The Town of Paradise has hired one of Congressman Doug LaMalfa’s former aides to help shepherd and coordinate recovery efforts.
Laura Page, who served as the congressman’s Senior District Advisor, starts a new job this morning: orchestrating the delivery of the town’s top priorities.
Developed through a series of community meetings, the wish list is long and requires something Paradise never had in great supply: money.
“We need to have a lot of strategic partners to get this job done, and I have worked with every single one of the people and the entities that we need to get this together.” Page said.
Repairing the town’s contaminated drinking water delivery system, delivering a sewer system estimated to cost around $85 million, making homes more resistant to wildfire and major road work enabling safer and swifter escapes are among the top priorities.
It’s a tall order, but Page said she’s eager to get started. Some of the money has been pledged and other funds may become available through grants and other programs. Her job is keeping track and making it all happen.
“Being able to identify all the funding sources that now have been authorized and get that money to people and the boots on the ground I see as one of the first things that will be a challenge for me and that I’ll want to work on right away is coordinating all those resources.” Page said.
A Chico resident, she said she may be well positioned to help, not being personally burdened by loss.