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Council approves contract increases tied to FEMA Category 4 tree-removal program; work to start after State Historic Preservation review
Summary
Council approved higher not-to-exceed amounts for contracts supporting the FEMA-funded Category 4 tree-removal program, citing expanded forester requirements and additional FEMA-mandated scope; town staff said 355 parcels will be submitted for a 30-day State Historic Preservation Office review ahead of tree removal.
The Paradise Town Council voted to approve contract amendments to extend the not-to-exceed amounts for the town’s Category 4 tree-removal program, which is funded through a FEMA hazard-mitigation grant, staff said.
Colette Curtis and staff explained that FEMA has changed and expanded program requirements since original cost estimates were prepared more than two years ago. Staff said FEMA’s additional required tasks and higher field oversight produced the need to increase the not-to-exceed amounts for two contractors: the Butte Fire Safe Council (which manages some on-the-ground implementation) and Mountain Engineering (biological surveys).
Bridal, the town’s project manager on the program, said the largest portion of the increase is the higher level of forester engagement required by the approved work plan: registered professional foresters and their technicians must be on-site during tree removal and oversee permitting with Cal Fire, which increased contractor hours and costs. Bridal said the town’s earlier estimates undercounted the amount of forester-led oversight required once environmental approvals were finalized.
Staff told the council they expect to submit 355 of 375 parcels to the State Historic Preservation Office for the mandatory 30-day review; once that review is complete, staff anticipated tree removal would begin. The project remains under the overall grant budget for the program, staff said; the requested contract amendments increase the not-to-exceed amounts for specific implementation contracts without increasing the total program budget.
Councilmembers asked why registered professional foresters are necessary when trees are plainly dead; staff responded that foresters perform permitting, liaise with Cal Fire and ensure required documentation for compliance with the FEMA environmental process. Staff also said they do not anticipate further contract increases, though they may request remaining funds as needed within the overall budget.
The council approved the contract amendments by vote; no detailed tally of individual member votes was entered in the motion record beyond a recorded roll-call aye vote. Staff also reported progress on related FEMA programs: the residential retrofit program has issued notices to proceed for initial parcels and construction permits have been pulled for several retrofit homes.
The motion as approved authorizes the increased not-to-exceed amounts for the Butte Fire Safe Council and Mountain Engineering contracts to cover additional forester and contractor labor required to meet FEMA’s revised implementation requirements.
