Consideration and Approval of Contract:  Agreement for Professional Services for Flagstaff Watershed Protection Project between City of Flagstaff and Greater Flagstaff Forests Partnership.

In June of 2014, the City Council executed a $90,000 contract with the Greater Flagstaff Forest Partnership (GFPP) to provide support to the Flagstaff Watershed Protection Project (FWPP).  Support services under this contract include but are not limited to public engagement, implementation, tribal partnerships, financial leverage, monitoring, volunteer management, and general support.  The 3-year contract terminates June 30, 2017.  The FWPP requires continued support service towards project completion.

This terms of the proposed Agreement mirrors the terms of the existing agreement, e.g., would also be for a three-year period (FY 2018-2020) for a total not-to-exceed of $90,000 ($30,000/year).  In accordance with FWPP goals, the activities will facilitate forest treatments, which once completed, will improve overall forest health and resilience to climate change, and reduce the probability of destructive wildfire and post-fire impacts to our community.

Funding Source is the FWPP Bond.
 

This Agreement is for a not-to-exceed amount of $90,000, with no more than $30,000 to be spent in any given FY.  Payment to GFFP will be on a reimbursable basis, upon completion of the task/activity. The budget appropriation for this contract is part of the FWPP bond program in account 407-09-425-3277-1 with an FY 2018 appropriation of $2,971,377.

COUNCIL GOALS: Forest Treatments . . . 
Climate Change:  improve/maintain forest ecosystems and positions them to better withstand change-agents such as climate change.  The work on Observatory Mesa and elsewhere is science-based and a climate action plan in operation.
Water Conservation: preserve water sources and prevent long-term damage to critical watersheds.
Environmental and Natural Resources:  protect and sustain our natural environment, reducing catastrophic fire and post-fire flooding events and insect infestations, preserving valuable wildlife habitat, allowing for recreational ventures and business operations,  and maintaining community well-being (to include public safety - first responders, residents, and visitors).
Community Outreach:  demonstrate a need for, and solutions to, our forest health crisis, allowing us to showcase work, conduct field tours, and encourage residents to take action to protect their neighborhood, property, and home.  
Town and Gown:  permit us to attract students to a working outdoor laboratory to conduct studies, gather information, interact with the public, and support our efforts while furthering their education and experience.
Code Compliance:  address requirements of the City's Wildland Urban Interface Code (2008) and demonstrate their effectiveness.

REGIONAL PLAN:
Environmental Planning & Conservation – Vision for the Future:  In 2013, the long-term health and viability of our natural resource environment is maintained through strategic planning for resource conservation and protection.
Policy E&C.3.3 – Invest in forest health and watershed protection measures.
Policy E&C.6.1 – Encourage public awareness that the region’s ponderosa pine forest is a fire-dependent ecosystem and strive to restore more natural and sustainable forest composition, structure, and processes.
Policy E&C.6.3 – Promote protection, conservation, and ecological restoration of the region’s diverse ecosystem type and associated animals.
Policy E&C.6.6 – Support collaborative efforts for forest health initiatives or practices, such as the Four Forest Restoration Initiative (4FRI), to support healthy forests and protect our water system.
Policy E&C.10.2 – Protect, conserve, and when possible, enhance and restore wildlife habitat on public land.

In June of 2014, City Council Approved the existing agreement.  Council was engaged in the bond issue when it was approved to be presented to the voters (summer 2012), has approved other grant awards and contracts related to FWPP, has been kept updated on issues throughout the overall effort, and has approved other Agreements with GFFP to support FWPP efforts.

Three exist:

1. Approve the Agreement, permitting essential FWPP support activities to continue, 
2. Revise the Agreement, regarding costs and/or activities,
3. Reject the Agreement, along with the need to utilize GFFP services to conduct these activities.

FWPP is an innovative and unique method of treating forested lands at high risk to damage/loss from serious wildfire events.  This effort has garnered a high-level of interest at both the State and Federal level.  Since the Bonds passage,in Nov 2012, planning has been completed, field operations are underway, and the public is being engaged on a number of fronts.  We are nearing the 5-year mark since the bond passed, and this Agreement will allow us to continue essential support activities that will permit successful completion of the project.

Since 2013, City Staff and Key partners have completed 105 major actions.  In CY 17, we are working on another 25.  Many of these are a direct result of GFFP's engagement in the effort.

GFFP will plan, coordinate, implement, and report in activities specified in the approved Annual Work Plan.  GFFP will bill the City on a periodic basis, providing an Accomplishment Report and all pertinent back-up documentation required to support the reimbursement request.  Funds identified in the various Tasks of the Annual Work Plan can be moved to support other activities within the Work Plan, but in no case can the total reimbursement for any given year exceed the TOTAL for that given year as identified in the Work Plan.

Multiple partners have been engaged in the FWPP effort since its inception, and these partnership efforts have continued throughout planned and completed work.  These have included Fiends of the Rio, NAU's Ecological Restoration Institute, AZ Dept of Forestry and Fire Management, the US Forest Service, AZ Game & Fish Department, US Fish & Wildlife Service, The Nature Conservancy, private consultants, and NAU's School of Forestry.  Completion of the forest treatments will protect neighborhoods, recreational opportunities, and wildlife habitat, while promoting forest resiliency and sustainability.
 

GFFP's involvement permitted by this Agreement have allowed us to better serve our community through  . . .

Inform – Following the 50 campaign events leading up to the bond election (Nov 2012), we have continued to work at keeping the community informed of what we are doing, and why.  The Project website (www.flagstaffwatershedprotection.org) is one way: numerous news stories have also been crafted and/or otherwise reported.  Impromptu and announced field trips have been conducted, most recently during the Festival of Science: Key stakeholders, city staff, and Council members have also been provided tours.  City staff has interacted with numerous individuals hiking, running, or biking through the area, as well as with other community members interested in the work.  Information boards have established, and continue to be maintained, where the various trails enter and cross the sites and where roads enter the area.  
 
Consult – We’ve worked with both AZ Game & Fish and US Fish & Wildlife Service to protect habitat, with adjacent neighborhoods regarding access, the US Forest Service regarding transportation routes, the Flagstaff Biking Organization regarding trail impacts, and neighborhoods interested in the effort adjacent to their homes.  
 
Involve – Following treatment work on some sites, the public has been engaged in removing firewood.  A few individuals who have raised issues about the work have been engaged directly by staff from NAU’s Ecological Restoration Institute to provide context and a more complete understanding of the need, and the work, itself.  Other City Staff, including those from Sustainability and Stormwater, have also been engaged.  Community members have also been hired as seasonal Fire Dept crew members and have been engaged in conducting some of the work itself. 
 
Empower – The planned forest treatments are part of a larger effort underway in our area and throughout northern AZ.  We and our many partners have been engaged for nearly two decades in this work, on various jurisdictions and site conditions, and have utilized a variety of prescriptions and approaches to ensure we have a full-suite of treatments across the greater landscape.  The work to be funded by this award is based upon credible and proven science-based forest restoration and hazard fuel management standards and knowledge.  It adheres to guidelines established in the Greater Flagstaff Area Community Wildfire Protection Plan (City & County - 2005), is consistent with forest treatments designed and implemented by the Greater Flagstaff Forests Partnership (1999-present) and the City of Flagstaff Wildland Fire Management program (1998-present), meets the goals of the State of AZ 20-Year Strategy (2007), is consistent with the required actions identified in both the initial and final Observatory Mesa Forest Stewardship Plan (2013 and 2015, respectfully) and both the Four Forests Restoration Initiative's and the Flagstaff Watershed Protection Project's Final Records of Decision (USFS - 2015).  Further, it meets grant requirements for post-treatment conditions.