Dear Mayor and Council Members,
On behalf of City Manager Ed Shikada, please find below the staff responses to questions from Councilmember Tanaka regarding the Monday, January 22 Council Meeting consent agenda items.
Item 2: Approval of Purchase Order with Siemens Inc. in the Amount of $489,527 for FY 2024 to Purchase Sixteen (16) 12KV Circuit Breakers for Hanover and Hansen Way Substations.
CEQA Status: Exempt under CEQA Guidelines Section 15302 (Replacement of Existing Structures)
Question: The staff report mentions that Siemens Inc. is the only viable option due to the integration with existing facilities. While the need for compatibility is understandable, is there documentation that details why other manufacturers or solutions were not considered feasible?
Staff response: Siemens purchased Allis Chalmers, the OEM manufacturer of the switchgear. Siemens is the only manufacturer making direct-fit replacement circuit breakers for use in the switchgear. They are the only ones that have remote racking capability. Therefore, the sole source purchase exemption was required.
Item 5: Adoption of an Ordinance Authorizing the Improvements to the Palo Alto Baylands as Part of the Horizontal Levee Pilot Project and Approval of a Cooperative Agreement with the Association of Bay Area Governments to Construct the Horizontal Levee Pilot Project (WQ- 22001); CEQA – exempt under Section 15133
Question: Could the staff provide a detailed breakdown of the allocation of the $0.4 million that has already been spent as part of the City's direct payments for the Horizontal Levee Pilot Project, specifically outlining the amounts dedicated to permitting, environmental review, community outreach, and monitoring studies?
Staff response:
To date the City has spent the following in direct payments:
• Permitting – $185,151.79
• Environmental Review – $27,749.75
• Community Outreach – $5,793.75
• Monitoring Studies - $133,000
The sum of the above comes out to $351,695.29, which was rounded up to $0.4 million for ease of reading in the staff report.