The Navajo County Board of Supervisors convened last week for a meeting that celebrated outstanding achievements and charted a path for the county’s future.
The board bid farewell to outgoing County Manager Glenn Kephart. Carlyon spoke about how Kephart led the county through COVID as well as bringing the county to a state of prosperity by adjusting the taxes for the county allowing for employee raises and improved services the residents need and deserve without compromising other services.
After his retirement Kephart will continue to serve the county as an independent contractor to help facilitate completion of the major broadband project the county is engaged in. This project would provide high speed internet to places in the county that do not already have it as well as provide redundancy to already existing infrastructure, a project that according to Carlyon, would not have been possible without the tireless effort from Kephart.
Current and former employees all spoke about the many accomplishments that Kephart had during his time at the county in addition to the broadband project, including and the recently approved 100-million-dollar Winslow Levee Project that the county has been working for decades to make happen. Bryan Layton, the current assistant county manager who will take over as county manager, spoke about being able to work directly under Kephart and how that will affect the way he will manage the county after his retirement.
Kephart said while responding to Layton’s kind comments, “I leave this position feeling very good about where I am leaving the county” and wished Layton good luck on taking over his position.
The board also honored County Attorney Brad Carlyon, who received the esteemed Michael C. Cudahy Criminal Justice Award from the State Bar of Arizona. All of the supervisors relayed their congratulations to Carlyon and Supervisor Daryl Seymore said, “This was an award given to him by his peers who recognized him as one of the top attorneys in the state, and he wasn’t just recognized by the state but also by the nation for his desire to change things and make things better and we are fortunate to have him in Navajo County.” The award is bestowed upon criminal law prosecutors who have demonstrated unwavering commitment to justice, integrity, and professionalism.
The board also discussed during the meeting the implementation of CPR and First Aid certification courses through the Navajo County Public Health Services District. A significant focus was placed on addressing the need for CPR and First Aid certification courses.
The county’s fatality case review uncovered a concerning trend, where individuals in distress were not receiving timely CPR due to a lack of knowledge among family members in providing effective assistance. In response to the community’s demand for improved emergency response education, the board proposed to offer CPR and first aid certification courses through the Navajo County Public Health Services District. By providing these essential training courses, the county aims to empower community members with life-saving skills, potentially making a crucial difference in emergency situations.
The proposed fee-for-service structure for the courses is as follows: CPR/First Aid, $50; CPR only, $25; first aid only, $25; blood borne pathogens, $25; basic life support, $30; babysitting CPR (18 years and under), $20; babysitting first aid (18 years and under), $20; and babysitting combo (18 years and under), $40. With the implementation of these courses and the accessible fee structure, community members and businesses seeking CPR certification and training will have more options and increased availability.
In other business, the board:
* Accepted constable reports and approved past meeting minutes and the warrant and voucher reports.
* Approved removing of past tax debts and removing of mobile homes that had been moved out of county from future tax rolls.
* Approved an extension of contract with Wells Fargo Bank for bank services until June 30, 2025.
* Approved using $134,862 from a grant from the Arizona Criminal Justice Commission to fund salaries and benefits for an employee to administer victim compensation as well as fund that compensation.
* Approved an intergovernmental agreement (IGA) with the Arizona Secretary of State for ongoing use of voter registration database system at a cost of $8,900.
* Approved contracts with Jay Valenzuela for services with the Northern Arizona Law Enforcement Training Academy at a cost of $25,000 per class and a contract with HDR Engineering for modernization of engineering design at a cost of $48,358.
* Amended ground lease agreement with Cellular One that shows how the installation is laid out, this amendment places no additional financial burden on the county.
* Approved de-annexation of a territory from Pinetop-Lakeside and annexation of that same land to Show Low.
* Approved a liquor license application for Maria Suarez for Casa Ramos located at 1849 Highway 260, in Heber.
* Amended an IGA with the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) to change the pricing not to exceed $441,871 for several services listed under the agreement including tobacco prevention, teen pregnancy prevention, child fatality review and suicide mortality.
* Renewed IGA with ADHS to provide funding for the county to test individuals exposed to tuberculosis and follow-up confirmatory testing to identify positive cases and supplies for the program.
* Renewed a contract between the county and White Mountain Radiology for x-rays of people who have tested positive for tuberculosis.
* Renewed a contract with the State of Arizona for the childcare health consultation program, the first $195,000 will be covered by the program.
* Approved Memorandum of Understanding between the county and the Federal Emergency Management Agency for use of systems that allows the county to send emergency messages to people’s devices.
* Approved an amendment to IGA between the county and Coconino Public Health Services District for the continued use of medical examiner services and including an increase in fees due to inflation. The fee increases are autopsy report from $11 to $15; external autopsy from $1,332 to $1,750; standard autopsy from $2,613 to $3,500; extended autopsy from $4,096 to $4,624; and record review from $974 to $1,000.
* Approved a right-of-way abandonment to adjacent plots that have been deemed to provide no benefits to the public but do provide challenges to developers in the region.
* Approved a memorandum of understanding with Hopi Tribe Department of Transportation to provide $60,000 for road maintenance on the Hopi Indian Reservation.
* Approved an IGA with Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Navajo Region and the county for assistance to provide gravel on BIA Route 8065 at a cost to the county of $100,000.
*Accepted a grant from United States Department of Transportation for $261,000 for a planning project that examines a 16-mile segment of State Route 260 near Show Low. This grant requires a $29,000 local match.
* Approved a zone change from A-general to R-3 to allow for a 17-space manufactured home park in Lakeside as well as approved a special use permit for the site.
*Approved a special use permit for a 110-foot monopine wireless communication tower on a vacant 7.63-acre lot in Show Low.
* Amended a contract with the Victory Heights Road Maintenance District to extend the contract one additional year at no additional cost to the county.
The next meeting of the Navajo County Board of Supervisors will be held at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 8, in the board chambers located at 100 E. Code Talkers Drive.
