DATE:
March 21, 2023
TO:
Mayor and Council Members
Chair and Board Members, Hesperia Water District
FROM:
Nils Bentsen, City Manager
BY:
Rachel Molina, Assistant City Manager
Dani Fox, Deputy Development Services Director
Tina Souza, Senior Project Manager
SUBJECT:
Amend Professional Services Agreement for Bidding and Construction Support Services for the Ranchero Road Improvements Project (C.O. No. 7094)
RECOMMENDED ACTION
It is recommended that the City Council and Board of Directors of the Hesperia Water District 1) amend Professional Services Agreement (PSA) 2021-22-040 with Parsons Transportation Group, Inc. for Bidding and Construction Support Services for the Ranchero Road Improvements Project, [Construction Order (C.O.) No. 7094], in the amount of $63,880; and authorize a 10% contingency in the amount of $6,388 to be released as may be necessary for the completion of the project, totaling $70,268, with an overall not-to-exceed total of $271,758; and 2) amend the PSA description to include C.O. Nos. 7131, 7146, and 7154; and 3) extend the PSA expiration date to June 30, 2025.
BACKGROUND
Parsons Transportation Group, Inc. (Parsons) was awarded a contract for performing the design and California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) compliance services for the Ranchero Road Improvements Project, C.O. No. 7094 (the Project) in February of 2008. This contract was for the roadway portion of the corridor and did not include the aqueduct bridge. The aqueduct would later be designed by different engineering firm and was intended to be a separate project at the time.
This portion of the entire Ranchero Road Corridor Widening Project is being constructed in partnership with San Bernardino County (SBC), apart from the aqueduct crossing, which is a City only portion of the overall corridor project. Roughly half of the Project is within the SBC’s jurisdiction. A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with SBC was approved by the City Council in May of 2011 to share the cost of the environmental and design [plans, specifications, and estimates (PS&E)] services. A subsequent amendment to include the construction phase of the project was approved by the City Council on March 17, 2020. The City contracts with and pays Parsons directly, then subsequently invoices SBC for their portion of the costs related to the tasks performed by the consultant.
Construction for the Ranchero Road Corridor Widening Project was awarded in August 2021 and is currently in progress. The City also has a separate agreement in place with Parsons in the amount of $520,886 for consulting services related to post-construction mitigation work required for the Ranchero Road Undercrossing Project.
ISSUES/ANALYSIS
During the bidding and construction phase of a project, the engineering design firm is contracted to provide support to address constructability review comments, attend meetings, respond to inquiries, assist with preparation of addenda, review change order requests, and prepare as-built plans. The design engineering firm is the Engineer of Record for the project and has specific knowledge and liability related to the design. The design engineer is the sole authority for providing such services on a project.
The bidding support portion of the contract has been completed, leaving construction support services to be provided for the duration of construction.
Due to the complexity of the roadway widening project, during construction, there have been multiple circumstances requiring evaluation, clarification, engineered calculations, additional construction drawings and/or plan revisions to address unknown field conditions, including, but not limited to, drainage made evident by the recent storm events and utility conflicts. The project has not progressed as anticipated due to some of these unforeseen field conditions, most notably the utility conflicts. Additionally, plan revisions are currently being processed that is anticipated to ultimately result in a construction cost savings for certain components of the project.
With the additional engineering services required to facilitate construction of the project, Parsons has utilized most of the estimated hours provided at the time of contract award, plus the previously authorized contingency. This amendment is required to continue with construction support services through project close-out. Attached is the estimated number of hours to complete the remaining work on the project. It is estimated that there is roughly 6 months of support hours that will be needed through project close-out. These services are vital to the continuation of project construction. Please see the table below for a summary of total agreement authorization.
Additionally, design of the roadway widening portion of this project was performed under C.O. 7094. For asset management and audit purposes, the traffic signal components of the project are recorded under a separate C.O. number. The Ranchero Road Improvements Project also includes Traffic Signal at Ranchero Road/Maple Avenue – C.O. 7131, Traffic Signal at Ranchero Road/Cottonwood Avenue – C.O. 7146, and Traffic Signal at Ranchero Road/Seventh Avenue – C.O. 7154 as listed in the City’s Capital Improvement Program.
Finally, although roadway construction will be complete in advance of the end of Fiscal Year (FY) 2023-24, the close-out period could take several months. Thereby, staff is requesting a contract extension of two years.
FISCAL IMPACT
Funding for the Project is budgeted in the FY 2022-23 CIP Budget under Funds 204, 207, 300, 306 and 504. Subsequent fiscal year’s CIP will include adequate appropriation authority for these services through FY 2024-25. The Project is identified in the CIP under Ranchero Road Improvements – Seventh Avenue to Mariposa Road, C.O. No. 7094, Traffic Signal at Ranchero Road/Maple Avenue – C.O. 7131, Traffic Signal at Ranchero Road/Cottonwood Avenue – C.O. 7146, and Traffic Signal at Ranchero Road/Seventh Avenue – C.O. 7154.
The County will reimburse the City for their proportionate share of the project. At this time, the ratio of bidding and construction support services required is estimated at approximately 50% in the City and 50% in the County. This is an estimate subject to change throughout the course of construction based on the work performed by Parsons.
ALTERNATIVE(S)
Provide alternative direction to staff.
ATTACHMENT(S)
Attachment 1 – Cost Proposal
City of Hesperia STAFF REPORT City of Hesperia STAFF REPORT City of Hesperia
STAFF REPORT
City of Hesperia
STAFF REPORT
Staff Report to the Mayor and Council Members and Chair and Board Members of the Hesperia Water District Amend Professional Services Agreement for Bidding and Construction Support Services for the Ranchero Road Improvements Project (C.O. No. 7094) March 21, 2023