Chico parks department, commission see concerns
Officials say they will consider public scrutiny of parks’ maintenance
CHICO » Chico’s parks director and commissioners considered some public scrutiny of maintenance and a draft plan for handling future vegetation in Bidwell Park.
A meeting of the Bidwell Parks and Playground Commission’s Natural Resources Committee on Wednesday considered public feedback on the drafted Vegetation Management Plan, as public comments are received before it can move forward. Forest Health Watershed Coordinator Wolfy Rougle said the comment period will end Feb. 2.
The concerns voiced so far were mainly about the draft’s Environmental Impact Review process. Commissioners Lise Smith-Peters and Aaron Haar agreed it would be ideal to get more comments to
hear more sides from concerned citizens.
Ali Meders Knight commented that based on her work with the Chico Traditional Ecological Stewardship Program the plan could represent issues for native plants — which, under the city’s current Memorandum of Understanding consultation agreement with the Mechoopda tribe, must be considered.
“One of the risks is not having fire,” Meders-Knight said. “The lack of fire is a cultural risk to the local tribe because cultural resources, our native plants, are all adapted to fire, they have been for thousands of years.”
Because of the possible impacts on native plants, “The cultural consultation that is required is going to probably create a more elaborate MOU with the tribe,” she claimed.
In a comment, Woody Elliot criticized the city’s ongoing work with the California Conservation Corps, such as in the city’s 20192020 Fire Load Reduction Project, with concern if the Corps will continue to be used for the Vegetation Management Plan and “what environmental review is needed.”
Before the meeting, Thomas Barrett also submitted a report representing Friends of Bidwell Park, criticizing the results of the Fire Load Reduction Project, which was a Proposition 68 grant funded project.
“I use the park on almost a daily basis and am a trained botanist, biologist and environmental planner. … One of the things I noticed was the work of the CCC crews this past winter and spring, and I wasn’t impressed with the work activities or the results,” he wrote.
Barrett filed an extensive report challenging the types of maintenance done on trees in the park.
“They trimmed some invasive trees down about one foot above ground level and left them to resprout instead of pulling them out with a week-wrench or Pulaski. In some places they removed native plants and didn’t touch the invasive that were right next to the natives.”
The Friends of Bidwell Park’s report had a long list of complaints about park maintenance being performed as well as numerous recommendations for the city establishing best practices for maintenance activities. Barrett also criticized Parks and Natural Resources Director Linda Herman, by alleging she “did not provide a scope of work for the project or locations for specific work activities” and Public Works Director Eric Gustafson, claiming the project “was in direct contradiction to statements made by the Public Works director at the May 20, 2019 Bidwell Parks and Playground Commission meeting.”
Herman rebutted Barrett’s claims, saying the fuels reduction project came before the Bidwell Parks and Playground Commission at multiple meetings in 2019, and said the city did provide a detailed work plan for the Corps at those meetings as well as later giving species identification training. The project had to use specific fuels reduction funding provided after a disaster — the Camp Fire — to get help from the Corps.
Herman and Gustafson disputed the other claims about the Corps, and the criticism about ongoing park maintenance on Friday, saying the strategy can use the crews for this work easily.
Gustafson enthusiastically vouched for the work from the Corps and added while the report was extensive, ongoing concern from Friends of Bidwell Park is “unfortunate.”
“We’re satisfied with the work done with the Corps last year,” he said, referring to the calling it a “great partnership” the city was thankful to win a grant for. He added utilizing the Corps for decades is “very prudent and cost effective” for the city as Public Works has minimal staff.
She complimented the Corps and said the city’s relationship is a “win-win” as it gives manpower to the Public Works department but also is an opportunity to mentor and train the Corps’ workers.
Herman also added other types of maintenance which are not formal projects do not need to go under the same types of California Environmental Quality Act review before taking place, but the draft Vegetation Management Plan and its drafted environmental impact review will go under formal environmental review if approved.
Gustafson added all work performed by the Corps was under the guidelines of the Bidwell Park Master Management Plan and the city “does not have hundreds of thousands of dollars” to update the Bidwell Park Master Management Plan from 2008.
“However, we do recognize it will need an update eventually and will develop a project to do so as budget priorities and resources allow,” he said.
“We’re working hard,” Gustafson said. “We believe the majority of Chicoans want the park managed appropriately and effectively. We appreciate citizens’ concern, but we feel these are general maintenance functions and when items are designated projects, they will go through project analysis. We take a lot of pride and joy in managing the park.”