MEMORANDUM

TO: William Popp, Assembly President

Members, Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly

THRU: Dale Bagley, Mayor

FROM: Bob Bright, Planning Director

DATE: September 28, 2000

SUBJECT: Ordinance 2000-50, authorizing the emergency harvest of spruce bark beetle killed timber

The administration has reviewed borough properties in the south peninsula and determined that large quantities of the borough-owned property currently pose a moderate to high fire risk due to the spruce bark beetle devastation. This ordinance, if enacted, would authorize the administration to expeditiously remove dead spruce trees from the property identified in the exhibits accompanying this ordinance. Due to the large number of parcels involved, the planning department has divided the parcels among 12 units which are delineated on page 1 of Exhibit One. The balance of Exhibit One contains the legal descriptions of the affected properties. The maps contained in the alphabetically labeled exhibits following Exhibit One show the affected properties in each unit. The areas marked in red and pink are the areas proposed for timber harvest by this ordinance. The ordinance would also authorize the mayor to open the parcels containing ten acres or less for personal use timber disposal when no qualifying bids are received.

This ordinance would not waive the competitive bidding requirements or the 30-day notice to bidder requirement contained in the code. Detailed plans of operations would also still be required, and the assembly would be provided with quarterly reports regarding the status of the timber activities and any revenues derived from this project. The ordinance would waive land classification requirements and would allow the administration to prepare a single forest management sale report for all of the affected timber resources. This would still be subject to planning commission review and assembly approval by resolution. The primary purpose of this ordinance is to support the expeditious removal of this large fire hazard currently existing on the peninsula.