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BACKGROUND WCA was originally selected in May 2000 to complete the City's annual tree trimming and removal services contract and to conduct the City's first tree inventory. The Parks Maintenance Division has been very satisfied with WCA's performance to date. WCA was again awarded a contract with the City on June 2, 2015 after successfully completing a Request for Proposal (RFP) process. Out of the annual contract amount of$500,997, approximately $55,000 is being utilized by the Engineering Department for the tree trimming to clear city trees in preparation for annual street resurfacing project and the city's Heritage Tree Program, leaving a remaining balance insufficient to cover the unpredictable fluctuation of tree-related work for an entire 12-month year. As a result, Parks Maintenance can only use WCA services for approximately 11 months out of the year. This shortfall has occurred for the previous two years. On June 20, 2017, per City Council approval, the Eucalyptus trees located behind the Ventana Hills neighborhood are now being maintained as part of the city owned property, Bonde Ranch Open Space. The Bonde Ranch trees were previously the responsibility of the Bonde Ranch Lighting and Landscape Maintenance District. A safety-risk and condition assessment of 65 trees at the Bonde Ranch property was conducted by the tree consultancy firm, Hort Science, and the attached WCA proposal (Attachment#2) is a cost estimate of the necessary work outlined in the report summarizing the study findings. DISCUSSION In order for the Parks Maintenance Division to effectively maintain city-owned trees and parks year round, the Operations Services Department is requesting an annual increase of$50,000 to the base WCA contract. This $50,000 increase will be funded through the Parks Renovation Fund. In addition to the increased annual needs described above, the acceptance of responsibilities of the Bonde Ranch trees necessitates a one-time increase of$184,785 (rounded to $199,003 to cover any unforeseen contingencies) to WCA's contract to allow for the proper pruning and removal of trees that can pose a potential threat to public safety. As this additional cost was unforeseen and therefore unbudgeted, the Operations Services Department will seek an increase to the Parks Renovation and the Urban Forestry Budget during FY 2017/18 mid-year budget cycle. The total impact of this action will provide for a one-time increase to the not-to-exceed amount of the existing WCA contract for tree trimming and removal, inventory management, and arborist services to $750,000 for FY 2017/18 and to increase the annual contract amount to $550,000 for subsequent fiscal years (FY 18/19 and FY 19/20). Page 2 of 3