AGENDA REPORT
Meeting Date: June 18, 2024
Item Number:
To: Honorable Mayor & City Council
From: Mandana Motahari, City Architect
Karen Domerchie, Project Manager
Subject: A CONTINUATION OF EMERGENCY CONTRACTING
PROCEDURES REQUIRING ENVIRONMENTAL CLEANUP
WORK AT 344 FOOTHILL ROAD SINKHOLE TO BE
PERFORMED WITHOUT COMPETITIVE BIDDING PURSUANT
TO PUBLIC CONTRACT CODE SECTION 22050
Attachments: None
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that City Council determine, by four-fifths vote, a continuation of the Declaration requiring as-needed environmental cleanup work at 344 Foothill Road sinkhole to be performed without competitive bidding pursuant to Public Contract Code Section 22050.
INTRODUCTION
At the May 21, 2024 City Council meeting, and pursuant to Emergency Contracting Procedures under Public Contract Code Section 22050 (which is included by reference in BHMC Section 3-3-303), staff notified City Council regarding a sinkhole that was found at the parking lot located at 344 Foothill Road. At that time, staff also requested that City Council approve Amendment No. 2 to Agreement No. 56-24 with American Integrated Services, Inc. for the hazardous materials investigation and clean up for the repair of the sinkhole at 344 Foothill Road. Amendment No. 2 brought the total contract amount for American Integrated Services, Inc. to $175,000. Below is a summary of the project, which was included in the May 21, 2024 staff report.
The City purchased the subject property in 1997 from Southern California Gas Company. It is located on a single parcel (AIN 434-200-9906) shared with the Dog Park at 344 Foothill Road. However, the sinkhole and work site area are located on a portion of the property separate from the Dog Park, accessible from Alden Drive often referred Meeting Date: June 18, 2024
to as the Alden Lot, which does not have its own official address. City permit records show that a commercial building on the property was demolished in approximately 1984 by an owner prior to Southern California Gas Company.
In mid-2021, Mercedes Benz of Beverly Hills notified the City that there was a sinkhole at the Alden parking lot, which is the parking lot across the street from the Mercedes Benz dealership. After the sinkhole was discovered, it gradually increased in size.
The Alden Lot has been leased to Mercedes Benz of Beverly Hills, which has its service center across the street, for parking since 2004. While the work to repair the sinkhole continues to take place, the City has offered alternative parking for areas affected by the work site in a parking structure nearby, and the tenant continues to pay all rent as required under the lease.
DISCUSSION
Investigation and Recommendations for Sinkhole Repair
The City contracted with environmental consultant, EFI Global, Inc., and geotechnical engineering firm, Geotechnologies, Inc., to perform an investigation and provide recommendations on how to repair the sinkhole.
EFI Global, Inc. performed an environmental soil investigation in October 2022 by drilling three soil borings to a depth of 5.5 feet and collecting soil samples. Per the soil sample test results, metals detected were below the total threshold concentration limits, and total petroleum hydrocarbon (TPH) quantified as gas and oil, and all volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were found to be non-detectable.
Geotechnologies, Inc. performed a geotechnical investigation in November 2022, and during this investigation, an existing underground concrete vault (approximately 14 feet long, 6 feet wide, and unknown depth) was discovered beneath the sinkhole. The soil at the site was found to consist of primarily poorly graded gravel with silt and sand. The following are the recommendations made by the geotechnical engineer for the repair of the sinkhole:
a. Excavate to expose the existing underground concrete vault; b. Perforate the vault’s lower concrete slab with a minimum of 4” diameter perforations, at a minimum of 8 feet on center;
c. Remove the structure’s concrete walls to a minimum of 3 feet below the pavement subgrade;
d. Backfill and compact with compacted native soil or slurry; and e. Install new asphalt paving at the sinkhole area.
The City solicited bids in February 2023 for the sinkhole repair work as recommended by the geotechnical engineer. Emilio Ramirez dba Ramco General Engineering Contractors (Ramco) was the low bidder. Agreement No. 08-24 in the amount of $53,600 was issued to Ramco, and Ramco began the sinkhole repair work on January 16, 2024.
Discovery of Debris and Oil Drums Inside Existing Concrete Vault On January 19, 2024, as Ramco was excavating to expose the underground concrete vault, they discovered garbage and deteriorated oil drums inside the vault.
Meeting Date: June 18, 2024
Construction work was halted immediately, and per Emergency Contracting Procedures in Public Contract Code Section 22050 (which is incorporated in BHMC Section 3-3- 303), the City requested EFI Global, Inc. to contract with American Integrated Services, Inc., a licensed hazardous materials contractor, to clean up the site the same day.
EFI Global, Inc. obtained water and soil samples from inside the vault to perform laboratory tests. The soil test results indicated that the calculated total mass of each detected metal, Volatile Organic Compound (VOC), and Organochlorine Pesticides (OCP) was below its respective reportable quantity. Therefore, the presence of these compounds does not constitute a reportable release.
In addition, although TPH quantified as gasoline, diesel and oil were detected in the subsurface, there was no evidence that the impacted materials encountered are one of the listed petroleum-containing reportable wastes under the Code of Federal Regulations, CFR 40302.4, and thus the petroleum hydrocarbons appear to be exempt per the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA) notification requirements and should not qualify as a reportable release.
From January 25, 2024 through early February 2024, there were several rain storms, and the site was secured to prevent any runoff. No construction work occurred during this time.
Continued Excavation Inside Vault and Confined Space Entry to Clean Inside Vault From February 13 through February 15, 2024, American Integrated Services, Inc. pumped water out of the vault and continued excavating inside the vault with an excavator to determine if there was any other garbage or hazardous materials inside the vault. In addition, American Integrated Services, Inc. continued excavating to try and locate the bottom of the concrete vault. Additional debris was found inside the vault, but no additional oil drums were found. American Integrated Services, Inc. was not able to find the bottom of the vault.
Since the bottom of the vault was not found, on March 21, 2024, American Integrated Services, Inc. performed a confined-space entry into the vault to vacuum out the water and remove debris by hand from inside the vault. They were still not able to find the bottom of the vault. Additional water and soil samples were taken from inside the vault during this confined space entry. These samples were taken in order to perform additional tests to confirm that there were not any other constituents of concern.
Additional Borings to Obtain Soil Samples Beneath Concrete Vault Since the bottom of the concrete vault was not found, the area of contamination was not yet clearly identified. An additional investigation was performed in order to determine whether or not a hazardous materials reportable event existed per the Department of Toxic Substances Control and CERCLA. Therefore, on March 26 through March 27, 2024, four additional borings were drilled around the vault to a depth of 30 feet. This effort was done to obtain soil samples around and beneath the vault to determine if there was any hazardous materials contamination in the vicinity around the vault. Two of the borings were drilled at an angle so that soil samples could be obtained from beneath the vault. The test results performed on the soil samples from the 30-foot-deep borings indicated that the TPH quantified as gas and oil, and all VOCs were found to be negligible.
Meeting Date: June 18, 2024
Lastly, groundwater was not encountered during the soil boring assessment, around and beneath the vault to a depth of 30 feet, confirming that the water in the vault is rain/surface water (versus groundwater).
The following is an update on findings and work that has been performed since the May 21, 2024 City Council meeting.
Clean Up and Restoration of Parking Lot
On May 29, 2024, American Integrated Services, Inc. performed an additional confinedspace entry to clean the inside of the vault and to try and locate the bottom of the vault.
During this confined space entry, American Integrated Services, Inc. was able to confirm that there is a smooth concrete bottom to the vault. As a result, the area of contamination due to the garbage and oil drums has been delineated. Ramco will backfill the vault with slurry and repair the asphalt paving in the parking lot, and this work will be performed in mid to late June.
FISCAL IMPACT
There is $175,000 available in Miscellaneous and Unplanned Construction Projects (CIP #00815, Fund 405). No additional funds are requested at this time.
Shana Epstein,
Director of Public Works
Approved By