[0:01] OK. I'm not ready. All right, well, welcome to the January February,
[0:09] February 18th, 25, Jefferson Transit Authority board meeting. The last time I'll
[0:14] be at the wheel here just for a few minutes. So I'm gonna annoy you guys one last
[0:19] time with the The roll call quiz. Um,
[0:26] favorite song about a bus. And I'll start off, of course, um, America by Simon and
[0:33] Garfunkel. Talk a bit about a bus, you know, on that one. Good one. first show I
[0:38] ever saw rock show as a, as a teenager was the The Who, so I'll go with Magic Bus.
[0:44] That's, that's a good one.
[0:48] Look up songs with the bus.
[0:54] No, I, I want my mind the beginning of. That I, I'm Heather Dudley a lot. I think
[1:00] I've met almost everybody, but if not, I'm new county commissioner and my um favorite
[1:07] song about a bus, I may not be able to come up with the actual name, but it's um
[1:11] it's about, it's, I think it's called the MTA. And it's a folk song. We never, we
[1:18] never returned. His fate is still unlearned that you've never heard that one. I'm
[1:24] looking at
[1:30] somebody who gets on a bus, then rides and rides and rides because he he's lost his
[1:36] fare, so he needed to be in Jefferson County and my dad sung that song like my whole
[1:41] life.
[1:45] I dancing on screen here with David. Hey, I'm David Faber. Um, I mean, obviously
[1:50] I think Ben had identified. I have an 18 month old right now, so Wheels and the Bus
[1:54] is in constant rotation. Um, I've also routinely used uh the song We Like to Party
[2:01] by the Venga Boys, which is a ridiculous like Europop song from like '99 to clear
[2:07] out a party at the end of the night. So that's, that's mostly about a bus, the Venga
[2:12] bus. Perfect. Excellent, Rick.
[2:18] The only thing I can think of it's not my favorite song would be Wheels on the Bus
[2:22] and also whatever it was for the Magic School bus, having kids growing up with that
[2:26] time frame.
[2:29] Oh yeah,
[2:31] that's good that's a good one. Hi, Vivian. Actually, I choose Muddy Waters, bus rider.
[2:39] Uh, OK. OK, excellent. All right, well, that, you know, staff.
[2:50] Oh wait, Ben, you forgot me. He's on, by the way, Heidi's on the phone, she's in
[2:57] transit, but she's listening in. Yeah, I'm listening in and then mine, mine is not.
[3:04] Oh, you just went under a tunnel.
[3:08] Oh, pretty. Get it when she comes back. Toss it in when you get come back in. We,
[3:13] we're not hearing you right now. About a bus, but it's about moving right along.
[3:17] Oh. What what's it called? Oh sorry, you didn't hear me. Moving right along by the
[3:23] Muppet, yeah, OK, OK, right on. You wanna toss one in for fun. Oh, I'm gonna have
[3:30] to go with Rosa Parks by Outkast.
[3:35] OK, it's Jamie.
[3:38] How does that one go? I know.
[3:44] Oh. We were just talking about how we do not sing in public.
[3:51] I should say that. Are there any of the drivers that sing or do anything like that?
[3:54] Uh, I have a drummer, Mike, one time he was doing the shuttle for wooden boat and
[4:00] he actually had everybody singing um row row row your boat in a round he was driving
[4:05] the wood boat shuttle.
[4:10] Anybody else wanna toss one in. Can't think of a bus song. I can only think of the
[4:14] vehicles. That's pretty fun.
[4:19] It's Transportation in general. It's a song called Contact. We're learning about
[4:26] each other.
[4:30] OK, so we have a quorum. It was enough, we had enough songs to pronounce it,
[4:36] um. Let's see this. I'm looking at my script here. Thank you for the script, Kelly.
[4:43] Um, I guess we do the public comment before we do the officers, so um. Public comment.
[4:49] Does any member of the public wish to give public comment? I see somebody here. If
[4:54] you are online, please raise your hand. If you're on the phone, press 9 to raise
[4:57] your hand and 6 to unmute. Anybody in the room? OK Anybody online?
[5:05] A couple online, but no one's raising their hand.
[5:12] All right. OK, well, we're on the first topic, reorganization of the board. So this,
[5:17] this is my last time at the wheel, handing the wheel over to somebody. Um, I have
[5:24] a motion ready if anybody wants to hear, but I'm gonna open the floor to anybody
[5:28] else who has a motion. We're talking about
[5:42] uh yeah, and vice chair and so um with us was the vice chair. He told me he was.
[5:45] Uh, full disclosure, I reached out to Greg to see if he'd be interested in doing
[5:48] vice chair since we need somebody on county. I figured, you know, you're still catching
[5:53] everything coming at you, but
[5:56] and um. And somebody who's been on the board a long time. No, I'm not sure if staff
[6:02] is gonna be uh like into it, but yeah, I'd be excited. That was well, but anybody's
[6:09] welcome to make a motion right now if they prefer and any other ideas, yeah. I'm
[6:16] totally supportive of your proposal, Ben. I served as chair the year before this
[6:22] last one when you were vice chair, and that was a good pairing, and I feel like,
[6:27] yeah, super supportive of John and Greg, so just wanna add my support to the team
[6:31] there. OK, well, anybody's OK, I'm gonna start, I'll make a motion there. For um
[6:39] John Noak to be chair and Greg Brotherton to be vice chair for this for this next
[6:45] year. Oh second there. Vivian, you said you had reached out to John. He's been,
[6:55] you know this has been coming for a while. He's already not to. I see, I see that
[6:58] too,
[7:01] and he said like I'm gonna miss that first meeting. Yes, we have a seasoned.
[7:08] Person here to do to hand over to you.
[7:12] I think I was, I was interrupting Vivienne. She did a second, yeah, so did a 2nd.
[7:17] All anybody any discussion. On favor. Um. Are you opposed?
[7:26] I did say I. there. OK, that passes. And speaking of passes, all right, thank you,
[7:33] Ben. Thank you everyone for your confidence.
[7:40] Uh, I'll just keep uh hewing to the, uh, the agenda, though I have no script. That's
[7:44] fine. No, no, I, I'll go off both. Um, so next up is new agenda items. Do we have
[7:50] any other new agenda items to talk about? Yeah. OK. Great. Um, moving right along.
[7:57] Easy, uh, finance reports. Miranda, you want to take us through the finance reports?
[8:00] Yes, so actually I'm gonna start off with um two discussion points, and then I'm
[8:05] gonna move into finance. So, um, the first discussion point that um we are bringing
[8:12] to the board is, um, improper reporting improper governmental action. Um, one of
[8:18] the things that we, uh, in the finance committee, uh, identified last year is that
[8:22] we wanted to start, uh, revisiting some of these, um, governance topics, um, specifically,
[8:30] um, some of the policies that affects the board as well as staff, and, um, so we'll
[8:36] start doing some deeper dives into our, our finance and doing some budget 101 and
[8:41] finance 101. so we're bringing this, um. Policy in front of the board as an just
[8:48] an educational and informational topic today. Um, so I'm gonna outline the reporting
[8:53] process for both employees and board members, and we're gonna highlight the protections
[8:57] against retaliation. So Jefferson Transit encourages employees and board members
[9:03] to report any improper improper governmental actions um conducted by staff, um. This
[9:10] policy aligns with federal, state, and local laws to maintain integrity and accountability
[9:15] of Jefferson Transit. Um, so improper governmental actions, these are violations
[9:19] of law, abuse of authority, threats to public safety, or gross waste of public funds.
[9:25] Um, exclusions in this case, uh, include employee grievances, personal disputes,
[9:31] um, or sorry, personnel disputes,
[9:35] um, and collective bargaining issues that are not covered under this policy, and
[9:40] retaliatory actions are any negative impact on employment or board participation
[9:45] due to reporting an issue. So the reporting procedures um are I just to summarize,
[9:53] um, I'm not gonna dive too deep into it because I do. want this information there,
[9:58] but um we do have a packed meeting today. So, um I have outlined the reporting procedures,
[10:05] um, employees and board members should first report their concerns to an immediate
[10:10] supervisor or the board chair. Um, if the concern involves uh Jefferson Transit leadership,
[10:17] reports should go to the general manager or a designated official, um, I would imagine
[10:22] that's the board chair. Um, in emergencies, individuals may report directly to an
[10:27] appropriate government agency. Um, if, if concerns are not adequately addressed internally,
[10:33] reports can be, uh, escalated to an external oversight agency. Um, Jefferson Transit
[10:39] strictly prohibits retaliation against employees and board members who report in
[10:43] good faith. Uh, retaliation complaints can be escalated internally and formally filed
[10:49] with a state administrative law judge. Um, and the external reporting agencies, um,
[10:56] if the internal resolution is not satisfactory, employee and board members, um, have
[11:02] the right to report concerns to the following. So we have the Washington State Auditor's
[11:08] Office, um, financial and procedural misconduct, um, complaints can be uh directed
[11:14] there. Our executive ethics board, those are ethical violations, Office of Administrative
[11:20] Hearings, these are retaliation complaints. Uh, the Attorney attorney General's office,
[11:26] legal violations, uh, Federal Transit Administration, uh, Federal Transit misconduct,
[11:33] uh, you can classify that however you want. And watch out Public Transportation division,
[11:40] these are transit specific concerns. So, um, This policy covers both
[11:48] employees and board members. It provides the information, um, and the avenue to report
[11:53] any potential misconduct or suspicion of misconduct. Um, you have the right to report
[12:01] something if you feel like something is that. Adding up if, if something doesn't
[12:05] make sense. Um, of course, we, we try to be very transparent in how we make decisions
[12:11] and things here at Jefferson Transit, and uh we would hope that you would communicate
[12:15] with Nicole if there's any concern first. But, um, you know, sometimes these are
[12:20] necessary and as a board should have the information to be able to report these things
[12:25] and and investigate. So I wanted to present that information to the board. Um, does
[12:31] the board have any questions about this policy or a procedure? Yeah, I just that
[12:37] designated official thing. Should we make that clear what that means? Um, I, yeah,
[12:44] I suppose it, it, I I kind of outlined it as in like, well, what if it's the board
[12:50] chair, you know, um, it's kind, you know, we, I think we have layers of governance
[12:55] here. Um, I think at that point, I would use designated official interchangeably
[13:00] with um Nicole, the board chair, or, uh, the external agency.
[13:10] But if you want to specifically define I'm just trying to imagine scenario where
[13:14] somebody really wants to know that. It could be different
[13:20] moves around too much to a diagram
[13:25] if you yeah. Appreciate the update. This is just information, right? OK, good. I
[13:29] was like,
[13:36] That's good information, especially when we go into audit. And, um, if the auditor
[13:42] is asking you, do you know how to report you can all with confidence say yes
[13:51] because. And this is different than a like a collective bargaining grievance as well.
[13:56] So just to be clear, the collective bargaining grievance, we have an internal process
[14:02] for, uh, employee employee grievances for represented staff, and, um, that is a process
[14:08] through the union, and then that escalates to, uh, mediation and then to PERC. So
[14:14] there's a whole, there's a whole separate process for that.
[14:19] Any other questions from Miranda on this policy?
[14:23] This is just no changes, just reviewing. No, just, just informational only, just
[14:27] doing an educational informational review. It's on to the next one. OK, so this
[14:35] next one, this is discussion purposes, um, I wanted, I wanted to bring, um,
[14:43] For the reserve policy in front of the board. I want to start a conversation around
[14:48] reviewing and potentially updating our reserves policy, and that, and this would
[14:51] be effective for the fiscal year 2026. So in reality, it's fiscal year 2025
[14:58] surplus that would be transferred in the fiscal year 2026. Um, so
[15:05] over the past decade, Jefferson Transit has built strong reserves to ensure financial
[15:10] stability and resilience, and with our current financial position, the board has
[15:15] expressed a desire to expand service and invest in rider facing improvements. While
[15:20] we're at, uh, while we are well positioned to do so, we must consider our future
[15:24] infrastructure needs and our long-term sustainability. So just to give a recap, um,
[15:31] our current reserve status as of 1231-2024, um, the 2025 operating budget was
[15:39] 8.2 million. Uh, our projected 2024 surplus, this is our year-end surplus, um, this
[15:46] figure is pending based on our, uh, grants for the last quarter that we have yet
[15:51] to receive. Um, that, that surplus balance was $5.4 million. Our current reserve
[15:57] balances, and this is as of the end of December, this has changed, uh, but just slightly.
[16:03] Um, our capital checking had 1.2 million in it. The capital reserve had 13.8 million.
[16:10] Operating checking was 7.2 million, operating reserve is 7 million, and the
[16:18] unemployment reserve had 18,413 in that account.
[16:24] So, beginning this discussion point and things that I would like the board to begin
[16:29] considering um throughout the next year as we move towards 2026, um, is There's several
[16:37] key points in that I want to bring up is um the topic of balancing service expansion
[16:43] with our long-term infrastructure needs. Um, the board wants to see funds put into
[16:48] service expansion, and this is an important goal given where we are financially.
[16:53] Um, we do need to consider how our sustained service growth requires continued investment
[16:59] in our infrastructure, our vehicles, and our facilities. So we're thinking about,
[17:03] uh, well we, we're not thinking about it, we're doing it, we're going electric, right?
[17:07] So we need that infrastructure and we need to consider how continued investment in
[17:11] that capital supports our service growth needs. Um, so if we reduce our capital funding
[17:18] now, um, what does it look like in the future? Will we face funding gaps, uh, when
[17:25] projects like EV charging and the transit center upgrades become necessary? So I
[17:29] think we, that's a discussion point where we need to start thinking about how we
[17:32] can balance that. Um, for vehicle and fleet capacity limitations, our service expansion
[17:38] requires more buses, um, but the vehicle reserve is not keeping pace, so the current
[17:43] vehicle reserve, uh, is based around, um, A Gielig bus every 4 years. We know that
[17:50] the the EV buses are uh more expensive. So, um, the current reserve policy supports
[17:58] a bus replacement every 4 years, uh, with the electric buses costing 1 to 1.5% compared
[18:04] to diesel buses at probably about, I would say 5 to 7 at this point with inflation.
[18:09] Um, this policy is outdated, so I think that our reserve policy for vehicles would
[18:15] need to be reviewed. Um, expansion vehicles cannot be grant funded. Um, this means
[18:21] that if we are increasing the size of our fleet, they must be entirely funded by
[18:27] JTA reserves. And we need to discuss adjusting our reserve policy to better align
[18:32] with how our our changing fleet is will lead. And that may not be full size gillis.
[18:39] It might be smaller vehicles, and I think I just want us to start reviewing, well,
[18:43] what is that replacement plan? Let's talk about it. Um, So, short term rider
[18:50] benefits versus long-term stability, um, investing in our bus shelter stops and service
[18:57] frequency can enhance the rider experience now while keeping our reserves strong.
[19:03] However, if we overspend on our operations today, we risk future financial instability.
[19:09] So, we look at major capital projects like Haynes Place Transit Center upgrades,
[19:15] um, We have a couple that were that were slated to do this year, um, the Gateway,
[19:23] yes, there it is. Um, so the, I, it's not a, I'm not saying let's not do this. I,
[19:29] I, what I want to, uh, just bring about the point is that when we're thinking about
[19:33] these big expansions, um, how are we supporting those into the future with operations
[19:39] and our, our, our uh maintaining our capital infrastructure, um. And then the
[19:46] last point that I want to um bring forward for discussion is, um, so,
[19:54] Creating a measured expansion with our strategic investments, so we can incrementally
[19:59] enhance service while maintaining um a responsible reserve strategy. So, a
[20:06] potential solution would be a phased service expansion, um. Now, these are just points
[20:12] that are are not coming from the COA, but these are things that we hear, like evening
[20:16] and weekend service enhancements, uh, increased frequency on key routes, um, demand-based
[20:23] microtransit pilots. Um, so service improvements can be rolled out gradually while
[20:28] maintaining necessary reserves for capital projects. Miranda, can you talk about
[20:32] what the COA is for new? Yes, uh, the COAs are comprehensive, uh,
[20:42] operational analysis. So you guys reviewed it some in my orientation. Yes, so we
[20:47] had an update with them last week and uh they are presenting today? No, not today.
[20:54] No, OK, never mind. I like to hear microtransit they're microtransit. Yes, so, um,
[21:03] these are not. Suggestions in any way. I wanted to be more of a fluid, uh, idea starter,
[21:10] um, because what I'd like to do is bring this topic back for discussion over the
[21:16] next couple board meetings to prepare for fiscal year 2026. Um, the reserve policy
[21:22] we have set in place right now, that's going to be, uh, what we are following for
[21:26] this year when I go to do reserve transfers in April, um, because I don't think we're
[21:31] ready to To make that change right now. Um, I think it needs a, um, more focus on,
[21:39] uh, and discussion around how we're, how we might re-evaluate our reserves. So I
[21:45] think that, um, it, it's a good time right now, especially since we do have these
[21:49] big capital projects, and we're gonna start seeing how that's affecting our capital
[21:53] reserves. Um, but also that we, um, that we do have a fully funded, uh, operating
[22:00] reserve and, um, is that. The practice that we want to continue and uh we want to
[22:06] start seeing some more uh public facing um. Results. So, um,
[22:14] this really is just me starting the conversation. So the, the key points is, um,
[22:20] should we adjust our reserve policies, um, should we increase annual contributions
[22:25] to the vehicle reserve, uh, how do we balance service growth with necessary infrastructure
[22:31] investments? What are the board's priorities for capital versus operational spending
[22:36] in the coming years? Um, so I wanted to include all this information in here, um,
[22:42] and then Provide an opportunity to ask questions. If you would like to email me and
[22:48] get information from me, um, this will be a discussion point in the coming board
[22:53] meetings, so we'll have plenty of opportunity to hash it out. So this is also an
[22:58] informational topic. Letting the table. Any questions for Miranda right now about
[23:02] these new potential reserve policies or resetting the the capital and and operational
[23:07] reserve?
[23:10] Thoughts, I guess initial thoughts? I think it's a good idea to start
[23:17] a conversation about it seemed like. Kind of a no-brainer. Thanks Vivian, Rick.
[23:26] I just want to say I've been talking about this for the last 2 years. For the size
[23:30] of our agency and going all in on electric, and now with the current state of
[23:38] How the government's working and stuff like that, we need to back off the electric
[23:41] stuff. We're putting all of our money and all of our stuff in one basket, and here
[23:46] in the, in the future is we're, we're gonna be Thinking, oh, we probably should have
[23:51] done that. Let the bigger agencies find out what, you know, what's best for, for
[23:56] the industry, and then we follow later on. I mean, we're gonna be hurt in a couple
[24:02] of years. We keep going on this, uh, this electric bandwagon. It's it's not the right,
[24:08] it's not the right idea. Right, that's all I gotta say about it. And I've been talking
[24:14] about this for the last couple of years.
[24:18] All right, um, I'll, I'll say, I think it's great to talk about these reserves, you
[24:23] know, as, as you might see the, I mean, this is a very healthy reserve that we have,
[24:29] and I think Defining those buckets as we move forward is really going to inform the
[24:33] strategy, whether it's, you know, guiding towards or away from electric vehicles,
[24:36] you know, as Rick would have, or, you know, maybe he's talking hydrogen. I don't
[24:40] know. No, probably not. But, um, I think there are really important conversations.
[24:44] I think that the COA like should come first, to a degree, you know, understanding
[24:50] and really kind of agreeing on our path. That's kind of our strategic document. I
[24:54] know we have a strategic plan and the TPP and all that, but for me, Making Jefferson
[24:59] Transit a real functional transportation agency for our really challenging county
[25:05] is, is something that is uh um a big lift for us to, you know, Yeah, to be someone
[25:12] to be able to commute from Quiling or, or, you know, get their groceries or get to
[25:17] their healthcare appointments, you know, conveniently from Port Ludlow, these are
[25:20] all questions that I think about, and we also think about the efficiencies of, you
[25:24] know, focusing in Port Townsend or Port Hadlock where you have the density that really
[25:29] like speaks to normal transit agencies. So, yeah, you know, yeah, for example, but,
[25:35] um. Uh, I, I just, I think it's, it's great, you know, we have strong reserves. I
[25:40] don't think there's no, no budget that you're going to see that is healthier than
[25:45] the transit budget, budget, um, and Yeah, we, we should dream with, with uh guard
[25:52] rails, so I appreciate it. I just, I wanna add, I just wanna, um, kudos to what Greg
[25:58] just said, couldn't agree more. And, you know, I think our comprehensive operational
[26:03] analysis is gonna give us some road maps, and we may want to invest to get down those
[26:09] roads and um That's what I would like to see us do is, you know, use our operational
[26:16] analysis to define the path forward. So it's, it's good that we're doing this reserve
[26:21] consideration at this time, but um I'm really excited to see what the COA says and
[26:27] And how we might be able to flex to implement some of what the um COA guides us towards,
[26:34] so. Couldn't agree with you more, Greg. Thanks for adding a road metaphor to it.
[26:41] That was moving, moving right along down here Brennan Brennan right now. Uh, that's
[26:47] great. Any other thoughts to share initially, and I think Miranda, thank you for
[26:51] the offer. If you have questions or followups, reach out to Miranda to inform future
[26:56] conversations about this. It's good you're on the finance. Oh right, and I just saw
[27:00] on the script on the tag as well. So yeah, OK, yeah. Yeah,
[27:09] 2 more meetings a month. That's a question the um this table. It has the operating
[27:15] reserve fund, capital reserve fund, revenue vehicle reserve fund, etc. Is that a,
[27:20] that's a summary of the current reserve policies. So what you've got in reserves
[27:26] right now is significantly than that. Got it. It, it, it, it, um,
[27:34] our reserves meet our policy at the maximum allowed. OK, so, uh, if we're funding
[27:41] our operating reserve for a maximum of 1 year of operations, um, we, we are 100%
[27:47] funded to change at this moment for 2025 we're not 100% funded, but as we do our
[27:52] reserve transfers this year, we will be, yeah, so that's been very good to us. Yeah,
[27:58] it has. OK, thank you.
[28:03] Last call for any other thoughts? Yeah.
[28:08] Oh, sure. Um, I'll just jump in here. I think I may be the longest serving member
[28:14] on this board or even amongst staff who are still uh working uh with JTA. Um, when
[28:20] I came on, uh, JTA was still in the kind of hangover period after the Great Recession,
[28:26] where for a while. Um, you know, the JTA was scraping bottom. I mean, we were, we
[28:32] were moments from needing to do pretty significant cuts, uh, up on fumes, so to speak,
[28:38] to continue the transportation metaphors. Um, and so for a long time, we've been
[28:43] on a, a pathway of building good reserves, um, to, to make sure that we're not in
[28:49] that position. I think we're really, I mean, we, we've breezed past the point that
[28:53] I thought we should have been converting a lot more of the money. Into operations,
[28:59] um, I'm, I'm glad, you know, we're always thinking about trying to make sure any
[29:04] operations we introduce are sustainable, uh, if we do end up in an economic downturn.
[29:11] But you know, I look at our reserves right now, and I think about what someone who
[29:16] is an enemy of public transportation would say, and that they would say like we're
[29:21] just a money pinata waiting to be beaten over the head. I'm surprised that, honestly,
[29:26] that the media has not picked up on just how significant. Our reserves have expanded
[29:32] without us expanding much in the way of operations. Um, I, I do think it's important
[29:37] that we do it responsibly, which again, I really appreciate staff's approach to this,
[29:42] but I do think we really need to start looking at ways and, you know, putting more
[29:47] service on the road. So I would like to respond to that. Steph is fully committed
[29:55] to putting additional service on the road, and we budgeted for that in 2025, um,
[30:00] but really the The issue that Jefferson Transit has been having is not a financial
[30:06] issue, but it's staffing. So I, I can't introduce new service if I don't have someone
[30:12] to drive that bus. Um, so I think, I think we're in a better place right now. Um,
[30:18] we've got another class of operators starting with 3. Um, so we're excited about
[30:24] that, um, and we're looking forward to adding additional service on that we had talked
[30:30] about this year. So I do hear you. We are excited. We're, we would like to put more
[30:36] service on the road. Right. I, I'm so I really was not trying to throw you under
[30:41] the bus, uh, continuing metaphors where, um, I, I mean, I really do appreciate that
[30:46] that is indeed the intention. On the part of staff really to and and the way we passed
[30:51] the budget for this year to to put that service on the road that it's not necessarily
[30:55] financial, but I'm glad that I think we really need to. That needs to be our trajectory,
[31:00] and I appreciate that's what it is.
[31:06] All right, we should probably move on to the actual finance reports now. Well, I
[31:10] was just gonna add that I'm, I'm not ready to jettison the transition to electrification
[31:17] and I'll be interested to see what the COA says, and if we are moving to microtransit,
[31:22] are there smaller, more affordable electro electric options, but I'm, I'm fully not
[31:29] ready to jettison um that aspiration that we set together. So just wanted to
[31:37] say that out loud.
[31:41] OK. Um, so I do have I have the, uh, uh, preliminary 2024 year-end,
[31:48] uh, financials, and we have January. I'm not gonna deep dive too deep into January
[31:54] because this first month, you can't really make decisions based off of what one month.
[31:58] The budget tracking is, uh, it's, it's, you know, it's. It's front loaded cause we
[32:02] got a lot of 2025 expenses that occur at the beginning of the year. And, um, so February
[32:10] and March are gonna be more informative for you. So we're gonna talk about, uh, December.
[32:14] Um, sales tax revenue, uh, October 2024, which was remitted in December 2024 for
[32:20] the month of October, year over year it increased 9% compared to 2023. Uh, for November
[32:28] 2024, remitted in January of 2025, um, the month of November increased 45%.
[32:36] That's a huge significant number. I do not know what we were not doing in 2023 in
[32:40] November that we did in 2024. 0, there we go.
[32:47] um, it is, it is construction related. Uh, we just, it feels like we've had like
[32:52] the fishery stuff for years now, and they just, they're always there, um. So the
[32:59] total accumulated sales tax increase for 2024, year over year is 9%. Uh, this is
[33:05] a continuing trend for us. Uh, we do not have operating revenue as of January 2024,
[33:11] so we don't collect fares there. Um, so, total operating expenses for uh 2024 is
[33:19] 12.4% under budget. Uh, our labor was 3.3% under budget, benefits was
[33:27] 12.6% under budget. Services and user fees were 41.1% under budget. Uh, materials
[33:35] and supplies consumed was 28.1% under budget. Utilities was about 1% over budget.
[33:42] So I think we, we came in pretty close on that one, but we did start to see those
[33:45] rising costs. Our casualty and liability, that is our insurance uh coverage was 3.5%
[33:52] under budget. Our taxes was 88.3%. But again, that's not because we're not paying
[33:59] it right. If we budgeted for fares and we stopped, uh, we stopped collecting fares.
[34:06] So we do put a contingency in there, but we are paying our taxes, so we wanna call
[34:11] it.
[34:13] Um, our miscellaneous expenses was 45.2% under in the packets. Um, I did
[34:20] provide a, um.
[34:24] Kind of a breakdown of what those miscellaneous expenses were
[34:29] as right. Yes, it's it's as requested, those miscellaneous expenses will be broke
[34:33] out, broken out now, um. If there's a specific question you have on what those miscellaneous
[34:40] expenses are, um, Just please let me know. I can explain it further. Um, for the
[34:46] most part, the, the one in December is, um, is a reimbursement for uh
[34:53] one of our field or not field one of our supervisors who's um does our CDL testing.
[35:00] So it's a reimbursement for uh relicensing costs.
[35:06] Um, and then you will also see that miscellaneous breakdown is in uh January's report,
[35:13] so it does break down specifically what went into that miscellaneous, um, and if
[35:18] you're looking at the financial statements, there is a miscellaneous transaction
[35:22] detail, and that is on page 27 of the packet. And that shows, um, primarily those
[35:29] expenses are going to be uh dues and subscriptions to external organizations, membership
[35:35] fees, um, some travel or uh supervisors, um, and then, um, we have some uh
[35:44] Membership fees that we accrue out over the year and that that'll be um Under the
[35:51] January 25 month and journal entries, and I, I will do a better job of explaining
[35:55] what those are. I realized that they just say the same thing. So, uh, I will be more
[35:59] detailed than that in my next report. Um,
[36:11] 5.9% under for our leases and rentals, um. And that's what I have for
[36:20] our financials. Does the board have any questions about 2024 or even January cause
[36:24] I'm not, I'm not going to leave it there. You had a comment? Oh it's just silly to
[36:30] say I'm glad that the in the other breakdown that miscellaneous has a miscellaneous
[36:35] category also. Yes,
[36:38] you know, you can't categorize everything. There's always gonna be that weird one-off
[36:43] thing and. Gets thrown in there. I want to share one thing just on, on tax revenue,
[36:48] sales tax revenue that I might have reported incorrectly at the last meeting, so
[36:51] I wanna make sure I corrected is that our treasurer Stacy Preda had identified in
[36:56] our budget meeting kind of that that separation of big, big projects from the normal
[37:01] retail sales tax for 2020. For and I might have been. I'll just say the correction
[37:06] now, which is uh retail sales tax went down 4% in 2024. So those sales tax did go
[37:13] up that difference, you know, between that 9%, 9, 9% for October, but I, I think
[37:17] it was like 8% over the year or something. So I went down 4% and up 12% based on
[37:24] large projects. So probably just uh I know you've always really does.
[37:29] I'd say those budget meetings are probably be a value add for you actually.
[37:36] A good. OK we have one tomorrow morning. We do 8:30. Um,
[37:44] any other questions or comments on the finance report? All right, we'll move on to
[37:52] a fairly beefy consent agenda. Um, I move to prove. And move to approve the consent
[37:59] agenda is presented. I like that. Becket, any questions, conversation?
[38:08] The none all in favor of approving the consent agenda as presented indicate by saying
[38:11] I I I. And opposed. Alright, that is unanimous. On
[38:19] to new business. I believe we have a presentation about the four corners. We do,
[38:26] and Kelly will be um inviting our guests over.
[38:41] Welcome. And
[38:44] is Christian here?
[38:47] Yeah, he's online too. OK.
[38:53] I am here for you guys. Yeah, Christian. Right. So we are so excited
[39:00] to have Shannon Thompson with um Barker Creek Consulting along with Sydney um with
[39:07] Barker Creek Consulting and Christian, I'm not gonna pronounce your last name, Christian,
[39:12] with the with the SETI architects, and we are um here today to talk
[39:19] about the property, the 111 property. We had some discussions last year about some
[39:26] Uh, rising costs, some construction costs, um, we had changed project managers, so,
[39:33] uh, Barker Creek is, um, our official project manager for, um, the facilities building.
[39:40] Side note, they're also the project manager for the 3rd Maintenance bay and they're
[39:44] doing a great job. And every time we get off a meeting, I'm so excited that um that
[39:50] they are project managers. Um, so with their guidance, uh, we had started working
[39:56] with um Christian at the SEI Architects. Christian came out and had some good conversations
[40:02] with staff about What we need in a facility, um, what kind of space we need,
[40:10] um, for not only vehicles but also staff. So, um, originally we were looking at
[40:18] constructing a space for our facilities crew. They are being displaced because of
[40:24] the 3rd maintenance bay. Uh, so they are, um, losing their space, their home, so
[40:29] we need, we need a new space for them, um, and then that kind of morphed into what
[40:34] else, um, would, would we want to see how space, uh, the end of last year I told
[40:41] the board that I'd like to move forward with, um, the full board having some discussions
[40:46] about our next steps. Um, so that's what we're, we're doing here today, and I thought
[40:52] that Shannon and Christian could help guide us through, um, through a conversation.
[40:58] Uh, you bet. I think what I'll do is I'll kick things off and then we'll turn the
[41:02] time over to Christian to kind of walk us through the pieces. But just a little bit
[41:06] of history, uh, I'm sure, so, uh, you know, as we start to develop uh design and
[41:11] planning and, and we, we, we, we saw what you had originally planned and we started
[41:16] to ask questions and some of these questions, um, you know, uh, we just want to make
[41:21] sure. That, that what is being planned and designed for in your, in your project,
[41:27] not only uh
[41:33] Uh oh. And I froze up.
[41:38] Take it away. I can kind of fill in the gaps where he's going with this. He wants
[41:43] to make sure that what's being designed not only fulfills the immediate need of the
[41:48] design, but we also plan for the future as well so that Um, as you get more money
[41:53] for more capital projects, you can add that bus was, that's a drive-through bus wash.
[41:58] You can add other things, but how the project was set up previously, it didn't take
[42:03] into account the future. And so that's one of the things we wanted to focus on with
[42:06] this.
[42:11] Thanks good pen in there. You wanna walk us through the site. Is that the next phase?
[42:19] Yeah, so, um, I think now we can kind of turn it over to Christian to walk through
[42:24] what he's kind of put together. We've worked together on some slides. Um, I'm not
[42:29] sure who has the slide deck or if we, if Christian, you can share the screen or.
[42:34] Yeah, I, I do have it up so I can share a screen. Let's give uh Shannon a moment
[42:40] though if I see you're back with us. Yeah, I just started, I started talking to the
[42:44] ether, you know.
[42:47] Everybody disappeared for a second and I was like, whoa, what happened? But, uh,
[42:51] I, I think what we're, we're really trying to do is we're gonna give Chris some time
[42:55] to kind of walk through what we heard so far, what some of your needs that you, your
[43:00] future needs may be, be, even though they aren't included in the current project,
[43:04] we still want to hear about them and plan for them. You know, um, again, I, I don't
[43:09] know the analogy I said was we don't want to paint ourselves into a corner, and I
[43:12] don't know if you guys heard that or not before I got, I got cut out, but, uh, um,
[43:16] so taking, taking the site as a complete unit and going, OK, this is what the need
[43:22] is for maintenance. This is where we can put it without impacting what the future
[43:26] needs may be and uh really having some thoughtful process into what that looks like.
[43:32] Um, so with that, I think uh I'll turn the time over to Beetti, let them, um, kind
[43:39] of walk us through what we heard and what we've uh come up with so far and, and I'll
[43:45] let you guys ask some questions and see if we can uh start the process here. Sure.
[43:50] All right, well, thank you. Uh, it's nice to meet all of you. Um. And I, you know,
[43:56] we are early in this process, so. You know, I, but I think it's, it's good that to
[44:04] kind of keep you up to speed um and make sure that, you know, where we're going with
[44:09] this is in alignment um with with the board. So can you guys see my screen, uh, the,
[44:16] the slide up here? OK, great.
[44:21] And um. Let's see here. I gotta hide my Controls, so they're not in the way. All
[44:27] right. Um, and so, you know, initially the, the, the goal for, for our involvement
[44:33] was to help, um, you know, with um sort of completing the, the process that had been
[44:41] started for a, um, you know, a, a place for the facilities department um to go. Um,
[44:49] as Nicole mentioned them being displaced on the property and so, you know, sort of
[44:54] as we got involved in that and we started asking questions as Shannon mentioned,
[44:57] we just want to make sure that we're taking into account, you know, the larger picture
[45:02] and so, you know, kind of the goals for our planning study at this point because
[45:06] we're not designing a new building yet, you know, but we're sort of working towards
[45:12] that. But first it's just kind of understanding. Um, where is it that we need to
[45:16] go? So we want to look at, you know, what are the options for the 111 property, what's
[45:21] the best use for that? How can it support what's going on on the main campus, you
[45:27] know, planning for for future improvements, um, you know, we. I heard when I was
[45:33] out there about, you know, some planned additional electric charging stations going
[45:39] in, the need for a future drive-through bus wash, you know, there's there's a few
[45:45] other things that are kind of on the wish list or or or kind of, you know, in the
[45:51] pipeline. And so we just want to make sure we're taking all of that into account
[45:54] as we're looking at. The you know moving pieces around on here and making sure that
[45:59] we're, you know, got room for buses to move on the site and taking the utility connections
[46:04] into account. And so part of our goal for this is to, you know, you know, draw some
[46:10] of this stuff and plan on the site so that we have a place for it, as well as try
[46:14] to put some construction cost budgets down for some of these improvements that we
[46:20] know enough about to be able to describe them. Um, so that you know you guys can
[46:25] have that as information for future planning and future budgeting, and then obviously
[46:30] like I said, we want to be looking at the bigger picture of this. So at the same
[46:33] time as we're trying to solve programmatic practical needs within the campus, we
[46:38] also want to be making sure that what we're doing, you know, makes sense from a community
[46:42] environmental impact standpoint as well. Um, and so, Let's see
[46:49] here. All right, so kind of what we understand so far from talking with Nicole and
[46:56] her team, um, I, you know, we need a space for the facilities crew, an office space
[47:03] for them to work, a workshop space that's large enough for them to do what they need
[47:08] to do, and storage for the equipment and and parts that they have
[47:15] and need to have storage for. Um, we also heard that there's currently not adequate
[47:21] space for doing the training and driver testing maneuvers on the site and that some
[47:28] additional space and pavement space for that would be really useful. Um, and so we're
[47:35] taking that into account. We've also talked about, you know, that that it would be
[47:39] practical to have a second vehicle entry into the fenced area of the of the yard,
[47:48] and then we also, as I mentioned, we want to make sure we're taking into account
[47:51] safe, efficient, you know, circulation for buses and vehicles within the yard and
[47:56] on the site, um. It would appear that the proposed improvements we're talking about
[48:01] are going to have an impact on the trail that goes around the yard right now outside
[48:07] of the fence, and then there is the future Discovery Trail, and so, you know, the
[48:14] idea is we're going to need to make alterations to the trail that's on site. Can
[48:19] it connect to that discovery trail? What might that look like? What are some things
[48:23] we might want to keep in mind there and then. You know, we also want to make sure
[48:28] that we're planning a strategy that's going to be, you know, efficient, cost effective
[48:33] around utilities, right? So any new occupiable buildings or structures that we're
[48:38] going to place on either the main property or the 111 property, they're going to
[48:42] need utility services. So what's the best strategy for serving those? And getting
[48:48] those connected and then some of the future things that that we've heard so far as
[48:53] we've talked about this is, um, you know, at at some point a drive through automatic
[48:58] bus wash is going to really make Uh, some operational efficiencies for, for the,
[49:06] for you guys as you expand service and and whatnot, then we need to make sure that
[49:13] we're planning for any additional parking and vehicle storage that you might need
[49:18] on site. Um, and then, you know, as as you're talking about with the transition to
[49:24] electric vehicles, making sure that we've got, you know, that we're not impacting
[49:28] space or infrastructure that's going to be needed for um charging those vehicles
[49:34] on site. And then a couple other things that we heard is that there's some space
[49:41] for record storage that's needed, that the current space in the building is kind
[49:45] of not meeting the standards for records, and so some new space might be something
[49:52] that wants to be planned for that, as well as the possibility that there might be
[49:56] future need for additional offices there on the site somewhere. So those those are
[50:02] kind of some of the needs that we've heard so far. Um, and, um, you know, as, as,
[50:08] as we get into this, we might hear about some more or discover some more, um, but
[50:12] that's kind of, kind of where where we're at after just, you know, a couple of weeks
[50:17] of uh of discussions on this. Any, any questions on this, um, before I, before I
[50:23] move on or or thoughts on that?
[50:28] Go ahead and move on, Christian. All right.
[50:32] Uh, and so, you know, kind of one of the things that we identified, um, Quickly,
[50:38] as we've gotten started on this, is that there currently doesn't exist a survey for
[50:44] the two properties together. So there are drawings from the construction of the main
[50:51] facility from approximately 2014. Um, and then there was some survey work done on
[50:59] the 111 property when when the previous sort of process was started for
[51:06] that, but there's not a coherent survey that sort of documents the existing as built
[51:11] conditions on the main campus together with the 111 property, so. Um, one of the
[51:17] things that we propose is to move forward with having a surveyor come out and do
[51:22] a complete survey of both parcels, and then, and that will really help us to locate
[51:29] the utilities, the underground utilities on site, make sure that we're documenting
[51:33] the required easements for those so that again we're not placing proposed structures
[51:38] on top of stuff that where they can't go. Um, and then, um, one of the other things
[51:45] that that came up, you know, as we're talking about utilities and connecting things
[51:49] and permitting and things like that, is that there may be some advantages to combining
[51:54] the two parcels into a single tax parcel. Um, so that you know for permitting purposes
[52:00] and utility service purposes we might see some some efficiency. So we're going to
[52:06] dive into that in a little bit more depth at this point it's just the right now we
[52:11] just have the intent to study that further and understand the pros and cons for that.
[52:17] But you know, initially our thought on this was that Um, you know, for water meters
[52:24] and electrical meters and service, you know, having a single point of service for,
[52:31] for the property would make sense when you have two tax parcels, you can end up in
[52:36] situations where you need to have separate meters for each property and separate
[52:40] service for them, and so there's additional, you know, long term sort of operational
[52:45] charges that can come with that and so. Um, kind of looking, looking at, at things
[52:50] from that standpoint, there may be some advantages to move forward with, uh, combining
[52:55] the two parcels into one.
[52:59] All right, um, so the kind of the schedule, I don't, is this text too small? I can,
[53:04] I can zoom in on this a little bit. That's good. OK. Um, but essentially, you know,
[53:11] our initial part of this was just sort of understanding the problem a little bit.
[53:15] So for the starting in in January, um. We had kind of a kickoff meeting and then
[53:20] in February, um, I went out to the site, actually it was the end of January, I was
[53:25] out there. But anyway, as we've been in this, uh, this initial few weeks of this
[53:30] of just sort of gathering information, understanding the problem. And now we're kind
[53:33] of moving into, you know, developing some plans, so. We're gonna move forward with
[53:39] trying to understand the the context of the site and the utilities on it, um, and,
[53:44] and creating some diagrams for it, while we, we will be sort of waiting for the completion
[53:51] of the survey work. And so we're going to get that finalized survey hopefully sometime
[53:57] in March so that we can then overlay that with some of the initial studies that we've
[54:01] done and just you know, use that to further inform our work and so the kind of the
[54:09] plan is to develop several options through March and then come back to you guys in
[54:14] at your April meeting with, you know, potentially a single kind of recommended plan.
[54:19] It might have sort of two options still at that point, but the idea is explore a
[54:25] couple of options during March and potentially narrow that down to a preferred approach
[54:30] for the 111 parcel in the overall site. Um, to talk about at your April meeting.
[54:35] So that's kind of the, the overall schedule, um, of, of where we'd like to get to
[54:40] in the next couple months. Any questions on that? Questions I can't see folks online
[54:47] but just speak up if you have a question or a comment for Christian.
[54:58] All right, well, I will, I will move on ahead. So we also started some, just again,
[55:03] trying to understand the problem, um, we talked with the facilities' crew, kind of
[55:07] what they're doing. Out there what they would like to be able to do and what their
[55:11] needs are and started to develop an initial program of spaces, you know, what kinds
[55:16] of spaces do they need, how big do they need to be, what happens inside of those
[55:20] so that we can help right size them, and then, you know, we started with an initial
[55:25] test fit of like how big is big, like when we put all of those programmatic needs
[55:30] together, um. And start to think of it in terms of a building that could hold all
[55:36] those activities, how big does it need to be and so kind of our first stab at that
[55:42] that needs, you know, further discussion and review is, you know, we came up with
[55:47] approximately 29,003,000 square feet. Would seem to be about the right size, um,
[55:55] to, to hold all of the the things that they need and give them some elbow room for
[55:59] future uh future work and and future needs. And then also, as we're talking about
[56:05] planning for a drive through bus wash building, we need to understand how big is
[56:11] that, so that, uh, again we can kind of plan where does it need to go and how much
[56:16] space around it do we need for the buses to maneuver. Um, and so, you know, we, we've
[56:22] done a few of these facilities and so looking at some of our past projects, we pulled
[56:27] in. One of our freestanding drive-through bus wash plans, and it's also in that same
[56:32] kind of size range, 2700 square feet, plus or minus. Hey Chris, Christian, this is
[56:40] Heidi, and I'm sorry, I'm off camera, but I'm driving and I just, um, how you mentioned
[56:46] past projects and I thought this might be a good place to interject this question.
[56:50] How do you, um, factor in like planning for future growth? Like, do you, you know,
[56:56] when you say you, um, met with the facilities team and estimated that a building
[57:01] of about, I think you said around 3000 square feet would be good. I, are we planning
[57:07] for Any increment in future growth or future need. We want to be able to
[57:14] do that, yeah, so I, you know, I've started the conversation about what might the
[57:19] future needs look like, um, and, and already, you know, this was what what we planned
[57:26] here in terms of that 2900 square feet is kind of, you know, a little bit bigger
[57:31] than um. What their current footprint is, right, for, for, for what they're doing.
[57:37] And so this already gives them some additional expansion, um, but we do want to test
[57:41] that out against what are some of the, the planned, um. Future needs for that and
[57:48] so that over the next month we're going to be continuing to to do that right to try
[57:53] to identify it, it's always a little challenging right to have a crystal ball and
[57:57] kind of know what's coming. And so sometimes it's just that we say, well, we don't
[58:02] really know what else might be needed, but um let's make sure that there's additional
[58:06] space on site where we might play something, right? So like one of the goals for
[58:13] this is that there's quite a bit of material that's currently stored in some aging,
[58:19] um, metal, you know, container boxes on site. Um, it'd be prudent to try to provide,
[58:26] you know, covered dedicated storage space for that material now, but then we might
[58:33] be doing in our, as we look at the overall site is thinking about where might some
[58:38] future storage like that go right if future shipping container type storage was going
[58:44] to be added on site. To accommodate an unforeseen need, um, you know, where, where,
[58:51] where might it go and have a place dedicated for that type of future expansion, right?
[58:55] I, I, I think in a nutshell, you know, one of the things as we go through this process,
[59:00] things get vetted out. One of the things that we heard after we talked with staff
[59:04] about this design was, was, hey, you know, we have a real need for record storage,
[59:09] um, that, that, and, and so that is not included into this. And then we have a need
[59:16] for maybe some future office space and, and, well, that's not included in these,
[59:20] and, and holistically, We want to look at your site as a whole. Where would it best
[59:25] serve um JTA to have those needs? Is it in this auxiliary structure or is it in a,
[59:32] a structure that's attached to your existing structure? These are things that we
[59:36] need to kind of vet out to kind of help you make those decisions. All, you know,
[59:40] like I said earlier, this bus wash, it's not in our current scope to, to design you
[59:44] a bus wash, but We want to make sure that we can fit a bus wash. And so, uh, Basetti's
[59:50] done a bus wash. I've done a bus wash with uh Central Kitsap School District, and
[59:54] we have uh a facility here that we've, we've done that with and so we have a pretty
[59:59] good idea what that footprint needs to be like, um, so we can accommodate where to
[1:00:04] put this building for you. So all of those things are being considered as we move
[1:00:07] through this. Can I ask just specifically on the storage on the, the, the 2900 square
[1:00:13] foot building, is that Record storage plus more storage, is that, am I interpreting
[1:00:18] that correctly? No, so this plan actually doesn't take into account the record storage.
[1:00:22] This was specifically looking at the facilities related material that they have,
[1:00:27] you know, they've got quite a few small vehicles like lawn mowers.
[1:00:34] trailers, as well as, you know, a variety of, you know, fencing, scaffolding, signage,
[1:00:41] other, you know, various material that that is stored there on site. So just trying
[1:00:46] to make sure that we've got a place for that and a strategy for how it's it's kept
[1:00:51] and organized.
[1:00:58] Question.
[1:01:00] On we'll have a just a general question on the The training, the amount of pavement
[1:01:05] needed for training, is that, are we including the parking lot that's fairly spar
[1:01:09] sparsely used park and ride parking lot in that training? Pavement or do you have
[1:01:15] to do it completely without any other cars around? Are you referring to here or at
[1:01:20] hands here? We, we don't pull our buses. Um, our parking lot's not rated for. Oh
[1:01:26] yeah, especially with electric buses because they wait.
[1:01:39] I. All right, um, and so then the other thing that we've done, just again, it's like
[1:01:44] we don't, we don't have a complete survey of the property yet, but, uh, just using,
[1:01:49] you know, the aerial um information that is available. We started the like how big
[1:01:55] is big um exercise of, you know, it's like what do we see when we first start putting
[1:02:01] some stuff on here and understanding, um. The size of things. And so, um, kind of
[1:02:08] what the the red dotted rectangle here is is kind of shows the sort of minimum footprint
[1:02:13] that we need for the bus maneuvering that as an area. Obviously that can overlap
[1:02:21] with vehicle driveway and access, etc. right now. On site as we understand it, you
[1:02:28] know, that, you know, the footprint of that overlaps with, you know, bus and vehicle
[1:02:33] parking and storage. So in order to do the maneuvers on the site now, there's time
[1:02:39] invested in having to move a bunch of vehicles and stuff out of the way. So just
[1:02:43] looking at at how big is that, um, how big is this, you know, 3000 square foot facilities
[1:02:50] building, and how big is is a potential future bus wash building, um, you know. It's
[1:02:57] not necessarily a foregone conclusion that either of those needs to go on the 111
[1:03:03] parcel. I think one of the things that we want to study is some options that would
[1:03:07] say, gosh, would there be any reason why it would make sense for those to be, you
[1:03:12] know, on the main property and then use the 111 for more parking or vehicle storage.
[1:03:19] You know, I think that's got to be considered, but at least, you know, again as a
[1:03:23] test fit, the idea here was like, well, we'll leave the existing facility alone and
[1:03:28] just look at how big is the stuff that we're talking about and then particularly
[1:03:32] looking at maneuvering space needed so you can kind of see, you know, I dropped in
[1:03:39] some turning radiuses for for buses to sort of pull in and out of a drive through
[1:03:44] building. Um, so just making sure that the, you know, how big would the pavement
[1:03:48] area need around a a structure of that size. Uh, so this just kind of starts to give
[1:03:54] us a sense of like, you know, does it fit there, um, how much space does it take
[1:04:00] up, etc. those kinds of things. And so, you know, this isn't in any way a well thought
[1:04:05] through layout at at the moment. It's just a first step at understanding how big
[1:04:10] is this stuff we're we're talking about and um what issues might we see. Immediately
[1:04:16] bubbling to the surface as we as we get started on this. So we've got more plenty
[1:04:21] of more more work to do on it, but this was just kind of our are dipping our toe
[1:04:27] in the water. So to speak.
[1:04:33] Can I ask Christian, you, you talked about the, the need for more parking, but this
[1:04:37] doesn't incorporate that yet. So lots of these ideas are still just kind of,
[1:04:43] yeah, right, exactly, yeah, that's, that's not overlaid on this because we haven't
[1:04:47] really, we need to have some more conversations to understand, you know, how much
[1:04:51] parking would we want to be discussing. Um, you can see, you know, even as we overlay
[1:04:56] this on here, uh, we might be, you know, Interfering with some existing parking,
[1:05:03] so we'd want to be looking to, you know, where does that go and can we make sure
[1:05:06] that that's accommodated and then what how much additional vehicles would we need
[1:05:11] on here so as we sort of right size the amount of pavement and the you know potential
[1:05:16] perimeter of fencing, um. We got to start taking all that into account. So yeah,
[1:05:22] we haven't haven't gone so far as to address that yet. And can I also ask the uh
[1:05:27] the the kind of the top little square that connects the existing parking lot to below,
[1:05:32] that's not on 111, right? Is that part of the reason that we're talking about combining
[1:05:36] the pro the parcels because we're right now have a project that's that spans two
[1:05:40] parcels? Correct, yes. Mhm. Right. And and as I mentioned, you know,
[1:05:48] because the this Is a separate parcel from a utility standpoint, we want to look
[1:05:54] at, does it make sense to bring, you know, utility service off of the road to serve
[1:05:58] these or if we want to use the service from the main site and just connect those
[1:06:04] into it, that might be a reason for uh just combining this into a singular property.
[1:06:11] That process will probably take like a year though, right? If we want to do that,
[1:06:14] that's something we should start. Um, yes, it, it, it does take a little bit of time,
[1:06:21] typically from a permitting, you know, um, and utility standpoint, as long as the
[1:06:27] agencies involved understand that that process is underway, um, it's, it's typically
[1:06:33] not a barrier, um. Yeah, and it's very often that a lot of these parcel combinations
[1:06:39] and uh things don't happen until even after I, I construct the building. Like, uh,
[1:06:44] currently I'm doing a parcel merge on another project, um, that we just finished
[1:06:50] that had 3 parcels to it. So, it, it does, as long as like Christian said, as long
[1:06:54] as there's an understanding that that's what the plan is and it goes in that way,
[1:06:58] uh, we're good to go. That is really easy to work with, so.
[1:07:06] It's just just for the sake of getting bored in the public, um, the testing maneuver
[1:07:11] is that mainly break testing? We have seen that out here. Yes, so we do break testing.
[1:07:17] We're also doing testing for actual CDL exams. Um, there's phones and there's backing
[1:07:25] maneuvers. Um, Gary Maxfield is a third party tester, so we do quite a bit of testing
[1:07:31] for column transit, uh, KidsA Transit, and Mason Transit.
[1:07:40] At the bus barn facility for Central Kitsap School District, we have a testing rundown
[1:07:45] facility also that's heavy pave, concrete, and uh they, the state comes and does
[1:07:50] their testing there with the buses, so.
[1:07:59] So I think I would be interested in hearing from the board or anything, is there
[1:08:04] anything that we presented that is cause for concern? Are we moving in a direction,
[1:08:11] um. The board feels like we shouldn't be moving in. Christian, maybe you could
[1:08:18] stop sharing for a second. Yes, I hid my control though, so now I have to figure
[1:08:23] out how I sharing.
[1:08:31] Bear, bear with me while I uh figure that out. Uh, thoughts in the room first. board
[1:08:37] members, but might might just really based thought and I don't know all the details,
[1:08:43] but, you know, the idea of adding more cement, you know, I just wanna make sure it's
[1:08:47] not for the sake of it just in case maybe because you couldn't do that incrementally
[1:08:51] over time, I would think, you know, bunch of trees are coming down. Are we being
[1:08:57] as efficient as possible? I mean, I think they more or less addressed that, but I
[1:09:00] just, I guess that's a constant concern. I didn't, we're not necessarily taking all
[1:09:05] these trees down at this point, are we? We're talking about just planting the whole
[1:09:08] area. So right now, yeah, we're, we're looking to do a site plan um with
[1:09:16] the intention of going out for funding. OK and probably taking all the trees down
[1:09:22] at at that time because, yeah. Well, we do recognize that the ODT is going to be
[1:09:28] at the front end of the property and we still want to make sure that we're in line
[1:09:32] with that buffer and the easement that we agreement that we have with the county.
[1:09:37] Um, and we also don't want it to be like, uh, And pleasant, right, so we are, I think
[1:09:43] we are the earth, yeah, considering it, uh, taking that into consideration, but yeah,
[1:09:48] and I think that we do like aesthetics at transit, so we get a pretty bus in the
[1:09:53] lot. We
[1:09:56] help and girl over at. And I do think that one of the options, you know, that we,
[1:10:00] we will probably want to think about or look at it is like incremental phasing, right?
[1:10:04] So it could be that we say here's what we need, you know, in order to do the facilities
[1:10:10] building, and then, you know, if the bus wash is a future item, then the pavement
[1:10:16] associated with it may also be part of the future, right? You don't necessarily need
[1:10:20] to. Um, pave the entire area all at once. Um, it could be looked at as a, as a, you
[1:10:27] know, flip one in future. When it comes to contracting the pieces out, we will only
[1:10:34] do enough disturbance for whatever it is that we decided to build. So we're, we're
[1:10:39] not gonna like strip a lot, put gravel down everywhere. That's just not good, good,
[1:10:46] uh, management as far as uh. Because there's all kinds of implications that, that
[1:10:51] happen when you do that. One of them is stormwater, right? I, I, stormwater ponds,
[1:10:56] what do I do with it? How do I treat it. So, we're, we'll, we'll, we'll keep the
[1:11:01] impacts focused into the phases that we deliver them to you in. So, if that is phase
[1:11:07] one, this, uh, you know, uh, maintenance facility and phase two is a bus wash, they
[1:11:12] would be, have their own impacts, their own disturbance, their own removal, their
[1:11:16] own Uh, impacts in general. Now, one thing we will look at is if all of the impacts
[1:11:24] would, would require a storm pond of a certain size, we'll look at maintaining that
[1:11:28] we, we set aside enough to expand the pond or make it large enough at the time to,
[1:11:33] to deal with that. The problem with trying to build for the future is that the future
[1:11:37] codes are always changing on us. Yes. And because they're changing on us, we're always
[1:11:44] chasing our tail, hoping that, hey, let's put all these extra things in and then
[1:11:48] when we go to build it, we can't use any of it. And all that was wasted money. So
[1:11:53] we look at that stuff pretty high, uh, deeply. Speaking of water, just with the the
[1:11:57] bus washing. You know, with being on septic, how much does that limit the the design
[1:12:04] or something like that. I'm just curious, but that a big Reclaim reclaim. Yeah, so
[1:12:11] the all of the bus washes that I built are reclaimed water filter system. So the
[1:12:16] water, the only thing you're actually getting out is you're, you have to muck out
[1:12:19] the, the, the, the grit, yeah, after a while, but the water is constantly be
[1:12:26] recirculate recirculated. Um, is there some that runs out? Yeah, there is, and you're
[1:12:31] constantly putting more in because every time you drive a bus out, you've lost, you
[1:12:35] know, so many gallons of water, right? But uh um yeah, I, I have a, I mean, I'm,
[1:12:41] I'm happy to take people through the Central Kitsap School District uh bus wash anytime
[1:12:47] if anyone wants to see one, so. Let be in a bus going through it but
[1:12:53] like go to the car washing.
[1:12:56] I might be able to arrange that through a bus if you would like. It
[1:13:03] There's no room for a hydrogen fuel electrolyzer. It's, it's all right.
[1:13:10] I got, I got a question about bus wash. How often does a bus get washed?
[1:13:18] And you use every day or is it? No, right now what we have, we do have a reclaim
[1:13:23] system now, but it is not automated. That's wash. It's a bucket and brush. Wash takes
[1:13:29] almost 2 hours for large coach. So right now, uh we can accommodate washing 3 large
[1:13:36] coaches a day. Versus and we have to fit in all of, all of our other smaller vehicles
[1:13:42] and cutaways and everything so. That's what we're, that's what we're dealing with
[1:13:46] that we're talking, yeah. And the ones that we're talking about is a drive-through
[1:13:52] bus wash. And that's, that's so, and because it's a drive-through bus wash, they
[1:13:56] do it more frequently, especially during storms and after, you know, they spread
[1:14:00] gravel and crap all over the road. Those buses get dirty really quick and so they
[1:14:04] just run them through. Um, they do have an auxiliary bay on the outside that they
[1:14:08] can do some more detailed cleaning to them if they want to scrub them down. Um, but,
[1:14:13] uh, yeah, it's, I think when you're, when you're dealing with it more frequently,
[1:14:17] um, it's not, it's not as hard. Yeah. Right, but I, you know, I've seen a lot of
[1:14:24] life labor saving devices that turned out to make it more problematic in other ways.
[1:14:33] So if you have a bus wash that's easy to go through, then you're washing your bus
[1:14:37] every day as opposed to once a week maybe, and then you have all this water requirement,
[1:14:43] and it, you know, it kind of spirals. So I'm thinking you're addressing that kind
[1:14:48] of stuff when you're putting your plan together. Yeah, well, if, if, if we were asked
[1:14:54] to, to design you a bus wash, we would go through all of those steps and, and show
[1:14:59] you what that looks like. And we have several examples of some that are operating
[1:15:03] and we could get real-time feedback of how those uh clients like those bus washes
[1:15:07] and if they're working well for them. So, um, but yeah, I mean, we would certainly
[1:15:11] go through that it's, uh, And for, for our purposes, the bus wash is a big block
[1:15:18] that says, this is how big of a space we need to set aside for it to, so you could
[1:15:22] build it in the future. Unless you told us, hey, we, it's a real desire for us to
[1:15:26] have a bus wash and we would, we would elevate that at your direction, so.
[1:15:32] Rick, did you have a question?
[1:15:35] I, yeah, I, I have a question about the, the clearing of the property. So what it,
[1:15:39] what does it make sense to clear like a To clear it all at once and then just. Depending
[1:15:45] on the market conditions, so you get the most most money out of those trees that
[1:15:50] are there or whatever trees that are there. We don't have any trees that don't give
[1:15:54] us any money. Yeah, and, and when it comes to clearing, usually when it comes to
[1:16:00] clearing and we put stuff out and design, um, design bid bill because you're a public
[1:16:05] agency, that money, you know, it doesn't, it, it doesn't come back to you in the
[1:16:09] same way, right? You, you can't sell it. You can auction it. um, but usually what
[1:16:17] we do is, uh, we put that as part of the contractor's package and then they decide
[1:16:22] whether they want to lower their bid because if there's value in the timber, a lot
[1:16:25] of times they'll lower their bids because there's value in the timber or they'll,
[1:16:28] or they'll sell that timber. It just, it, it doesn't really, it's not really effective
[1:16:33] for a public agency to, to sell timber. I, I know, since, like, just a question I
[1:16:39] have. Yeah. It's a good question. Other questions? I just had a question about the
[1:16:45] um. Training On the, you know, on potentially new concrete. Is
[1:16:53] that you were, you mentioned that other counties are coming and using your space.
[1:16:58] Are they using JTA space now to do some of their training, or they're projecting
[1:17:03] that they would need to do that? They're not using our space for training, but for
[1:17:07] testing. So they come and do. A few hacking exercises and um
[1:17:15] kind of pull through they they they train at their their facility and then our third
[1:17:22] party tester tests them in order for them to achieve their license. So think of it
[1:17:26] like the, the DOL drive test. Are you gonna get your license or not? That's what
[1:17:30] he's doing. OK. So my reason for asking is, is that a revenue source? Are you renting?
[1:17:36] Do they pay you to do it or it's just a an organizational kind of exchange? Several
[1:17:41] years. It was, we were at a critical point where we could not test CDL drivers, um,
[1:17:49] and transit as an industry came together and worked with the Department of Licensing
[1:17:56] to put together classes to Certified transit employees to be able to issue the third
[1:18:03] party tests. I mean, at one point, a Department of Licensing was down to 2 testers
[1:18:08] for the entire state and that's for trucks and buses. So really as an industry, we
[1:18:13] pooled our resources to say how do we make sure that that's not what's going to prevent
[1:18:17] us from service on the road. So we, um, we sent, um, someone to go certify
[1:18:25] every agency has someone representing them. So they train, we train our own staff
[1:18:30] and then we send our people to get because you can't, you can't test and you can't
[1:18:34] train and test. So we train them uh to pass and then we send them to another agency.
[1:18:41] So it's uh check and balance and patting each other's backs on this we're supporting
[1:18:46] each other by being able to train our own employees and then send them to another
[1:18:50] agency for the test. So it's, it is more or less a requirement that we provide that
[1:18:56] facility and so. You know, when we look at it's great, yeah, when you do that sort
[1:19:03] of check and balance or that, you know, pro and con around creating more impervious
[1:19:09] surface versus keeping trees, you know, that's, that's what, that's what I was going
[1:19:15] through in my mind. And you need a certain amount of area to do the testing here.
[1:19:20] Yeah, that makes sense. OK, thank you for going through that with me.
[1:19:25] a great conversation. Any last questions for Christian or Shannon, or thoughts?
[1:19:33] There
[1:19:35] All good. OK, I appreciate the thoughtfulness. Oh wait, yeah, we appreciate your
[1:19:41] time and uh we'll continue to work and, and, and push, push this through and we'll
[1:19:46] report back to you in about 6 weeks. Really exciting. Thank you for your help. Thank
[1:19:51] you.
[1:19:55] All right, uh, makes the next thing easier to swallow, right? Let's architects.
[1:20:02] It's a great lead into that one. So we, uh, one of the recommendations was that we,
[1:20:08] um, we do a site plan for, um, for the two properties. So we, Jefferson Transit staff
[1:20:15] are requesting authorization to amend the SEI architects uh contract. Um, to allow
[1:20:23] for us to pay for that site plan. Site survey site survey here, does it include an
[1:20:30] Alta survey? Sorry, is it, does it include the actual UTA survey, the land survey,
[1:20:37] or just a, yeah, and it would be for both properties, so yeah.
[1:20:44] How does that get priced out?
[1:20:48] There's a there's an amendment to the the study contract attached to the resolution
[1:20:53] that explains um their cost proposal for that survey in addition to their original
[1:20:57] proposal for their services and it's on page.
[1:21:03] Mm
[1:21:06] 91.
[1:21:09] So essentially it's a, it's a sub to the setti that is going out to do the land survey.
[1:21:14] So they've they've reached out to a land surveyor, they've got a pricey for him,
[1:21:17] and that's what was presented to you guys today.
[1:21:25] And that total amount is 55,120.
[1:21:33] Other questions?
[1:21:36] Yeah, go ahead if you got a motion you'd like to make. Last month or two, but uh
[1:21:40] I'm going to approve the resolution 2506 authorizing the general manager to sign
[1:21:45] an amendment to the contract with Petti Architects.
[1:21:52] I'll second that it's Heidi. All right, by Ben. Any further conversation, questions?
[1:22:00] All in favor of approving resolution 2506 indicate by saying I. I They posed
[1:22:08] Extensions, all right, that is unanimous. Um, great. Next is the new tag chair introduction.
[1:22:16] So we are so excited to invite Linda, if you wanna come on over. Uh, Linda
[1:22:24] McIntyre is our new, um, tag chair. Uh, Debbie Yonke is, um, the vice
[1:22:31] chair, uh, so I think we've got a strong tag team, um, but we invited,
[1:22:39] so we invited Linda to introduce herself and, um, to speak with you for a few moments.
[1:22:45] Thanks, Nicole. I'm really excited to be here. I joined TA in, in, uh, July of this
[1:22:50] year, and I'm a relative newcomer to the Port Town to Port Townsend. Um, but I bring
[1:22:55] with me 30+ years of experience in transit and transportation and trail building,
[1:23:01] mostly with the National Park Service over the last 20 years, just recently retired
[1:23:05] from that. Um, uh, but I do bring a practical sense also of 9 years working in a
[1:23:10] public works department, so I have a keen interest in can you get it done, um. So,
[1:23:17] and, um, I also bring a background in grant writing too. I led the team that got
[1:23:22] over $25 million for Grand Canyon for, for their fleet recapitalization two years
[1:23:27] ago. So, um, that's kind of my context is bringing those technical skills and and
[1:23:32] and fresh eyes maybe to what it is, all the good work that is being done by the board
[1:23:38] and by the staff for Jefferson Transit um agency. I've been so impressed by what
[1:23:42] I've seen so far and I'm excited about leading the team. I did want to take a moment
[1:23:47] to to um help you guys be aware of a small shift that we're doing when you're looking
[1:23:51] at our agendas, and we're gonna be adding some educational and advocacy topics in
[1:23:56] our role to advocate for transit to make us better advocates. So you'll see, um,
[1:24:02] kind of in general, you'll see two things on our agendas from now on. You'll see
[1:24:05] an educational topic, the one that's coming up in March is going to be how to use
[1:24:09] third-party navigation apps like Google Maps and Apple Maps and Transit and move.
[1:24:15] To be a transit writer. Why do you do that? Um, so something like a 1015 minute presentation,
[1:24:22] all of you are always welcome to listen in on that, you know, or to watch the recording
[1:24:26] or to ask us in advance if there's anything that you'd like to see in that presentation.
[1:24:31] But you'll see it come out in our agendas. Um, and in general, we'll also be adding
[1:24:35] it's like a topic of the day and then the first one up is going to be a left turn,
[1:24:39] right turn, I believe in a presentation update in March 1 after that in May is going
[1:24:44] to be on the link between affordable housing and transit. So topics that are of keen
[1:24:50] interest to Jefferson County, to the board, and to both um the city and the county
[1:24:55] as well. So a slight shift in that, you'll see that represented on the on the um
[1:25:00] agendas that you see, and certainly we welcome your feedback and your interests,
[1:25:05] um, and any adjustments you'd like to see and how we're doing because we're here
[1:25:08] to support. All of you and support the stuff.
[1:25:13] That's great. Thanks so much, Linda. What was your last. When are these meetings
[1:25:15] again, I believe is March 9th.
[1:25:26] I'm sorry, I'm sorry. Yes, I
[1:25:37] see you on the 5th. Yeah, great, and we certainly appreciate it when we do these
[1:25:40] sessions, we're hoping to do something again like the equivalent of either 10 PowerPoint
[1:25:44] slides or 10 minutes, whatever format works, not to overdo it, introduce some things
[1:25:50] that might be a common interest to staff, the board, and to tag. So I, I look forward
[1:25:55] to working with. Yeah, likewise, your, your, your background and energy are, are
[1:25:59] very strong. So it's great. Debbie, Debbie Jake has been such a strong chair for
[1:26:03] tag as well. And such a fierce advocate for transit in Jefferson County. I mean,
[1:26:07] it's been a really, it's been a boon to have the group, and I'm I'm happy to join
[1:26:11] you on the 5th and at future TA meetings and thank you for your leadership. Looking
[1:26:16] forward to supporting everybody in the months and years to come.
[1:26:21] Thank you. All right, questions or comments for Linda? Welcome aboard. Thank you
[1:26:29] so much.
[1:26:34] All right, back to the agenda here, moving right along. So we have uh the resolution
[1:26:40] 2507. Nicole, you want to tee up the drug and alcohol policy. I'm gonna do it. Miranda.
[1:26:47] OK, so Resolution 2507 is our drug and alcohol policy update. Uh, this is focused
[1:26:54] on safety sensitive employee testing. So, to align with an updated Federal Transit
[1:26:59] Administration guidance, uh we are proposing revising the safety sensitive employee
[1:27:04] list in our policy to remove dispatchers, as their regular duties do not meet the
[1:27:10] FTA's safety sensitive uh criteria. This change um ensures our compliance and optimizes
[1:27:17] the allocation of testing resources. So what FTA found is that they had a lot of
[1:27:23] um Employees or people in the pool that were not meeting their safety sensitive uh
[1:27:31] hours, like the level of time that they actually spend performing safety sensitive
[1:27:35] duties. Um, and they were realizing that uh it was diluting their testing pool, so
[1:27:40] they weren't testing the people that were actually behind the wheel or performing
[1:27:43] safety sensitive, um. So just as reference our dispatchers, um, do not do
[1:27:51] safety sensitive, um, more than 50% of their time, and In terms of what safety sensitive
[1:27:58] as a dispatcher is, and that means real-time turn by turn traffic direction of buses.
[1:28:03] Um, you know, our operation staff put together really great routes and detours. Um,
[1:28:10] so the, it's never a turn by turn situation. It's very rare that we're doing turn
[1:28:15] by turn directions for our, our operators. Um, so, while it was a hard pill to swallow
[1:28:22] at first, um, we are removing our dispatchers from that safety sensitive list. That
[1:28:28] does not mean that they are not subject to the rest of our testing policies, so they
[1:28:34] would still be subject to our reasonable suspicion, pre-employment, return to. Return
[1:28:42] to duty testing, um, and potentially we could implement a non-DOT random program
[1:28:50] here at Jefferson Transit, um, and the policy language is reflected to support that
[1:28:55] implementation. I will tell you, uh, I don't think we have the resources and the
[1:29:01] it doesn't, our staffing level does not necessitate it at this time. Um, we. did
[1:29:07] introduce in our last contract the possibility to have a relief dispatch or we had
[1:29:14] relief dispatch relief drivers, which means that any represented staff member who
[1:29:20] was a CDL carrier and passed our training requirements for drivers would be able
[1:29:28] to step into a relief driver position. We have one dispatcher who potentially could
[1:29:35] apply for that and fill that position as well as dispatch. In that case, we would
[1:29:42] have to see if they meet the 50% or more. If they're not doing it 50% or more, they
[1:29:47] would not be subject to this as well. So this is why the discussion came up as to
[1:29:51] it wasn't an easy thing for us to to to go from A to B here. We had many discussions
[1:29:56] about what that would look like for Jefferson Transit. So, um, supervisors and managers
[1:30:01] will only be included in the pool if safety sensitive tasks occupy more than 50%
[1:30:06] of their work time, um, and all of our employees remain subject to the drug and alcohol
[1:30:11] testing, um, under our broader JTA policy, um, excluding a DOT random testing unless
[1:30:17] they are designated safety sensitive. So we um are the the redline version of the
[1:30:23] drug and alcohol policy was included in the packet, and we are asking, uh, requesting
[1:30:27] the board to approve resolution 2507 updating Jefferson Transit's drug and alcohol
[1:30:33] policy. There's only one change really under random testing pretty much, is that
[1:30:38] right? Yes, and the and the the appendix where we remove dispatch and we we drop
[1:30:43] it down. We take it from sensitive to non-sensitive, yeah. Questions
[1:30:50] on drug and alcohol policy changes proposed. Makes sense. It's
[1:30:58] an easy update because we updated this last year,
[1:31:02] yeah. I guess my only question is you in the random testing section, you said the
[1:31:09] language in the red line says that they will be subject to due to regulated random
[1:31:14] drug and alcohol testing. I thought you were saying that you were just reserving
[1:31:19] the right to to implement that. Is that,
[1:31:25] am I missing non DOT. So they could be subject to non- DOT random. Well this says
[1:31:32] employee employee employees classified as safety sensitive will be subject to DOT.
[1:31:38] So if they've already, if you've identified safety sensitive, so if they're on list
[1:31:43] in Appendix A, they are safety sensitive. It's the, the, um. Non-safety sensitive
[1:31:50] classified per DOT testing, we could have a non-DOT test, a random program, uh, at
[1:31:58] this moment in time that would be zero employees, potentially one employee. It's
[1:32:03] really hard to design randoms around one employee
[1:32:08] so we. We built the policy for potential growth. Uh, we get more staff that want
[1:32:15] to become relief drivers. Um, we didn't want to have to revisit this, so that makes
[1:32:20] perfect sense. Thank you for describing it, just clarifying that difference. Other
[1:32:25] questions about resolution 2507.
[1:32:33] Um, I, I can, I can make a motion. I think you're using the summaries, right, to
[1:32:39] make your motion. I'm following along, right? I would make a motion a motion to,
[1:32:45] um, adopt resolution 25-07 updated JTA drug and alcohol policy. I'll
[1:32:53] second that. David seconds.
[1:33:02] Heather with her first JTA motion further comments or questions. All right, all in
[1:33:06] favor of the motion on the floor, indicate by saying aye.
[1:33:10] Right. And he opposed. The abstentions, all right, passes unanimously onto the transit
[1:33:17] coordination grant. So, I, I did include um some background information about the
[1:33:25] transit um coordination grant, um. So in the fall, Jefferson Transit, Clallam Transit,
[1:33:33] and Jefferson County applied for a transit coordination grant with Washad. Um, we
[1:33:39] were successful in that grant. The premise behind that grant was to help agencies,
[1:33:47] um, coordinate, um. Getting getting individuals to a Washington State Ferry. So only
[1:33:54] select um counties um were permitted to apply for this grant. Um, again, we were
[1:34:01] successful with the idea being that we have identified the Gateway Visitor Center
[1:34:09] as a location where possibly Clallam Transit and Jefferson Transit could make a connection.
[1:34:16] With the 123 straight shot, Clallam's 123 straight shot, which runs from Port Angeles
[1:34:20] to the Bainbridge Island ferry, and then Jefferson Transits um Kingston Express,
[1:34:26] which runs between Port Townsend and the Kingston Ferry terminal. Um. Jim Fetzer
[1:34:33] and I had had some good conversations about what it would look like if, if our two
[1:34:38] communities were able to share that service so that we're not duplicating um services
[1:34:44] so that, you know, each agency isn't sending a bus to the exact same place. The roundabout,
[1:34:49] uh, the new roundabout last He, um, really did allow for a safe connection place.
[1:34:54] We had been, um, really kind of thinking about some different places and had ruled
[1:34:59] out, um, the Discovery Bay area is, is really not a safe place to do that. So this
[1:35:05] presented itself as an, um, as an option. Uh, so applied for the grant. We were successful
[1:35:11] with our grant application. This grant has a really tight turnaround. We have from,
[1:35:16] uh, January through June 30th to spend our money. Jefferson Transit did ask Jefferson
[1:35:24] Transit, uh, with the other entities applied for a $100,000 grants. Um, really our
[1:35:30] goal was to create a site plan. At the Gateway Visitor Center, uh, we would be looking
[1:35:38] at paving that lot, um. Looking at adding some bus shelters, uh, restrooms,
[1:35:45] um, for future restrooms, um, Commissioner Brotherton would like to see a food cart.
[1:35:52] They're also taking into account some EV chargers, um, so really kind of looking
[1:35:59] at what we could do to make that, uh, space a connection point for transit, but also
[1:36:05] the community and visitors at large. Um, Commissioner Brotherton has been um in the
[1:36:11] meetings with us, so when we're meeting to discuss this project, we put out, uh,
[1:36:16] I say we. Jamie put out an RFQ and we again had a
[1:36:23] really tight turnaround. We uh the group identified SCJ Alliance as um as uh the
[1:36:31] engineer, the engineering group, uh, to work on this. 3 applications that, right?
[1:36:37] Yes, we had 3 applications. I don't remember what all three the names of the other
[1:36:44] two. I just 2nd and 3rd place we went with SCJ, um, so attached you will find,
[1:36:52] um. You'll find the resolution um SCJ's, uh, oh, actually, sorry, I'll step back.
[1:36:58] First, we are asking for um authority for me to sign the grant agreement,
[1:37:07] and then moving on past that, we would be asking for authorization for me to sign
[1:37:12] um a contract with um SCJ Alliance.
[1:37:19] Questions?
[1:37:25] I have a question about the flow of the grants. I mean, there's been all this uproar
[1:37:31] about federal
[1:37:34] funding and whatnot. Is it Is this grant stable? I mean, can we count on it?
[1:37:43] We can this grant is funded by the um Washington State Climate Commitment Act, so
[1:37:47] it's state funds. It's not coming from a federal source. But it would be who has
[1:37:53] to be as quick as we could about doing everything with it, right? Right. I don't
[1:37:58] have a choice, really.
[1:38:05] Amy and should be stressing about this. I turned it around grant around this fast?
[1:38:07] No, no, no a procurement this fast. So, um, yeah, this has been like we're eating
[1:38:14] feet on this. So Vivian, to answer your question, um, was that requires that We expend
[1:38:20] this, this grant by June 30th. So really, we had less than 6 months to, um, to
[1:38:28] spend this money. And really, we're using this money just for the development of
[1:38:33] a site plan so that later on this year, we can go out for, um, another type of grant
[1:38:40] to actually do the construction. So this will, this, um, This grant will allow us
[1:38:46] to just develop the site plan, so then we can move forward with um grant applications
[1:38:50] in the fall. Maybe
[1:38:54] there is grant money for it in the fall. Yeah. We, we are going to um proceed as
[1:39:01] if there will be. OK.
[1:39:08] I mean, and even if there isn't, you've still got a plan that you can search. Having
[1:39:14] shovel ready projects means finding it, it, it really does make your ability to get
[1:39:20] into a grant and get grant where it's so much easier. You know, concept plans are
[1:39:26] really hard for them to kind of, you get more buy-in, more support when you've got
[1:39:30] shovel ready. Does it help that it's cross agency more than just. In terms of grants
[1:39:38] and this was a unique grant because it was very focused on uh transit and transit
[1:39:44] connections to uh. The ferry system. And it almost seemed like it was designed specifically
[1:39:52] for this idea that we had like someone was listening and they're like, let's design
[1:39:56] a grant for them because they need it. Remarkable the timing of all this, it's all
[1:40:01] coming together. Connecting the fast ferry, the Kingston fast ferry connector and
[1:40:06] this great shot is also just a huge growth opportunity for partnership with Transit.
[1:40:11] Well, and, and like Nicole said that, you know, that this has been a, a bored, uh,
[1:40:17] topic for years about how to connect with the straight shot. And, you know, really
[1:40:22] from a safety perspective, transit's concern was those left hand turns across the
[1:40:25] highway. Uh, and we know that 104, uh, is not great for accidents. It's, you know,
[1:40:32] 101 and 104 seem to be some of the worst highways. So, You know, and left hand turns,
[1:40:38] if you, if you look at the insurance, uh, left hand turns are up there, um, and Some
[1:40:44] of the more dangerous ones, especially when you're in a gilly bus. Uh, people don't
[1:40:48] gauge how slow you're going to take that train, um, or, you know, they think they
[1:40:53] can beat the bus. Uh, so you get, you get some reckless driving when it comes to
[1:40:58] buses because people are like, I don't want to get stuck. Yeah. And so, uh, this
[1:41:03] roundabout, I think, um, we really, we talked about how to navigate and we thought,
[1:41:08] well, you know, A lot of people are against roundabouts, but transit, we love them.
[1:41:12] They eliminate left hand turns for us and we love them. And the straight shot in
[1:41:16] Discovery Bay, those stops are not even um stops really. They're actually they're
[1:41:18] just someone's property that doesn't even I mean I've been talking to the property
[1:41:19] really frustrated. I mean, Was kind of
[1:41:31] um playing some some uh. I don't know. There, there's, there's mixed feelings about
[1:41:37] who owns those spots shelter. They said they don't own the shelters, that the shelter
[1:41:43] is actually from Olympics. I mean, it's so this would really make the straight shot
[1:41:51] as well. And also the Dungeness line too, having a place where the Dungeness can
[1:41:57] stop where you can park your car and leave it. Yeah, no, so it's great, David, go
[1:42:00] ahead. Yeah, I just wanted to say I'm very supportive of uh anything that increases
[1:42:05] inter interoperability of various uh public transit systems. So I think this is fantastic,
[1:42:11] helping get people out to uh Port Townsend, Jefferson County without having to drive
[1:42:17] a car. Uh, so I will happily move to approve resolution 25-08. And I'm happy to
[1:42:24] second this because it, it gets more people on the bus, which is our number one goal,
[1:42:30] right?
[1:42:34] All right, just before this, do we foresee this changing the route schedule at all
[1:42:38] if we're kind of, yeah. Right now the the two services don't line up, so we, but
[1:42:45] right now, um, call and transit is running the straight shot more frequently than
[1:42:52] um. Kingston Express, so. It's completely doable.
[1:42:59] Any other conversation before we, yeah, go ahead, Rick. Yeah, I just like to point
[1:43:03] out that I did suggest this 3 years ago.
[1:43:11] Name it after Rick. how long it takes for an idea to Well, I was shot down then and
[1:43:15] just like talking about the electric buses, it takes some perspective when you're
[1:43:19] not, when you're not a politician, you think with things differently. I think that
[1:43:25] and take that in mind. Right. Common sense, common sense outweighs other things.
[1:43:32] Yeah, I think, uh, Nicole and, and staff too were motivated by the new roundabout
[1:43:37] which made this possible, right? So I mean things have changed, you know, but you
[1:43:40] know, watch out, they're not really politicians either,
[1:43:46] so which stands. Um, all right. All in favor of the motion on the floor approving
[1:43:53] resolution 2508.
[1:43:58] Did you get by saying hey. All right. Rick Burton, stop. I'm, I'm, I'm down for that.
[1:44:04] OK, next up, still connected, do you want to talk about STJ Nicole? Yes, so, um,
[1:44:09] again, with Jamie's quick work, uh, we were able to identify SCJ Alliance as um as
[1:44:17] what we believe to be the best um option for moving forward with the cycling. Um,
[1:44:22] so we have included a resolution authorizing um me to sign a contract with with SCJ.
[1:44:31] Can I just ask what were the points? Was it, uh, were they? Less expensive, better,
[1:44:38] uh, better deliverables, both. What made you choose them just in a nutshell. So with
[1:44:43] an architectural and engineering, um, solicitation like this, you actually, uh, you
[1:44:47] don't get to bring price into it. So it's a request for qualifications. So basically,
[1:44:51] we explain the project in a scope of work, um, when I put out a request for qualifications
[1:44:56] and then anybody that responds, um, we have weighted scoring criteria that is listed
[1:45:01] in the RFQ. That then we just take the, take the submissions that we get and so we
[1:45:07] have a, a team of people that evaluate, um, and score each firm, each response, and
[1:45:14] then we make a cumulative score of each one and whoever is the highest scoring, we
[1:45:18] start there. This was, thank God we're able to come to an agreement on the, on the
[1:45:23] price of the scope and fee with SCJ cause, uh, you start with your highest, highest
[1:45:27] scoring firm. And negotiate a scope and fee with them at that point, if you can't
[1:45:32] come to an agreement about that, then you move on to the next highest scoring firm.
[1:45:36] So, um, thankfully, SCJ was our highest scoring, and we were able to negotiate an
[1:45:41] acceptable scope of work fee with them and get this contract today. So, um, and I'm
[1:45:47] happy to share with you if you want to see any of the scoring documents or anything
[1:45:49] that we used or the other submissions, um, shoot me an email and I'm happy to share
[1:45:53] those with you, just on that. on the, on the contract negotiation. So it's just
[1:46:01] remarkable to be how much SSCJ Alliance works in this community, which can be a really
[1:46:07] great thing because they, I, you know, they know this community well. I worked with
[1:46:10] them on a project in downtown Port Townsend 10 years ago. They've, you know, they've
[1:46:14] been. Working here a lot, but, um, it also always just kind of puts it on my radar
[1:46:20] like, is it a foregone conclusion that we're always choosing CJ or we, you know,
[1:46:26] I just I'm interested in, you know, why they're great.
[1:46:32] Yeah, yeah. So anyway, thanks for entertaining that.
[1:46:36] OK. Well, I would uh welcome a motion approving resolution 2509. So there's more
[1:46:42] questions.
[1:46:45] Um, do we already have a motion? I would move to approve resolution resolution 2509
[1:46:51] authorizing the general manager to sign a contract with SCJ Alliance. Second.
[1:46:59] Any further questions or comments? All in favor of approving resolution 2509 as presented
[1:47:06] indicate by saying aye.
[1:47:10] All right, only 13 minutes behind schedule. I guess we're gonna have to have slightly
[1:47:16] abbreviated reports from, but we'll ask what's going on. Hm.
[1:47:21] OK. I, um So in your packet is my full report, and so I will not read it to you,
[1:47:28] um. Something exciting that we did yesterday was all staff training day, um, and
[1:47:34] that's a, um, we have it on President's Day, so we're not operating service, um,
[1:47:39] but it's an opportunity for all staff to get together and um just use some big group
[1:47:46] training as well as breaking up into groups to do some individualized training. Um,
[1:47:51] it is the only opportunity we have, um, because you cannot otherwise get all of the
[1:47:56] operators together in one room, um, unless you're doing that on a Sunday, and that's,
[1:48:01] I don't like that.
[1:48:04] Um, so, but it was a really good day. We did, um, some harassment training, um.
[1:48:14] So we're all clear now what we can and cannot do in the workplace. We, um, reviewed
[1:48:20] benefits. We talked about some safety goals, um, we gave an agency update. Um, we
[1:48:27] all had lunch together, um, and then from there operators, um, broke out, um, to
[1:48:34] Hayne's place. Um, the morning session was at the Legion hall. We are no longer able
[1:48:39] to fit all of our staff in this room. Uh, so, uh, uh, drivers went to, um, Hayne's
[1:48:46] place, um, mechanics were here, um. ItsA Transit, um, came and did a
[1:48:53] great presentation for mechanics on the electric bus, so some, some good training
[1:48:58] there facilities, did some training, um, Sarah and her team did some training as
[1:49:04] well on Uh, with Easter Seals, um, and then, um, admin staff did some training on
[1:49:10] Microsoft 365 and kind of some of the um options that we have as far as uh bringing
[1:49:17] us up into the present. So, very good day overall, we're pretty excited about all
[1:49:23] staff Trading Day. I hope the staff was as excited as we were. Um, other than that,
[1:49:30] um, again, I'll let you read all of, all of my report. I gave a brief update on our
[1:49:34] projects, um, but I will turn it over to
[1:49:44] Amy yesterday. It was a really good day. We did the operators um for our portion.
[1:49:49] We did mock accident drills with front door evacuations of an ADA passenger and rear
[1:49:56] door evacuations. Um, so it was a really productive.
[1:50:02] Um, on my report, I just would like to highlight that on January 17th, we sent Jim
[1:50:07] Springer, our field supervisor, and a supervisor vehicle to represent Jefferson Transit
[1:50:13] for Sean Yin's Memorial, who is the transit operator that was murdered in Seattle.
[1:50:18] Um, seems like that happened a long time ago, but I just wanted to bring that up.
[1:50:23] I was also there. Um, we had some snow, don't know if you guys noticed. Seems like
[1:50:30] a long time ago too, so that disrupted some service, went really well. I redid the
[1:50:36] weather plan for reroutes and we canceled minimal service. Um, we were communicating
[1:50:42] all on the same page, making sure no one was stranded. Um, over and on the east end
[1:50:48] they got a lot or the west end, they got a lot of snow, so they had to cancel service
[1:50:52] for a day, but we had that up and running, um, in the after the next afternoon. Um,
[1:50:59] yeah, like Nicole said, we have, hopefully 32 for sure, transit operators starting
[1:51:05] on the 24th. That's how volatile, um, this driver shortage and staffing thing is.
[1:51:11] Literally, when I wrote this, it was 4. I had to change it to 3, and now it's like
[1:51:15] might be 2. but we're trying, we're, we're triers cause we are committed to putting
[1:51:21] extra service on the road, like straight up, that's like always on on our minds of.
[1:51:27] on you guys, like, you can't do 70 hours a week. That's buckle up.
[1:51:33] So the ridership again, we're, we're comparing from the year before instead of always
[1:51:37] going back to 2019, and things look better when we do that, um, except for forks.
[1:51:44] They talk is that's, you know, on our radar this year when we get, um, staffing and
[1:51:49] training set up for me to go over there and our new marketing person. And do some
[1:51:54] social media, um, and really hit that area and do better over there. We just have
[1:51:59] to figure out what it is we need to do. Can I give you one note on that. I talked
[1:52:03] to the Claylock Lodge, and they are incredibly dependent on JTokC because they often
[1:52:08] have about half their staff or seasonal employees that often don't have cars, so
[1:52:13] they rely on Jaok to go shopping and you know, the Aberdeen, so. That's a good, you
[1:52:19] know, probable about a good percentage of your population is coming from that seasonal
[1:52:24] staff at, at Claylock. We, I think we do see that uptick in the summer, the play
[1:52:30] love writers, it's that core that baseline that we're, we're looking at, I think,
[1:52:36] yeah. Can I ask you, in going from 4 to 3 to 2, um, applicants or
[1:52:43] potential new employees, do you see any Are there trends in that that you're seeing
[1:52:49] consistently? What is it that's making them accept a job application? I mean, I know
[1:52:54] there's all kinds of other trends about how many the applicant pool in general, but
[1:53:00] when you see accepted applications and then they never make it to their first day.
[1:53:05] What trends are you seeing in there? I would say the only trend would be they've
[1:53:10] changed their mind, but then also, um, have to have them drug tested and then they
[1:53:15] have to pass. Um, for their permits for the CDL, and so they're just not making it
[1:53:21] through those steps, is that
[1:53:25] from uh my experience in operations and going through that. What I noticed is that
[1:53:30] it takes a specific person to to be a transit driver. The, the, the work and the
[1:53:35] schedule and the skill set is very unique and it's not for everybody and um. One
[1:53:41] other thing that we noticed is that when you come from private to public, that transition
[1:53:47] from uh The public is very regimented. We got a lot of policies and rules and not
[1:53:53] everyone. apt to that. And so, I think it does make it a little bit more challenging
[1:53:58] when you're trying to grab from a, uh, a wider applicant pool. And I would say that
[1:54:04] Jefferson Transit is, uh, is somewhat unique in that, uh, we offer driver training
[1:54:10] for like, we train for CDL. A lot of agencies, uh, hire CDL only. Um, We are seeing
[1:54:18] more agencies start doing that, uh, but the, the training cost is, uh, can be extensive.
[1:54:24] So on that note, I mean, are we, are we doing enough to screen out people who we
[1:54:28] truly won't. yeah, we've, we, I mean, we've been very selective about who we decide
[1:54:35] to interview. And I will say, back when I was a metro driver when I applied here,
[1:54:39] I had 24 people and I thought, I'm not gonna get this job. I mean, it was really
[1:54:44] competitive. And right now, it's like you get a couple of applications and you're
[1:54:48] like, thanks, but no thanks.
[1:54:52] And it's not like you can hire people who aren't qualified or suited for the job.
[1:54:56] You just, you can't. That's public safety and Yeah, uh, that's tough. Before we move
[1:55:03] away from Amy cause I know we only have a few minutes. I do wanna say that when it
[1:55:07] snows. So Amy is up at 3:45 and uh we're all up
[1:55:15] and up. Have you seen, have you seen the cameras, Nicole? And we're driving over
[1:55:21] Mount Walker and um we're hitting all of the routes before the drivers do. So when
[1:55:26] we say like, oh, there's a snow event, it's a really, it makes for a a long day,
[1:55:32] a long week, um, but really kudos to Amy because she, um, is really just kind of
[1:55:37] monitoring the weather and the Uh, the cameras and, um, Can I ask you a question
[1:55:42] that you don't have to answer now? I appreciate the compliment, but you're going
[1:55:45] to move on, but, uh, someone complained about the county's traffic cameras, of which
[1:55:50] there's one on Central Road, um, but that's actually a PUD camera. And when I reached
[1:55:55] out to them about why it wasn't updating, they said, oh, we'll take a look at it,
[1:55:59] and also as we do this fiber work, are there other county roads that you'd like to
[1:56:03] have cameras on? Oh yes.
[1:56:09] List my own my own great idea because you know I don't think just my street is really
[1:56:14] the one that we should put it on. So you have to do it in front of your work when
[1:56:15] you're at home
[1:56:31] you can't make it. I could look out like oh it's so bad here. I usually do and then
[1:56:33] I you know don't want to
[1:56:38] like it looks from here.
[1:56:40] My brain goes to, oh, I should now add Greg to the my little text chain and say.
[1:56:48] Yeah, yeah, it's the worst.
[1:56:53] All right, sorry, we're short of time, but yeah, I think, I think, yeah, that's about
[1:56:57] it. So yeah, Kingston is on the way up. That's a popular route and we're excited
[1:57:01] to say that we're, that's one of the first routes we will probably do in addition
[1:57:05] to along with Brennan. So these things are on our mind with this comprehensive um
[1:57:11] operations, and it's like, let's let's go, let's go. Pass it on to Sarah.
[1:57:19] Um, so for the mobility side, um, on all staff training day yesterday, the dispatchers
[1:57:25] and customer service, um, we had a sensitivity training, and it was really focused
[1:57:30] on, um, a communications and people with people with disabilities and Um, dealing
[1:57:36] with difficult customers and all sorts of things that happen when people call in
[1:57:40] or come into our facility. Um, it went really well and um we were appreciative of
[1:57:46] Easter seals. They, they offer some really great trainings. Uh, for the van pool,
[1:57:52] we have launched it officially. We sent out letters and um our website is up and
[1:57:58] running with um all new documents and everything's kind of revamped. So we're looking
[1:58:03] forward to it and we're gonna continue some outreach with it. Uh, and then with other
[1:58:09] community outreach for there was quite a few this past few months, um, I'll do really
[1:58:15] quickly. We went to an event at Habitat for Humanity for the Mason Street project,
[1:58:20] um, and then uh went to the city planning for the EBA routes, um, and we've been
[1:58:27] working with Dash on the mobility and. Um, in the city, um, we are partnering with
[1:58:34] the Jefferson County Farmers Market, so we've been meeting with Tanya Burkett of
[1:58:39] Usawa Consulting. I hope I said that correctly, um, and then Dash members as well,
[1:58:44] and we're going to be doing some training over there for the booth to make sure that
[1:58:47] they're accessible and can try to teach um what they can do to meet others' needs
[1:58:53] and kind of be aware on that ADA end. Uh, and then we're also gonna be, um, Kelly
[1:59:00] and I have a meeting with the librarian at Saylor Post Elementary to do the literacy
[1:59:05] night again. We're really excited about that. And that's about it. Um, and for dialeride
[1:59:10] ridership, it's, it was slightly down in November and December, but, um, that's usual.
[1:59:17] It slows down a little bit after the holiday season. Um, overall though, it's going
[1:59:21] up. Can you remind us quickly what the requirements are for the VA pool. It's great
[1:59:26] to hear that program going up, but who qualifies to be able to use the VA pool? Um,
[1:59:30] it's going to be a commute, so you're either starting or ending in Jefferson County,
[1:59:37] and then it's a group of Minimum of 3, yeah, and
[1:59:44] Miranda used to do it minimum of 3, and we did the house bill change too, so it used
[1:59:49] to be 5 and I almost said 5. I was like I have to think about that for a second.
[1:59:54] It's 3. So we, we redid the pricing structure to make it. More affordable and really
[2:00:02] particularly hoping to reach some areas where transit or buses might not reach. Um,
[2:00:07] so, yes, please spread the word about it. And um it's really based on daily round
[2:00:12] trip vehicle miles and um each person pays their portion, and that's that. It's not
[2:00:18] going to be a lot of different price points trying to figure out who should pay what,
[2:00:22] and um I feel that's pretty affordable. Thanks. Thanks, Sarah.
[2:00:28] OK, I'll just touch base on uh what I did with facilities on training since we, we
[2:00:34] know what mechanics did with the gilig. Um, we covered uh bloodboard pathogen cleanup,
[2:00:40] for cleaning up the spills and biohazard cleanup spills and what to watch for. Um,
[2:00:45] we went in and how to read an SDS sheet and where those were contained, and then
[2:00:50] SDS sheet is a safety data sheet. We have to have a safety data sheet on all chemicals
[2:00:56] on premise that we use. It has multiple, a lot of information in there some 15 pages
[2:01:01] long, some are too, but it's basically.
[2:01:06] What is, is it a corrosive? Is it an explosive, you know, those type of things? What
[2:01:10] kind of PPE you need to be wearing, you know, is it an air tint is an inhaling irritant,
[2:01:16] and everything else. So you get information off that, what to do if you swallow it
[2:01:20] or if it gets on you or anything. Um, so we covered that. And then, um, how to do
[2:01:25] what's called secondary containment labeling. If you take a chemical out of its original
[2:01:32] container, and you're mixing a smaller bottle, you have to have a certain type of
[2:01:35] labeling on that, and you get a lot of that information from your SDS sheets if you
[2:01:39] don't have it on your original container. And then also we did um how to handle a
[2:01:46] fuel spill out on our fuel island.
[2:01:49] And, and go ahead litter. Not to play kitty litter off with the course absorbed that's
[2:01:57] like the Damaceous earth, uh, something that's more porous because all the kitty
[2:02:01] litter does is get a little bit on the outside of it doesn't really absorb it. We
[2:02:05] all call it kitty litter.
[2:02:09] Um, some of my other stuff for the of course the 3rd Bay project and the 111, which
[2:02:12] we've all covered, um, but I just want to add in that we are going to be rolling
[2:02:18] right into, um, getting our conductive charging started. Pretty close to after the
[2:02:24] 3rd bay is finished, so we're gonna be pretty busy in the yard again uh this year,
[2:02:30] cause after that, it's gonna be some replacement of concrete, but that's for, that's
[2:02:33] for a later meeting. Good question for you. When are we gonna get our next electric
[2:02:39] bus? Um, I think Jamie mentioned
[2:02:44] maybe towards the end she's saying towards the end of this month. I'm going, no,
[2:02:47] not yet. I'm not ready. They said late late this month early next month, 6022. It's
[2:02:54] already popped up on our little screen that we can monitor the buses. I kept getting
[2:02:58] these notices about about this vehicle and I'm like going. Is not ours isn't going
[2:03:03] anywhere. What's to keep popping? But it was 6:02 popping up. I'm just excited that
[2:03:07] we can go from bus to bus and
[2:03:12] online in May. So we'll have our third
[2:03:16] begin. And we have some improvements on on the ones going forward from the one we
[2:03:20] have now. So, but 601's been doing great. It's been out on the road and performing
[2:03:25] well, so very happy there. And just on staff update, we still have the janitor and
[2:03:33] One more maintenance cleaner position open at this time. Sorry to rush the reports.
[2:03:40] Great information. A lot of good work coming. Does that, that concludes the reports?
[2:03:43] Yes, I got a real fast. Yeah. How did that bus, how did that bus perform in the snow
[2:03:49] and cold weather? It usually doesn't go out in the snow. We haven't been able to
[2:03:55] put it out in the snow. We were gonna put it out another day, but, uh, but with the
[2:03:59] cold temperature, sometimes it takes too long to do the pre-warming. It wasn't ready
[2:04:04] by the time the driver came in. Our doesn't have the diesel, so it doesn't have the
[2:04:10] preheater, but we do have a preconditioning that we can do on the vehicle ahead of
[2:04:15] time. Um, I think we just have to get more comfortable in what's called driving it
[2:04:20] in turtle mode. The turtle mode will shut off after a little while if it's been preconditioned
[2:04:26] up to a certain time. You can't drive it past 45 miles an hour. But generally, from
[2:04:31] the time they get from here to the park and ride and then start off on their next
[2:04:35] route, it'll come out of turtle mode. It'll finish its warm up, so to speak. So that's
[2:04:40] still a little bit of a learning curve there, but we will have a diesel preheater
[2:04:44] in the next vehicles, which will help warm it up and keep it warmer. En route,
[2:04:52] especially with the heating, we all know that really drains a lot with an electric
[2:04:56] vehicle, and so we and better batteries, so we should get the better range what we're
[2:05:01] getting now. Actually during the winter. OK. Thanks, Rick.
[2:05:08] Um, on to public comment. I believe we have one more public comment period. Sorry
[2:05:12] we're a little late. Is there anyone with the public? No, no, no public online, I
[2:05:17] don't think. Anyone that's online, you can hit the raise hand button if you'd like
[2:05:21] to make a public comment or if you're on the phone, 9 to raise your hand.
[2:05:29] OK, I will close public comment and next month we'll see you in April. See the tag
[2:05:35] and Linda in March, of course, can't forget,
[2:05:39] and uh we'll be back with our, our regular program with our new chair John Noak in
[2:05:43] April. So I'm sure we'll be on time in April that we're adjourned. Thanks everybody.