Subcommittee weighs using lifeguards, volunteers and small tanks to water new plantings

Committee members explored a local, lower-cost approach to establishing new trees that would prioritize reliability and liability management. One member proposed using seasonal lifeguards or citizen volunteers to operate watering equipment, noting that lifeguards "already have kind of that situation" of driving city vehicles and that a local teen hire could be cheaper than private contractors.

Members discussed equipment and productivity: a 500-gallon tank (sometimes called a 'buffalo') was cited and a member said, "Maybe 20" trees per hour under ideal conditions with berms to retain water; refill trips were estimated to add roughly 30 minutes. Staff cautioned that any procurement over $25,000 requires three bids and that bonding and commercial insurance may be necessary if volunteers drive city vehicles, so the committee flagged liability and administrative hurdles to a volunteer-based solution.