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CITY OF GLENDALE, CALIFORNIA
REPORT TO THE CITY COUNCIL
AGENDA ITEM
Report: Alternative Project Delivery Method for Engineering, Procurement, and Construction of the Mobile Substation Procurement Project.
1. Resolution authorizing the General Manager of Glendale Water & Power, or his designee, to issue a Request for Proposals (RFP) using the Engineer, Procure, and Construct (EPC) Alternative Project Delivery Method for the Mobile Substation Procurement Project for FY 2025-26, RFP No. 3941, and authorizing the City Clerk to solicit proposals.
COUNCIL ACTION
Item Type: Consent Calendar
Approved for January 13, 2026 calendar
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Glendale Water and Power (GWP) requests Council’s adoption of a Resolution authorizing the General Manager of GWP to issue an RFP to use the recommended alternative project delivery method for the Engineering, Procurement, and Construction of the Mobile Substation Procurement Project and authorizing the City Clerk to solicit proposals.
RECOMMENDATION
Adopt a resolution authorizing the General Manager of GWP, or his designee, to issue an RFP using the EPC Alternative Project Delivery Method for the Mobile Substation Procurement Project for FY 2025-26 and authorizing the City Clerk to solicit proposals.
ANALYSIS
GWP operates thirteen substations within its service area. During planned equipment replacements, maintenance outages, or emergency conditions, GWP must temporarily remove substation transformers or switchgear from service. To maintain reliability during these periods, GWP requires a fully equipped mobile substation that can be rapidly deployed to any substation location to provide temporary electrical service.
This Mobile Substation Procurement Project will provide GWP with a trailer-mounted, 15 MVA mobile substation with multiple high-side and low-side voltage configurations, protective equipment, relays, and all associated auxiliary systems. 24c
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The mobile substation will allow GWP to:
Maintain service continuity during transformer failures or replacements Reduce customer outage durations
Improve operational flexibility
Support emergency response and grid resiliency
The RFP includes engineering, procurement, manufacturing, assembly, testing, delivery, and training associated with the complete mobile substation system. The mobile unit must be capable of operating at 69 kV and 34.5 kV on the high side,
12.47 kV and 4.16 kV on the low side, and must adhere to all GWP technical specifications.
Glendale Municipal Code (GMC) Chapter 4.13 allows the utilization of the Alternative Project Delivery Method for certain projects which fit the criteria set forth therein and where the use of said method will be beneficial to the City. Approval of the City Manager and City Council are required for the use of the Alternative Project Delivery Method. On December 30, 2025, the General Manager of GWP obtained the City Manager’s approval for the proposed procurement method for the Project, as required by GMC Section 4.13.070 (see Exhibit A).
With this report, staff is seeking such approval from City Council to issue the Alternative Project Delivery Method RFP for the engineering, procurement and construction of the Mobile Substation Procurement Project, RFP No. 3941.
The EPC project delivery method is the preferred approach for the following reasons:
1) The project requires specialized engineering and manufacturing expertise, such as multi-voltage high-side and low-side transformer windings, protective equipment, trailer systems, switchgear controls, and specialized auxiliary components, GMC Section 4.13.060(A)(1), (A)(2), and (B)(3).
2) EPC contractors perform this kind of work on a regular basis unlike City staff that may not ever encounter this kind of work. Thus, the EPC contractors are more efficient and less likely to encounter problems that may impact the project delivery cost, GMC Section 4.13.060(B)(2), and time, GMC Section 4.13.060(A)(7) and (B)(1).
3) The RFP emphasizes consolidating design and construction under a single EPC contractor to achieve optimal risk allocation and better integration of QA/QC, GMC Section 4.13.060(A)(5).
4) Using the EPC method lends itself to improved project quality control as all aspects of the project are handled under one entity which improves project communication among the various EPC teams. This allows for proactive and timely identification and mitigation of potential quality control issues and leads to a high-quality final product that complies with all applicable safety and performance standards, GMC Section
4.13.060(A)(9).
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5) The City has had successes in using this delivery method on other similar projects such as the building of the Grandview substation which demonstrates that this is a good approach to perform such projects as this, GMC Section 4.13.020(I).
STAKEHOLDERS/OUTREACH
Not Applicable.
FISCAL IMPACT
The engineer’s estimate of the total project cost, including design, procurement, and construction, is approximately $3,250,000. Funding is available in the FY 2025–26 budget, and no new appropriation is being requested at this time.
The City Council approved funding is outlined below:
Existing Appropriation
Amount Account String Funding Source
$3,250,000 GL: 51800-5830-GWP-0020
PL: GWP00460AN
Electric Depreciation Fund
Department Cost Center Program
GWP Projects
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW (CEQA/NEPA)
The item herein is to authorize the utilization of an alternative project delivery method and the issuance of the RFP to solicit proposals, and is not a project as defined by the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and thus a CEQA analysis is not required.
CAMPAIGN DISCLOSURE
Not applicable.
ALTERNATIVES TO STAFF RECOMMENDATION
1. Decline to authorize the issuance of an RFP using the recommended alternative project delivery method for the engineering, procurement and construction of the Mobile Substation Procurement Project. This will result in increased costs and time delays required to design, bid, and then build the mobile substation needed which may jeopardize the reliability of the electric grid.
2.Consider any other alternative not proposed by staff. 34c
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ADMINISTRATIVE ACTION
Submitted by:
Scott K. Mellon, P.E., General Manager - Glendale Water and Power Prepared by:
Daniel Scorza, P.E., Assistant General Manager - Electric Approved by:
Roubik R. Golanian, P.E., City Manager
EXHIBITS/ATTACHMENTS
Exhibit A: Memo dated December 16, 2025, and approved by the City Manager on December 30, 2025 for the Engineering, Procurement, and Construction of the Mobile Substation Procurement Project.