Navajo County officials met some huge challenges with success in 2016, and plan to work hard this year to continue making the area a great place to live, work and play.
“One of the biggest challenges we faced was the budget. We’re still not fully recovered from the recession,” explained Navajo County Communications Manager Adam Wolfe. “Cities and towns get more tax revenues, so they tend to recover much quicker from a recession.”
Although the pace of growth remains slow for the county, overall the unemployment rate continued its downward trend in 2016, with the largest employment increases in the area seen in retail, followed by modest growth in the private sector and service industries.
Initial projections for the 2016-17 fiscal year, which began in August, predicted budget shortfalls, prompting county leaders to react quickly by asking each department to identify and initiate creative budget cuts, such as adding online payment options to use less paper and finding less costly advertising methods.
Thanks to this strategy, “Things have actually leveled out since then and we are less worried about the shortfall,” said Wolfe.
In 2016, Navajo County Public Works partnered with the Navajo Nation, the Hopi Tribe, the White Mountain Apache Tribe, the Navajo Division of Transportation (NDOT) and the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) to help improve 22 miles of gravel roadway in the Navajo Nation, repair a portion of Route 12 near Cibecue and secure funding of $1.5 million for improvements to the H-60 bus route.
“As we look to the New Year, Navajo County will continue to leverage state and local partnerships to provide services to our residents, including rehabilitation of the Woodruff-Snowflake Bridge, repair and improve the Porter Creek Crossing on Porter Mountain Road, continued assistance with the Winslow Levee and support of the Scott Ranch Road Crossing on Show Low Creek,” shared Wolfe.
Throughout the year, the county will continue expanding partnerships to build on the services currently offered and provide new ones.
Another example of county partnerships benefiting the area’s residents is the joint-use public safety facility being developed in Show Low. The building, expected to open this spring, will serve as headquarters for the Show Low Police Department while also providing a regional hub for the Navajo County Sheriff’s Office.
Success in the county’s cooperative relationships was also evident in the quick and effective emergency management exhibited during the Cedar Fire in June 2016.
Roof repairs for the historic Holbrook Courthouse will also move forward in the upcoming year, thanks to a $7,000 cost-share grant awarded through The National Park Service, Route 66 Corridor Preservation Program. The county will have to match the funds and/or use in-kind labor to make the critical repairs identified in a 2012 preservation report.
“Public Works will also look to continue the process of improving the Winslow Levee System. This project is a top priority for both Navajo County and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and will remain so in 2017,” reported Wolfe.
The Corps will continue to conduct the feasibility study for the Winslow Levee in 2017. When the study is completed, officials will have a more accurate assessment of the project costs and necessary design features so they can finalize a plan for the construction of the levee, which will provide vital protection to the city in the event of catastrophic flooding.
With continued expansion of local forest service industries slated for the coming year, Navajo County officials will look to continue growing the local economy and creating jobs while investigating and pursuing additional natural resource industries.
“We have the resources and the equipment to develop a strong timber industry in our area,” District III Supervisor Jason Whiting said in a September newsletter from the county. “Modern day equipment is amazing. We are able to go in now and use every aspect of the tree for a purpose. It allows us to make the forests safer for our communities.”
Tree removal and underbrush thinning work will continue as work begins in areas along State Route 260 between Show Low and Heber, and east of White Mountain Lakes.
The project is made possible through the Four Forest Restoration Initiative, which was awarded the largest landscape contract in the history of the Forest Service. It continues to create local jobs while limiting forest fire risk and damage, and improving the overall health of the forest.
Residents in the area will also have access in the upcoming year to increased social media interaction and online educational resources that began in 2016. “The county has partnered with CGI Communications to help expand our digital reach to surrounding communities by developing six videos to demonstrate everything Navajo County has to offer. These videos are being made at no cost to the public, and will give the county a platform to showcase our vast diversity in culture, destinations and economic opportunities,” says Wolfe. “Our goal is to keep the public informed and we will continue to improve our methods of information dissemination throughout the coming year.”
