City Council
Staff Report
From: City Manager
Report Type: CONSENT CALENDAR
Lead Department: Public Works
Meeting Date: June 2, 2025
Report #:2503-4245
TITLE
Approval of Construction Contract Number C25194073 with G. Bortolotto & Company Inc. in the Amount of $3,817,942 for the Fiscal Year 2025 Asphalt Paving Project; Capital Improvement Program Projects PE-86070, PE-09003, PL-12000, and PG-06001; and Authorization for the City Manager or Their Designee to Negotiate and Execute Change Orders up to a Not-to-Exceed Amount of $376,926; CEQA Status – Exempt under CEQA Guidelines Section 15301(c)
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that the City Council:
1. Approve and authorize the City Manager or their designee to execute construction contract C25194073 with G. Bortolotto & Company Inc. in the Amount of $3,817,942, for the Palo Alto Fiscal Year 2025 Asphalt Paving Project (Capital Improvement Program Projects PE-86070, PE-09003, PL-12000, and PG-06001); and
2. Authorize the City Manager or their designee to negotiate and execute change orders for related, additional, and unforeseen work that may develop during the project, the total value of which shall not exceed $376,926.
BACKGROUND
The Public Works Engineering Services Division manages construction contracts for concrete repair, preventive maintenance, resurfacing, and reconstruction of various City streets annually.
In more recent years, additional Capital Improvement Program (CIP) projects are being built through annualized resurfacing contracts due to the complexity of construction and benefit of being included in a larger project.
The City uses StreetSaver, The Metropolitan Transportation Commission’s (MTC) pavement management system which is used by almost all Bay Area jurisdictions. The Pavement Condition Index (PCI) is calculated by evaluating a sample pavement section on each block for different rating variables from mild to severe – including raveling, potholes, amount of trenches, and base failures. These factors are entered into the StreetSaver program and a PCI is calculated. All
staff who evaluate street conditions and pavement distresses have multiple years of experience and have been trained by MTC.
While staff uses the PCI scores to prioritize streets, staff also takes into consideration additional information including coordination with Utilities projects and Office of Transportation planned striping improvements, and whether the street has bike lanes or is a bicycle boulevard. Staff also tries to group multiple streets in a neighborhood whenever possible, so that construction is not occurring over multiple years if it can be avoided. Additionally, each block has its own estimated repair cost, which impacts how many streets can be in each project given the annual funding amounts. The streets included in this year’s resurfacing contract were selected previously with the Senate Bill 1 Resolution approved by Council in May 2024.1
ANALYSIS
Staff recommends approval of Contract No. C25194073 as part of the program to maintain and improve the condition of Palo Alto’s streets.2 The $3,817,942 expenditure for this contract will be used to repave 5.61 lane-miles of arterial and residential streets with PCIs averaging 48. This will help maintain and improve the City’s Pavement Condition Index (PCI) beyond its average of 83 and will address many streets whose PCI scores fall below the City’s minimum goal of 60.
The scope of work includes the replacement of approximately 4,900 linear feet (0.93 miles) of curbs and gutters, 3,058 square feet of driveways, and 7,128 square feet of sidewalks.
Additionally, 30 new curb ramps will be installed, and 1 existing curb ramps will be retrofitted with truncated domes to conform to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The streets being resurfaced in this contract are shown in Attachment A.
In addition, the scope also includes Quiet Zone improvements at the Palo Alto Avenue/Alma Street intersection as well as parking lot work at the Golf Course and Terman Center. These improvements primarily include asphalt work, curb installation, signage, and markings which is similar work performed for the repair, maintenance, resurfacing, and reconstruction activities of the project scope.
This scope is also inclusive of the Bay Area’s first Bicycle Safety Park to be installed at Ventura Community Center. The Bicycle Safety Park is a delineated bike track, approximately two basketball courts long, designed to teach bicycle safety and traffic rules. While it is primarily intended for young children, the safety park will benefit people of all ages. Funding for this portion of the project scope comes from the Athletic Courts Resurfacing (PG-06001) project. 1 City Council, May 20, 2024; Agenda Item #6; SR #2404-2863 https://www.paloalto.gov/files/assets/public/v/1/public-works/engineering-services/cip-contracts/sr2404-2863-
5.20.24-adoption-of-a-resolution-for-senate-bill-1.pdf
2 G. Bortolotto Construction Contract for FY2025 Resurfacing Project C25194073; https://www.paloalto.gov/files/assets/public/v/1/public-works/engineering-services/cip-contracts/c25194073- g.bortolotto_cc_5.12.2025_staff-report.pdf
Bid Process
On March 17, 2025 an Invitation for Bids (IFB) for the Palo Alto FY2025 Street Resurfacing Project PE-86070 was posted on OpenGov, City’s eProcurement system. The bidding period was 22 calendar days. The City received eight bids from qualified contractors on April 8, 2025, as listed on the attached Bid Summary (Attachment B).
Table 1: Summary of invitation for Bids
Project Bid Name/Number Palo Alto FY2025 Street Resurfacing Project PE-86070 IFB #194073
Proposed Length of Project 120 calendar days
# of Bid Packages Downloaded by Contractors 41
Number of Bid Packages Downloaded by
Builder’s Exchanges
1 Total Days to Respond to Bid 22
Mandatory Pre-Bid Meeting No
Number of Bids Received 8
Bid Price Range $3,817,942 - $4,763,104
Public Link to Solicitation https://procurement.opengov.com/portal/p alo-alto-ca/projects/153847
Bids ranged from $3,817,942 to $4,763,104 and from 2% below to 22% above the engineer’s estimate of $3.9 million. Staff reviewed the bids submitted and recommends acceptance of the base bid submitted by G. Bortolotto & Company Inc. in the amount of $3,817,942, and that G.
Bortolotto & Company Inc. be declared the lowest responsible bidder. The construction contingency amount of $376,926 which equals approximately 10 percent of the contract value, is requested for related, additional, but unforeseen work which may develop during the project, implemented via City-approved Change Order.
Staff reviewed information and similar projects performed by the lowest bidder, G. Bortolotto & Company Inc., and found them to be the lowest responsive and responsible bidder. Staff also checked with the Contractor's State License Board and confirmed the contractor has an active license on file.
FISCAL/RESOURCE IMPACT
Funding for this contract is available in the Adopted Fiscal Year 2025 Capital Improvement Program Street Maintenance (PE-86070), City Facility Parking Lot Maintenance (PE-09003), Transportation and Parking Improvements (PL-12000), and Athletic Courts Resurfacing (PG- 06001) projects.
The funding allocation is as follows:
Table 2: Funding Allocation
Funding Source Contract Contingency Total Funding
Street Maintenance PE-86070 $2,974,574 $297,457 $3,272,031 Parking Lot Maintenance PE-09003 $501,789 $50,179 $551,968 Transportation & Parking Impv PL-12000 $206,100 $20,610 $226,710 Athletic Courts Resurfacing PG-06001 $135,479 $8,680 $144,159 Total $3,817,942 $376,926 $4,194,868
STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT
All streets have been coordinated with the City’s Utilities Department and the Office of Transportation to minimize the cutting of newly resurfaced streets. Additionally, recognizing the importance of bicycle safety as a factor in selecting streets for the annual repaving project, staff reviews the proposed five-year paving plan streets annually with the Pedestrian and Bicycle Advisory Committee (PABAC) Resurfacing Subcommittee, with an emphasis on the streets included in the first year of the plan. Extensive public outreach will be conducted before and during the construction phase to keep the community informed throughout the process, including flyers sent to adjacent residences and businesses, and notices posted online on Nextdoor and the City’s website.
The Bicycle Safety Park, previously referred to as a Traffic Garden, was discussed and supported at the Parks and Recreation Commission’s June 25, 20243, meeting and the City Schools Transportation Safety Committee. The Traffic Garden concept has been led by a Gunn High School student, who has shared the concept by tabling at community events.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
Street resurfacing projects are categorically exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) under Section 15301(c) of the CEQA Guidelines as repair, maintenance and/or minor alteration of the existing facilities and no further environmental review is necessary.
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment A: Project Map
Attachment B: Bid Summary
APPROVED BY:
Brad Eggleston, Director Public Works/City Engineer
3 Parks & Recreation, June 25, 2024; Agenda Item #1
https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/files/assets/public/v/3/agendas-minutes-reports/agendas-minutes/parks-and- recreation-commission/agendas-minutes/2024-agendas-and-minutes/06/prc-staff-report-traffic-garden-final-
6.25.24.pdf