Item No. 5.
TO: HONORABLE MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF THE CITY COUNCIL
FROM: OFFICE OF THE CITY MANAGER
BY: MATTHEW BAUMGARDNER, DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS/CITY ENGINEER DATE: JULY 28, 2026
ACCEPTANCE OF WORK FOR THE REPLACEMENT OF THE HVAC SYSTEM SUBJECT: CONTROLS AT THE COLUMBIA MEMORIAL SPACE CENTER CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECT (CIP) NO. 26-16
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The City Council will consider accepting the work for the replacement of the Direct Digital Control System for the HVAC system at the at the Columbia Memorial Space Center, CIP No. 26-16; approving FM Thomas Air Conditioning, Inc.'s final construction contract amount of $180,000; and authorizing the Public Works Director/City Engineer to file a Notice of Completion with the Los Angeles County Recorder's office. The intent of the project was to upgrade the HVAC control system, which was well beyond its useful life. The inability to program the controller due to the age and condition of the system, led to higher operational costs and incosistent cooling of the building. The replacement of the Direct Digital Control System for the HVAC at the Columbia Memorial Space Center has been completed in accordance with the approved plans and specifications, and staff recommends that the City Council accept the project as complete.
RECOMMENDATION
That the City Council:
1. Accept the work for the Replacement of the Direct Digital Control System for the HVAC at the at the Columbia Memorial Space Center (CIP No. 26-16);
2. Approve the final construction contract amount of $180,000; and,
3. Authorize the Director of Public Works/City Engineer to file a Notice of Completion indicating the work is complete and has been accepted by the City.
BACKGROUND
On February 10, 2026, the City Council awarded a construction contract in the amount of $180,000 to FM Thomas Air Conditioning, Inc. for the replacement of the HVAC Direct Digital Control System at the Columbia Memorial Space Center. In compliance with the City of Downey's Cooperative Purchasing Policy, the contract was procured by "piggybacking" on an existing competitively bid contract between the Orange County Sheriff Coroner and F.M.
Thomas. Piggybacking on the agreement from the Orange County Sheriff Coroner allowed the City to take advantage of competitively priced labor, materials, and equipment costs.
The intent of this work was to address a long-time issue with the Direct Digital Control System. The current Honeywell system design is dated back to 1995. The service life on this system was engineered to last 7 to 10 years. It has not been operating efficiently for the past several years. Within the last few years, the main front-end controller failed, which led to no HVAC control of the building. As a result, the HVAC system had been run manually by having City staff turn equipment on and off, as needed.
From an energy efficiency perspective, the electricity bills had been close to double what they should be due to these system issues. Additionally, comfort levels in the building are less than optimal during daily operations. This work replaced the proprietary Honeywell control system with the non-proprietary Carrier iVu control system, which is the control system the City has now standardized across its facilities.
ANALYSIS
On December 18, 2025, Public Works staff received a cost proposal from F.M. Thomas in the amount of $180,000 to upgrade the Honeywell Control System to the Direct Digital Control Carrier i-Vu building automation system. The cost proposal was based on the unit pricing for labor, equipment, and materials already adopted in the competitively bid contract with the Orange County Sherrif Coroner.
Following award of the contract by the City Council, Public Works facilities staff coordinated the work between Columbia Memorial Space Center staff and F.M. Thomas to limit the impact on the facility's operations. F.M.
Thomas began the contract work on April 6, 2026, The project work was completed on May 29, 2026 and staff training on the use of the thermostat controls was conducted on June 17, 2026.
The Replacement of the HVAC Controls System at the Columbia Memorial Space Center project has been completed in accordance with the approved plans and specifications, and staff recommends that the City Council accept the project as complete and authorize the Director of Public Works/City Engineer to file the Notice of Completion with the Los Angeles County Recorder's Office.
CITY COUNCIL PRIORITIES
Quality of Life, Safety & Infrastructure
FISCAL IMPACT
The final cost of the construction contract is $180,000. The total project cost is broken down as follows:
Item Amount
Equipment and materials $100,000
Labor, installation, $80,000
programming, testing
Total Final Project $180,000
Cost:
Sufficient CIP funds are available in account number 40-1-6894-0520 to cover the total project cost.