PORT ANGELES – Clallam County will continue renting property near Fairchild Airport for a social distancing shelter.

The current lease for the shelter in the Airport Industrial Park runs out at the end of this month. The shelter can be used for free by those who cannot maintain 6-foot social distancing as well as those with COVID-19 who do not need hospitalization and are unable to quarantine at their home or are homeless.

The county and Port of Port Angels have settled on an extension for the 1010 Building and surrounding yard areas through the end of the year. Kevin Piccolo manages the facility for the county. He says the monthly rate will be reduced by $1,000 per month. The county will now pay $15,000 a month.

“One, the lease amount is decreased by one thousand dollars. The reason being is there was a certain percentage of the building (the warehouse side) that was not being utilized. We reduced security to part-time. So presently we have 24-hours security seven days a week that’s on the premise of Court did agree to reducing that to 12 hours a day.”

County commissioners had explored options of moving it to the Fairgrounds, but that would have required infrastructure improvements. Piccolo told county commissioners this week there are provisions in place that could extend the lease of the port building beyond the end of the year if needed

Clallam County Commissioners will approve a lease agreement this week. The Port of Port Angeles Commissioners will do the same as well.