A Kingman man’s appeal of an “unsafe structure” could lead to changes in the County’s Building Code. After hearing from Chief Building Official, Gilbert Smaby, District 5 Supervisor Ron Gould asked the Board to change the permitting process for roofing and re-roofing projects. Gould moved to amend the MC Building Safety Code to exempt re-roof permits if the related repairs are 10% or less or up to 128 square feet of the roof’s surface when using the same shingles or tiles to complete the repairs. A public hearing is set for the August 18th meeting.
Deputy County Attorney, William Davis, set a public hearing for the August 18th meeting to discuss a proposed ordinance regulating the residency of certain registered sex offenders. The change would prohibit Level 2 and Level 3 Sex Offenders from residing closer than 1,000 feet of schools, daycares and near places where children commonly gather. Bullhead City resident, “Scotty” McClure has been vocal about the number of out-of-state offenders who move into the County.
Supervisor Gould once again asked Economic Development Director Tami Ursenbach to change her scope of outreach, eliminating data centers due to their high water and energy usage. Mohave Electric Cooperative CEO Tyler Carlsonreached out to Gould explaining that their company could not handle the energy load required for a data center. After research, Gould determined the rural areas of the County couldn’t handle the necessary water and energy requirements and requested the change. Supervisors Sonny Borrelli and Don Martin dissented.
The Mohave County Airport Authority (MCAA) continues to be a thorn in District 2 Supervisor Rich Lettman’s side with District 3 Supervisor Sonny Borrelli jumping into the fray. The MCAA has been uncooperative when asked for their financial information, something that should be available to the public as well as the County upon request. Due to their snubbing, Borrelli has asked for assistance from the Arizona Joint Legislative Audit Committee.
After a presentation from the American Lands Council, showing a majority of public lands in Arizona are federally owned, the Board voted to join the American Lands Council for a $5k/yr Silver Membership to support their efforts in returning those lands to state control.
The County is approaching property tax time and the Board was asked to approve the adoption of Fiscal Year 2025-2026 tax levies and rates for Mohave County tax authorities and acknowledge tax levies submitted from special districts, school districts, fire districts, cities and towns. Supervisor Gould requested the Board approve the submitted tax levies minus Mohave Valley Elementary School District and the Topock School District, due to citizen complaints regarding their Truth in Taxation hearings. While the districts did place notice in a newspaper of record, they didn’t allow citizens to speak directly to the item and did not separately agendize the item from the rest of their regular board meeting. Many Topock residents spoke against a nearly 300% increase in their school district’s levy, stating that it would cause severe hardship to many of their residents. The Board ultimately agreed with Gould, except for District 4 Supervisor Don Martin.
Board Clerk Laura Skubal will be sticking around for another year. Supervisors voted to accept Ms. Skubal’s annual review and a step increase in pay. The Board also voted to extend County Manager Sam Elter’s contract which was set to expire in November, but due to Mr. Elter’s stated intent to retire, the Board felt it necessary to keep him on until 2026 to allow for time to find a replacement.