Special Notice / Hearing: None__
Vote Required: Majority
To: Honorable Board of Supervisors
From: Michael P. Callagy, County Manager
Subject: Use of District-Discretionary Measure K Funds - Supervisorial District 4
RECOMMENDATION:
title
Measure K: Adopt a resolution authorizing a one-time grant of district-discretionary Measure K funds, not to exceed $28,400 to Canopy for Climate Ready NFO (CRNFO) to provide incentives and outreach for North Fair Oaks residents to participate in Canopy’s tree-planting program, providing an exception to the criteria for district-discretionary Measure K funds to allow for partial upfront funding, and authorizing the County Manager, or the County Manager’s designee, to execute the grant agreement.
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BACKGROUND:
Measure K is the half-cent general sales tax initially approved by San Mateo County voters in November 2012 and extended in November 2016 for a total of thirty years.
On February 12, 2019, the Board of Supervisors (Board) held a study session on Measure K expenditures and anticipated revenue for fiscal years (FY) 2019-21. The Board-appointed Measure K sub-committee, consisting of Supervisor Pine and Supervisor Canepa, convened the study session to, among other things, work with staff to facilitate the Board’s development of Measure K priorities and continuing initiatives for FY 2019-21. The Board approved $3.75 million in one-time loans or grants each fiscal year for FY 2019-21, divided equally among the five supervisorial districts, for district-discretionary needs and projects. District 4 has submitted a request to use its district-discretionary Measure K funds as shown below and described in the Project Summary section of this memorandum:
|
District/Project |
Amount |
|
District 4 (Supervisor Warren Slocum) - Canopy for Climate Ready North Fair Oaks to provide gift card incentives and outreach for North Fair Oaks residents to participate in Canopy’s tree-planting program |
$28,400 |
This item is consistent with the criteria for district-discretionary Measure K funds approved by the Board in December 2018, with the following exception: Canopy has requested the gift card portion of the grant amount, $20,000, as an upfront, rather than reimbursement, payment. This exception is necessary to allow Canopy the ability to purchase the gift cards to have in hand as an incentive when they recruit residents to participate in the tree-planting program. The Board may approve this exception to the criteria by adopting the resolution.
PROJECT SUMMARY:
This is a request to authorize a grant to Canopy, and resulting grant agreement, in an amount not to exceed $28,400, to provide gift card incentives and outreach for North Fair Oaks residents to participate in the tree-planting program. The County Manager’s Office will administer and manage the agreement.
In 2015, OOS launched the “Sea Change SMC” initiative with the goal of increasing coordination and collaboration on sea level rise planning across the County and improving awareness and understanding of the issue. In 2018, the Community Resilience Grants Program was launched to assist cities in developing solutions that reduce impacts from sea level rise for specific areas or assets. Acterra, El Concilio of San Mateo County and Siena Youth Center were awarded grants to support the development of local committees and community-driven initiatives in East Palo Alto and North Fair Oaks, respectively. The North Fair Oaks grant led to the formation of Climate Ready NFO (CRNFO), a community-based collaborative with representatives from public, private, and social sectors.
Communities like North Fair Oaks suffer from disproportionately substandard housing quality, overcrowded living conditions, limited discretionary income, poor health conditions, low civic engagement, and elevated climate risk. OOS’ own climate readiness web tool, which sources extreme heat forecasts from CalAdapt, shows portions of North Fair Oaks at particularly high heat stress relative to the County in its climate projections. One of the likely factors contributing to this heightened risk is the area’s lack of tree canopy, particularly over the public sidewalks in North Fair Oaks. As extreme climate events (such as heat waves, wildfires, storms, and droughts) grow in frequency, people living in substandard housing (which includes leaky roofs and windows, poor ventilation, higher risk of mold) and in less protected urban environments may become increasingly vulnerable to health consequences like asthma, loss of sleep, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and heat stroke.
Canopy, a non-profit member of CRNFO, has secured CalFIRE grant funding, as part of a carbon sequestration initiative, to plant up to 260 trees on private properties in North Fair Oaks through 2022. Canopy covers the cost of tree planting and three years of maintenance before all responsibilities are transferred to the property owner. Their experience conducting outreach in neighboring communities suggests that it will be a challenge to recruit 260 willing applicants in North Fair Oaks, particularly given concerns around long-term maintenance and renter/landlord relations.
This Measure K grant is an added incentive for North Fair Oaks residents who agree to receive a Canopy tree in their front yard, and who have a front yard location particularly conducive to sidewalk shading. The incentive, a $100 gift card to local gardening and hardware businesses, will help Canopy achieve its overall tree planting target count while also encouraging as many of these shade trees as possible to be planted in locations that maximize public good. A portion of the Measure K funding in the amount of $20,000 will be provided to Canopy upfront to allow for the purchase of the gift cards. A student team from Stanford’s Future Bay Initiative will conduct a data-driven analysis to identify parcels that would be eligible for the incentive. The analysis will incorporate parcel, building footprint, sidewalk, and sun path data to identify optimal planting locations for shading the public right-of-way. CRNFO will conduct outreach to eligible properties; a portion of the Measure K funds will be used to support this outreach component in the form of targeted postcard mailers regarding the program and the incentive.
The proposed Measure K grant will be used to provide $100 gift cards for residents willing to participate in Canopy’s tree-planting grant and outreach to inform residents of this program.
Total Measure K Request: Not to Exceed $28,400
The release of funds will be contingent on the execution of an agreement providing for the County’s confirmation of the expenditure of funds for the purposes stated herein. The County will disburse the funds to the following organization for the purposes described above:
Maya Briones
Canopy
3921 East Bayshore Road
Palo Alto, CA 94303
650-964-6110 ex 4
maya@canopy.org <mailto:maya@canopy.org>
PERFORMANCE MEASURES:
|
Description |
Target |
|
Support outreach efforts to inform North Fair Oaks residents of the Canopy tree-planting program and provide incentive of $100 gift cards for participating residents. |
200 gift cards distributed |
FISCAL IMPACT:
There are sufficient Measure K funds for this specific FY 2020-21 Measure K request. These funds are budgeted in the Non-Departmental Services FY 2020-21 Approved Budget.