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TO:Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
ATTENTION:Ryan Smoot, City Manager
FROM:Len Gorecki, Assistant City Manager/Director of Public Works SUBJECT:Consideration and possible action to authorize the City Manager to complete the city-wide Urban Forestry Management Plan and to designate the appropriate funding source following the United States Department of Agriculture suspension of grant funds previously award to the City of Bellflower.
DATE:March 24, 2025
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has notified the City that a Federal grant awarded to the City in 2024 in the amount of $1,000,000 for the development of an Urban Forestry Management Plan and the subsequent planting and maintenance program for 500 trees has been frozen by the Federal government. This action would allow for the completion of the Urban Forestry Management Plan and designate a separate funding source to complete the management plan.
RECOMMENDATION TO CITY COUNCIL
1) Authorize the City Manager to complete the Urban Forestry Management Plan currently in progress with West Coast Arborists, Inc. (WCA); and 2) Designate an alternative funding source to complete the Urban Forestry Management Plan in lieu of awarded grant funds being suspended by the Federal government; or
3) Alternatively, discuss and take other action related to this item.
FISCAL IMPACT
The remaining cost for WCA to complete the Urban Forestry Management Plan is estimated to be $35,750. Included in the Approved FY24-25 budget is $150,000 in Account No. 011-47137-9000 (Capital Project Tree Master Plan) that can be utilized for this purpose.
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Staff Report – Urban Forestry Management Plan Alternate Funding Request March 24, 2025
DISCUSSION
In 2024, the City applied for and successfully received a grant from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) known as the USDA Inflation Reduction Act Urban & Community Forestry (“USDA IRA UCF”) grant in the amount of $1,000,000. The grant would allow for the development of a city-wide Urban Forestry Management Plan followed by the planting and maintenance of 500 trees which the City would partner with a Bellflower-based non-profit organization to carry out. As a condition of the grant award, the USDA required the City to enter into a subrecipient agreement (AFN 1053) with GreenLatinos, the USDA’s national pass-through partner, for the administrative and programmatic oversight throughout the 3-year grant term. This agreement was approved by the City Council on July 8, 2024.
On August 12, 2024, the City Council approved an agreement (AFN 230.4) with West Coast Arborists, Inc. (“WCA”) in the amount of $80,000 to develop the Urban Forestry Management Plan which would become the City’s strategic document that outlines the visions, goals and actions for managing and enhancing the tree canopy and green spaces throughout Bellflower. The plan would assess the current tree inventory, provide strategies for maintenance and growth of trees, identify locations where additional trees could be planted and develop policies to protect and preserve trees.
With the recent changes at the Federal government level, the City was notified in early February by GreenLatinos that funding for the USDA IRA UCF grant has been “frozen” and that if the City continues forward with the management plan and planting component of the grant, the costs incurred by the City may not be reimbursed by grant funds.
To date, WCA has completed the necessary field work for the development of the management plan and their expenses total $65,250. Staff submitted the initial grant reimbursement request to GreenLatinos in the amount of $44,250 prior to January 1, 2025, and we have been informed by GreenLatinos that these are approved and should be reimbursed for these costs. WCA expended an additional $21,000 after January 1, 2025, and staff has submitted a grant reimbursement request for this expense; however, GreenLatinos is unsure if these funds will be reimbursed to the City at this time.
The remaining tasks for WCA to complete the management plan include the community engagement/education component followed by the presentation of the plan to the City Council for consideration and final adoption. The costs to complete the management plan are anticipated to be $14,750.
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