Last week, the Navajo County Board of Supervisors met and accepted a grant in the amount of $9.7 million from the Arizona Commerce Authority for the county’s middle-mile broadband infrastructure project. The grant does require a match by the county of $9 million. Funding for the match will come from the county’s ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act) monies.
In November of last year, Arizona Governor Doug Ducey launched the Arizona Broadband Development Grant Program, which invested $100 million to expand high speed broadband to the state’s unserved and underserved areas.
The county plans to partner with eX2 Technology to build an open access 132-mile middle-mile network which will increase connectivity, redundancy and affordability of broadband services within Navajo County and surrounding areas.
In other business, the board:
* Accepted a grant in the amount of $6,170 from the Constable Ethics Standards and Training Board for ballistic vests, ammunition and miscellaneous gear for Navajo County constables.
* Approved a lease agreement in the amount of $2,000 annually for tower space on Brookbank Tower with Cellular One. This will increase reliability of radio coverage within Navajo County. Brookbank will provide additional coverage for the Heber areas as well as provide coverage for the Navajo County Sheriff’s office.
* Approved an amendment to a legal services contract with Moore Law, PLLC, which extends the contract through Nov. 9, 2023.
* Reissued stale dated checks as refunds for overpaid property tax or investor payments.
* Accepted a grant award in the amount of $22,000 from the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety for two SoToxa Mobile Test Systems including accessories and maintenance and an Intoxilyzer 9000.
* Accepted a grant in the amount of $30,000 from the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety through their Police Traffic Services program for employee overtime.
* Approved Byrne Grant certifications and assurances to complete the grant agreement execution process.
* Approved a contract in the amount of $39,500 with Barton Architecture, PLLC for Holbrook County Complex restrooms and break room remodeling.
* Approved letters of sympathy to Miles Begay and Lorenzo and Charlotte Begay.
* Recognized employees of the month of August including Brandon Williams of the assessor’s office, Paula Wright of court administration and Paul Dobell of the IT department.
* Recognized the following employees for their continued service to Navajo County: William Hilton and David Dorrel of public works for five years; Eric Scott and Pascal Beriloux of county administration and Patrick Zincola of the county attorney’s office each for 10 years of service; Linda Begay of the superior court and Alex Baldonado of probation each for 15 years; and Arthur Starns of facilities management for 25 years.
* Heard a presentation from Assistant County Manager Bryan Layton on a coordinated county design and style guide development to coordinate all county facilities with similar signage.
* Declared October as Domestic Violence Awareness month.
* Approved an amendment to a contract with Trinity Services Group for inmate food services. The amendment extends the contract for one additional year through Nov. 3, 2023.
* Approved a memorandum of understanding between the Sexual Assault Response Team and the Navajo County Public Health District allowing a designated representative from county health to participate in the response team to ensure the group is more aware of community resources offered by public health and other organizations.
* Approved an amendment to the intergovernmental agreement between the county and the Navajo County Public Health District to allow them to continue offering family planning and injury prevention services to county residents.
* Approved an updated emergency contact list for Schoen’s Dam near Taylor as part of FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) regulations.
The next meeting of the Navajo County Board of Supervisors will be held at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 11 in the board meeting room, located at 100 E. Code Talkers Drive.
