HomeMy WebLinkAboutPublic Works Apr 29 2025Whatcom County
Council Public Works & Health Committee
COUNTY COURTHOUSE
311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105
Bellingham, WA 98225-4038
(360)778-5010
Committee Minutes - Final
Tuesday, April 29, 2025
10:50 AM
Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers
HYBRID MEETING - MAY BEGIN EARLY (PARTICIPATE IN -PERSON, SEE
REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR
CALL 360.778.5010)
COUNCILMEMBERS
Ben Elenbaas
Jon Scanlon
Mark Stremler
CLERK OF THE COUNCIL
Cathy Halka, AICP, CMC
Council Public Works & Health Committee Minutes - Final April 29, 2025
Committee
Call To Order
Roll Call
Committee Chair Jon Scanlon called the meeting to order at 10:50 a.m. in a
hybrid meeting.
Present: 3 - Jon Scanlon, Mark Stremler, and Ben Elenbaas
Also Present: Barry Buchanan, Tyler Byrd, Todd Donovan, and Kaylee Galloway
Announcements
Special Presentation
AB3075-333 Progress update on Operations Plan for Fentanyl Executive Order
Kari Holley, Health and Community Services, read from a presentation (on
file) and answered questions. She and the following people discussed the
presentation with councilmembers:
• Kayla Schott-Bresler, Executive's Office
• Charlene Ramont, Health and Community Services Department
Interim Director
They discussed drugs they are seeing in emergency room visits besides
Fentanyl and that they are often seeing poly -drug use, how Whatcom
County's data compares to national trends, that the Medical Examiner does
not release preliminary drug overdose information prior to the finalization
of toxicology reports, whether the County is reporting Fentanyl overdoses
or deaths to the CDC, what the naloxone kiosks look like and that there are
five currently available in the community, enhanced supported employment
services and conversations about second chance employment, balancing
harm reduction and accountability and how the Fentanyl Operations Plan
highlights accountability, efforts to coordinate this work with other systems
(Emergency Medical Services, law enforcement, the Prosecutor's Office,
and the courts) to address accountability, the Health Department not solely
relying on those other entities for the accountability piece, bringing in the
Sheriff's Office and Prosecutor to hear about their response to the
operations plan, and the intent of the Fentanyl resolution which was to
signal that they want to try to do things differently since "business as usual'
has not been working.
This agenda item was PRESENTED.
Whatcom County Page 1
Council Public Works & Health Committee Minutes - Final April 29, 2025
Committee
Items Added by Revision
Other Business
Adjournment
There were no agenda items added by revision.
There was no other business.
The meeting adjourned at 11:28 a.m.
ATTEST:
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WHATCOM COUNTY COUNCIL
WHATCOM COUNTY, WA
Jon Scanlon -via email 5/6/2025
Jon Scanlon, Committee Chair
Meeting Minutes prepared by Kristi Felbinger
Whafcom County page 2