REPORT TO COUNCIL
SUBJECT
Title
Award of Bid No. PW14-12 for Sanitary Sewer Lift Stations Rebuild (Rebid), Finding of CEQA Categorical Exemption 15301 (Rehabilitation of Existing Facilities) and Approval of Budget Modification No. 8
Report
REPORT IN BRIEF
Approval is requested to award a construction contract in the amount of $999,900 to Koch & Koch, Inc. of Penn Valley for Sanitary Sewer Lift Stations Rebuild (Public Works Project No. UY-12/03-13). Approval is also requested for a 10% construction contingency in the amount of $99,990 for the project, and for Budget Modification No. 8 to provide additional funding for the project.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) determination for this project is a categorical exemption pursuant to Class 1, Section 15301(a) for the rehabilitation of existing facilities.
BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION
The City currently operates five (5) sewer lift stations at various locations throughout the sanitary sewer collection system. Each lift station uses pumps with electric motors to lift sewage to a higher point in the system where it can flow by gravity to the Water Pollution Control Plant for treatment. The five stations are: Sunken Gardens, Baylands, Kifer, Arques and Lawrence. Each station was designed and constructed at different times and have undergone various maintenance and upgrades over the years, but most of the equipment and components are now beyond their useful life. This project will address four of the five lift stations (Arques is in better condition than the other stations and will be considered for funding during the next projects budget cycle), as more fully addressed below.
A thorough condition assessment of each lift station was conducted during the design phase of the project. The rehabilitation work necessary varies from station to station, but generally includes overhaul or replacement of pumps and motors, rehabilitation of wet wells and associated piping, and upgrades to the electrical and Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) systems. Improvements to increase energy efficiency and lower maintenance and operational costs are also planned. Another project objective is to standardize as many features as possible, such as vault hatches, safety components, backup power connections, and motor control/monitoring equipment. This will facilitate the implementation of standard operating procedures to ensure proper operation and maintenance of the facilities going forward.
This Invitation for Bids (IFB) is a rebid of the project originally released in November of 2013. Council rejected all bids on January 28, 2014 (RTC No. 14-0085) as a result of a bid protest letter submitted by one of the bidding contractors. The protest letter claimed that the lowest bid was non-responsive because it did not properly list a subcontractor for a portion of the work that exceeded one half of one percent of the total bid amount, as directed by the instructions to bidders.
The 2013 IFB was structured with four lift stations as the base bid and Arques as an additive alternate. This approach was taken due to a combination of two factors: the condition of Arques relative to the other lift stations and the fact that the estimated construction budget of approximately $836,000 was thought to be insufficient to rehabilitate all five stations. The base bid came in at $887,500, while the Arques additive alternate was $202,000.
At the time the 2013 bids were rejected by Council, staff indicated that the Arques station would be completely removed from the project (to be considered for funding during the next projects budget cycle), and that a budget modification would likely be necessary to complete the base bid work for the four remaining stations.
Subsequently, the subcontractor identification requirements were clarified in the bid specifications, the Arques lift station was removed, and the IFB was reissued as follows:
Bid Notice: Advertised in The Sun on May 16, 2014;
Provided to 18 Bay Area Builder's Exchanges;
Posted on Onvia Demandstar public procurement network; and
Published on the City's website.
Bid Response: 15 contractors requested bid documents.
Bid Results: Sealed bids were publicly opened on June 4, 2014;
Three responsive bids were received.
The lowest responsive and responsible bid was from Koch & Koch, Inc. in the amount of $999,900, significantly higher than the 2013 low bid of $887,500 (submitted by the same contractor), and above the engineer's estimate of $775,000. The cost escalation is likely attributed to price increases for specialized materials required to rehabilitate the lift stations such as custom fabrication of metal cabinets, electronic panels and associated programming for the SCADA equipment. Other costs such as contractor labor for installation have increased as well. The Bid Summary is attached.
FISCAL IMPACT
Construction costs are as follows:
Construction $999,900
Construction contingency (10%) $99,990
Total Construction $1,099,890
Budgeted funds in the amount of $890,000 are available in Capital Project 825751 (Sewer Lift Stations Rebuild). The budget for the sewer lift station rebuild requires an additional $209,890 in FY 2014/15 to fund the total cost of the project. Staff anticipates that Capital Project 825331 (Replacement/Repair/Rehabilitation of Sanitary Sewer System) will return $50,000 to reserves after the close out of FY 2013/14. Staff recommends appropriating the shortfall from reserves to fund the project with the anticipation that the impact will be partially offset by savings noted above.
Budget Modification No. 8 has been prepared to appropriate $209,890 in the Wastewater Management Fund Rate Stabilization Reserve to project 825751, Sewer Lift Stations Rebuild.
Budget Modification No. 8
FY 2014/15
|
Current |
Increase/ (Decrease) |
Revised |
Wastewater Management Fund |
|
|
|
Expenditures |
|
|
|
825751 - Sewer Lift Stations Rebuild |
$890,000 |
$209,890 |
$1,099,890 |
Reserves |
|
|
|
Rate Stabilization Reserve |
$3,854,903 |
($209,890) |
$3,645,013 |
PUBLIC CONTACT
Public contact was made by posting the Council agenda on the City's official-notice bulletin board outside City Hall, at the Sunnyvale Senior Center, Community Center and Department of Public Safety; and by making the agenda and report available at the Sunnyvale Public Library, the Office of the City Clerk and on the City's website.
RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
1) Award a contract, in substantially the same format as Attachment 2 and in the amount of $999,900, to Koch & Koch, Inc. for the subject project, and authorize the City Manager to execute the contract when all the necessary conditions have been met; 2) Approve a 10% construction contingency in the amount of $99,990; 3) Make a finding of CEQA categorical exemption 15301(a), rehabilitation of existing facilities, for the project; and 4) Approve Budget Modification No. 8 to provide additional funding for the project.
Staff
Prepared by: Pete Gonda, Purchasing Officer
Reviewed by: Grace Leung, Director, Finance
Reviewed by: John Stufflebean, Director, Environmental Services
Reviewed by: Kent Steffens, Director, Public Works
Reviewed by: Robert A. Walker, Assistant City Manager
Approved by: Deanna J. Santana, City Manager
ATTACHMENTS
1. Bid Summary
2. Draft General Construction Contract