HomeMy WebLinkAbout2020-12-03-minutes-department-head-meeting2020-12-03 MINUTES 1
COMMISSIONERS' MINUTES KITTITAS COUNTY, WASHINGTON WEBEX SPECIAL MEETING
THURSDAY 1:00 P.M. DECEMBER 3, 2020
Board members present via WebEx: Chairman Brett Wachsmith; Vice-
Chairman Laura Osiadacz & Commissioner Cory Wright.
Others via WebEx: Julie Kjorsvik, Clerk of the Board; Kady
Porterfield, Event Center Director; Benjamin West, Director of
Airport Operations; Dan Carlson, CDS Director; Tip Hudson,
Extension Agent; Mark Cook, Public Works Director; Lisa Young,
Human Resource Director; Patti Johnson, Solid Waste
Director/Interim Maintenance Director/Project Manager; and
Tristen Lamb, Public Health Administrator. SPECIAL MEETING DEPARTMENT HEADS COMMISSIONERS
At 1:00 p.m. Chairman Wachsmith opened a Special Meeting to
consider resuming one-on-one meetings with an individual
Commissioner and an assigned Department Head.
Commissioner Osiadacz explained how she had received a few
requests from Department Heads who were interested in
reinstating the one-on-one meetings with the Commissioners.
Several Department Heads shared their thoughts on the pros and
cons of meeting individually with an assigned Commissioner on
specific dates and times. After providing the Board with their
thoughts, the majority of them felt there were more benefits to
going back to having one assigned Commissioner to each
Department Head who they could bounce ideas off of them, and if
it was warranted they could schedule a Special Meeting with the
entire Board.
Commissioner Wright expressed concerns he had with the structure
set up and that the Board’s Office Administration meetings have
become a “catch all”. He said if the Board were to begin meeting
with Department Heads individually, he would like to see it
listed as a separate item on the weekly Office Admin. Meeting
Agenda to report back on. He said he preferred the Chair having
monthly meetings with Department Heads instead of individually.
Commissioner Osiadacz felt if the Department Heads were
requesting to have an assigned Board member to meet with and if
2020-12-03 MINUTES 2
it made them feel more successful, than it was not too much to
ask for of the Board.
Commissioner Wright felt it was past time to change the style of
managing Department Heads and he would like to work towards
seeing a single point of contact such as a County Administrator.
The Board agreed to re-assign individual Department Head’s to a
Commissioner beginning immediately and then to schedule a full
Board meeting with all of their Department Heads to be held
quarterly, beginning in January 2021 for a 2-hour period.
The meeting was adjourned at 1:27 p.m.
KITTITAS COUNTY COMMISSIONERS CLERK OF THE BOARD KITTITAS COUNTY, WASHINGTON
Julie Kjorsvik Brett Wachsmith, Chairman