The Wasco County Board of Commissioners voted Wednesday, July 5, to adopt the 20-year transit development plan. In this plan, Mid-Columbia Economic Development District, as the contract public transportation service provider for Wasco County, outlined opportunities in the short, medium and long-term. The plan also highlighted MCEDD’s goals and potential sources of funding.
MCEDD Executive Director Jessica Metta explained the process of formulating the transit development plan began in spring 2021 with community outreach, with the first draft of the plan being created in Spring 2022 and the following year being used for grant outreach.
In the plan, Metta identified five goals: Customer-focused services, accessibility and connectivity, coordination, health and sustainability. She also highlighted different opportunities, with short-term opportunities being the addition of stops to the Blue Line, the conversion the Red Line from a loop to an out-and-back route with the revision of the Blue Line to serve future development, the extension of the Intercity Express between The Dalles and Hood River, the addition of service to and around South County, and updates to information and technology, as well as the vehicle fleet.
Medium-term opportunities included more additional services to and around South County, service enhancements in The Dalles, as well as more updates to information and technology and the vehicle fleet.
Finally, long-term opportunities were the revision of the Red Line to serve future development near the port, the creation of a new out-and-back route serving downtown The Dalles, the enhancement of the Downtown Transit Stop to a Transit Center, and enhancements to service in The Dalles, as well as intercity service, and further updates to the vehicle fleet.
In other business, the county also voted unanimously to approve a subcontract for overdose prevention efforts in Wasco and Sherman counties. This was originally a contract between Oregon Health Authority and North Central Public Health District, but as NCPHD did not have the capacity to take on the project, Wasco County asked to subcontract.
In the contract, $58,575 is provided in funding for the period spanning Sept. 1, 2022, and Aug. 31, 2023, with Sept. 1, 2022, through the current date being covered retroactively.
As the subcontractor, the county will administer the Overdose Prevention Program, invoicing NCPHD monthly, and will work with OHA to ensure the program meets requirements. On their end, NCPHD will provide a representative to work with the projector director, pay all invoices within 30 days, and report expenditures to OHA on a quarterly basis.
The county also approved a personal services agreement with a social media parenting outreach coordinator. The contractor, Christie Hansen, will be responsible for assisting YouthThink’s prevention coordinator with managing social media accounts, posting a minimum of four posts a week, and developing a youth-focused Instagram page.
Hansen will also be responsible for assisting the prevention coordinator with the parent engagement program, including T2T Boost Camps, Parent Cafe, Teen Cafe and Family Check-Up. She will work approximately 30 hours a month, and funding will come from the Partnership for Success and other grants received by YouthThink.
Additionally, commissioners voted to extend Rodger Nichols’ term as county-appointed Columbia River Gorge commissioner until someone else was found to fill the position. Nichols accepted the appointment and agreed to stay as long as he was needed.
The county also voted to redesignate the Columbia Gorge News as the newspaper of general circulation in Wasco County, meaning they will continue to publish foreclosure notices in the legal section.
Finally, the county allocated Secure Rural Schools (SRS) funds. 85% of funds went to Title I: Roads and schools, 13% of funds went to Title II: Special projects on federal lands, and the remaining 2% went to Title III: County wildfire protection projects, broadband access and emergency services.
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