The Navajo County Board of Supervisors held a regular meeting Tuesday, Feb. 18, during which the board received a presentation on the retirement of The Navajo County Sheriff’s Office K-9, Kilo. Kilo began his police dog career at the Holbrook Police Department and moved to the Sheriff’s Office in 2020. According to K-9 Sergeant Danny Deets, Kilo must retire due to medical issues. During his time at the Sheriff’s Office Kilo has assisting in the seizure of 29 pounds of cocaine, 718,000 fentanyl pills, 6.8 pounds of heroin, 25 pounds of marijuana and 481 pounds of methamphetamine over the last four and a half years. Sergeant Deets also stated that Kilo and another K-9 were both recognized as Canines of the Year by the Arizona Narcotics Officers Association.
The board, acting as Navajo County Public Health Services District, received an update from Emergency Management and Preparedness staff member Catrina Jenkins on the county’s wildfire preparedness.
Jenkins explained the impacts that effect the county’s potential for wildfires is drought, precipitation, weather patterns, fine fuel conditions and monsoons. She noted Arizona has above normal chances for higher temperatures and little precipitation for the upcoming year and monsoon season.
Through the months of March April and May, the county will see an increase of fire potential for the county, according to the report.
Jenkins also covered the county’s collaboration efforts with the White Mountain Fire Coordination group, which is made up of experts from forestry on federal, state and tribal levels, as well as local police, fire and emergency management throughout the region. Efforts to educate, mitigate, train and update information in the community was also noted.
“Our community can take steps to prepare their families by getting a go kit, a communication plan, having their important paperwork prepared, preparing their homes by creating a defensible space and home hardening, and talking to their neighbors,” stated Jenkins, noting the effectiveness and importance of having entire neighborhoods collaborating and prepared.
Professor Amanda Ormand with Arizona State University’s Just Energy Transition Center, spoke during call to the public to let the board know that ASU is available to provide technical assistance related to the county’s ordinance on renewable energy development.
County employee and committee member Ron Smith gave a presentation on the activities of the Continually Achieving & Reaching Employees (CARE) Committee of Navajo County for 2024.
CARE committee is an employee comprised group that offers programs such as monthly and yearly employee recognition, scholarship opportunities for high school seniors whose parents are employees of the county, employee hardship assistance, a backpack drive, Christmas gift giving and acts of kindness provided to randomly chosen employees every month. “I can report to you that we had a tremendous amount of random acts of kindness that took place in the Navajo County, not only at Navajo County Facilities, but throughout the county,” stated Smith.
Following the meeting, the board held a work session with a focus on the county’s comprehensive plan and renewable energy ordinances.
During the meeting, the board:
* Approved a memorandum of understanding for Mexican Wolf Recovery and Management to establish a framework for the signatories to exchange views, information or advice relating to the management or implementation of reestablishing a viable population of Mexican wolves in Arizona and New Mexico within the Mexican Wolf Experimental Population Area to contribute to the long-term conservation and recovery of the Mexican wolf.
* Approved an agreement between the Department of Public Safety (DPS), Navajo County and Navajo County Sheriff’s Office. The Navajo County Sheriff’s Office has once again been awarded funding in the amount of $998,404 from DPS for law enforcement services pertaining to the deterrence, apprehension, prosecution and detainment of individuals charged with drug trafficking, human smuggling, illegal immigration, and other border-related crimes within Navajo County. The funds will be used for 75% of salaries and employee related expenses (ERE), one K-9 sergeant, one K-9 deputy, two NCSO Major Crimes Apprehension Team (MCAT) detectives, one MCAT jail intel deputy, and four municipal MCAT detectives. Additionally, 50% of the salaries and ERE funding for two Navajo County Attorney’s Office prosecutors. The NCSO aviation unit has also been awarded $75,000 for operation and maintenance costs. This agreement is effective as of July 1, 2024 and shall remain in effect until June 30, 2026.
* Approved an amendment to the Kimley-Horn and Associates On-Call Traffic Engineering contract, which increases the contract amount from $50,000 to $90,000. This contract is utilized for various projects on an as-needed basis at the request of the Navajo County Public Works Department.
* Approved contracts signed by County Manager Bryan Layton for professional services for the following: Kimley-Horn and Associates, LLC and Navajo County for Buck Springs Road Equestrian Crossing Final Design – Revisions (Project); Professional Service Contract Amendment No. 2 with Painted Sky Engineering & Survey, LLC for Full House Lane Culvert Design; and Change Order No. 8 with EX2 Technology, LLC for the design, construction, maintenance and marketing of fiber optic infrastructure.
* Approved sympathy letters for Robert and Jennifer Ober, the family of former Navajo County employee Dorothy Jolley; and former supervisor Robert Black Jr. and family.
* Approved an agreement with Vector Solutions for training programs through the State of Arizona in the amount of $1,000.
