Commissioner Lori Zoller outlines county priorities and flags short‑term rental ordinance

County Commissioner Lori Zoller updated the Trout Lake Community Council on April 1, saying the recently installed Board of County Commissioners is making progress reversing what she described as a fraught internal culture over the past four years. "The last 4 years were way worse than what people knew," Zoller said, praising the new board for restoring trust between departments and commissioners.

Zoller outlined several immediate priorities, including a short‑term rental ordinance slated for the BoCC agenda on April 17. She gave preliminary counts and enforcement challenges: an "estimated 300-500 short term rentals in the county," about 50 current nuisance complaints and a lack of local permitting capacity. Zoller said the county "can't start a permit program until more info gathered," and noted that state law currently requires rentals to be licensed and to provide basic safety features such as smoke alarms and fire extinguishers.

Zoller also touched on staffing and interagency responsibilities, saying each commissioner serves on multiple regional boards and partnerships that affect transportation, aging services and economic development. She told council members she is working to improve consultation with the Yakama Nation on planning and resource issues and that several controversial public issues in recent years stemmed from previous misunderstandings about the limits of county authority.

The commissioner characterized the county's fiscal position as stable but cautious: "We're ok, but need to be careful," she said, citing both recent revenue losses and anticipated gains from future projects such as port build‑outs and green energy programs. Zoller encouraged continued community engagement as staff and the BoCC move toward drafting ordinances and producing planning drafts.