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Parks committee hears Dry Canyon Firewise plan; staff plans to mow fire breaks next week
Summary
Redmond parks staff outlined a Dry Canyon wildfire mitigation plan based on county and state recommendations; treatments include limbing trees to 6 feet, thinning small trees, mowing fire breaks and pairing internal crews with Heart of Oregon contractors. A grant application for about $990,000 has not yet been awarded.
Redmond’s parks committee received a detailed Firewise presentation about the North Dry Canyon, where staff and outside experts identified ladder fuels and ground cover that elevate wildfire risk. The presenter, introduced in the meeting as Josh, said the city applied for "about $990,000" in grant funding that has not yet been awarded and that immediate work must proceed with internal resources if funding does not arrive.
The mitigation recommendations compiled from Deschutes County, the state forester and COIC call for cutting seedlings under about 8 inches in diameter, limbing trees up to 6 feet, and removing ladder fuels on the canyon floor. "Cut and limb all the remaining trees up to 6 feet in height," the presenter said when summarizing expert guidance. The experts also recommended mowing up to 80% of the canyon floor and reducing surface fuels to slow a fire’s lateral spread.
Staff described a near-term schedule: starting next week, transportation crews will mow five fire breaks south of Maple Bridge and four north of Maple Bridge up to the 19th Street entry gravel path; Heart of Oregon crews and city arborists will follow with thinning and limbing work. "We're going to try to get in there next week. It's probably going to take us about two days to mow all of those fire breaks," the presenter said. Where practical, removed vegetation will be chipped and taken off-site; staff confirmed material removal will not be stockpiled on slopes.
Committee members pressed on slope stability, erosion and public safety. One member asked whether opening sight lines on fragile slopes would destabilize soils; staff responded that some upper west-side slopes are rock rather than soil and that work zones will be marked and staffed to reduce inadvertent trail creation. The parks team said they will coordinate with code enforcement, the fire department and police for public education and enforcement and plan a press release plus social media updates once the committee meeting concludes.
Staff and the presenter emphasized that private homeowners also have a role in defensible-space work. The presenter said countywide funding for homeowner defensible-space assistance exists but did not specify individual grant award amounts; he said the fire department will conduct assessments and make homeowners aware of available programs.
The committee did not record a formal funding award in the meeting; staff committed to share the county and state subject-matter documents and the presentation materials with the full committee and include related notes in the meeting minutes. The team also said they will reseed treated fire breaks with native pre-emergent mixes in fall and return to additional thinning and limbing work later in the year.
