Colfax approves services agreement for FEMA-funded home-hardening program

Colfax — The Colfax City Council on March 12 approved a services agreement with 4 Leaf, Inc., a construction management firm, to administer a FEMA-funded home-hardening and defensible-space program intended for the city’s single-family, duplex/triplex and mobile-home properties.

The agreement covers work to implement a $6,200,000 FEMA grant that project representatives told the council is intended to reduce wildfire risk on dozens of homes in Colfax. Mike Lukin, 4 Leaf’s presenter, said the firm will provide a turnkey program that includes environmental review, homeowner outreach and construction management. “We’re excited to get going with the FEMA Home Hardening Project,” Lukin said during the council meeting.

Why this matters: Council members and staff emphasized the program’s potential to reduce wildfire vulnerability after the River Fire by funding measures such as roofing, siding, vent screening and defensible-space work. The council approved the services agreement to begin grant implementation and allow staff and the contractor to begin the environmental and outreach work required by FEMA and the state Office of Emergency Services (OES).

Key details: Project staff said the grant is structured so FEMA pays 90% of eligible construction costs and homeowners must provide a 10% match. Lukin described the program as limited by FEMA rules to single-family homes, duplexes/triplexes and mobile homes; commercial buildings and apartment complexes are ineligible. He said the application originally targeted a small-to-moderate number of homes in Colfax (presented as “30 up to 37” in the application), and in later discussion he referenced scenarios that divided funds among larger household counts in modeling; staff said the exact number of participating parcels will be set after parcel-level environmental reviews.

Environmental review and timeline: Lukin told the council the project requires extensive, parcel-level environmental analysis—botanical, biological, historic-property and other surveys—because the application covered the whole town. He said those surveys are likely to consume a substantial portion of program funds and that “unfortunately, dollars [about] 2,000,000” may be tied up in the upfront environmental review process. He said the city and 4 Leaf expect it could be about a year, possibly up to 18 months, before contractors begin construction work on participating homes, depending on FEMA and OES approval of the environmental documents.

How work will be done and requirements on homeowners: Lukin said the program will be “turnkey” in management, but the homeowner hires the contractor for the work and must sign an agreement to maintain defensible space after completion. “This is a grant of 90% of the cost of the project. The homeowner has to come up with 10% of the cost of the project,” Lukin said. He added that homeowners are typically expected to commit to maintain the work for a multi-year period (he referenced a commitment of roughly 10 to 15 years). The city will make progress payments and seek FEMA reimbursement according to project milestones.

Technical limits and inspections: Lukin noted certain technical constraints: for example, FEMA guidance requires noncombustible decking materials, and he said nationwide no broadly accepted noncombustible decking product exists today (aluminum decking was discussed as an option). Lukin also said windows and other components will be considered on a case-by-case basis and that Cal Fire will partner on the defensible-space component and perform post-installation inspections to Cal Fire standards.

Costs and comparisons: Lukin said inflation and the age of the original application mean per-home costs could exceed the $37,000 figure in the application; he cited Lake County projects averaging around $50,000 per home as a comparison. He advised homeowners to expect that actual per-home hardening costs may be higher than the original application numbers.

Council action and next steps: Council members moved and seconded approval of the services agreement with 4 Leaf; the motion passed by voice vote. The council also heard staff advise against public marketing of an exact start date until environmental approvals are secured. Staff said they will coordinate outreach, prioritize parcels cleared through environmental review, and return with next steps as FEMA and OES complete their reviews.

Local context: City staff and the contractor said the program will include an outreach and marketing campaign targeted at eligible homeowners and that the city, 4 Leaf and grant manager Adams Ashby will work together on parcel screening, homeowner meetings and contractor selection. City staff emphasized that the city would not directly hire contractors or assume construction liability for homeowners’ work.

What’s next: Staff will continue coordinating environmental surveys and grant administration with 4 Leaf, OES, FEMA and Cal Fire. Council members encouraged early homeowner preparation—saving toward the 10% match—and asked staff to return with implementation milestones as approvals proceed.