TITLE: RECEIVE REPORT AND CONSIDER ADOPTION OF CITY COUNCIL RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER TO EXECUTE AGREEMENT WITH RINCON CONSULTANTS, INC. FOR THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT FOR THE FORT BRAGG RESERVOIR PROJECT, PROJECT WTR-00024, AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED $540,182.86 ISSUE:
On March 31, 2023, the City finalized the purchase of six (6) parcels totaling 582 acres (the Property), located adjacent to Highway 20 and abutting the Summers Lane Reservoir property. The primary objective of the purchase is to construct three (3) reservoirs each the approximate size of Summers Lane Reservoir. This location provides a convenient connection to infrastructure allowing gravity flow to our raw water line, conveying water to our treatment plant. While being an ideal location for the proposed reservoirs, the site does contain sensitive natural communities that have been mapped by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW). Consequently, the construction of reservoirs on the site will require mitigation of any impacts to the sensitive habitat.
On May 22, 2023, the Council approved the release of the Request for Proposals (RFP) for the combined engineering and environmental work, which was issued on May 25, 2023. Despite sending the RFP out to numerous entities, only one response was received, which significantly exceeded the anticipated cost. Even after negotiating the price, the cost was still higher than anticipated. It is common practice to add a 10-20% markup to subcontracted work, so the staff decided to separate the engineering from the environmental to omit that additional cost.
Staff also added two (2) alternates to the RFP, which are portions of the Raw Water Line Replacement Project that require additional engineering and environmental work than was, anticipated when those plans were completed. The two alternates are 1) the Noyo River crossing lining, and 2) the replacement of the culverts along Segment 2, between the Noyo River and the Water Treatment Plant. The Raw Water Line Replacement Project assumed it was best to minimize the project disturbance and therefore did not intend to replace the culverts unless they were failing, but CDFW has required that the City reengineer and replace the culverts to allow for fish passage.
On June 10, 2024, the Council approved the release of the separate RFPs for the Environmental Services and the Reservoir Engineering via Consent Calendar, and on June 11, 2024, the RFPs were released.
ANALYSIS:
On July 23, 2024, three (3) proposals were received for the Preparation of an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the Construction of the Reservoirs and a Community Forest on the Reservoir site. Staff evaluated the proposals based on their scope of work before opening the separate folder containing the cost proposals to consider the merits of each proposal without knowledge of cost. The proposal from Dynamic Planning + Science (DP+S) did not address the full scope of work and omitted the alternates and the Community Forest technical report, which staff feels is critical to the project. Staff also noted that they did not separate their proposal from the cost. The proposals from Dudek and Rincon Consultants, Inc. are much more comprehensive, and both address the full project scope. The Rincon proposal demonstrates an excellent understanding of the City’s goals and objectives regarding Community Forest development, while the Dudek proposal placed more emphasis on forest management than the actual development. Rincon also included additional analysis that might be desired or needed for the EIR, such as a review by their legal experts, or analysis needed to satisfy Federal requirements if the City were to obtain Federal funding. The base proposal cost, number of weeks anticipated to complete the final EIR, cost of alternates, and combined cost are shown below:
DP+S: base price = $186,500 – 31 weeks – no alternates - $186,500 Dudek: base price = $611,129.45 – 60 weeks - $44,780 – $655,909.45 Rincon: base price $413,519.86 – 47 weeks - $69,668 (total of $126,663 with other alts) –$540,182.86.
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Authorize City Manager to execute a contract with Rincon Consultants, Inc., in a not to exceed the amount of $540,182.86.
ALTERNATIVE ACTION(S):
Recommend excluding one or more alternates.
Recommend that the agreement be executed with one of the other firms.
Recommend that the RFP be reissued.
Provide alternative direction to staff.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The City has applied for funding for $235,000 from the Bureau of Reclamation to cover a portion of the design costs. Acquisition of grant funding for other water projects has allowed for adequate funding to be available in the Water Enterprise Account. Staff anticipates that grant funding will be available in the future for the construction of the reservoirs as well as for the conservation of the property. The current budget amount for this project for this fiscal year is $1,400,000, which includes both the engineering and the environmental work. If the Council awards both agreements as recommended tonight, the total cost is $1,245,567.86, within budget and leaving a contingency.
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT:
This agreement is to enable the consultant to fully evaluate any potential environmental impacts of constructing the reservoir project and creating a community forest. No impacts are anticipated from the environmental analysis itself. Approval of the Resolution and Agreement does not qualify as a "project" subject to CEQA because it does not have a potential to result in either a direct, or reasonably foreseeable indirect, physical change in the environment. (State CEQA Guidelines, § 15378(a).) Additionally, the approval of the Resolution is statutorily exempt from CEQA under State CEQA Guidelines section 15262, as the Resolution concerned "feasibility or planning studies for possible future actions [that] the agency ... has not approved, adopted, or funded." (State CEQA Guidelines, § 15262.) Notably, although the Resolution discusses some funding for the environmental planning costs associated with the Water Reservoir Project, it provides for no funding for the construction of the Water Reservoir Project, nor does it otherwise commit the City to the Water Reservoir Project. Furthermore, the City's approval of the Resolution is exempt from CEQA under the common sense exemption set forth in State CEQA Guidelines section 15061(b)(3), as it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the activity will have a significant effect on the environment.
CONSISTENCY:
Completion of this project will increase water reliability and help protect both aquatic and special-status terrestrial plant habitats. It will also help with developing an emergency water supply for water resilience and disaster preparedness.
IMPLEMENTATION/TIMEFRAMES:
The Rincon Consultants propose to have the Final EIR completed within 47 weeks of Project initiation.
ATTACHMENTS:
Resolution for Contract Award
RFP Response Matrix
NOTIFICATION:
Rincon Consultants, Inc.
Dynamic Planning & Science (DPS)
DUDEK
AGENCY: City CouncilMEETING DATE: August 12, 2024DEPARTMENT: Public WorksPRESENTED BY: Diane O’ConnorEMAIL ADDRESS: [email protected]: City CouncilMEETING DATE: August 12, 2024DEPARTMENT: Public WorksPRESENTED BY: Diane O’ConnorEMAIL ADDRESS: [email protected] AGENCY: City Council
MEETING DATE: August 12, 2024
DEPARTMENT: Public Works
PRESENTED BY: Diane O’Connor
EMAIL ADDRESS: [email protected]
AGENCY: City Council
MEETING DATE: August 12, 2024
DEPARTMENT: Public Works
PRESENTED BY: Diane O’Connor
EMAIL ADDRESS: [email protected]
AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY