To: County of Sonoma Board of Supervisors
Department or Agency Name(s): Department of Emergency Management
Staff Name and Phone Number: Chris Godley, 565-1152
Vote Requirement: Majority
Supervisorial District(s): Countywide
Title:
Title
Emergency Los Guilicos Shelter Development and Joe Rodota Trail Clearance and Cleanup Cost Report
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Recommended Action:
Recommended action
A) Receive staff report on Updated Costs related to establishing an Emergency Homeless Shelter and Joe Rodota Trail clearance operations.
B) Retroactively delegate authority to the Director of Emergency services to execute hazmat and debris removal contracts with Ancon for an amount of $150,000 and an amendment to that contact of $23,565.
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Executive Summary:
Joe Rodota Trail homeless encampment relocation and trail clearance emergency operations have been completed. The Board of Supervisor’s declaration of a local emergency in December activated the County’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC) to facilitate coordination of services across multiple departments, ensure actions were taken to address the rapidly deteriorating health and safety conditions, and to provide housing options to those living on the Joe Rodota Trail. This report includes a recap of costs incurred as part of the Emergency Services Department EOC activation closeout report.
The EOC activation included operations, planning, logistics, public information, and finance activities associated with clearing the trail and establishing the temporary camp at Los Guilicos. Although not every invoice has been received, staff have estimated the total expense associate with the emergency actions. This report summarizes those expenses and requests authorization of delegated authority to retroactively approve a contract that were necessary to complete the work.
Discussion:
As directed by the Board of Supervisors at its January 14th meeting, County General Services Capital Programs staff working under EOC Plans Section (Permit Sonoma) and Management guidance, expedited the construction of an emergency Outdoor Shelter site to support the relocation of unsheltered individuals from the Joe Rodota Trail encampment. The objective was to implement emergency actions and create housing options that would enable the County to clear the Trail by January 31st.
County staff within the EOC Logistics section, with EOC management and Finance Section approval, procured goods and services to support this mission. The proposed Funding Plan for the Los Guilicos Emergency Shelter was estimated on January 14th to cost $2.37 million.
The cost estimate within the plan reflected certain planning assumptions about the cost per unit of each shelter, the available utilities, and site conditions. The January 14th budget did not include any costs to staff and supply the Emergency Operations Center, nor for trail clearance, cleanup, and restoration.
Accomplishing the site build-out in 11 days required contractors and staff to work overtime, 12 hour plus days, seven days a week. The expedited build-out significantly increased the contracted labor and supply delivery costs by 18%. These contract acceleration costs were not originally anticipated in the budget estimate. Site conditions also contributed to the additional cost. Although a seemingly flat parking lot, the slope at the site required additional hours to level each housing unit and address accessibility issues. The lack of necessary electrical, sewer, and water infrastructure required multiple Job Order Contractors to rapidly provide solutions to these site deficiencies. Permitting requirements related to ADA and fire codes necessitated a number of additional tasks and improvements increasing costs.
The County’s Financial Management System has yet to post many actual expenses - in these cases, procurement records have been used to identify estimated one-time and ongoing financial commitments. Overall, the emergency mission to develop and operate the Los Guilicos Shelter, as well as the clearance and cleanup of the Joe Rodota Trail is estimated to have a cost totaling $3.44 million. The difference between the updated $3.44 million and the 1/14/2020 Board reviewed cost estimate plan of $2.37 million is $1.07 million. The variance is mainly due to the accelerated build-out of the shelter, site conditions, permitting requirements, increased operating costs, trail services support, and debris and hazardous waste clearance costs.
Saint Vincent de Paul’s operating contract provides operational and care services to the individuals at the Los Guilicos Community. Due to the expedited timeline for the negotiation and implementation, not all of the operational costs were included in the contract. The contract with Saint Vincent de Paul is amended for an additional $40,000 to meet the needs of increased staffing for security and care services, in order to keep the client to staff ratio low. Some site services were not included in the contract and are the responsibility of the County. Actual monthly County costs for the security outside of the shelter, ADA accessible showers with servicing, and generators with fuel costs came in higher than originally estimated. County staff had assumed the site could be hardwired to the existing electrical system instead of requiring generators, which added an unexpected ongoing cost for rent and fuel. Overall, the cost of operating the shelter for 3 months increased by $125,000.
County staff time, including General Services project development and management labor costs and for staffing the EOC and the emergency response to the JRT totaled $901,605. Departments are expected to incorporate the staffing costs related to the JRT emergency mission into their existing FY 19-20 budget. However, should a department find itself short in meeting its budget due to the staffing costs associated with the EOC work, the CAO’s office will work with the department to make adjustments as needed during the close of books process in July.
The December 23, 2019 Board item authorized use of up to $2.08 million in General Fund contingencies for emergency actions associated with establishing a shelter site. The difference with today’s updated costs of $3.44 million is $1.36 million.
Besides the $2.08 million approval to use General Fund contingencies for a shelter, the 12/23/2020 item delegated authority to adjust the county’s budget up for up to $5.55 million to purchase houses for a Congregate Housing homeless solution. The $5.55 million was to be financed with $3.9 million of No Place Like Home (NPLH) Round 1 non-competitive grant, and $1.65 million from available FY 2018-19 close of books General Fund balance.
The Community Development Commission purchased two congregate houses totaling $2.8 million, which will be financed in its entirety with the $3.9 million NPLH grant, leaving $1.1 million for additional purchases. As a result, staff recommends the $1.65 million General Fund, meant for congregate housing, be redirected to finance the $1.36 million gap resulting from the updated emergency shelter and trail clearance/clean-up costs. At this time, staff is not expecting any additional Emergency mission costs and will plan to return at 3rd quarter consolidated budget adjustments or year-end to reconcile costs above those previously allocated.
As part of the emergency activities, the Director of Emergency Services executed additional debris and hazardous waste trail clearance/clean-up contracts with Ancon. Given the objective of clearing the trail by January 31st agreements were executed above the Department Head’s established contracting authority limit of $50,000. The contract amount was originally for $150,000. Once the individuals were vacated from the trail and the cleanup began it became apparent that the contract would need to be increased. The volume of hazardous materials and items requiring unique disposal added $23,565 for the contracted services. Therefore, staff requests the Board issue retroactive delegated authority affirming approval of the contract execution and amendment.
Prior Board Actions:
• 1/14/20 - The Board found that the conditions on and around the Joe Rodota Trail constituted an immediate hazard requiring emergency action; authorized the development of an Emergency Outdoor Shelter Site to be located at the County of Sonoma Los Guilicos Campus; delegated authority to the Director of General Services to execute a revocable license agreement with the Community Development Commission for no monetary rent or fees in exchange for the Commission providing for up to 60 people at the Emergency Outdoor Shelter Site, to provide and arrange for emergency sheltering accommodation and services needed for persons experiencing homelessness, and to provide for all site needs as determined by the Director, including for provision of utilities, security, and waste management; and approved related CEQA and building code actions.
• December 23, 2019: Board of Supervisors/Board of Commissioners took action to approve a multi-part approach to address the homeless emergency on the Joe Rodota trail, including purchase of homes for shared living, entering into master leases, the provision of behavioral, health, medical and social services, and the establishment of indoor-outdoor shelters; and the use of up to $2.1 million of General Fund contingencies.
• December 17, 2019: Board of Supervisors received a report on emergency measures to address homelessness; authorized $25,000 for expanded homelessness outreach; and, adopted a resolution proclaiming homeless emergency on the Joe Rodota trail.
• October 9, 2018: Board of Supervisors and Board of Commissioners declared a shelter crisis in the County of Sonoma and authorized participation in the State Homeless and Emergency Aid Program;
Fiscal Summary
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Expenditures |
FY 19-20 Adopted |
FY20-21 Projected |
FY 21-22 Projected |
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Additional Appropriation Requested |
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State/Federal |
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Fees/Other |
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Narrative Explanation of Fiscal Impacts:
$1.65 million of the 12/23/19 budget approved for Congregate Housing property purchases will be redirected to the Emergency Shelter Build-Out and JRT Response.
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Staffing Impacts: |
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Position Title (Payroll Classification) |
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Narrative Explanation of Staffing Impacts (If Required):
Attachments:
Updated Costs: Emergency Homeless Shelter and Joe Rodota Trail clearance operations
Related Items “On File” with the Clerk of the Board: