The Board of Josephine County Commissioners kicked off its July 13 weekly business session by reading a proclamation in support of Parole, Probation and Community Supervision Week, slated for July 17-23.
“Community Corrections is an essential part of the criminal justice system,” Commissioner Dan DeYoung read aloud. “Community Corrections professionals uphold the law with dignity, while recognizing the right of the public to be safe-guarded from criminal activity.”
DeYoung continued, “Community Corrections professionals work in partnership with community agencies and groups” to “promote prevention, intervention and advocacy.”
Moving on to administrative action items, Board Chair Herman Baertschiger detailed a contract with WS Environmental, LLC for the decommissioning and removal of the Jet-A aircraft fuel system at Grants Pass Airport.
“I was on the (Grants Pass Airport) Board when we put that tank in over 30 years ago,” remarked Baertschiger. “And now it has lived its life, I guess; served its life expectancy.”
The board chair went on, “It’s kind of a two-part process. We’ll be hiring one company to take it out and another company to put a new one in.”
According to a report filled out by JoCo Airports Director Jason Davis, the project will cost $96,823 and be covered by American Rescue Plan Act dollars.
Next was an agreement with the Oregon Department of Transportation for the civil engineering and installation of the WAVE inductive charging system for electric buses in the county’s transit fleet.
“ODOT 5339 funds for the civil engineering and installation of all equipment necessary for the WAVE inductive charging system for 4 transit vehicles at any given time,” according to JoCo Transit Program Supervisor Scott Chancey. “The WAVE equipment for this project has already been purchased. This phase is the addition of the high power voltage to the property, the equip-ment installation and everything necessary to have a functioning system at the Public Works parking facility.
“Agreement also includes ODOT 5339 funds for the evaluation and possible purchase and instal-lation of another WAVE charging system to be installed at the Transit Hub in downtown Grants Pass. This system will provide for 3 charging platforms that will be used to give an electric bus a quick charge between runs. This project provides for the evaluation of the feasibility of placing a charging system there as well. If it isn’t feasible at this time, the project won’t move forward.”
Chancey’s report stated that the combined total cost of these undertakings will be $834,636, in-cluding a local match of $166,927.
The cost of expanding the WAVE system at the Public Works lot will be $378,000, while the po-tential installation of a fast-charging system at the downtown Grants Pass charging hub will be $456,636.