Community is invited to attend Woodpecker Ravine Town Hall on April 3rd
This week, the Nevada County Office of Emergency Services (OES) officially kicks off Phase 1 of the Woodpecker Ravine Shaded Fuel Break Project. Phase 1 of the project aims to address hazardous vegetation on 410 acres of private property, protecting nearly 400 homes within the project area, plus 14 schools and eight fire stations nearby. Once completed, the project would help limit wildfire spread, and improve evacuation routes for residents and access for first responders during a wildfire.
Sandwiched between Highways 49 and 174 and bounded at the top and bottom by Empire Mine State Historic Park and Mount Olive Road respectively, Woodpecker Ravine is within the high and very high fire hazard severity zones just southeast of Grass Valley. The area’s steep topography and dense vegetation make it susceptible to wildfire. It is a priority treatment area for CAL FIRE and the community. “I have personally toured the Woodpecker Ravine Project area and know first-hand how important this work is for protecting our community.
Not only will this project provide direct benefit to the landowners within the project area, but also for the City of Grass Valley and adjacent communities as well,” said District 1 Supervisor Heidi Hall.
April 3rd Town Hall
Community members are invited to learn more by attending the Woodpecker Ravine Phase 1 Town Hall on April 3rd, from 6-7:30 pm at the Chicago Park Elementary School, 15725 Mount Olive Road, Grass Valley.
The Town Hall will feature a project overview and the opportunity to meet the team of environmental consultants who will be leading the botanical, wildlife, and cultural surveys necessary for California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) compliance and the registered professional forester working on the project. These contractors were selected from the County’s recently approved list of Qualified Vendors for Environmental Consulting Services and Registered Professional Foresters.
“We are excited to launch this project as it will holistically address the many aspects of wildfire mitigation that are a priority in Nevada County – from fuels reduction and evacuation routes to defensible space. At completion, Woodpecker Ravine will be a model for what wildfire resilience can look like for rural forested communities,” said Director of Emergency Services Craig Griesbach.
Landowners whose parcels have been identified as part of the project should receive introduction letters and Right-of-Entry forms granting permission for project planning activities in early April. Interested parties can look up their address to verify using the interactive map at: www.ReadyNevadaCounty.org/WoodpeckerRavine.
Woodpecker Ravine Phase 2
In addition to $2.2M in grant funding for Woodpecker Ravine Phase 1, CAL FIRE awarded $3.9M in funding for treatment of 726 acres in Woodpecker Ravine Phase 2. OES plans to use these funds as the required local match against a $31 million Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) grant that is in the final stages of Environmental and Historic Preservation (EHP) review with FEMA. In sum, Phase 1 and Phase 2 of Woodpecker Ravine represent nearly $37 million in state and federal investment which will result in 1,100 acres of shaded fuel break treatment, provide home-hardening and defensible space services for 1,200 residents and support county-wide wildfire and forest health educational programming.
