Coeur d'Alene to seek bids May 6 for $240,000 Tubbs Hill fuel‑reduction project

Coeur d'Alene Parks Department staff said the city will put a fuel‑reduction project on Tubbs Hill out to bid on May 6 after securing a $240,000 hazard‑fuel grant through the Idaho Department of Lands, with a required 10% local match. Urban Forestry staff said the project targets 58.5 acres and is designed to reduce ladder fuels that can carry wildfire into the canopy, protecting homes, trails and park users near the wildland‑urban interface.

"The driving force behind this project is, of course, public safety in the event of a wildfire," Urban Forestry staff, a City of Coeur d'Alene Parks Department presenter, said during a public briefing. The plan calls for a mix of hand treatment, chipping and mastication in limited areas, and pile burning during appropriate late‑season burn windows.

The nut of the project is creating defensible space and fuel breaks in priority corridors, staff said. The project map highlights work abutting McEwen Park, Tubbs Hill Drive, the fire road on Tubbs Hill and East Tubbs; staff said a primary objective is a fuel break around the fire road to ensure safe firefighter access.

Project details and limits

The project prescription posted by staff specifies operational constraints intended to protect the natural area’s aesthetics and habitat. Urban Forestry staff said, "No live trees…