Item No. 5
Town of Atherton
CITY COUNCIL STAFF REPORT – CONSENT AGENDA
TO: HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
GEORGE RODERICKS, CITY MANAGER
FROM: ROBERT OVADIA, PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR
DATE: OCTOBER 21, 2026
SUBJECT: APPROVE A PROFESSIONAL SERVICES AGREEMENT WITH MARK THOMAS & COMPANY, INC. FOR THE EL CAMINO
REAL/SELBY LANE INTERSECTION IMPROVEMENTS
PROJECT – PROJECT NUMBER 56096
RECOMMENDATION
It is recommended that the Council approve a professional services agreement with Mark Thomas & Company, Inc., for design services for the El Camino Real/Selby Lane Intersection Improvements Project in the amount not to exceed $665,000, with a 10% contingency; Authorize the City Attorney to prepare the agreement; and authorize the City Manager to sign the agreement.
BACKGROUND
El Camino Real is a six-lane, north-south, Conventional State Highway (State Route 82) that serves as the north-south backbone in the Countywide transportation system that connects the entire Peninsula. This regional arterial carries approximately 36,000 vehicles, on average, each day through Atherton. It is also a vital part of the region’s Active Transportation network that serves two Equity Priority Communities, as defined by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission.
The intersection of Selby Lane at El Camino Real is unsignalized and has been the site of a significant number of reported accidents involving vehicles, bicycles, and pedestrians, including one fatality over the past ten years. Selby Lane, one of the Town’s primary east-west collector roads, functions at Level of Service F and C in the morning (eastbound and westbound, respectively) and Level of Service F in both directions in the afternoon. It is also a vital connection from the North Fair Oaks community and serves Adelante-Selby School on Selby Lane.
Additionally, this location is subject to seasonal flooding which impacts safety and mobility of all users in the intersection.
The recently adopted El Camino Real Complete Streets study identified this location as an ECR/Selby Intersection Improvements
OCTOBER 21, 2026
opportunity to improve traffic flow and safety for all travel modes. The City Council approved a Capital Improvement project to improve the El Camino Real/Selby Lane intersection with the adoption of the FY 2025-26 Capital Improvement Program. In September 2025, the City Council adopted Resolution 25-14 supporting the filing of a grant application in response to the San Mateo County Transportation Authority’s (SMCTA) Highway Call for projects. SMCTA awarded a grant in the amount of $3,000,000 to support the design and construction of improvements at the El Camino Real / Selby Lane intersection.
The project would follow on the public outreach efforts from the Complete Streets Study to inform the parameters of the infrastructure solutions at this critical intersection (signalization vs. High Intensity Activated Crosswalk [HAWK] signal). The Project would be designed to improve safety for vehicles, bicyclists, and pedestrians at the intersection. This would include the reduction of potential conflicts between modes that could reduce the potential of future collisions. A traffic signal would help reduce delay and improve safety for Selby Lanes’s approaches to El Camino Real. Traffic modeling from the El Camino Real Complete Streets study found that the Level of Service at Selby Lane at El Camino Real could improve to an overall Level of Service B or C with the installation of a traffic signal.
The project will also include coordination and integration of the El Camino Real Drainage Improvements proposed at the intersection, which are currently under design. All improvements proposed improvements will require approval by Caltrans.
ANALYSIS
The Town issued Request for Proposals on June 9, 2026, for design and coordination services for the project. Proposals were due on July 10, 2026. Two proposals were received - from Mark Thomas & Company, Inc. and from Sanbell Bay Area. Both are local multi-disciplinary engineering services firms that plan and design infrastructure and capital improvement projects, including complete streets projects for public agencies throughout the Bay Area, and have experience working with Caltrans on projects that are on, or affect Conventional State Highways.
Mark Thomas is currently working with SamTrans on the Grand Boulevard Initiative project and has designed improvements in South San Francisco, Palo Alto, and other local jurisdictions.
Sanbell’s work includes improvements in San Carlos, Mountain View and other jurisdictions in San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties.
Both proposals were reviewed by an internal three-person review team. The proposals were deemed responsive and the team considered both firms qualified to do the work. Subsequently, both firms were invited for in-person interviews on August 21, 2026. Based on the proposals and interviews, Mark Thomas was recommended for further consideration based on the level of their project management team, public outreach competency, and ultimately their ability to develop a comprehensive set of improvements at this intersection.
The project scope includes the review and documentation of existing conditions, data collection, conceptual design, public outreach and coordination, Caltrans coordination and permitting, environmental support, development of final plans, specifications and estimates for the project.
The design documents would include integration of the drainage improvements under design by ECR/Selby Intersection Improvements
OCTOBER 21, 2026
Freyer & Laureta, Inc. associated with the El Camino Real Stormwater and Drainage Improvements (North) project. The scope would also include bidding support for the project.
Staff negotiated a scope and fee in the amount of $664,725, for the project design. Staff recommends that an approximate 10% contingency be allocated in the amount of $66,475, for a total of $731,200.
FISCAL IMPACT
A total of $500,000 has been approved in the FY 2025-26 and 2026-27 Capital Improvements project budget for the El Camino Real/Selby Lane Intersection Improvements Project (#56096). A grant in the amount of $3,000,000 has been approved by the San Mateo County Transportation Authority to support the design and construction of the project. With the award of the grant, sufficient funds area available to fund the project design.
GOAL ALIGNMENT
This Report and its contents are in alignment with the following Council Policy Goals:
• Goal E - Maintain and Improve Public Infrastructure
• Goal D - Be Forward Thinking
POLICY FOCUS
The policy focus is on maintaining and improving mobility and safety for all modes, consistency with previous studies and efforts related to El Camino Real and working with Caltrans and regional agencies to improve El Camino Real for all modes of travel.
PUBLIC NOTICE
Public notification was achieved by posting the agenda, with this agenda item being listed, at least 72 hours prior to the meeting in print and electronically. Information about the project is also disseminated via the Town’s electronic News Flash and Atherton Online. There are approximately 1,200 subscribers to the Town’s electronic News Flash publications. Subscribers include residents as well as stakeholders –to include, but be not limited to, media outlets, school districts, Menlo Park Fire Protection District, service provides (water, power, and sewer), and regional elected officials.
COMMISSION/COMMITTEE FEEDBACK/REFERRAL
This item has not been before a Town Committee or Commission
ATTACHMENTS
1. Request for Proposals - El Camino Real / Selby Lane Intersection Improvements (w/o Attachments)
ECR/Selby Intersection Improvements
OCTOBER 21, 2026
2. Mark Thomas Proposal
3. Mark Thomas Scope and Fee