STAFF REPORT
DATE: February 27, 2024
TO: Justin Hess, City Manager
FROM: Patrick Prescott, Community Development Director BY: David Kriske, Assistant Community Development Director, Transportation
SUBJECT: Approval of a Sole-Source Professional Services Agreement with Dorado Company, Inc. in the Amount of $414,500 to Provide Program Management Services for Complete Streets and Regional Transit Capital Projects and Amend the Fiscal Year 2023-2024 Budget
RECOMMENDATION
1) Approve a Sole-Source Professional Services Agreement with Dorado Company, Inc. in the amount of $414,500 (Attachment 1) to provide Program Management Services for Complete Streets Capital Projects and the Metro North Hollywood to Pasadena Bus Rapid Transit Corridor Project, and delegate administrative authority to the City Manager to approve and execute extensions of the agreement for up to five (5) additional one-year periods with related increases to the cost of service; and
2) Amend the Fiscal Year 2023- 2024 budget in the amount of $414,500 to appropriate Transportation Development Impact Fees to fund the Agreement.
BACKGROUND
Staff from the Community Development Department and Public Works Department are currently managing the design and construction of six capital projects that implement the Citywide Complete our Streets Plan and Bicycle Master Plan: 1) San Fernando Bikeway, 2) Chandler Bikeway Extension, 3) First Street Protected Bikeway, 4) Front Street Protected Cycle Track, 4) Bonnywood Street Closure, 5) Olive/Sparks /Verdugo Intersection Project, and 6) the San Fernando Reconfiguration Projects. These projects are managed by a combination of City staff and consultant project managers and are at various stages of development. In addition, Metro has commenced on design activities
COMMUNITY
DEVELOPMENT
2 for the Metro North Hollywood to Pasadena Bus Rapid Transit ( BRT) Project, which will utilize City right-of-way to construct a high- capacity transit corridor across the City. This project includes the reconfiguration of City streets and construction of six transit stations along the project alignment. All of these projects are complex and require int er- departmental coordination, interface with outside agencies, monitoring of project schedules and budget, and oversight of grant funding or outside funds with lapsing dates.
Further, many of these projects connect to each other and support the creation of a broader complete streets and transit network. Development, management, and coordination of these projects requires third party consultant staff to augment the efforts of City staff planners, engineers, and division managers across both departments.
DISCUSSION
The City has utilized third party program management services to help deliver complex regional transportation projects over the last 20 years to assist and coordinate between City departments, regional agencies (i.e., Caltrans), and other project consultants to ensure these large projects are constructed in a manner that meets the City Council’s (Council) transportation goals and objectives. Program management oversight was used for both the Interstate 5 (I-5) North HOV / Empire Avenue Interchange Project as well as the State Route 134 Hollywood Way Ramp Project. Like these previous projects, the City’s Complete Streets projects and the Metro BRT will require program management to ensure that the projects’ design, construction, and operation supports Council goals and policies and implements the City’s transportation plans. Given the complex nature of all these projects, staff believes that third party program management services are required to oversee, direct, and coordinate these multiple projects so that they are delivered successfully.
To provide these services, staff recommends Council approve a sole-source Professional Services Agreement with Dorado Company, Inc. (Dorado) . The City used Dorado third party consultant services , provided by Jack McGregor , for program management and oversight of the recently completed I5 North / Empire Interchange Project, the State Route 134 Hollywood Way Ramp Project, as well as various City utility relocation efforts for both projects. Staff believes the program management model for these regional projects can be successfully implemented to oversee the City’s Complete Streets program and Metro BRT project. Securing the services of Dorado will ensure that the City’s interests are preserved through development and implementation of each project. These services will allow City and consultant staff to work closely together and follow up on issues impacting project scope, cost, and schedule, contact staff in appropriate outside agencies including Metro, Metrolink, Caltrans, and other agencies, and serve as a resource to assist individual project managers to respond to project development issues. Because these projects interrelate with one another and even share the same right of way, Program Management services can also ensure that development for each project proceeds in coordination with the others so as not to cause conflicts. 3 Mr. McGregor and Dorado provided crucial, daily oversight of the I- 5 North / Empire Project, and staff is proposing to utilize this program management model for these other important projects. Dorado has unique experience with the City’s transportation infrastructure, standards, procedures, and administrative organization. Mr. McGregor brings strong transportation engineering experience and skill in n avigating outside agencies on behalf of the City , which makes Dorado uniquely qualified to perform these services. Specifically, Dorado represented the City with both Metro and Caltrans throughout design and construction of the I-5 North / Empire Project. This experience will be critical in efficiently advancing the City’s projects that require regional agency coordination and negotiation. Further, the City and Dorado have negotiated hourly rates for this work that is below the hourly rates of other comparable consulting engineering services secured through the City’s on -call consultant bench (Attachment 2) . Due to Dorado’s unique knowledge of the City’s transportation infrastructure and the competitive price offered for these services, staff recommends Council approve a sole source contract with Dorado and retain the services of Mr. McGregor.
A portion of the services provided under this proposed Agreement will be reimbursed by Metro as part of the BRT project, should Council approve a Cooperative Agreement with Metro (currently scheduled to be considered by Council in March 2024) . As part of th e Cooperative Agreement with Metro, engineering services needed by the City to develop the BRT project are reimbursable. Staff estimates approximately 30 percent of the sole- source agreement with Dorado may be reimbursable by Metro should Council approve this subsequent Cooperative Agreement.
The total annual cost of the proposed Agreement is $414,500, which includes full program management support for all six projects for one year. Staff proposes Council approve the term of th e agreement for one year, but delegate administrative authority to the City Manager to approve up to five additional one- year extensions as long as Council appropriates funds for the subsequent extensions as part of the annual City budget. The cost for each one-year extension would be equal to the original cost of service ($414,500) with an additional increase of three percent per year if staff elects to exercise any of the extensions. Staff proposes to pay for the cost of this agreement using Transportation Development Impact Fees, as all the projects proposed to be managed by Dorado are all projects included on the City’s Transportation Development Impact Fee Nexus Study, and therefore, these services are an eligible Development Impact Fee expense. There is no impact to the City’s General Fund by approving this agreement.
COMMUNITY OUTREACH
There was no direct community outreach associated with consi deration of this Agreement. However, community engagement was conducted as part of developing the Citywide Complete our Street s Plan, which resulted in identifying the projects that are currently being implemented. For the Metro BRT project, Metro conducted extensive public outreach as part of preparing the draft Environmental Impact Report. 4 ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
Approving the Agreement has no potential for resulting in either a direct physical change in the environment, or a reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment, and as such, is not a “project” subject to the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) 14 Cal. Code Regs § 15378. Approving this agreement to secure program management services has no potential to result in a direct or indirect physical change in the environment , as it does not commit the City to completing the projects listed in the scope of services . Further, all the projects that will be managed by Dorado have been, or will be, separately evaluated in accordance with CEQA as part of the development and approval of each project.
FISCAL IMPACT
Staff is requesting Council authority to amend the Fiscal Year 2023 -24 Adopted Budget by appropriating $414,500 from revenue account number 127.CD33A.30011.0000 (Public Improvements, Public Improvements – Transportation, Assigned Fund Balance) to expenditure account number 127.CD33A.62085.0000 (Public Improvements, Public Improvements – Transportation, Other Professional Services).
In accordance with the City’s Administrative Procedure VI -13, prior to approving a sole- source agreement the Council must be informed of the total dollar amount spent Citywide with the proposed consultant in the current fiscal year. As of the date of this Staff Report, the City has spent $150,745.63 with Dorado.
CONCLUSION
Council directed staff to implement six Complete Streets and other active Transportation Projects as part of its Capital Improvement Program, as well as ensure that the Metro North Hollywood to Pasadena BRT Project is implemented in accordance with the City’s policies and Council directive. Staff recommends the use of third-party program management consultant services to help manage the delivery of these projects and recommends approval of a sole-source professional services agreement with Dorado to provide these services due to Dorado’s unique knowledge of the City’s infrastructure, capital projects, City organization, and the outside agencies that will be coordinating with the City to c omplete these projects. Approving this Agreement will ensure the City’s General Plan and Capital Improvement Program is implemented successfully to complete several important transportation projects.
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment 1 – Professional Services Agreement with Dorado Company, Inc.
Attachment 2 – Dorado Company Billing Rates versus Current On-Call Consultant Bench Rates