1994 AGN JAN 18 I11 - Laserfiche WebLink

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CITY OF COLTON AGENDA REPORT For Council Meeting of January 18, 1994 To: Honorable Mayor and City Council Date: January 13, 1994 From: Jerry L. Young, City Manager Subject: Consider Administering Weed Abatement Services through the City of Colton Fire Department rather than Contracting this Service with the County of San Bernardino BACKGROUND: Chapter 6.22, of the Colton Municipal Code adopted in 1989, provided standards and procedures- for the abatement of weeds and refuse by the County of San Bernardinowithin the corporate limits of the City. DISCUSSION• The City entered into an agreement with the County to provide weed abatement services in 1989. At that time it was our feeling that the County could provide this service at a low cost to the City because of its ability. to "spread the costs" over a large client base. The maximum amount Colton would have to pay the County per year for weed abatement services was established by the agreement at $9,000. The cost to the City under the agreement, is the difference between the total program cost to the County and the charges billed to property owners who had this service performed. For the calendar year 1992, the bill to the City from the County for weed abatement services was $6,191 While that amount is within the limits of the agreement, we feel an in-house program administered by the Colton Fire Department would give us more control over prioritizing those areas where weeds need to be abated, place its emphasis only on Colton, not other areas, and generally provide a better service to this community. There will be no additional staff required at the present time to staff this program. The weed abatement program as proposed will be administered by the Fire Marshall, Fire Department staff and staff from the Community Development Department. Fiscal Impact Initially, monies will have to be expended to pay for any weed abatement contract work. These monies will however be recouped through the property tax roles. There will also be an administrative fee assessed which is in excess of the weed abatement costs to the property owner. The administrative fee is intended first to provide an incentive for the property owner to do his own weed abatement and second to cover any administrative costs the City may incur. Neighboring. cities have in-house weed abatement programs and charge administrative ranging from'$40 (Rialto) to $100 (Loma Linda). The estimated cost for the contract work: for one year is $50,000.