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HomeMy WebLinkAboutStaff Report 14416 City of Palo Alto (ID # 14416) City Council Staff Report Meeting Date: 6/20/2022 Report Type: Consent Calendar City of Palo Alto Page 1 Title: Approval of Contract No. C22184848 with Salas O'Brien Engineers, Inc., for a Total Amount Not to Exceed $110,212, for Engineering Design Services for the Municipal Service Center Lighting, Mechanical, and Electrical Improvements Project Capital Improvement Program Project (PF-16006) From: City Manager Lead Department: Public Works Recommendation Staff recommends that Council approve and authorize the City Manager or their designee to execute Contract No. C22184848 with Salas O’Brien Engineers, Inc., for a not-to-exceed amount of $110,212 to provide design revision services for the Municipal Service Center (MSC) Lighting, Mechanical, and Electrical Improvements Project (PF-16006). The amount includes $100,212 for basic services and $10,000 for additional services as needed, assigned by City-approved task order as detailed in the contract. Background The Municipal Service Center (MSC) is located at 3201 East Bayshore Road in Palo Alto and is occupied by numerous City departments and workgroups including Utilities (Water, Gas, Wastewater Operations and Electric Operations), Public Works Public Services (Facilities, Operations, Urban Forestry, Traffic, and Fleet), Public Works Environmental Services (Zero Waste), ASD (Warehouse), and Community Services (Parks). The MSC site is on the bay side of East Bayshore Road and consists of three main buildings, Building A, Building B, and Building C, all of which were constructed in 1966. The buildings are low, one-and two-story tilt-up concrete structures with concrete roof framing. Building A is approximately 15,730 square feet, Building B is 23,935 square feet, and Building C is 32,720 square feet. Seismic bracing was installed on all three buildings in 1998. Competitive Solicitation The City and Salas O’Brien had originally entered into contract C17165053 for professional services on October 4, 2016. The award was based on competitive solicitation (RFP165053, Staff Report #7237) and services were completed to City staff expectations in 2019. The original scope of the Salas O’Brien contract included design services for: (1) upgrades to the mechanical and electrical systems and their components servicing all three buildings that have reached the City of Palo Alto Page 2 end of their useful life expectancy, while addressing design proficiency, energy savings, code compliance, and aesthetics; (2) renovation of the City’s Zero Waste group offices; and (3) design of structural upgrades associated with the proposed mechanical system, electrical system, and office renovation. Following completion of their design in 2018, the project was formally solicited for bids and received only one bid that exceeded the construction estimate. In 2019, Council began drafting the goals and key actions for the Sustainability/Climate Action Plan (S/CAP) to initiate all projects towards net carbon zero with future installations of equipment to be electrified rather than natural gas fueled. There was an attempt made to amend the Salas O’Brien contract to revise their design towards electrification, but due to scope questions and staffing shortages, along with the COVID-19 pandemic, the amendment to the original contract never came to fruition and the term for the contract ended. Discussion Following completion of the original lighting, mechanical, and electrical improvements design by Salas O’Brien, it was determined that there would be a considerable future electrical load demand required at the MSC to accommodate the City’s Sustainability and Climate Action Plan (S/CAP) proposed goals to electrify City facilities. To meet these goals, the remaining gas-fired mechanical equipment will need to be replaced with electrically powered equipment. This future anticipated electrical demand will be accounted for as part of this agreement. In parallel with electrification of City facilities, the City fleet will also move towards Electric Vehicles (EVs), requiring additional EV chargers and capacity at the MSC. These considerable electrical load demands require a re-evaluation of the overall electrical capacity for the facility. A redesign of the main switch gear will also be required to meet the new demands. The most practical way to proceed and meet the City’s electrification goals is to revise the original design to include substitution of equipment from fossil fuel to electric and re- evaluation of electrical loads to the system. Salas O'Brien has agreed to honor their pricing that was originally proposed prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. Staff recommends utilizing the original Consultant's design and drawings to modify the equipment. Award of a sole source contract to Salas O'Brien will result in the most efficient and cost-effective means for design completion, as approved by the City Manager pursuant to Palo Alto Municipal Code section 2.30.360(b)(2) wherein competitive solicitation would be impracticable, unavailing or impossible, or would not be useful or produce any operational or financial advantage for the City (and given that this work was originally competitively solicited in 2016 as noted above). Alternatively, staff could complete a new competitive solicitation for these additional services. However, this would lead to delays in beginning the additional design work of at least six months and likely increased costs because Salas O’Brien has agreed to honor their rates from before the pandemic, and any other consultant would be expected to require significant effort to revisit the original design parameters and work. Staff does not recommend this option. City of Palo Alto Page 3 This contract is on the City’s professional services template, which permits the City to terminate without cause/for convenience by providing written notice to the contractor. In the event the City finds itself facing a challenging budget situation, and it is determined that City resources need to be refocused elsewhere, the City can terminate for convenience. Other options include termination due to non-appropriation of funds or amending the contract to reduce the cost, for example, by reducing the scope of work. The contract may also be temporarily suspended by written notice of the City Manager. Timeline The design revision is expected to be complete by fall 2023. Construction is expected to begin in early 2024. Resource Impact Funding for the contract recommended in this report is available in the Fiscal Year 2022 Adopted Capital Budget in the Municipal Service Center Lighting, Mechanical, and Electrical Improvements project (PF-16006). Policy Implications The proposed action is consistent with City policies. Stakeholder Engagement MSC staff provided input with regards to the future needs of the facility encompassing both electrification of gas-fired mechanical equipment and fleet replacement with EVs. Facility staff also provided input regarding the reliability and expansion limitations of the electrical distribution system to accommodate the aforementioned needs. Environmental Review This project is categorically exempt from the provisions of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) under Section 15302 of the CEQA Guidelines as “Replacement or Reconstruction of Existing Structures” and no further Environmental review is necessary.