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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1998-09-14 City Council (14)City ofPalo 0 C ty Manager’s Repor-f TO:HONORABLE CITY COUNCIL FROM:CITY MANAGER DEPARTMENT: PUBLIC WORKS DATE:SEPTEMBER 14, 1998 CMR:363:98 SUBJECT:STATUS REPORT AND REQUEST FOR INCREASE IN CHANGE ORDER AUTHORITY FOR CONTRACT WITH MCGUIRE AND HESTER FOR BARRON PARK STORM DRAIN IMPROVEMENT PROJECT, CIP 47712 RECOMMENDATION Staff recommends that Council increase the City Manager’s or her designee’s authority to negotiate and execute one or more additional change orders to Contract No. C8098199 with McGuire and Hester, the total value of which change orders shall not exceed $310,000. This represents an increase in staff’s authority from $260,000 to $310,000 for all change orders. BACKGROUND On September 22, 1997, Council awarded a contract to McGuire and Hester in the amount of $1,429,811 for the construction of storm drain improvements in the Barron Park neighborhood (CMR:390:97). The project includes installation of new storm drain pipelines, catch basins, manholes, and valley gutters to improve local drainage. In addition to the contract award, Council authorized staff to negotiate and execute one or more change orders to the contract, not to exceed $143,000 for related, additional, but unforeseen work. On March 2, 1998, Council approved staff’s request for a $117,000 increase in change order authority to the contract’ with McGuire and Hester (CMR:125:98). This represented an increase in staff’s authority from $143,000 to $260,000 for all change orders. The additional change order authority was requested to allow McGuire and Hester to resurface Whitsell Avenue, Kendall Avenue, La Donna Street, and Orme Street as part of the storm drain project. DISCUSSION On October 20, 1997, McGuire and Hester began the construction of the storm drain improvements. The contract specified that the work was to be completed within 180 calendar days from the Notice to Proceed. Due to a series of factors, the project has been delayed beyond the original completion date. CMR:363:98 Page 1 o174 Several factors contributed to the overall project delay beyond the initial six-month construction, perio& Although.some of the delays were the result of. the contractor’s construction errors and scheduling deficiencies, some of the underlying reasons for delays were beyond the contractor’s or the City’s control. The unusually heavy rainfall this season through the end of May, unforeseen grade conflicts with existing underground utilities, and design changes to provide smooth transitions between the existing pavement and the new valley gutters collectively contributed to project delays. The contractor’s progress was also hindered by the lack of available, experienced workers due to the area- wide construction boom. Further delays resulted when the contractor was required to redo some already completed work in order to correct deficiencies in several sections of storm drain and sanitary sewer pipelines which they had constructed so as to comply with the contract specifications. Although these repairs caused increased neighborhood disruption and lengthened the time of the contract, the result was a higher quality finished product. Request for Additional Change Order Authority Since the March 2, 1998 staff report to Council, construction costs have risen for a narrow, however essential, piece of the project as a result of field conditions. The cost increase can .be attributed primarily to an increase in the quantity of asphalt concrete paving. Following the construction of the valley gutters, the contractor was required to restore the pavement between the gutters and the existing street, and the pavement between the gutters and driveways. The amount of paving required for this task varies depending on the difference in elevation between the gutter and the existing pavement; the greater the elevation difference, the wider the conform paving needs to be in order to maintain a reasonable or standard cross-slope. The original .contract drawings, as prepared by the City’s consultant, did not accurately assess the impacts of the grade differences on several streets where new valley gutters were constructed. To address the greater-than-expected grade differences observed in the field, and to adequately restore the streets and create a workable driving surface, the amount of asphalt concrete paving required has been increased. The increased grade differential has also increased the cost for street resurfacing. The original resurfacing methodology proposed by McGuire and Hester, which involved the pulverization of the existing pavement and reuse of the pulverized materials as road base, was determined to be infeasible because it would have produced unacceptably steep street cross-slopes. In order to achieve acceptable/standard slopes, it became necessary to lower the street grades by removing excess road base material prior to final paving. Street resurfacing unit costs increased accordingly, reflecting the added work involved in the resurfacing process. Staff maximized the use of the funds made available for street resurfacing by retaining existing pavement that is structurally adequate and reserving the complete asphalt concrete overlay treatment for those streets in the worst condition. CMR:363:98 Page 2 of 4 Barron Park Residents’ Concerns Barron Park residents have expressed concerns regarding the sequencing of the contractor’s work. It is important to note that the City cannot dictate the specific means and methods to be used by contractors in performing their work. Contractors often elect to schedule their work in such a way as to combine similar items of work at several locations in order to make more efficient use of their labor and equipment. Furthermore, certain work items were required to be completed during specific periods in order to satisfy regulatory agency requirements. For example, the Barron Creek junction box adjacent to the intersection of Orme Street and Los Robles Avenue and the Matadero Creek outfall structure at Whitsell and Matadero Avenues were required to be completed first, due to restrictions on creek access imposed by the State of California Department of Fish and Game and the Santa Clara Valley Water District. Trench restoration paving on several streets was delayed for an extended period while valley gutters were being constructed to accommodate a uniform asphalt concrete overlay of the street. As of Friday, September 4, 1998, the contractor has completed the installation of all pipeline-related work. Construction of the Valley gutters has been completed on all of the streets that received new pipelines with the exception of Rincon Circle, which is currently in progress. Final trench restoration and street resurfacing began on Monday, August 10, 1998 and has now been completed on all streets with the exception of Rincon Circle. The entire project should be completed by the end of September, except for clean-up and remedial work. Staff recognizes that the extended construction period has been frustrating for Barron Park residents and acknowledges that some of the project delays and impacts could have been avoided. Staff made extensive efforts to keep neighborhood residents informed as to the project status through periodic written project updates that were distributed through the local elementary schools and the Barton Park Association. Staff also had direct interaction with many residents by way of telephone conversations, e-mail, and written correspondence. Staff met with the management of McGuire and Hester on several occasions over the course of the project to discuss project deficiencies and neighborhood concerns, and obtained their repeated verbal commitment to complete the work in an expeditious manner, while at the same time ensuring high-quality workmanshi.’p and proper resident notification. Staff has been and will continue to work with the contractor to explore the possibility of mitigating the negative impacts this project has had on the community. In the Coming weeks, staff also plans to meet with the design Consultant to further discuss the challenges experienced on this project and to identify ways to avoid or mitigate them on future projects. RESOURCE IMPACT Including the additional $50,000 of change order authority requested, the contingency for the entire project totals 22 percent of the original contract amount.. This additional CMR:363:98 Page 3 of 4 authority is requested in order to ensure an overall quality project. The final contingency amount is within the expected range for a project of this nature. The project budget has sufficient funds to accommodate this increase. Funds for the requested increase in change order authority are available in the Storm Drainage Collection System Improvements Capital Improvement Project. ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW The project will have no significant environmental effect for purposes of the California Environmental Quality Act, as shown in the mitigated negative, declaration for the project approved by Council on September 22, 1997. No further environmental review is required. PREPARED BY: Joe Teresi, Senior Engineer GLENN S. ROBERTS Director of Public Works CITY MANAGER APPROVAL: City Manager cc: Will Beckett, Barron Park Association CMR:363:98 Page 4 of 4