DATE: December 15, 2025
TO: Mayor and Members of the City Council
VIA: Stefan Chatwin, City Manager
Marlene Subhashini, Assistant City Manager
FROM: Derek Schweigart, Parks and Recreation Director
Tiffany Oren, Recreation Manager
Frank Fanara, Parks Maintenance Manager
DEPARTMENT: Parks and Recreation
SUBJECT: PURCHASE OF PUBLIC AND PARK SITE FURNITURE IN THE AMOUNT OF $1,046,772 FOR THE FOSTER CITY COMMUNITY
CENTER REBUILD PROJECT (CIP 301-678) WHICH INCLUDES
A SOLE SOURCE PURCHASE OF $67,508 FROM MMCITE; AND
APPROPRIATION OF $53,900 FROM THE EQUIPMENT
REPLACEMENT FUND (FUND 502) FOR CERAMIC KILNS
RECOMMENDATION
It is recommended that City Council adopt a resolution:
1. Authorizing the purchase of public and park site furniture in the amount of $1,046,772 for the Foster City Community Center Rebuild Project (CIP 301-678); which includes a sole source purchase of $67,508 from Mmcité;
2.Appropriating $53,900 from the Equipment Replacement Fund (Fund 502) for the purchase of ceramics kilns.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Foster City Community Center Rebuild Project (CIP 301-678) requires the purchase of Furniture, Fixtures, and Equipment (FF&E) to support full operation of the new facility upon opening. Staff have worked with Group 4 Architecture, Research + Planning, Inc. (Group 4) to assess space needs, select durable and high-quality
furnishings, and secure competitive pricing through cooperative purchasing agreements and vendor quotes. This research also included outreach to senior users in selection of furniture for the facility’s Senior Lounge. The resulting FF&E package includes public- use furniture, outdoor site furnishings, and program-specific equipment.
Staff requests City Council approval to proceed with procurement of public and site furnishings totaling $1,046,772. These purchases fall within the Project’s overall FF&E budget of $1,190,000 and are needed now to meet manufacturing and delivery timelines aligned with the construction schedule. In addition, staff is requesting an appropriation of $53,900 from the Equipment Replacement Fund (Fund 502) for the purchase of ceramics kilns essential to planned programming.
Selection of staff office furniture and workstations is currently underway and will be presented to the City Council in January 2026. Approval at this time will allow staff to finalize procurement, maintain schedule continuity, and support a timely and fully functional opening of the new Community Center.
BACKGROUND / ANALYSIS
The Project requires a comprehensive package of FF&E to ensure the new facility is functional, welcoming, and aligned with modern community facility needs and standards. This includes public-use furnishings, staff workstations, program-specific equipment, and outdoor site amenities. The total approved FF&E budget for the Project is $1,190,000.
To support the City in planning and selecting FF&E that meets operational, aesthetic, and budget objectives, staff worked with design team at Group 4. Beginning in early 2025, Parks and Recreation staff worked closely with Group 4 to develop a curated list of furnishings tailored to high-use municipal environments and spaces like community centers. This collaborative process included:
Reviewing product durability, safety standards, and ADA compliance. Evaluating multiple vendors to compare pricing and lead times. Developing site-specific furniture layouts for program rooms, lounges, work areas, and public gathering spaces.
Conducting value-engineering reviews to maintain quality while staying within budget.
Group 4 also conducted independent research on vendor pricing, warranty coverage, material specifications, and freight considerations to ensure selections represent the best value available for FF&E for the project. Where possible, they solicited multiple quotes in addition to using pre-negotiated cooperative purchasing contracts to secure favorable terms (Per City Resolution No. 2025-25, Purchasing Policy Section 3B was updated to approve the use of cooperative purchasing agreements).
Cooperative purchasing agreements, such as those offered through OMNIA and US Communities, allow public agencies to utilize contracts that have already been competitively bid and awarded by a lead government entity. This approach streamlines procurement, reduces administrative burden, and provides access to pre-vetted vendors and volume-discounted pricing, ensuring the City can obtain needed goods and services efficiently and in compliance with purchasing requirements. The following cooperative contracts were utilized (The Parks & Recreation Department has copies of each contract):
Boss Design Contract #07-69
Carolina Contract (OFS Brands) #R240113
Davis Contract #07-84
Haskell Contract #07-93
K1 Contract #R221003
Landscape Forms Contract #07-100
Vestre Contract #250303
Council approval is necessary to allow for adequate production and shipping lead times, coordination procurement with the construction schedule, and prevent potential delays to the facility’s planned opening.
Public Furniture
Public furnishings serve community-facing program rooms, meeting spaces, lounges, and event areas. Group 4 obtained quotes from Inside Source, One Work Place, and Pivot, with Inside Source providing the lowest pricing. The current estimate for public furniture is $632,404. (Attachment 2).
Inside Source Pivot One Work Place
Total Quote $632,404 $647,445 $646,810
Areas include:
1st Floor: Community Lounge, Café, Senior Lounge, Conference Room, Medium Activity Room, Event Space A–D, Preschool, Ceramics (excluding kilns) 2nd Floor: Community Lounge, Activity Rooms A & B, Arts Studios Site Furnishings
Selected site furnishings are intended for plazas, patios, walkways, and public outdoor spaces designed to support community gathering and programmed events. The site furnishings for the project were selected by the City’s landscape architect during the design phase to ensure consistency with the approved site design, durability requirements, and overall aesthetic goals. Following this selection, staff obtained quotes from Vestre, Landscape Forms and Mmcité. Vestre and Landscape Forms provided their cooperative purchase agreement pricing, while for Mmcité, staff were directed to Specified Play Equipment Company, the exclusive California distributor authorized to provide manufacturer-direct pricing with no additional markups. This procurement pathway ensures the City receives the specified products at the lowest available cost while maintaining alignment with the design intent. Due to this company being the sole distributor in the state of California for this specific furniture, staff requests approval of a sole source purchase, as the furniture type has already been worked into the project design and the City would receive factory direct pricing.
The current estimate for outdoor site furniture is $414,368. The quotes and a full listing of site furniture are included in Attachment 3.
Other:
Ceramics Kilns
Ceramics kiln purchases are not included in the core FF&E allocation. Staff proposes utilizing $53,900 from the Equipment Replacement Funds that were put on hold due to the closure of the Recreation Center and appropriating these funds into the current fiscal year to proceed with the standard procurement process for the purchase of the ceramics kilns. Purchasing and installing the kilns prior to opening will ensure the ceramics program is operational when the new facility begins service.
Staff Furniture
Staff continue to work with Group 4 to evaluate office and workstation furniture options and will return to the City Council on January 20, 2026, with a purchase recommendation. However, these selections are expected to be less than the original budget estimate. Furniture under review include the following areas/rooms:
• 1st Floor: Private offices, shared office, open workstations, reception • 2nd Floor: Shared office suite
The furniture options being considered emphasize ergonomic, modular, and durable systems that support modern workplace and customer-service needs.
California Environmental Quality Act
The approval of the Community Center furniture is not subject to review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to Public Resources Code Section 21000, et seq. and the CEQA Guidelines (14 Cal. Code Regs. §§ 15000 et. seq.), including without limitation, Public Resources Code section 21065 and California Code of Regulations 15378 as this is not a “project” that may cause a direct, or reasonably foreseeable indirect, physical change in the environment.
FISCAL IMPACT
As part of the overall Project budget that the City Council approved, the FF&E portion of the budget is $1,190,000. The combined cost of public and site furnishings is $1,046,772, leaving a balance of $143,228 available for staff furniture. The final cost of staff furniture is expected to be less than is available in the FF&E budget.
Total FF&E Budget $1,190,000
Public Furniture Quote $632,404
Site Furniture Quote $414,368
Total $1,046,772
Remaining $143,228
Staff also requests an appropriation of $53,900 from the Equipment Replacement Fund (Fund 502) in FY 2025–26 for the purchase of ceramic kilns. Although the kilns are included in the Equipment Replacement Fund, they were not funded in the current fiscal year due to the Recreation Center’s closure.
CITY COUNCIL VISION, MISSION, AND VALUE/PRIORITY AREA
Facilities and Infrastructure
ATTACHMENTS:
Attachment 1 – Resolution
Attachment 2 – Public Furniture Quotes
Attachment 3 – Site Furniture Quotes