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County seeks temporary hires, equipment and reimbursement for storm debris cleanup
Summary
Public works staff asked the board to authorize temporary promotions, new hires, machinery leases and equipment purchases to process storm-generated debris; staff said the county will front 25% of costs and pursue FEMA-like reimbursement of at least 75%.
Brian (last name not specified), public works (solid waste) manager, updated commissioners on debris-management operations following a recent weather event and requested authorization for temporary promotions, two temporary hires and equipment purchases.
Brian said crews have processed a high volume of household debris at a homeowner-targeted drop site and that a forecasted cleanup cost estimate is about $1.8 million for cleanup and processing; he also said county public works costs overall are approaching $3 million for the event. He requested two temporary promotions to a higher pay grade, two hires, the lease of a material handler (roughly $2,400 to $3,400 per month), and purchase of grapple and tree-cutter attachments.
Brian said the county will front costs from reserves and expects reimbursement of at least 75% under state or federal disaster reimbursement programs. "So the money again, this will be part of that 75% reimbursed. So we'll end up paying for 25% of this, but we do get, 75% of this reimbursed," he said.
Commissioners discussed target-site hours, possible closure of the homeowner target site after the coming Sunday, and staff overtime. County staff noted MPCA employees assisting on site and discussed the need to balance contractor costs versus hiring temporary staff to reduce overall expense.
Ending: The board scheduled the staffing and procurement requests for action on the regular meeting agenda; no final approvals were made at the work session.
