Public Works and Transportation Committee
June 23, 2026
TO: Elizabeth A. Lake FROM: Josh Rowan
Acting City Administrator Director, Department of
Transportation
SUBJECT: Construction Contract Award for
Highway Safety Improvement
Program (HSIP) Cycle 10, 14th Street
Safety Project between Mandela
Parkway and Brush Street
DATE: June 9, 2026
City Administrator Approval Date:
RECOMMENDATION
Staff Recommends That The City Council Adopt A Resolution Awarding A Construction Contract To Gruendl Inc. dba Ray’s Electric, Inc., For The Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP) Cycle 10, 14th Street Safety Project between Mandela Parkway and Brush Street, Project No. 1006187, The Lowest, Responsible, And Responsive Bidder In Accordance With Project Plans, Specifications, And The Contractor’s Bid In The Amount Of Two Million, Four Hundred Ninety-Four Thousand, Six Hundred Eighty-Five Dollars, And Eighty-Six Cents ($2,494,685.86); And Adopting Appropriate California Environmental Quality Act Findings.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Adoption of this proposed resolution will authorize the City Administrator to execute a construction contract in the amount of two million, four hundred ninety-four thousand, six hundred eighty-five dollars, and eighty-six cents ($2,494,685.86) with Gruendl Inc. dba Ray’s Electric, Inc., the lowest, responsible, and responsive bidder, for the Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP) Cycle 10, 14th Street Safety Project between Mandela Parkway and Brush Street, Project No. 1006187, to implement pedestrian and bicycle traffic safety improvements on 14th Street between Mandela Parkway and Brush Street in West Oakland.
Safety improvements include installation of new rectangular rapid flashing beacons, signal mast arms, a road diet, crosswalk enhancements including advanced stop lines, and streetlights.
AGENDA REPORT
Betsy Lake (Jun 11, 2026 10:37:11 PDT)
Jun 11, 2026
Elizabeth A. Lake, Acting City Administrator
Subject: Construction Contract Award for Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP) Cycle 10, 14th Street Safety Project between Mandela Parkway and Brush Street Date: June 9, 2026 Page 2
Public Works and Transportation Committee
June 23, 2025
Exhibit 1: Safety Improvement Examples
Rapid Rectangular
Flashing Beacon
Signal Mast Arm
Advanced Stop Line
BACKGROUND / LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
In 2020, the City submitted a grant application to Caltrans for the 14th Street Safety Project between Mandela Parkway and Adeline Street based on collision history at the project intersections extending back five years. The project intersections have the highest quantity and severity of reported crashes involving pedestrians/bicycles, as compared with all other intersections in the City of Oakland (City). On March 30, 2021, Caltrans awarded a grant to the City in a competitive process based on an evaluation of the overall effectiveness of proposed measures that can reduce the number and severity of collisions for pedestrians, bicyclists, and vehicles between Mandela Parkway and Adeline Street.
In June 2021, the City Council authorized the acceptance and appropriation of the HSIP Cycle 10 grant for the 14th Street Safety Project between Mandela Parkway and Adeline Street in the amount of one million, five hundred seventy thousand, two hundred twenty dollars ($1,570,220) (Resolution No. 88685 C.M.S) with a City local match of one hundred twenty three thousand, five hundred and eighty dollars ($123,580).
In 2022, additional safety improvements and resources were added to the 14th Street Safety Project between Mandela Parkway and Brush Street through the Capital Improvement Program (CIP). Through a safety analysis of the original project, it was found that additional improvements such as a road diet and several additional pedestrians crossings across the median on 14th Street would result in a high cost-benefit for the project. Other benefits of the additions include their utility to connect an existing project – the downtown 14th Street Safety project, and the location of the project is in the highest equity-priority area in the City.
Subsequently, the limits of the project were extended to be between Mandela Parkway and Brush Street.
The combined project scope of the HSIP Cycle 10 and CIP project identifies improvements between Mandela Parkway and Brush Street, and includes:
- Rectangular rapid flashing beacons,
- Signal mast arms,
- Road configuration modifications (road diet),
- New pedestrian crossings across the 14th Street median, - Crosswalk enhancements, including advanced stop lines, and - Streetlights.
For a map and additional details on project locations, please refer to Attachment A.
Elizabeth A. Lake, Acting City Administrator
Subject: Construction Contract Award for Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP) Cycle 10, 14th Street Safety Project between Mandela Parkway and Brush Street Date: June 9, 2026 Page 3
Public Works and Transportation Committee
June 23, 2025
Currently, staff are seeking Council adoption of a resolution to award the construction contract to the lowest responsive and responsible bidder, Gruendl Inc. dba Ray’s Electric, Inc.
ANALYSIS AND POLICY ALTERNATIVES
On March 12, 2026, the Office of City Clerk received four bids for the construction contract of the Project (Attachment B) from Gruendl Inc. dba Ray’s Electric, Inc., Rapid Grading Services, McGuire & Hester, and Bay Construction Co., as shown in Table 1.
Table 1: Project Bids Received
BIDDER LOCATION BASE BID
Gruendl Inc. dba Ray’s Electric, Inc. Oakland $2,494,685.86 Rapid Grading Services Hayward $2,508,593.16
McGuire & Hester Oakland $2,971,750.00
Bay Construction Co. Oakland $3,158,953.00
All bids were reviewed by the Department of Workplace and Employment Standards (DWES), and all bids were deemed responsive to meet the minimum 50% Local & Small Local Business Enterprise (L/SLBE) as shown in Table 2.
Table 2: Project Bids & Credited L/SLBE Analysis
BIDDER BASE BID Credited
Total
L/SLBE
Earned Bid
Discounts
Adjust Bid
Amount
Gruendl Inc. dba Ray’s
Electric, Inc. $2,494,685.86 83.35% 5% $2,369,951.57
Rapid Grading Services $2,508,593.16 79.51% 4% $2,408,249.43 McGuire & Hester $2,971,750.00 150.34% 5% $2,823,162.50 Bay Construction Co. $3,158,953.00 127.80% 5% $3,001,005.35
With the bid discounts, Gruendl Inc. dba Ray’s Electric, Inc. was found to be the lowest, responsible, and responsive bidder. The bid proposal was compliant with the City’s Equal Benefits Ordinance, and the Compliance Analysis Memorandum is included in Attachment C.
Gruendl Inc. dba Ray’s Electric, Inc. is recommended to be awarded the contract.
RELATED PLANNING EFFORTS
Capital Improvement Program
The City's CIP guides the City's long-term, strategic decisions regarding the construction, repair and replacement of the City's assets including libraries, public safety facilities, sewers, recreation centers and parks. Transportation and street improvements are also part of the City's CIP. The City develops a new CIP Budget every two years for inclusion in the overall City Budget, and the assets identified for repair, replacement or purchase in a budget cycle become CIP Projects.
Elizabeth A. Lake, Acting City Administrator
Subject: Construction Contract Award for Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP) Cycle 10, 14th Street Safety Project between Mandela Parkway and Brush Street Date: June 9, 2026 Page 4
Public Works and Transportation Committee
June 23, 2025
The 14th Street Safety Project between Mandela Parkway and Brush Street was funded in part by the CIP to further enhance proposed safety features of the corridor. This corridor is also on the City’s High Injury Network and in a high priority equity area, both of which are factors toward prioritizing project improvements by the CIP.
FISCAL IMPACT
Sufficient funds are available in the Fiscal Year 2025-2027 Biennial Budget for this construction contract. See below for a breakdown of construction fund sources.
Table 3: Construction Funding Sources
Fund Source Name Fund # Project # Amount
State HSIP Cycle 10 Grant 2140 1006187 $1,282,822.57
State Gas Tax 2230 1006187 $870,026.47
Measure BB 2218 1006187 $341,836.82
Total Cost: $2,494,685.86
PUBLIC OUTREACH / INTEREST
The Project was presented to the Bicyclist and Pedestrian Advisory Commission (BPAC) during the grant application and design phases and received a letter of support thereafter. District 3 City Council member office also provided their support for this project.
Staff provided notice to labor representatives, per the terms and conditions of the current Memorandums of Understanding with the International Federation of Professional & Technical Engineers (IFPTE) Local 21, Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 1021 and International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 1245 prior to the formal issuance of the Request for Bids (RFB).
Public Outreach is part of OakDOT’s Capital Contract Equity Initiative. For this RFB solicitation, OakDOT-Great Streets Delivery Division (OakDOT-GSD) worked with Oakland Public Works, Capital Contracts Division (OPW-CCD), and the Department of Workplace and Employment Standards (DWES) to perform public outreach through legal ads, enhanced notifications, and pre-bid meetings.
Notifications of solicitation were distributed by several means. The first was the City’s iSupplier system, which was utilized to notify Oakland-certified local and non-local professional service providers (e.g., landscape architects, architects, engineers, contractors, and planning firms); regional trade and business groups, including the Oakland Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce, Oakland Black Board of Trade & Commerce, Bay Area Business Roundtable, and Construction Bidboard. Within a few days of registering in iSupplier, companies can access and review proposal requests in iSupplier by searching for specific projects based on the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code.
On February 4, 2026, the City placed a legal notice for the RFB by an advertisement in Oakland Post and The Oakland Tribune inviting construction bids. OPW-CCD held a pre-bid meeting in partnership with DWES and the Project Manager on February 17, 2026, with two (2) contractors Elizabeth A. Lake, Acting City Administrator
Subject: Construction Contract Award for Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP) Cycle 10, 14th Street Safety Project between Mandela Parkway and Brush Street Date: June 9, 2026 Page 5
Public Works and Transportation Committee
June 23, 2025
in attendance virtually. The contractors in attendance were Bay Construction Co. and McGuire & Hester. The purpose of the meeting was to inform attendees about the Project, discuss compliance requirements, and provide an opportunity for contractors and sub-contractors to network and partner on the proposed work.
COORDINATION
This report and legislation have been reviewed by the Office of the City Attorney and the Budget Bureau. Staff coordinated with the following City Departments and stakeholders as listed below:
• State of California, Department of Transportation (Caltrans) • Oakland Public Works Department (OPW)
• Oakland Fire Department
• Department of Workplace and Employment Standards (DWES)
PAST PERFORMANCE, EVALUATION AND FOLLOW-UP
Gruendl Inc. dba Ray’s Electric, Inc., is a local business enterprise with decades of construction history with the City. Performance evaluation for the most recent projects completed for the Department of Transportation is satisfactory.
RACE AND EQUITY
As walking, biking, and transit riding are relatively inexpensive and broadly accessible forms of transportation, the Project’s pedestrian, bicycle, and public transit improvements will especially benefit youth, seniors, low-income residents, people with disabilities, and people who do not own personal vehicles. Utilizing OakDOT’s Geographic Equity Tool, the 14th Street Corridor between Mandela Parkway and Brush Street is in the highest priority neighborhood.
Furthermore, because this is also a Capital Improvement Project 2025-2027, this project utilizes City Council adopted prioritization factors, where equity is the most heavily weighted factor. This combined rationale indicates that this project will help address historical Race and Equity issues faced in Oakland.
CALIFORNIA ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY ACT (CEQA)
On a separate and independent basis, this Project and action is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to the following CEQA Guidelines Sections: Section 15162 and 15163 (no further environmental review required); Section 15060(c)(2) (no direct or reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment); Section 15061(b)(3) (no significant effect on the environment); Section 15183 (projects consistent with a community plan, general plan, or zoning), Section 15301 (existing facilities), Section 15302 (replacement or reconstruction), and Section 15309 (inspections), each of which provides a separate and independent basis for CEQA clearance and when viewed collectively provide an overall basis for CEQA clearance. A copy of the CEQA documentation is provided in Attachment D.
Elizabeth A. Lake, Acting City Administrator
Subject: Construction Contract Award for Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP) Cycle 10, 14th Street Safety Project between Mandela Parkway and Brush Street Date: June 9, 2026 Page 6
Public Works and Transportation Committee
June 23, 2025
ACTION REQUESTED OF THE CITY COUNCIL
Staff Recommends That The City Council Adopt A Resolution Awarding A Construction Contract To Gruendl Inc. dba Ray’s Electric, Inc., For The Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP) Cycle 10, 14th Street Safety Project between Mandela Parkway and Brush Street, Project No. 1006187, The Lowest, Responsible, And Responsive Bidder In Accordance With Project Plans, Specifications, And The Contractor’s Bid In The Amount Of Two Million, Four Hundred Ninety-Four Thousand, Six Hundred Eighty-Five Dollars, and Eighty-Six Cents ($2,494,685.86); And Adopting Appropriate California Environmental Quality Act Findings.
For questions regarding this report, please contact Jesse Boudart, Acting Supervising Transportation Engineer, at 510-238-6256.
Respectfully submitted,
Josh Rowan (Jun 9, 2026 13:36:01 PDT)
JOSH ROWAN
Director, Department of Transportation
Reviewed by:
Megan Wier, MPH
Assistant Director
Reviewed by:
Amit Salwan, P.E.,
Principal Civil Engineer
Prepared by:
Jesse Boudart, P.E., T.E.
Acting Supervising Transportation Engineer
Department of Transportation
Attachments (4):
A. Location Map
B. Bid Summary
C. Contract Compliance Analysis
D. CEQA Document