Austell approves contract for flood recovery help

The Austell City Council voted Tuesday afternoon to sign a no-bid, 30-day contract with a disaster recovery company that promises to help the town, slammed last week by heavy rains and flooding, receive maximum reimbursement from FEMA.

The council doesn’t know how much it will pay Beck Disaster Recovery because the work will be based on hourly rates for actual work performed.

The total cost will certainly be in the millions, Mayor Joe Jerkins said, but he expects FEMA to reimburse the city 100 percent. He said flood debris is such a health problem that action had to be taken right away, no matter what the cost.

“If we don’t get all our money back, we’ve still got to move,” Jerkins, who’s been mayor for two decades, said Tuesday after the hastily called council meeting. “This is something that’s got to be done right away. We don’t have the staff. They’ve done it before.”

The company’s task order lists hourly rates for 14 positions, ranging from $110 for data manager to $35 for project assistants. But company representative James Siciliano said some of those positions might not be involved in the Austell project at all or might just work part time.

About 20 local residents will be hired for the job “debris site/tower monitors,” which will require them to make sure only storm-related debris is taken away in garbage bins. The residents will be paid $12 per hour, but BDR will bill the city $48 per hour. Siciliano said the company has many extra costs for those jobs, such as insurance and documentation.

Non-labor costs, such as travel and supplies, will be billed to the city without markup, the task order states.

BDR, based in Maitland, Fla., will monitor debris removal, document recovery efforts, plan for permanent repairs and coordinate relations with other government agencies, Siciliano told the council.

BDR has worked with many local governments after natural disasters such as Hurricane Katrina. BDR contracted with Savannah for disaster planning; the hourly rates for Austell are the same as the Savannah contract.

Savannah’s emergency management administrator, David Grotyohann, said BDR has not been involved in any actual disasters in Savannah but has trained city employees and kept officials abreast of changes in FEMA rules.

“I’m very pleased with them,” he said.

During the next 30 days, the city will take competitive bids for the rest of the town’s cleanup and repair work. Siciliano said BDR would seek those contracts, too. He said the company has already talked with Douglas County officials and will approach Powder Springs at its meeting Wednesday night.