ITEM 9 STAFF REPORT. TO: Mayor and City Council. FROM: Tom Welch, Interim Fire Chief. SUBJECT: City ofmill Valley All-Hazard Mitigation Plan

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1 STAFF REPORT TO: Mayor and City Council FROM: Tom Welch, Interim Fire Chief SUBJECT: City ofmill Valley DATE: March 2,2015 Approved for Forwarding: ~c.~~_ a es C. McCann, City Manager 1 Issue: Consideration to update the City ofmill Valley. 2 3 Recommendation: Receive presentation, discuss and provide direction. 4 5 Background: 6 7 State and local governments are required to develop an (AHMP) as a 8 condition ofreceiving certain types of non-emergency disaster assistance, including funding for 9 the mitigation projects. The Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act 10 (the Stafford Act), as amended by the Disaster Mitigation Act of 2000, provides the legal basis 11 for state and local governments to undertake a risk-based approach to reducing risks from natural 12 hazards through mitigation planning. The Stafford Act authorizes temporary housing, grants for 13 immediate needs of families and individuals, the repair of public infrastructure, emergency 14 communications systems and other forms ofassistance The City of Mill Valley does have a Council approved on file with 17 the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The plan was first adopted in 2004 and 18 then later updated in 2009 with a current update under development. The City is required to 19 update the AHMP every 5 years. Our plan has served our community well over the years by 20 focusing our attention and budgets towards flood mitigation efforts, wildland urban interface 21 issues as well as earth quake preparedness. 1 ITEM 9

2 City Council Staff Report Purpose and Components ofthe AHMP: The AHMP forms the foundation ofa long-term strategy to reduce disaster losses and breaks the 26 cycle ofdisaster damage, reconstruction and repeated damage in the next disaster. It creates a 27 framework for risk-based decision making to reduce injury, property and the economic damage. 28 The plan is necessary as a condition ofreceiving certain types ofhazard mitigation disaster 29 assistance both emergency and non-emergency Elements ofan AHMP include: Planning Process 34 0 Public involvement (survey) Council review and approval. 36 Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment 37 0 Identifies and prioritizes the community risks such as, flooding, wildland 38 fire, civil unrest and climate change Identifies the responsible party, timeframe, hazard, possible funding 40 source and priority implementation schedule. 41 Mitigation Strategy 42 0 Information on funding sources and resources for implementing mitigation 43 actions Organize Resources 2. Assess Risks 3. Develop a MItigation Plan Mitigation, a main component ofthe life cycle ofa disaster, focuses on breaking the cycle of disaster damage, reconstruction, and repeated damage. Mitigation efforts provide value by creating safer communities and reducing loss oflife and property. Mitigation includes such activities as: Enforcing stringent building codes, flood-proofing requirements, seismic design standards, and wind-bracing requirements for new construction or repairs ofexisting buildings. Adopting zoning ordinances that steer development away from areas subject to flooding, storm surge or coastal erosion. 2

3 City Council Staff Report Retrofitting public buildings to withstand hurricane-strength winds or ground shaking. Local governments have the responsibility to protect the health, safety and welfare oftheir citizens. Proactive mitigation policies and actions help reduce risk and create safer, more disaster resilient communities. Mitigation is an investment in our community's future safety and sustainability. Consider the critical importance ofmitigation to: Protect public safety and prevent loss oflife and injury. Reduce harm to existing and future development. Prevent damage to a community's unique economics, cultural, and environmental assets. Reduce the costs ofdisaster response and recovery and the exposure to risk for first responders. Help accomplish other community objectives such as, leveraging capital improvements, infrastructure protection, open space preservation and economic resiliency. Minimize operational downtime and accelerate recovery ofgovernment and business after disasters. Mitigation's Value: 1. Mitigation creates safer communities by reducing loss oflife and property. 2. Mitigation enables individuals and communities to recover more rapidly from disasters. 3. Mitigation lessens the financial impact ofdisasters. Discussion: Communities are required to update their every five years. The City ofmill Valley's All-Hazard Mitigation Plan is currently under review and development, with our goal to complete by spring of2015. All-Hazard Mitigation Planning is in alignment with the Mill Valley City Council Core Values and Key Issues, such as: 3

4 City Council StaffReport Figure 1. Priority Low Low Low CORE VALUES The health and safety ofthe residents. Preservation ofthe community's high quality oflife. Operational excellence. KEY ISSUES Emergency preparedness with a focus on fire, flood and earthquake. The is in line with values identified in the City ofmill Valley 2040 General Plan by; planning, preparing, adapting and responding to natural and human-made disasters... At the direction of the City Manager, a task force was formed to start the process of reviewing Mill Valley's current plans as well as preparing a new plan for approval by the City Council and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The team is made up ofrepresentatives from all departments to include: Police, Fire, Building, Planning, Public Works and the City Manager. Areas of focus for the group and the plan are listed below in Figure 1. Several of the hazards remain constant, such as flood, fire and earthquake. Other hazards are newer and emerging to include Data/Telecommunications, Cyber threats and Public Health Crisis such as Ebola. Hazard Flood Severe Weather Earthquake Wildland Urban Interface Fire Data/Telecommunications Transportation Loss Utility Loss (phone, satellite) Public Health Crisis Drought Hazmat Incident Terrorism Cascade Dam Failure Special Events Climate Change Related Hazards Extreme hot/cold, wind, lightning Tsunami Cyber threat Aviation Disaster, Accident/Incident Biological, Health, Pandemic Flu Waste water, Sewage Radiological, Natural Gas, Explosion, Transportation Loss Linked to Bioterrorism Structural or earthquake, flood, terrorism Civil Unrest- Disorder 4

5 City Council Staff Report ACTIONS TO DATE: 132 Comprehensive review ofcurrent. 133 Following the review, the team found many positive aspects, 134 however there was an obvious need to update outdated 135 information. Many opportunities exist to capture and build 136 from the City ofmill Valley 2040 General Plan, the recently 137 approved Sewerage Agency ofsouthern Marin Master Plan 138 among other existing programs such as the City's Vegetation 139 Management program Outreach Strategy: A survey is being developed as one method for community outreach. Other outreach methods will include the involvement ofthe Emergency Preparedness Commission and the City Council. Hazard Mitigation Planning Risk Assessment: The risk assessment process provides the foundation for the rest ofthe mitigation planning process. The four basic componentsofthe risk assessment are: 1. Identify Hazards. 2. Profile hazard events. 3. Inventory assets. 4. Estimate losses. A review of community capabilities for mitigating the effects ofdisasters. The primary types ofcapabilities for reducing long-term vulnerability through mitigation planning are the following: Planning and regulatory. Financial. Administrative and technical. Education and outreach. The City is reviewing our participation in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), which will be an integral component for flood mitigation activities. The hazard mitigation strategy shall address each jurisdiction's participation in the NFIP and continued compliance with NFIP requirements, as appropriate. Plan updates must meet the same requirements and document any change in the Floodplain Management Programs.. 5

6 City Council StaffReport Several steps remain in plan development: Community Outreach: Completion ofdraft Plan: Council Review and Adoption: FEMA Review and Approval: Conclusion: The plan acts as a guiding document for directing efforts and budget towards mitigation efforts where necessary. Fiscal Impact: Complete by mid-april. Complete by early May. Complete by late May. Complete by early August. The City ofmill Valley's update is a federally mandated process where City government works hand in hand with citizens to prioritize and craft a plan that is consistent with FEMA's requirements and approved by the City Council. The All Hazards Mitigation Plan focuses budgeted dollars to address, correct and mitigate the hazards identified and prioritized within the plan. For instance: The Sewerage Agency of Southern Marin (SASM) is evaluating a facilities upgrade as outlined in their Master Plan. These upgrades will undoubtedly include flood mitigation efforts as well as earthquake retrofitting ofimproved structures. Improvements such as these among other current and future proj ects will be included in the AHMP. The importance offocusing budgeted dollars on longrange mitigation efforts work to keep our community safe and vibrant. The current fiscal impact associated with the development and updating ofthe City ofmill Valley AHMP accounts for stafftime to review the plan and update as necessary, stafftraining and orientation on the new plan and ongoing section specific training as necessary. 6