Title
Recommendation to Accept the Report on Ensuring a Resilient Alameda: The Strategy for Planning, Implementing, and Sustaining Resilience and Consider Adding One Civilian Position Assigned to the City Manager's Office to Coordinate Disaster Emergency Services in the Upcoming Budget. (City Manager 2110)
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To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: John A. Russo, City Manager
Re: Insuring a Resilient Alameda: The Strategy for Planning, Implementing, and Sustaining Resilience, and a Recommendation to Add, in the Upcoming City Budget, One Civilian Position Assigned to the City Manager's Office to Coordinate Disaster Emergency Services
BACKGROUND
Currently there is much discussion nationally and in local government about creating "resilient" communities. Generally, this term means having the ability to get through a major disaster and to get back, relatively, to where the community was before the disaster occurred. Resilience shortens the period of time between the disaster and full recovery. This concept essentially parallels the proven paradigm of "Prepare, Respond, and Recover." In order for the City of Alameda to be "resilient" it needs to be better prepared for a major disaster, to be able to respond appropriately, and to be in a position to effectively execute a recovery plan. Resiliency requires not only local government action, but also requires that residents, other local institutions, and the business community be engaged and participating. Most importantly, Alameda will have its best chance at resiliency if City Hall and the community prioritize and sustain an ongoing effort to plan, fund, implement, train, practice, and update annually. In plain words: it cannot work if it's just a plan or a project; resiliency needs to be an ongoing program.
Many of the key elements needed to build a resilient community are already in place in Alameda. The City has an approved Emergency Operations Plan, an approved Hazard Mitiga...
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