Report to Mayor and City Council
Tuesday, September 06, 2022
Consent
SUBJECT:
Title
CONSIDER APPROVAL OF CONTRACT SERVICES AGREEMENTS TO PROVIDE ON-CALL ARCHITECTURAL PROFESSIONAL SERVICES TO THE ENGINEERING DIVISION OF THE PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT (CITY COUNCIL)
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I. SUMMARY
The Engineering Division of the Public Works Department is responsible for the design and construction of a number of projects including several that are grant funded. In consideration of the extensive Capital Improvement Program (CIP) needs for the next five years with its significant number of city-owned facilities as well as infrastructure related projects, securing On-Call Architectural Professional Services will greatly reduce the time required to develop the necessary plans, specifications and estimates by eliminating the need to prepare separate Requests for Proposals (RFPs) for each project under consideration. Consultant retainer agreements will provide flexibility and enhance the capacity of the Engineering Division to deliver projects in a timely manner.
The City currently retains the services of two on-call architectural consultants, with their contracts set to expire on December 30, 2022. Staff issued a Request for Proposals which was advertised on Planet Bids from April 21, 2022 to May 23, 2022. Seven firms submitted their proposals, the proposals were reviewed, and the firms were ranked. The department would like to retain the services of the top four on-call consultants to provide the professional services and the assistance City staff needs in managing the CIP projects. The top four qualified firms were determined to be:
1. Westberg and White, Inc.
2. BOA Architecture
3. Gruen Associates
4. Breen Design Group
It is requested that the City Council approve a three-year Contract Services Agreements with the above consulting firms to provide on-call professional architectural services for the City’s Capital Improvement Program and other miscellaneous and related projects. (Exhibit No. 1-4)
II. RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
TAKE the following actions:
1. APPROVE a Contract Services Agreement with Westberg and White, Inc. to provide On-Call Architectural Professional Services for the term of January 1, 2023 through December 30, 2025, in an amount not-to-exceed $900,000.00.
2. APPROVE a Contract Services Agreement with BOA Architecture, to provide On-Call Architectural Professional Services for the term of January 1, 2023 through December 30, 2025, in an amount not-to-exceed $900,000.00.
3. APPROVE a Contract Services Agreement with Gruen and Associates, to provide On-Call Architectural Professional Services for the term of January 1, 2023 through December 30, 2025, in an amount not-to-exceed $900,000.00.
4. APPROVE a Contract Services Agreement with Breen Design Group, to provide On-Call Architectural Professional Services for the term of January 1, 2023 through December 30, 2025, in an amount not-to-exceed $900,000.00.
5. AUTHORIZE the Mayor to execute the Contract Services Agreements following approval as to form by the City Attorney.
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III. ALTERNATIVES
1. DO NOT APPROVE the Contract Services Agreements to the aforementioned companies.
2. TAKE another action the City Council deems appropriate, consistent with the requirements of the law.
IV. BACKGROUND
The City’s 5-Year Capital Improvement Program (CIP) was approved by the City Council on June 21, 2022, and the total estimated cost to complete all funded projects is approximately $81,000,000. It is anticipated that the number of CIP projects listed on the City’s CIP for FY 2023-24 will increase and potentially will do so further out as well. Given the increase in the number of capital projects, there is a continuous need for on-call consultants to assist with the development of plans, specifications, and estimates.
The process of retaining a consultant for a specific project, from the initial conceptual phase to the issuance of the NTP has multiple steps, impacts numerous departments, and takes months. The on-call contracting process does the above all at once with a NTP sometimes happening within a week or two. The use of consultants is not in-lieu of using full-time employees, rather these consultants will be utilized to enhance the capacity of the current staff.
The Public Works Department released a Request for Proposals (RFP) 22-018 to engage on-call architectural consulting firms qualified to provide professional services for various City capital projects. The RFP was advertised on Planet Bids from April 21, 2022 to May 23, 2022. Seven firms submitted their proposals, the proposals were reviewed, and the firms were placed on a ranking list (Exhibit No. 5). The department would like to retain the services of the top four architectural on-call consultants to provide the professional services and the assistance the City staff needs in managing the capital projects. The top four qualified firms were determined to be:
1. Westberg and White, Inc.
2. BOA Architecture
3. Gruen Associates
4. Breen Design Group
Westberg and White, Inc. (W&W) - is a full-service architectural firm that has been established for 32 years. They have offices in Tustin and San Diego and provide services to various agencies throughout California, primarily focusing on schools and cities. W+W’s basic services include architectural, landscape design and energy studies, supported by structural, mechanical, electrical and civil engineering disciplines. As part of these basic services, W+W also assists in administering the bidding process and providing inspectors and construction support.
W+W has previously provided architectural services for the City of Carson. They were the designer for the Carson Park Master Plan Project and also designed the interior improvements of the Juanita Millender-McDonald Community Center.
BOA Architecture (BOA) - with an office located in Long Beach, is a small architectural firm that has been in the business for 60 years servicing numerous Southern California cities such as Torrance, Long Beach, Sierra Madre and Carlsbad. Their services include a vast range of architectural designs for renovation, remodel and new construction of Fire Stations, Police Facilities, Libraries, City Hall and Park facilities. BOA has previously provided architectural services for the City of Carson. They were involved in the design and analysis of several traffic signals within the City and the on-going design of City Hall façade Improvement.
Gruen Associates - was established in 1946 and has an office located in Los Angeles. They are a multi-disciplinary firm serving cities in Southern California. They provide services in planning, urban design, transportation and environmental planning, landscape architecture, architecture and interior design. A project completed for the City includes Carson Streetscape Master Plan Imlementation which was completed in 2017 and won the 2016 Award of Merit for Implementation form the American Planning Association (APA) Los Angeles Section.
Breen Design Group - was established in 1997 with an office in Torrance less than 5 miles away from Carson City Hall, Breen has four staff members who are Carson residents. The firm has specialists in architecture, civil, structural, and mechanical electrical, plumbing, technology, fire and life safety engineering. The firm has extensive experience working for the City of Torrarance as well as multiple renovation projects for the City of Pasadena, City of Los Angeles, and City of San Clemente.
Given that multiple public works projects are anticipated to be added to the current CIP list, the services of the architectural firms selected will be needed to implement those projects. In addition, there are several architectural related projects that currently require the services of consultants to meet the grant funding criteria.
Staff is confident that the four firms are well qualified and will be able to assist the City in efficiently providing the needed services. All the selected consultant’s contracts will be exercised on an “on-call” basis. The four architectural firms selected will be requested to submit a fee proposal for every service the division needs. Based on the submittals, the Engineering Services Division will select the most efficient and economical solution.
V. FISCAL IMPACT
Funding for the On-Call Consultants was approved in the 5-year CIP budget; therefore, if the On-Call Services Agreements are awarded, the funds in the amount of $1.2M were budgeted for in the CIP/General Fund account 101-99-999-904-6004 for FY22/23.
VI. EXHIBITS
1. Architectural Professional Services Agreements Westberg and White, Inc. (pgs. 5-38)
2. Architectural Professional Services Agreements BOA Architecture (pgs. 39-71)
3. Architectural Professional Services Agreements Gruen and Associates (pgs. 72-106)
4. Architectural Professional Services Agreements Breen Associates (pgs. 107-141)
5. Final Committee ranking for Architecture Services (RFP22-018) (pg. 142-165)
Prepared by: Eliza Jane Whitman P.E., LEED AP, ENV SP, Director of Public Works & Gilbert Marquez, P.E. City Engineer