PORT ANGELES -- Clallam County has received two bids for a project to replace the security electronics system for Clallam County Juvenile Services and the Clallam County Jail.
During their meeting Tuesday, the three county commissioners opened bids for the project from Corrections Technology Group of Spokane, which bid $1,095,926, and from Accurate Electric Unlimited Inc. of Vancouver, Wash., which bid $1,002,803.
The project is to replace the current detention security electronics system at the juvenile facility and at the jail with new "Touch Screen Systems" computers, according to county documents.
Commissioners voted to send the project out to bid on March 31. They heard more information about the project during their work session on March 23, during which Troy Blaine, facilities maintenance supervisor for the Parks, Fair & Facilities department, explained why the new system is needed.
"A lot of the buttons and switches are still in old analog style, so it's a physical button you turn, and those are getting harder to find," Blaine said.
When parts need to be replaced, the department increasingly finds itself searching through sites such as eBay in the hopes of finding used parts.
The jail and juvenile services would like more modern systems as well.
"If they have to engage with a speaker, it automatically turns the video camera to that speaker so they know who they're talking to," Blaine said. "They're also trying to get that tied to have some redundancy with the jail so they can have control techs here operate the juvenile facility's control stuff. It's kind of a catastrophic failure type of thing."
The two submitted bids will be remanded to the Parks, Fair & Facilities department for consideration and recommendation.
The commissioners also approved three contracts on Tuesday.
The first was an interlocal agreement between Clallam, Jefferson, Thurston and Kitsap public health districts.
"This is intended for filling in when your local health officer for your jurisdiction is vacant or the incumbent is absent or incapacitated, unable to fill the responsibilities for any reason of the local health officer," county Administrator Todd Mielke said. "It would allow local health jurisdictions to use the services of other local health jurisdictions to serve as designated deputy health officer to fulfill the responsibilities of the local health officer during a period of absence."
The next contract was a no-cost amendment to the county's existing contract with Anchor QEA, which they entered into July 13, 2021, for the purpose of designing the Dungeness Off-Channel Reservoir and the upgradient improvements, Mielke said.
"We have switched direction on this one and so we now need to complete a feasibility study to assess suitability and capability of installing a fish screen at the head gate," he said. "This amendment revises the scope of work to allow this organization and sub-consultant to conduct the feasibility study. It also extends the term of the contract as well."
The final contract in regard to an easement.
"This is for replacing a culvert for the tributary to Dickey River on Mina Smith Road," Mielke said. "Olympic Rainforest LLC owns the property on both sides of the culvert. They are granting a permanent easement for the culvert and a temporary easement for construction purposes."
The county budgeted $1,500 for this project, and Olympic Rainforest is offering the permanent easement for $516 and the temporary easement for $473. The Wild Salmon Center has agreed to reimburse the county for the cost of the temporary easement, Mielke said.