McCall council hears update on 'Rooted in Resilience' climate action plan; consultants outline EV, wildfire and engagement work

McCall City Council on the meeting received the first major project update on the city's climate action plan, Rooted in Resilience, from Meredith Todd, the city's sustainability planner, and consultants from Lotus Sustainability.

Meredith Todd said the presentation was “the first major project update on our climate action plan that is in progress, titled Rooted in Resilience.” She told the council Lotus Sustainability and Engineering (Lotus) began work under contract last April and that the packet included a memo and an account of public engagement to date.

Nut graf: The Lotus team described a multi-month process of inventory review, stakeholder interviews and six rapid surveys (more than 2,000 responses) and said the next work phase will prioritize implementable strategies that respond to McCall’s wildfire, snowpack and visitor-management challenges. The consultants also previewed a public EV demo day tied to community outreach in April and a March 10 community workshop led by McCall Outdoor Science School graduate students.

Consultant Grace Sullivan summarized the project timeline and scope: Lotus has completed background research and stakeholder engagement and is now refining a “suite of strategies” to be made actionable and defensible by data. Tom Herod of Lotus described technical analyses, including a deeper look at fuel consumption and lifetime cost comparisons for a potential municipal EV fleet conversion. Herod said the team compared roughly 13 vehicles from an earlier Sawatch Labs analysis, using an estimated $4.10 per gallon for gasoline and electricity rates for EV cost modeling, and concluded EVs show lifecycle cost and emissions savings even on a grid with current emissions.

The consultants reported survey findings they said show high community interest in energy efficiency, wildfire readiness, diversified energy sources and improved insulation. They said 77% of respondents are aware of energy-efficiency benefits and many residents expressed interest in using electric bikes or replacing single-occupancy trips. Lotus identified three strategy categories—health and resilience, destination management and transportation—and said fire mitigation and energy efficiency rose to the top across engagement activities.

Lotus outlined next steps: finalize the plan framework, investigate funding, model 3–5 priority strategies and draft the plan for a fall adoption. Meredith Todd confirmed Lotus will be in McCall April 4–6 for an EV demo day, a Friday work session and pop-up outreach during Arbor Day weekend.

Council members thanked the team and asked about timing and enforceability. Council member Lyle Machesek said the plan must “give us the teeth and capacity” to enact ordinances and policies when adopted, and Council member Julie (last name on file) urged clear short-term actions so the plan does not “sit on the shelf.” Todd and the consultants said the next months will focus on making the strategies implementable and on crafting a prioritization methodology with the advisory steering committee.

Ending: The council did not take formal action on the plan at this meeting but scheduled Lotus’ April visit and related public engagement events; staff and consultants will return with modeled strategy options and a proposed prioritization approach later this year.