Title
Resolution to Approve Professional Services Agreement with JJR, LLC ($56,260.00) for Public Engagement and Meeting Facilitation Services to Support the Development of the Urban Forest Management Plan
Memorandum
Your approval is requested to authorize a Professional Services Agreement with JJR, LLC, in the amount of $56,260.00 for public engagement and meeting facilitation services to support the development of the city’s first Urban Forest Management Plan.
The urban forest is an important asset to the City of Ann Arbor providing environmental, social and economic benefits. The City’s public trees reduce stormwater runoff, conserve energy, reduce carbon dioxide, improve air quality and serve as an important aesthetic element in the landscape. An analysis completed with the tree inventory estimated that the City’s public trees provide $4.6 million in benefits annually.
The City currently operates without any written policies for managing the urban forest. In order to create a sustainable urban forest that maximizes community benefits while also meeting resident needs, the City is developing an urban forest management plan. The City began the process of developing the urban forest management plan in 2009 with the completion of a comprehensive street and park tree inventory. The inventory documented an urban forest that contains over 40,000 street trees and 6,600 park trees in maintained areas that the City is responsible for managing.
Following the completion of the street and park tree inventory, city staff began identifying items that were critical to the success of plan development. An essential component identified for successful plan development is public engagement and citizen involvement. To ensure that public input was an integral part of plan development from the beginning, city staff identified a three phase public engagement process. Phase 1 would be to complete initial public outreach efforts, including facilitating public workshops. ...
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