District 1 Supervisor Patrice Horstman — District 1 August 2021 Newsletter

6 August 2021

• Hello from Supervisor Horstman
• Museum Flood Response and United Way Volunteers
• Mt. Elden Estates Flood Mitigation and Exigency Funding
• Downtown Movies on the Square
• NACo Annual Conference
• Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission
• COVID-19 Update
• County Building Mask Requirement
• Vaccine Incentive Program: Be A Big Shot
• COVID Information Line and Testing Site
• Museum Flood Information Line and Emergency Notifications
• Flood Insurance Information
• Contact Us

As we expected, this summer’s high monsoon activity did cause post-wildfire flooding in the Museum Fire burn scar area in the Mt. Elden Estates, Linda Vista, Grandview neighborhoods, and into Sunnyside across Cedar Avenue. Since July 13th, we’ve had five major flood events in which 22 homes experienced flood damage estimated at $500,000. In Flagstaff, the County and City Public Works crews have removed over 5,400 tons of debris from the streets and drainage system, and the City has estimated damage to its infrastructure at $1.8 million.

I am so grateful for all the mitigation work that the County Flood Control District completed over the past two years, and I know our residents are thankful. Coconino County was prepared for these events, and we continue to be the gold standard in mitigation and emergency management. Thank you to all the public works staff, flood control district staff, and County employees who helped respond to the multiple flood events. And thank you to the United Way of Northern Arizona (UWNA) and all our community volunteers. Since the onset of the Museum Floods, United Way has hosted numerous “Neighbor helping Neighbor” sandbag filling and cleanup events that over 550 volunteers attended.

UWNA encourages folks to continue to sign up with UWNA at www.uwna.volunteerhub.com to be contacted for future volunteer opportunities related to disaster response.

Though the first week of August has provided a respite from the monsoons, the National Weather Service is projecting more monsoon activity and the potential for more flood events. Therefore, we must continue to stay vigilant and continue to implement mitigation measures. If you or a neighbor needs more sandbags or are interested in sight assessments from a County engineer, please call the Museum Flood Call Center line listed at the end of this newsletter. Lastly, the County strongly encourages all homeowners within the flood area to purchase flood insurance as standard homeowners’ insurance does NOT cover flood damage. A separate flood insurance policy through the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) covers damage to your home and belongings caused by flooding. More information is available at www.floodsmart.gov and at the end of this newsletter.

I know these flooding events have been frightening and dangerous, but I want to commend our community for coming together. Volunteers show up every weekend to fill sandbags, clean up debris, and comfort the impacted families. For the most up to date information on the Museum Flood, visit coconino.az.gov/museumfloodarea

Prior to the recent monsoons, the Coconino County Board of Supervisors, in their capacity as the Flood Control District (FCD) authorized approximately $600,000 for channel work and debris clearance to assist the Mt. Elden area with potential flooding. Likely, this work saved at least 12 homes from flooding.

However, the intensity of the monsoons this year destabilized and eroded this channel mitigation work. County staff, with the assistance of Congressman Tom O’Halleran, Senator Kelly, and Supervisor Horstman, met with members of the United States Department of Agriculture and requested exigency financial assistance through the Natural Resources Conservation Service to stabilize the channels and to maintain channel and flood damage capacity in the Mt. Elden Estates area. This emergency work was needed to continue mitigation efforts for this area.

Within eight days, the USDA approved the NRCS exigency funding for Coconino County. Immediately upon receiving notification of the funding, the County proceeded with the emergency channel work building rock weirs to stabilize the channels and undertook other emergency mitigations for the remainder of this monsoon season.

On July 30th, the Board of Supervisors held a special meeting wherein they accepted the $454,500 in exigency funding from the NRCS and authorized the needed $152,000 matching for the NRCS funds. These funds will help with flood mitigation for the burn scar communities, including Paradise, Grandview, Linda Vista, and Sunnyside.

In addition to this project, the FCD will continue to look to the federal government for long-term mitigation measures. The FCD and the City need federal funding and partnerships from state and federal agencies to conduct long-term mitigation work on U.S. Forest Service lands, on private properties above the City of Flagstaff, and within the City of Flagstaff. Post-wildfire flooding in the Museum Flood Area will last for many years to come, and we need permanent mitigation measures to mitigate the impacts to the entire Museum Flood area.

Coconino County is a proud sponsor of the Flagstaff Downtown Business Alliance classic summer event, Movies on the Square! Coconino County has been at every movie, with the most popular table handing out prizes and Junior Emergency Manager badges.

In addition, various County departments have been on the square providing valuable information to our residents, including emergency management operations and emergency notification signups, County fair ticket sales, and opioid overdose prevention and crisis response programs.

Coconino County is hosting a mobile COVID-19 Vaccination at the summer movies on the square. This mobile clinic is part of Coconino County’s strategy to increase vaccinations and meet community residents and visitors where they are. Be sure to stop by, get your shot, and pick up your “Vaccinated” wristband!

Supervisor Horstman virtually attended the National Association of Counties (NACo) Annual Conference in July. NACo unites nearly 40,000 county elected officials and 3.6 million county employees to advocate for county priorities in federal policymaking.

To achieve this, NACo’s policy steering committees pass yearly resolutions that outline their issue-based priorities. Supervisor Horstman is a member of the NACo Public Lands Steering Committee and an elected member of the Western Interstate Region. She was proud to present Coconino County’s resolutions to the Public Lands group. The resolutions were adopted and include:

• Resolution Supporting Robust Remediation of Abandoned Uranium Mines as a Critical Priority for the United States
• Resolution Supporting the Use of FEMA Pre-Disaster Mitigation Grant Funding to Engage in Forest Thinning and Restoration Activities on Public and Private Lands
• Resolution Supporting Federal Funding to Promote and Expedite Building Forest Industry in Regions with Low to No- Value Trees.
• Resolution Supporting Additional Law Enforcement on Public Lands

The highlight of this year’s annual conference was Vice President Kamala Harris’ keynote address to NACo’s membership. To view the Vice President’s comments, watch the video below.

On July 29th, the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission (IRC) hosted a public listening session at NAU’s High Country Conference Center.

The IRC’s mission is to redraw Arizona’s congressional and legislative districts to reflect the results of the 2020 census. The commissions purpose is to ensure one person, one vote by creating districts that are equal in population; and ensure that communities of interest are maintained so that the unique nature and common concerns of neighbors are heard.

Supervisor Horstman was honored to address the IRC and speak about the importance of maintaining rural communities united as a community of interests for fires, forest management, watershed protection, grazing, and ranch lands, and protecting our open spaces and public lands.

Supervisor Horstman stated, “I hope my comments serve to reflect how important it is to maintain the voice of rural Arizona and specifically our unique concerns in rural Coconino County and Northern Arizona. This community of interest gives us a shared voice and shared concerns and challenges that must be preserved as you continue the important work to draw Arizona’s congressional and legislative districts.”

Unfortunately, Coconino County, like much of Arizona, is going in the wrong direction. This week’s current County transmission level is now labeled as “high,” and the percent positivity rate is also in the “high” category at 11.1%. This did not have to be this way. Coconino County has been proactive in providing vaccines to our community commencing in January of this year. Although state and countywide clinics and pop-up clinics have been made available to our residents throughout the County, the County’s vaccine rate as of August 2nd has stalled out at 54.1%. Although this is greater than Arizona’s overall vaccine rate of 52.2%, it is considerably lower than the national average and is far below the numbers we need to keep ourselves, our family, friends, and communities safe. This increase in the COVID infection rate is directly related to our low vaccination rate.

This increase could not be occurring at a worse time. Schools are attempting to reopen across our state, and businesses are just now getting back on their feet after this year’s COVID closures. The vaccine protects against infection and dramatically reduces the severity of the disease. Please, if you have not, get the shot. It takes all of us to do our part and protect ourselves, our family, and our community.

To view Coconino County’s weekly COVID-19 reports and see up- to-date data, please visit the County’s COVID-19 Website.

Due to the high transmission level here in Coconino County, the County has reinstated its mask requirement for all County buildings. The reinstatement of the mask requirement in keeping with the CDC guidance to protect customers and employees. Also, consistent with the CDC, the County recommends continuing wearing masks in indoor public settings, regardless of your vaccine status.

Similarly, County health officials recommend masking for all teachers, staff, students, and visitors in K-12 schools, regardless of vaccination status. So, we are back to following our safety protocols of mask-wearing, social distancing, hand washing, and staying home when sick. Please stay safe and follow the science.