October 14, 2010
City: Where do we go from here?
Returning back to “normal” in San Bruno will come with a number of initial steps like evaluating the safety of the site affected by the explosion and fire, ensuring safety in the area and minimizing bills to families who lost services — moves the City Council took last night.
Allowing people to rebuild their lives after the Sept. 9 explosion and fire that killed an estimated seven people, injured many more and destroyed 37 homes starts with evaluation. Last night, the City Council adopted two contracts to evaluate the safety of the affected area and provide suggestions as to how to make it secure again. Private security, working in conjunction with the San Bruno police, will be in the area as needed for the next four weeks. And utility and cable bills will be lowered, in some cases eliminated, for those affected.
“It’s the intent of the city to work with the county to address the safety and environmental health first,” said City Manager Connie Jackson. “Then we want to help people get back on their feet and get back to normal as quickly as possible.”
John Sekulich lives on Claremont Drive, which winds through the affected area, and suggested allowing vehicle access to streets like Glenview Drive. doing so would allow residents in the area to go grocery shopping again.
It sounds so simple, but those things will come after everything is deemed to be safe. Demolition and cleanup is scheduled to begin Thursday, with the help of San Mateo County. many of the contracts, the city hopes, will be covered using federal emergency money. however, San Bruno is not yet sure how much it will get from the federal government.
Since the city previously declared an emergency, contracts related to the disaster do not need to go through the traditional bid process. three contracts were approved last night.
First, a $72,000 contract with Treadwell & Rollo, inc. was approved to study the area for both erosion and conditions of retaining walls and re-establishing plants on the slope. Westfall Engineers, inc., which was awarded a $12,000 contract, will work with Treadwell & Rollo to design the needed repairs. Public Services Director Klara Fabry estimated the work would be finished in two weeks.
San Bruno police officers have been working with other agencies to keep security in the area but that mutual aid is no longer available, said Administrative Services Director Jim O’Leary. however, the city still thinks security is necessary. Last night, the council approved a $108,480 contract with the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office for security officers who would work under San Bruno police to watch over the area 24 hours a day as needed for the next four weeks.
Affected residents will also be receiving a break in some bills.
Utilities bills for water and waste go out every two months and are due to go out for this area soon. Staff suggested granting amnesty for the month of September, but not August, for 55 customers whose houses were destroyed or moderately damaged. Councilman Michael Salazar noted theses individuals have bigger worries and suggested the entire two-month bill be waived for those families. his suggestion was approved. Homes from which people were evacuated but allowed to return will receive a $25 credit, costing the city just over $8,000.
San Bruno also has a cable company. a number of people’s services were affected because of the fire. again, 28 homes, which were destroyed or had major or moderate damage, will not be billed for September. Some customers were without service for nine days due to being evacuated or because of infrastructure damage will be given a three-week credit, a $9,700 cost to the city. Just over 70 homes were without service for three days. They will receive a $25 credit.
These credits will be lost revenue for San Bruno which cannot be recouped, said Jackson.
Councilwoman Irene O’Connell was sensitive to the desire of one’s heart to not charge anything but said the city’s responsibility is to remain solvent and provide services for everyone.
Heather Murtagh can be reached by e-mail: heather@smdailyjournal.com or by phone: (650) 344-5200 ext. 105.
