COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT
TO: Mayor and City Council
FROM: Alex Posada, Recreation and Parks Director
DATE: February 18, 2025
SUBJECT: Adoption of a Resolution Approving a Professional Services Agreement with West Coast Arborist for Tree Maintenance Services
Description:
The City Council will review and consider approving a 24-month professional services agreement with West Coast Arborist for tree maintenance services around the City using the “cooperative purchasing” clause of the City’s Purchasing Guidelines.
RECOMMENDATION:
Adopt a Resolution approving a Professional Services Agreement with W est Coast Arborist for Tree Maintenance Services.
BACKGROUND:
West Coast Arborist, Inc. (WCA), is a family-operated statewide provider of professional tree care services. They hold contracts with many cities in California, including the City of Santa Maria. WCA provides the City with a local crew of three personnel and a supervisor.
When necessary, they have the resour ces to send in additional crews to assist with special projects. WCA provides the majority of the regularly scheduled and emergency tree work throughout the city. This crew will typically trim 3 ,250 trees; remove 30 trees that are compromised; and track n ew trees planted in new developments using their proprietary inventory system, Arbor Access. This system tracks all the maintenance performed on street trees in the City and is available to City staff as needed.
The City’s relationship with WCA has been excellent over the years and their work has reduced tree limb failures and tree root incursion significantly, thus reducing the City’s exposure to liability.
DISCUSSION:
In an effort to bridge a gap in our current contract with WCA, and to provide City staff with the time necessary to prepare its own comprehensive Request for Proposal for arborist services, staff recommends awarding a 24-month contract to WCA, using the cooperative procurement process, referred to as “piggybacking”. This process allows the City to use another agency’s procurement process, to award its own contract for the same services.
Staff propose to use the current City of Carpinteria procurement process on which to base this 24-month contract with WCA. The City of Carpinteria contra ct was issued on March 2 1, 2024, meeting the requirements of the City’s purchasing policy. The City of Santa Maria’s contract with WCA found in Attachment A closely follows the City of Carpinteria’s contract terms and conditions. By using this cooperative purchasing process, the City of Santa Maira will benefit from continuing to provide the tree work necessary to keep the urban forest well cared for and reduce liability exposures.
Alternative(s)
The City Council can choose not to approve this cooperative purchasing agreement, if so tree work around the City would stop, until the City could prepare, release, and evaluate requests for proposals from other firms.
Fiscal Considerations
The recommendation would authorize staff to continue to work with WCA as the City’s tree service contractor, for an amount of approximately $300,000. annually. Funds for this work come from a variety of sources, including Gas Tax, Measure A, landscape district assessments, and the General Fund , and have previously been approved in the 2024-25 Fiscal Year budget.
Impact to the Community
Regularly scheduled tree work keeps the urban forest thriving, reduces exposure to liability and helps identify inequities in the urban forest around the city. Trees provide the generation of oxygen, absorb CO2 in the atmosphere and help to mitigate urban flooding by storing rainwater. Trees that are not properly cared for are not able to provide these benefits.
ATTACHMENTS
A. Resolution
B. Professional Services Agreement - West Coast Arborist