In response to the Valley County Road Advisory Board Resignation Letter:

The Valley County Board of County Commissioners (VCBOCC) would like to thank the members of the Valley County Road Advisory Board (VCRAB) for their dedicated volunteer hours and diligence in providing recommendations for improvements within the Valley County Road Department (VCRD). Your diligence, thoughtfulness, and commitment to finding solutions has been invaluable.

As the VCBOCC, we, as you note in your letter, were pleased to adopt all formal recommendations from the advisory board. Not only did we adopt the recommendations, but we also worked to ensure full implementation. However, implementation is not always a straight line, there are many factors at play, and we feel this is where we must address some of the misconceptions outlined in your recent resignation letter to the VCBOCC. 

First, the statement that the VCBOCC did not engage with the VCRAB before moving forward to “commit significant taxpayer funds for the construction of a new [road] facility” is misleading. Perhaps most significantly, the construction of the proposed Gold Dust Road Department Facility is part of a larger Master Facilities Plan and Comprehensive Financial Plan that impacts not only the Road Department, but every county department, and due to the availability of one-time federal funding, no taxpayer dollars will be used to construct it. The VCBOCC used the recommendations of this extensive planning document, which included significant input from the community, to make this decision. 

Furthermore, the Master Facilities Plan was developed over the course of thirteen months and included input from many sources – public surveys, research and recommendations by a citizens committee, economic data, and research into available funding sources. This information was collected and consolidated by a neutral third-party vendor, Clearwater Financial, who then made recommendations. This in no way diminishes the recommendations made by the VCRAB. Rather, it includes those recommendations and adds to the broader scope and planning process we must consider in our service, especially our fiduciary service, to the citizens of Valley County. 

Second, the statement that “the VCBOCC elected to not engage the VCRAB in review of the recently adopted transportation plan” assumes that there was never an opportunity to engage in this planning process. That is false. Valley County contracted with our engineering firm, Parametrix, to develop an impartial Master Transportation Plan. Public meetings were held, and public comment was asked for and received as part of this planning process. Our role as the VCBOCC was to request that all citizens have an opportunity to weigh in on the planning process. As citizens, that participation extended to all board members of the VCRAB.  

Third, the conclusion of the VCRAB that “underperforming administration and leadership within the VCRD is the reason the department is experiencing persistent performance and customer service failures” is a charge the VCBOCC takes very seriously. As such, we have worked with our Human Resources Director to craft a new Road Department Engineer position who will oversee this division. In fact, we currently have an offer out to a qualified candidate and we hope to announce this new addition to our team soon. 

That said, while the VCRAB provided findings about personnel and the VCBOCC took those under advisement, it is the policy of the VCBOCC to never divulge personnel issues with anyone outside of the employee themselves and our HR Director. From the outside, that may seem like no action is being taken. In reality, it is simply that we do not publicize or discuss these personnel matters. 

And finally, the assertion that the VCBOCC has failed to “adequately perform their oversite function via full implementation of the recommendations they adopted” is simply false. The VCBOCC understands that it may be frustrating to not see every recommendation implemented immediately, but that does not mean a concerted effort is not being made to see those recommendations come to fruition. To suggest otherwise is disrespectful and undermines the hard work of countless employees and elected officials. This resignation letter would suggest the members of the VCRAB feel those kind of assumptions being made on their own work and would understand how hurtful that can be. 

While we as the VCBOCC will accept the resignation of the VCRAB, we hope that in future, this can serve as a great lesson in communication. There are often reasonable explanations and factors that may be unknown between parties and we would invite anyone – a committee member, board member, employee, or citizen – to reach out with questions. Let’s have a discussion. Let’s not jump straight to a public resignation letter. We know there are mistakes made, that implementation may not have happened as swiftly as we would have all preferred, but the intent of the VCBOCC, the Road Department staff, and the VCRAB members has always been, and will continue to be, to provide the best possible service we can to Valley County. 

Respectfully,

The Valley County Board of County Commissioners

[Read the Road Advisory Board Resignation Letter by clicking here]