EAST PALO ALTO
CITY COUNCIL
STAFF REPORT
DATE: April 4, 2023
TO: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
VIA: Melvin E. Gaines, City Manager
BY: Batool Zaro, Associate Engineer
Humza Javed, Public Works Director
SUBJECT: University Avenue Safety Enhancements Project
Recommendation
Adopt a resolution:
1. Waiving the formal bid procedures under section 2.84.070(D) of the East Palo Alto Municipal Code in favor of a procurement process set by the State of California (Caltrans); and
2. Authorizing the City Manager to execute a design services contract with TJKM Transportation Consultants (TJKM), in a form approved by the City Attorney, in the amount not to exceed $205,721 to provide civil engineering and traffic engineering design services for the University Avenue Safety Enhancements Project.
Alignment with City Council Strategic Plan
This recommendation is primarily aligned with:
• Promote public health and safety
• Implement comprehensive transportation and mobility plan Background
The City of East Palo Alto has one of the busiest commuter corridors in the peninsula due to its proximity to Highway 84 (Dumbarton Bridge). The University Avenue Safety Enhancements Project (project) addresses years of community concern along University Avenue. The City completed a jurisdiction wide safety analysis and identified four intersections along University as having the top five greatest number of collisions. These accidents are often fatal or severe injury collisions.
The project includes improving pedestrian crossings, installing upgraded signal equipment to increase visibility, and installing protected left turn phases to separate conflicting vehicle movements. The goal of the comprehensive corridor-wide approach is to reduce overall fatal and severe crashes of certain types within the corridor.
In 2020 the City applied for Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP) Cycle 10 funds to fund the University Avenue improvements, and the City was awarded $1.23 million for the improvements. Out of the $1.23 million in grant funds, $206,000 is budgeted for the design phase.
The HSIP grant supports our City’s goal of moving closer to eliminating traffic fatalities and reducing the number of non-fatal injury collisions along University Avenue by 50 percent by 2030 . The proposed installation will include high visibility crosswalks, pedestrian signal upgrades, Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliant curb ramps, signal phasing improvements, and improved signal hardware. The four University Avenue intersections include Runnymede Street, Bay Road, Kavanaugh Drive, and Weeks Street.
Analysis
At the outset, staff notes that this project is fully funded by federal funds which are administered by the State, which requires the City, as a grantee, to comply with its procurement process (Caltrans Local Assistance Procedures Manual). As such, staff is recommending that the Council waive formal bid procedures under section 2.84.070(D) of the East Palo Alto Municipal Code.
Accordingly, the City issued a request for proposals on December 9th 2022 and on January 10th 2023 the City received three (3) proposals.
The three (3) proposals were reviewed and ranked by a panel of three staff members from Public Works Departments. The highest-ranking consultant, TJKM Transportation Consultants (TJKM), is being recommended for selection.
TJKM has extensive knowledge in highway design, transportation/traffic studies, signal design, land development reviews, pedestrian and bike improvements, and complete street projects.
TJKM was also the firm that established conceptual layouts for the project that were used in the HSIP grant application.
TJKM is one of the City’s on-call traffic engineering firms. They have assisted the City on various grant applications, signal timing projects, and well as signage and striping projects.
The scope of the contract includes but is not limited to:
• Project Management
• Surveying and Mapping
• Preliminary Design
• Public Outreach and Coordination
• Design
• Bid Support and Construction Support
The scope of work is attached as Attachment 2. Upon contract award and execution, TJKM will complete the Plans, Specifications, and Estimate (PS&E) for bidding. Upon completion of the design phase, the City will obtain authorization from Caltrans for use of construction funds.
The City’s standard professional services agreement is attached as Attachment 3.
Fiscal Impact
This project will be funded by HSIP Cycle 10 funds that were awarded to the City. There is no city match required.
Public Notice
The public was provided notice of this agenda item by posting the City Council agenda on the City’s official bulletin board outside City Hall and making the agenda and report available at the City’s website and at the San Mateo Co. Library located at 2415 University Avenue, East Palo Alto.
Environmental
This action is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Sections 15301 (Repair, maintenance and/or minor alteration of an existing facility) and Sections 15303 (construction and location of limited numbers of new, small facilities or structures).
Attachments
1. Resolution
2. Scope of work
3. EPA Standard Agreement Contractor and Professional Services Agreement (5)
4. Cost Proposal