Urban Forest Strategy Terms of Reference Staff Report

URBAN FOREST STRATEGY TERMS OF REFERENCE

RECOMMENDATION:

THAT Council approve the Terms of Reference as attached for the Urban Forest Strategy project N-074.

PURPOSE:

The purpose of this report is to address Council Direction from the 2023 budget deliberations, whereby:

Urban Forestry Strategy (N-074) – request for proposals terms of reference to be provided to Council prior to release.

TIME CRITICAL:

Per the 2023 Budget deliberations, the Urban Forest Strategy project can commence once Council has received the Terms of Reference.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:

A draft Terms of Reference is attached to this report per Council direction at the February 15, 2023 regular Council meeting.

The draft Terms of Reference is based on staff research of recently completed urban forest strategies in the region, taking into account that the level of detail of each strategy is proportional to the budget allotted.

Staff recommend approval of the Terms of Reference. Following this, staff will proceed with the RFP process to award the work. Should budgetary constraints result, staff would return to Council to discuss options such as increasing budget (utilizing Local Government Climate Action Program funds) or decreasing scope.

BACKGROUND:

The Urban Forest Strategy project is included in the Town’s 2023-2027 Financial Plan, for the year 2023 (project N-074). Per N-074’s project summary, the development of the Urban Forest Strategy will allow the Town to:

• Monitor tree canopy and develop strategies to mitigate loss;
• Develop urban forest guidelines;
• Inventory the urban forest;
• Integrate the plan with the OCP and climate initiative strategies once they are complete.

The current project budget to achieve the four outcomes above is $82,500.

DISCUSSION:

The draft terms of reference for the Urban Forest Strategy were developed based on comparisons to other recently completed urban forest strategy reports in the region and the lower mainland. Obtaining project costs and budgets from the region were generally unsuccessful without going through the Freedom of Information process. However, staff were able to estimate cost implications by comparing and extrapolating other urban forest strategy scopes with the Town’s scope, based on the four outcomes listed above.

Based on staff’s benchmarking work, it is proposed that the urban forest strategy cover the following:

• Background research and review – understanding the history of urban forestry in View Royal, reviewing land cover datasets provided by the Capital Regional District, reviewing alignment with Town initiatives and bylaws;
• Monitoring and Inventorying – developing urban forest coverage mapping, comparing coverage mapping to past data as available;
• Baseline Conditions Analysis (the “Now”) – where are we at?
• The Future of View Royal’s Urban Forest (the “Wow”) – How do we protect and enhance the urban forest, both in situ and as a result of development, and what are the environmental, social and economic benefits of this?
• Development of Urban Forest Strategies (the “How”) – What steps are needed to get there? What changes can we make to existing bylaws to administer these strategies?

Engagement is proposed for the project through a survey and an in-person event. A presentation would be provided to Council as part of the draft urban forest strategy review.

SUSTAINABILITY/CLIMATE CHANGE IMPACTS:

The development of an Urban Forest Strategy is consistent with the following Town initiatives:

• Strategic Plan (2019-2022) – Development of an urban forest strategy is a goal of the strategic plan: supporting community preparation for climate change impacts (Environmental Stewardship);
• Community Climate Action Strategy (2022) – exploring opportunities to improve carbon sequestration actions including preservation of natural assets;
• Official Community Plan (2011) – Policy NE1.7 stipulates maintaining a healthy urban forest by encouraging the retention of trees and ecological features, promoting tree coverage expansion and enhancing wildlife diversity.

FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS:

The current budget for the urban forest strategy is $82,500. Should Council approve the Terms of Reference and staff subsequently proceed with the RFP process that yields a projected cost overrun, staff will return to Council for feedback. Available options would be as follows:

• Option 1: Proceed with awarding the work and increasing the budget accordingly. Staff would recommend utilizing the Local Government Climate Action Program funds or additional Casino revenue to support this option.
• Option 2: Reduce scope to achieve existing budgets.

ALTERNATIVES:

Council may wish to amend aspects of the Terms of Reference. Doing so could have implications to budget.

CONCLUSION:

A draft Terms of Reference is attached to this report as requested by Council. Should Council accept the Terms of Reference, staff would proceed with releasing an RFP to seek a consultant to complete this work.

ATTACHMENTS:

1. Draft Terms of Reference
2. Project Summary N-074 – Urban Forest Strategy