By L. Parsons “Things are going well in relation to COVID,” said the Navajo County Public Health Director Janelle Linn at last week’s Board of Supervisor’s meeting. “To date, we have had 16,604 total (COVID) cases for Navajo County. Consistently, over the last several days, we have been getting about two cases every 24 hours, so our case counts are significantly down. Numbers are down on the Navajo Nation as well, we only had six new cases reported to us from there this week.” This news is very positive, according to Linn. This time last year, Navajo County was being greatly impacted by the virus and was named the most affected county in the state by the Arizona Department of Health Services. However, as Linn continued, the prognosis this spring is much better. “This month marks our one year anniversary of COVID response and we want to pay tribute to those who have lost their lives and to the families of those who have lost their lives,” Linn said. “(The) drop in numbers is consistent across the county and these numbers make us very happy. Only 10% of ICU bed usage in the state is COVID related, hospitalizations are down and vaccine distribution continues to roll out smoothly.” Navajo County is among the most successful counties statewide in vaccine distribution. Linn explained, “The State of Arizona, as a whole, is at 26.8% of the population vaccinated. Navajo County is around 27% of our population vaccinated. We have administered around 29,606 doses, 19,214 of those are first doses and over 10,000 people have completed their vaccine series.” Linn also mentioned the county’s success in vaccinating minority and underserved communities in the area. She said, “About 50% of the individuals vaccinated in Navajo County are either in the minority category or are otherwise underserved.” The county also continues to see a low waste percentage with vaccines and have expanded accessibility to the COVID-19 vaccine to every resident aged 18 or over. This is consistent with the State of Arizona doing the same for both the Pfizer and Moderna manufactured products. Health care facilities around the county are now taking appointments for vaccination directly and citizens are encouraged to contact their primary care physicians for information on how to schedule an appointment for vaccination. The county website also remains a tool for scheduling at www.navajocountyaz.gov. In other business, the board: * Approved an application for a treasurer’s deed for the Board of Supervisors on behalf of the State in the amount of $40,000. * Approved a certificate of removal and abatement purging record of tax, penalty and interest on personal property taxes unable to be collected due to the inability to locate property owners. * Approved a closeout form on materials for Community Development and Block Grant (CDBG) funding in the amount of $245,208 for the Town of Snowflake’s water systems improvement project recently completed. * Approved the sale of 199 back tax land parcels sold during the online auction in the amount of $306,736. * Approved the award of contracts with Perkins Cinders, Inc., Hatch Construction Paving, Inc., Brimhall Sand and Rock and Building Materials, Inc., Perkins Aggregates, Inc. and Schuck Development Corporation for the supply of various roadway materials. Payment amounts will be based on purchase of materials based on price, convenience, availability and quality on an as needed basis. * Approved the award of contracts to Perkins Cinders, Inc., Hatch Construction and Paving, Inc., and Brimhall Sand, Rock and Building Materials, Inc. for supplying of aggregate for cover materials. Payment amounts will be based on purchase of materials based on price, convenience, availability and quality on an as needed basis. * Approved a memorandum of agreement between Navajo County and the Hopi Division of Transportation authorizing funding assistance for roadway aggregate material in the amount of $50,000 to complete the roadway to the Hopi Waste Facility. Funding will be provided from the Hopi Tribe Highway User Revenue Funds. * Approved a contract with The WLB Consulting Group in the amount of $60,100 to prepare engineering construction bid documents for the replacement of the Porter Mountain Road Culverts in Pinetop-Lakeside. Navajo County Public Works Director John Osgood stated, “The culverts are showing sign of deterioration, corrosion, joint failure and are misshappen.” * Held a public hearing and approved two resolutions allowing special use permits to construct and operate two 60-meter meteorological towers for a wind study. The towers will be located between Joseph City and Holbrook. * Adopted a resolution approving the establishment of a redistricting advisory committee for the purpose of obtaining community input into the redistricting process and approving proposed redistricting maps for the consideration of the Board of Supervisors. The committee will consist of five members, nominated and approved by the Board of Supervisors. Criteria for inclusion include not having held public office in the previous three years, not served as a committee person of a political party or lobbyist, or served on a campaign committee. Candidates must also not be current employees of Navajo County. * Heard an update on the Navajo County Health Insurance plan for employee benefits by Human Resources Director Eric Scott. In his presentation, Scott said, “Employee and employee premiums have been kept flat for going on five years with no increase since January 2017.” * Acknowledged the following employees for their continued service to Navajo County: Chelsea Schow of the Snowflake Justice Court, Wayne Lesperance of the Sheriff’s Office and Becki Colon of the County Attorney’s office, each for five years; Jennifer Ober of Public Works and Amy Gomez of the Assessor’s office, each for 10 years; and Anna Lesperance of the Winslow Justice Court for 25 years. * Heard an outreach report from Media Director Alicia Deets. In her report, Deets said, “Social media and other virtual forms of outreach have proven not only helpful but critical tools in reaching our residents and communities during a time when in-person contact is limited.” * Approved the reappointment of Connie Bergstrand and Allison Hephner to serve on the Navajo County Extension Advisory Board until March 2024. * Sent sympathy letters to Daryl Seymore, Salli O’Hair, Roberta Cano and Beverly Goodnight. The next meeting of the Navajo County Board of Supervisors will be held at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, April 13. Instructions on how to attend the meeting virtually can be found at the county website, www.navajocountyaz.gov.
