Commission Briefs

Beeville Loop Road closure Sept. 21

Mason County commissioners approved the county road closure of Beeville Loop Road at milepost 5.19, Dry Bed Creek, on Sept. 21 until further notice.

According to the information packet, the Dry Bed Creek corrugated metal culvert has lost its “structural integrity.”

County crews will remove the culvert and close the road until a replacement analysis is complete and money is secured for the preferred alternative. Alternatives range from not replacing the culvert to an anticipated bridge at a cost of more than $2 million.

Traffic volume on this portion of Beeville Loop Road is 22 vehicles per day and driver will be able to use West Ford Road and West Beeville Loop Road with little to no change in their normal routes.

Closure notification will include mailers to residents in the area, information posted on the county Facebook page and TV Channel 3, reader boards to alert drivers three days prior to closure and notice will be posted in a conspicuous place at each end of the road.

Jail camera, video system upgraded

Corrections Technology Group will replace and upgrade the cameras and video management system at Mason County Jail.

According to the information packet, CTG said replacement parts for the jail’s current system are no longer in production or available, and should the jail experience a hardware fail, there would be no option to repair it.

CTG will replace it and will require a sole-source resolution. During the quote assessment, multiple blind spots were identified with the current layout, including hallways around line cells and booking, holding cells and some additional exterior areas. Hallways often are where trouble occurs.

The cost of replacing the system is $229,295 — 19 new cameras will cost $57,132.

Money allocated for opioids, housing

Mason County received state money through the rural communities opioid response program and the emergency housing fund agency.

According to the information packet, the county was granted a no-cost extension through Dec. 31 for the opioid response program and of the remaining budget, $97,338 has been reallocated to Olympic Health and Recovery Services for services within Mason County Jail. The money is for substance use disorder screenings and assessments, peer recovery services, help creating treatment plans and connecting individuals with wraparound re-entry services and case management upon release.

The Department of Commerce allocated $884,950 in emergency housing funds to the county for the 2024 fiscal year, with the board approving the contract at the July 18 meeting. The purpose of the money is to maintain current levels of homeless subsidies and emergency housing capacity from sun-setting money and will be allocated to Shelton’s Family Center and Crossroads Housing. Shelton Family Center will receive $288,410 of state grant pass through money and Crossroads Housing will receive $398,969.

Transportation Plan hearing Sept. 26

Mason County commissioners approved setting the public hearing for Sept. 26 for the six-ear transportation program and the 2024 annual construction program.

According to the information packet, the transportation improvement plan will be available for public review from Tuesday until the hearing date. The transportation advisory committee will provide recommendations Sept. 13 before the hearing Sept. 26 and the possible adoption of the plan.

The 2023 expenditures are planned to be $12 million, including $2.55 million from the road fund and $9.5 million from outside sources. County

employees will be used to construct about $1,049,840 of the annual construction program.