Submitted by the League of Women Voters, a nonpartisan organization that encourages informed participation in government. The Observer Corps attends and takes notes at government meetings to expand public understanding of public policy and decisions. The notes do not necessarily reflect the views of the League or its members.

San Juan County Council regular meeting of March 17

In public comment, an Orcas resident said after the recent earthquake many on Orcas Island came together to discuss earthquake preparedness in the county. He came to hear the emergency management overview.

Brendan Cowan and one 10-hour-per-week employee make up the Emergency Management Department, which maintains and updates emergency plans, is responsible for communication and coordination during an emergency and works with state and federal emergency managers. The department issues alerts for potential emergencies. The emergency command center is at the fairgrounds and the fire stations throughout the county act as a network of local nodes. He went over the role of the Council in emergencies and reviewed recent and upcoming public information events including one at the San Juan Island grange scheduled for April 17. There will be an oil spill response exercise in early June that the Council can take part in.

The county lobbyist reviewed where things stand in the state Legislature and recommended Council members testify during the senate hearings on the transportation budget next week regarding County ferry issues. Two members also will testify in favor of the Mosquito Fleet bill.

The county long-range planner reviewed four elements of the Comp Plan update. The main proposed change in Element #1, Governance, will add the tribal participation policy. Element #4, Water Resources, will have updated goals and policies, new data and input from the Clean Water Advisory Committee, Environmental Stewardship, Agricultural Resources Committee and individuals and organizations. Element #9, Historical and Archeological Preservation, will incorporate tribal review and climate risks. Element #10, Economic Development, was added during that last Comp Plan update and will have new language on balancing tourism with other sectors and may add ensuring adequate power supplies. The Council will review more elements in the coming weeks and asked for ample prep time to read drafts and for consistent language in all elements. Public input is coming in for all elements, and there will be more public outreach in further stages. Work will begin on updating maps this summer.

The Council rescheduled the public hearing on vacation rentals in Eastsound and Lopez Village from March 18 to April 15. They agreed that radio installation at the emergency command center could be paid for with American Rescue Plan Act monies transferred to the general fund.

Board of Health regular meeting of March 19

The Accountable Communities for Health (ACH) is seeking a new CEO. County representatives are part of the search team. The Medicaid 2.0 funds were released and received in early January. A request for proposals is out for grants to community health projects. The North Sound Behavioral Health organization is trying to stop the state from taking back funds listed as reserves, but in practice are committed to existing contracts. The organization depends heavily on Medicaid funding and cuts could devastate services. Legal developments mean more opioid settlement money could be coming.

Ellen Wilcox presented the Youth Community Health Assessment. Youth and adults mostly agreed on local strengths; that this is a safe, supportive community with lots of outdoor activities that supports education. Wealth gaps and the number of youths living in homes with poverty and adults juggling multiple jobs and the lack of childcare create the most challenges. The biggest needs identified by youth were mental health education and support; adult support in limiting social media/ screen time; and more, better, and earlier reproductive health education. In its absence kids are depending on often unreliable online sources. There have been big drops in substance abuse in line with state-wide trends, but mental health has not improved here as it has elsewhere.

The director of the Orcas Island Health Care District updated the board. They run a local clinic in partnership with Island Health in Anacortes. In 2024, they had over 11,000 appointments and served 3700 unique patients. They provide primary care, acute care and after-hours care, and have some specialty care available in person such as an OB/GYN once a month as well as telehealth access to specialists. They are to expand on their property to provide dental care. They will be seeking a levy lid lift to finance expansion. Board members encouraged them to focus on outreach in explaining the levy proposal.

Mark Thompkins introduced Dr. Amy Harley, a pediatrician who currently shares the job of county health officer with Whatcom with another doctor, and who is the candidate to also become the San Juan County Health officer, taking over from Dr. Duber. Dr. Harley met with county council members earlier and a lunch with Health Board members and county health department staff was scheduled after the board meeting. A contract with Dr. Harley is likely to be approved soon.

Mark Thompkins gave a brief overview of the County Health Roadmap which can be found at countyhealthrankings.org. San Juan County ranks at the top of state and national ranks of healthy communities and is one of the few places where life expectancy improved during the pandemic.