04-06-12 BPU RPT 13 - Laserfiche WebLink

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W A T E R E N E R G Y i F F F RIVERSIDE PUBLIC UTILITIES Board Memorandum PUBLIC UTILITIES BOARD OF PUBLIC UTILITIES DATE: April 6, 2012 ITEM NO: 13 SUBJECT: THE 2011-12 TREE POWER PROGRAM ISSUE: That the Board of Public Utilities consider approving the Tree Power Program annual Free Shade Tree Coupon Campaign and authorize the Riverside Public Utilities (RPU) General Manager to increase vendor purchase order amounts as needed. RECOMMENDATIONS: That the Board of Public Utilities recommend that the City Council: 1. Approve the implementation of the annual Free Shade Tree Coupon Campaign; and 2. Authorize the Public Utilities General Manager, or his designee, the authority to increase the amounts of the vendor purchase orders for the Free Shade Tree Coupon Campaign, in $50,000 increments, as needed up to $150,000 per vendor, with the total amount of the campaign not to exceed $500,000. BACKGROUND: In 2009, RPU created the Free Shade Tree Coupon Campaign. The back of the March utility bill is printed as a free shade tree coupon that customers take to a participating nursery to redeem for one free shade tree up to $25. The back of the bill strategy was created to ensure that a free tree coupon will reach all RPU customers as well as bring awareness to the regular Tree Power Rebate Program. When the first coupon campaign was launched in March 2001, 3,700 trees were planted. This was a significant increase from the 214 trees planted in Fiscal Year 1889-00 off the regular Tree Power Program. To date, over 102,000 trees have been planted by approximately 80 percent of the program's participants utilizing the back of the bill coupon campaign. Staff anticipates 10,000 more trees will be planted from this year's campaign. RPU works with a number of vendors that accept these free tree coupons and are located throughout the City including Parkview Nursery on 4377 Chicago Avenue; Parkview Nursery on 3841 Jackson Street and Louie's Nursery on 18550 Van Buren Boulevard. It is difficult to determine which vendor customers will patronize and as a result, some vendors can give away as much as $150,000 in trees from redeeming the free shade tree coupons. Staff recommends that the RPU General Manager be given the authority to approve change orders for this program in $50,000 increments not to exceed $150,000 per vendor. FISCAL IMPACT: The Fiscal Year 2011-12 budget includes $500,000 in the Public Benefits Residential Tree Power Program Account No. 6020100-456038.