Consent Item 4d
STAFF REPORT
City Council Consent Item
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ DATE: August 15, 2022
TO: Honorable Mayor and Council Members
FROM: Merritt Perry, City Manager
SUBJECT: Award of Bid for the 2022 Vancil Tree Removal Project Timber Sale to Humboldt Redwood Company
STAFF RECOMMENDATION:
It is recommended that the Council award the 2022 Vancil Tree Removal Project Timber Sale to Humboldt Redwood Company and authorize the City Manager to execute all applicable documents.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The City owns and operates the five million gallon Vancil reservoir located on Vancil Street in the City of Fortuna. The parcel the reservoir sits on is approximately 13 acres in size with the reservoir occupying approximately two and a half acres. There are redwood trees surrounding the reservoir site that routinely drop needles and branches which causes drainage issues and fence damage. The proximity of the existing trees to the reservoir results in an increased risk of fire damage. Additionally, there are four residences adjacent to the timbered portion of the site that have requested that trees be removed that are in close proximity to their homes.
A project to make improvements to the site including grading, drainage, tree removal, fencing and other site improvements is included in the City’s capital improvement program and is identified as project 9370. In July of 2021, the council approved a contract with BBW Associates (BBW), a forestry consulting company, to assist the City with permitting removal of the trees surrounding the Vancil Reservoir.
Since that time, BBW has submitted a timber harvest exemption and supporting background studies necessary to the California Department of Forestry (CDF) to obtain approvals to harvest trees in close proximity to the reservoir. The proposed location and operational parameters will be contingent upon and consistent with CAL FIRE Exemptions CCR 1104.1 and 1038.c6.
The planned selective tree removal will reduce wildfire hazard adjacent to residential structures and remove encroaching trees from the base of the Vancil reservoir. Tree removal is generally limited to within 100 feet of the reservoir fence, and trees selected for removal will remove ladder fuels, intermediate sized trees with poor form and trees around the reservoir perimeter that cast debris onto the structure roof. Removal of some trees is necessary for the water reservoir perimeter fence replacement as well. Some larger conifers with stronger form will be retained.
Consent Item 4d
BBW and City staff have reached out to adjacent neighbors and feedback that those adjacent to the timber harvest support the project.
In July 2022, the City advertised for bids the sale of approximately 65 thousand board feet (mbf) of timber. The City received two bids for logs from the project, one from Humboldt Redwood Company (HRC) and one from C.W. Wood Products. Based upon offered prices and accounting for trucking distances to the various log delivery destinations, staff determined the most advantageous offer for the City is Humboldt Redwood Company, (HRC) delivered to Scotia, California. The delivered log bid amounts are listed as follows:
Redwood
HRC …………………….. $1,250/mbf.
C. W. Wood Products ……..$975/mbf
Douglas fir
HRC……………………… $550/mbf.
C.W. Wood Products…… $500/mbf
Grand fir
HRC……………………………$450/mbf
C.W Wood Products………….$400/mbf
Once the timber harvest on the site is complete, the City will proceed with planning the remaining improvements on the site.
FISCAL IMPACT:
It is anticipated that the timber sale from the tree removal project will cover costs for the project and may generate a small amount of revenue. Small harvests such as this that include specific requirements to leave the site in a nice condition with no slash or debris have higher costs than a typical timber harvest. $150,000 is budgeted for the remaining improvements at the site in the Fiscal Year 2022-2023 Capital Improvement Program and includes the costs for the forestry consultants, drainage, fencing and other site work.
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Award the 2022 Vancil Tree Removal Project Timber Sale to Humboldt Redwood Company and authorize the City Manager to execute all applicable documents. Consent Agenda vote.