needed contractor is necessary for Public Works to be able to not only provide these planned, larger efforts, but also to quickly perform work based upon requests and field adjustments as directed by staff.
Sterndahl Enterprises, Inc. (Sterndahl) has served as the City’s striping vendor for several years, demonstrating a high level of professionalism and reliability. They have a detailed understanding of the City’s requirements and typical projects that require striping services. They are responsive to the City’s needs and have provided on-call services for the City’s $8 M annual paving program, and have also successf ully implemented high - profile projects on short notice , such as temporary closure signing and striping for the Alameda North Neighborhood Protection Plan and the Rancho Providencia Neighborhood Protection Plan.
In prior years, Public Works executed “piggy-back” agreements with Sterndahl using the City of Los Angeles (LA) Agreement that originally went through LA’s competitive bidding process; however, the LA Agreement has not been renewed, and therefore cannot be used at this time . Further, unit prices included in the current agreement are over ten years old. Sterndahl has informed staff that they cannot provide the old unit prices in the current economic climate. Therefore, the City must establish a new agreement in order to secure a contractor for these critical striping services.
DISCUSSION
It is critical that a qualified contractor is procured for roadway striping and pavement markings to ensure they are installed correctly, on time, and at a competitive price. Public Works has several requirements to consider when selecting a contractor for these services, including:
• The ability to accurately follow engineering plans and notes and adhere to California Department of Transportation and local City regulatory guidelines and standards. • The ability to perform and complete the work quickly and safely as roadway segments must often be blocked during installation and curing of striping. • Pavement striping and signs are critical safety elements for the City of Burbank, and their optimal installation is of paramount importance.
• An aggressive paving program with complex scheduling coordination must be delivered each fiscal year.
• Several Complete Streets “quick -build” transportation projects must be completed, including the Downtown San Fernando Blvd Reconfiguration, the Front Street Two - way Protected Bikeway Project, and improvements identified as part of the City’s upcoming implementation of the Vision Zero program.
• The contractor must be regionally qualified to work in Burbank and experienced in completing large projects with complex scheduling requirements.
For the reasons noted above, staff reached out to Sterndahl to contract directly with the City of Burbank on a new one-year on-call Blanket Purchase Order (BPO) that does not require “piggy-back” on the LA (or other agency’s) agreement.
As part of staff’s discussions, Sterndahl has p rovided the City with new competitive unit prices for the signage and striping work that is needed for the next year . Staff has
compared Sterndahl’s new pricing for the proposed BPO to the unit prices of striping work included in the last few roadway paving bids that required striping work. Staff found that Sterndahl’s prices are lower than all subcontractor prices reviewed and, in some cases, by more than 50 percent.
Sole source agreements for public works projects greater than $200,000 require approval by the City Council. Based on staff’s price comparison, staff believes that contracting directly with Sterndahl for a sole-source BPO is fiscally responsible; is in the best interest of the City to continue to maintain the City’s roadways safely; to implement critical street repaving projects, and to implement the City Council’s Complete Streets plan and Vision Zero program. The one-year agreement (Attachment 2) will allow staff the opportunity to perform a competitive bidding process for these services, so that in 2024 a contractor can be recommended to the Council to enter a multi-year agreement.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
Work related to the operation, repair, maintenance, or minor alterations of existing public facilities are categorically exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act. (14 CCR § 15301.) The work subject to this purchase order will implement street maintenance projects that do not expand any existing use of the public facilities, and no exceptions apply. For this reason, staff recommends that the City Council find adoption of this resolution categorically exempt from CEQA as set forth in the resolution.
FISCAL IMPACT
Staff has estimated that the signing and striping needs over the next year for street repaving, Complete Streets capital improvement projects, and Vision Zero programs, is approximately $900,000. Approval of the BPO will have no fiscal impact since payments for the signing and striping services will come from funds budgeted for each project, which have all been approved by Council as part of the annual budget process.
CONCLUSION
Staff respectfully recommends that the City Council adopt the attached resolution that approves a one-year agreement with Sterndahl to provide as-needed roadway signing and striping services.
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment 1 – Resolution
Attachment 2 - Draft Agreement