GIS manager defends cormorant reporting app as DEC raises concerns; $366,000 MWBE waiver reimbursement submitted

GIS Manager Zakk Hess updated the committee on three items: a public cormorant reporting application, an MWBE waiver reimbursement, and a Community Resources digital application. On the cormorant app, Hess said the tool has received "approximately 250 submissions" and noted coverage by outlets including the Democrat and Chronicle. He told the committee that the DEC contacted Sea Grant and requested the tool be removed, and that Sea Grant "did not create the tool and informed the DEC that it would not be taken down." Hess said the application "was created solely for data collection and to help shed light on the issues associated with the cormorant population." The minutes record no DEC action taken at the meeting.

Hess also said the CFA LGE 2021 MWBE waiver has been approved and about $366,000 in expenditures from the past four years has been submitted for reimbursement. He demonstrated a newly launched Community Resources application that digitizes the Mental Health Department's annual Community Resources PDF and allows service providers to request inclusion. Hess emphasized the need for ongoing maintenance as the resource circulates.