Board authorizes chair to seek lease-name change with Del Norte County and approves $1.58M TIRCP application

The Redwood Coast Transit Authority voted to authorize its chair to send a letter asking Del Norte County to remove its name from a Williams Drive ground lease so the authority can execute a revised ground lease in RCTA’s name and move forward with charging infrastructure at its yard.

Staff said Del Norte County’s name appears on the original 2004 lease for the fairgrounds parcel and that step must be resolved before the authority can finalize a revised lease and install electric bus‑charging equipment.

Separately, the board approved submitting a Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program (TIRCP) cycle 8 grant application requesting $1,580,000 for replacement electric dial‑a‑ride buses and a drive‑through bus‑wash system. Staff said the authority previously received about $7.3 million in cycle 6 funding for charging infrastructure, a downtown transit center and six electric buses; cycle 8 funding is smaller statewide, so the authority tailored its request to be competitive.

The presenter said partners assisted with the application and that the request focuses on emissions reductions and operational needs. The board approved the grant submittal and authorized the executive director to execute grant documents.

Both items passed on unanimous voice votes with no public comment recorded on the items as presented.