Management requested approval to submit a Department of Justice FY2026 grant application (roughly $240,000, no match). Littlefield characterized the action as an application only; she told the board that "this is not a contract — it's merely the grant application" and that any award would return to commissioners for further action. The board authorized submission of the application.

The board approved a contract for hazardous-fuel treatment work with Imperial Forestry Inc. for 67.2 acres at a contract amount of $116,116, described by staff as part of a Joint FireSmart I‑90 phase 2 effort.

Airport staff presented two related items. Mary Kim Stevenson said the airport negotiated a month-to-month ramp lease with North Idaho Jet LLC for overflow aircraft parking at a revenue rate of $701.42 per month and requested the lease be retroactive to July 1, 2026; the board approved the retroactive lease. On ARFF (aircraft rescue and firefighting) equipment, Stevenson explained the county had an FAA AIP‑063 award that included preliminary design for an ARFF vehicle but received no bids. She asked the board to accept an FAA grant amendment to return $25,947 to the FAA and to authorize using a fund balance (fund 30) to cover $24,724.93 in current ARFF-related expenses; the board approved the amendment and budget adjustment. As Stevenson put it: "the $25,947 of our fund, be returned to the FAA" with county fund-balance used to cover immediate costs if necessary.

In capital projects, Director Jeff Boaler presented a final credit change order that yielded a credit of $156,899.27 for a project (SLED); overall project accounting showed a $57,350 savings on a related jail pod project, and the board approved transferring those savings to cover unforeseen costs in the coroner's autopsy lab project.

The board also approved routine administrative items: deletion of a surplus district-court furniture asset (asset #05243) at the clerk's request; termination of a CASA legal services contract with Schwartz and the replacement contract with Gillihan Law PC effective July 1, 2026; appointment of Jerry Anderson as an alternate to the North Idaho Fair Board (term to 01/18/2027); and authorization to hire outside counsel for litigation related to the Harps dissolution (contract with White Peterson Gigrade and Nichols, PA).

All motions referenced at the meeting were moved, seconded and carried without recorded opposition. No members of the public offered comment during the hearing on these items.

Next steps: award or grant approvals that are contingent (for example, the DOJ grant application) will return to the board if funded; staff were instructed to proceed with contract execution and budget adjustments as authorized.