CITY COUNCIL STAFF REPORT
Meeting Date: April 15, 2024
TO: THE HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCILMEMBERS
SUBJECT: ADOPT RESOLUTION NO. ___-24 ACCEPTING BID AND AWARDING
A CONSTRUCTION CONTRACT TO REDGWICK CONSTRUCTION
COMPANY FOR THE CONTRA COSTA BOULEVARD IMPROVEMENT
PROJECT (VIKING DRIVE TO HARRIET DRIVE); AND
AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER TO EXECUTE A
CONSTRUCTION CONTRACT WITH REDGWICK CONSTRUCTION
COMPANY; AND ALLOCATING AN ADDITIONAL $1,270,000 IN
AVAILABLE FUNDING
SYNOPSIS
The Contra Costa Boulevard Improvement Project (Viking Drive to Harriet Drive) No. 02-23 includes constructing "complete streets" enhancements along Contra Costa Boulevard (CCB), between Viking Drive and Harriet Drive to improve access and safety for pedestrians, bicyclists, transit riders, and vehicles along the Project corridor.
A review of the project bid documents determined that additional funding in the amount of $1.27 million is needed to award and construct the project improvements.
The purpose of this item is to consider accepting the lowest responsive and responsible bid from Redgwick Construction Company for the Project, seek authorization to award the construction contract, and authorize an allocation of an additional $1.27 million in available funding in order to accept the bid.
On March 26, 2024, the Budget Committee approved forwarding a recommendation to approve this item to the City Council.
DISCUSSION
Background
Contra Costa Boulevard (CCB) is the largest regional arterial in the City of Pleasant Hill, with an average daily traffic volume of over 30,000 vehicles. The corridor spans numerous commercial and business centers in the City and provides vital access to educational facilities such as Diablo Valley College. The current roadway configuration, designed in the 1940s and 1960s, needs redesign and improvement. These enhancements will improve overall traffic circulation, pedestrian and bicycle access and safety and will significantly benefit the community.
The Contra Costa Boulevard Improvement Project (Viking Drive to Harriet Drive) No. 02-23 (Project) is an approved project in the Fiscal Year 2022-2027 Capital Improvement Plan (CIP). It will construct "complete streets" enhancements along CCB between Viking Drive and Harriet Drive. This project is the fifth and final phase of the City’s overall CCB Corridor enhancement.
In June 2017, the Contra Costa Transportation Authority (CCTA) approved and programmed $4,792,000 in a combination of Measure J grant funding for the construction of the Project, which was subsequently appropriated in May 2023. These funds will expire in May 2026.
The City executed a Design Professional Services Agreement with Bellecci & Associates, Inc. (Consultant) in June 2021 to perform engineering design services for this project. The Consultant performed a traffic analysis along the project corridor to determine the safest and most effective use of the right-of-way and identified existing deficiencies and design enhancements. The final project design consists of “complete streets” improvements along approximately 0.25 miles of CCB between Harriet Drive and Viking Drive. Project improvements include safety and access for all users (pedestrians, transit riders, bicyclists, and motorists) and modernization of street aesthetics. Key project elements include street lighting; bike/pedestrian upgrades; modifications to the traffic signals and intersection geometry at CCB and Taylor Boulevard; a new traffic signal at CCB and Alan Drive; replacement of ADA curb ramps; traffic striping modifications; bicycle lanes; median re-configuration; LED street lighting; and drought-tolerant landscaping.
First Public Bid: The project was initially competitively bid on in April 2023, and three responsive bids were received on June 6, 2023. Staff analyzed the bids and revealed that the lowest bid received was approximately 25 percent above the approved construction cost. Staff recommended rejecting all bids, modifying the bid documents to incorporate cost-saving measures, and rebidding the project. On June 26, 2023, the City Council approved Resolution 49-23, approving staff’s recommendations.
Redesign: Staff worked closely with the CCTA and Bellecci, the design consultant, to revise the project scope while still providing the necessary improvements to meet the City’s project goals of enhanced safety along the corridor, as well as the CCTA grant requirements. Major revisions included:
• Re-bid the project in the winter to increase the number of contractors available to perform the work and improve bid competitiveness.
• Modify the project construction staging/phasing and expand the allowable work hours and lane closures.
• Eliminate the pedestrian lighting, new sidewalk, landscaping, and irrigation on the west side of the project limits (this work will be included in a future CIP project). • City purchased/furnished street light poles, traffic signal poles, mast arms, cabinets, and controllers.
Equipment Purchase: On November 20, 2023, the City Council adopted Resolution 78-23 authorizing the direct purchase of decorative streetlights and traffic signal equipment from Platt Electric Supply, JAM Services, and Contra Costa County. This cost-saving measure eliminated any potential contractor markup on materials and project delays due to the required fabrication time for these items. The poles have been ordered and are scheduled to be delivered in late April 2024, prior to the start of construction.
A portion of the public improvements at the intersection of CCB and Sunvalley Boulevard are within the City of Concord’s right-of-way, and the City of Concord will benefit from the new traffic signal and intersection modifications being constructed by the project. Staff has met with the City of Concord’s City Engineer and informally agreed upon Concord’s “fair share cost” of $440,000, which equates to all the proposed base bid work within the City of Concord limits and 25 percent of the total traffic signal costs for the CCB/Taylor Boulevard/Sunvalley Boulevard intersection. A formal agreement between the City of Concord and the City of Pleasant Hill is currently being negotiated, and the City of Concord intends to fund its portion of the project through its Capital Improvement Plan, scheduled for adoption in June 2024.
Bidding requirements mandate that the City award the Project to the apparent low bidder prior to Concord’s adoption of their CIP; therefore, an allocation of this funding is being requested by staff from Measure K and will be returned to the Measure K fund once it is reimbursed by the City of Concord. A letter of commitment from the City of Concord is included as Exhibit 3.
The Project Bid Schedule for this project listed three construction work scopes: 1) Base Bid, 2) Alternative Bid 1, and 3) Alternative Bid 2.
Alternative Bid Item 1 included additional sidewalk improvements along the southern side of Sunvalley Boulevard within the Concord city limits. Upon reviewing the bid amounts for the work, the City of Concord has elected not to perform this work, and this alternate bid item is not included in the award recommendation.
The scope of work for Alternative Bid Item 2 includes the contractor removing the existing PG&E-owned street light poles and luminaires along the center median within the project limits.
To avoid project scheduling issues and PG&E’s stated desire not to perform the work with its own workforce, staff is recommending Alternative Bid Item 2 be awarded as part of the construction contract. Staff has confirmed that PG&E will reimburse the City for this work.
On March 26, 2024, the Budget Committee reviewed this item and approved forwarding a recommendation to the City Council to approve an allocation of $1.27 million in available Measure K funds to award the construction of the project. After further review and analysis, staff determined there is alternate funding available in the Unified Lighting District and the Traffic Congestion Relief funds, both of which are appropriate funding sources for the Contra Costa Boulevard Improvement Project. The use of these funds will reduce the allocation of Measure K funds from $1.27 million to $823,123.
Analysis
The Notice Inviting Bids was sent to the construction exchanges on December 18, 2023, and the Project was advertised in the East Bay Times newspaper on December 20, 2023. On February 27, 2024, the City received and publicly opened six competitive bids.
The following table summarizes the bid amounts. Per the project documents, the City will base the award on the lowest responsive and responsible base bid. The lowest responsive and responsible base bid is marked in bold.
Redgwick Construction’s total base bid of $6,204,897 is about 10 percent lower than the average base bid of $6,868,111. The president of Redgwick Construction has reviewed the full bid results and verified their prices. The Contractor is ready to begin construction and complete the project within the 180 working days specified in the contract documents.
Redgwick Construction has successfully completed projects of similar scale and complexity throughout the Bay Area, including over $33 million in currently active projects in nearby jurisdictions. Staff has checked their references and believes they have the experience and professional competency to produce a satisfactory product for the City.
The project construction cost (base bid and Alternative Bid Item 2 is $6,277,092. It is reasonable to include a construction contingency of 12 percent or $744,587.64, which is typical for a construction project of this type.
FISCAL IMPACT
The total construction cost is $7,021,589.64, and the project is funded by Measure J grant funds, SB1 funds, Measure K funds, Unified Lighting District Funds, Traffic Mitigation Funds, Traffic Congestion Relief Funds, and reimbursements from PG&E and the City of Concord.
The Fiscal Year 2022-2027 CIP approved a total project budget of $7,367,000. The following tables outline the revised project expenses and funding for $8,708,478.80:
Project Cost:
Company Total Base Bid Alternate Bid #2
1. Redgwick Construction Co. $6,204,897.00 $72,105.00
2. Ghilotti Bros, Inc. $6,389,592.50 $82,500.00
3. Sposeto Engineering, Inc. $6,796,102.95 $62,250.00
4. California Highway Construction Group $7,138,443.00 $30,000.00
5. Ray’s Electric $7,339,632.73 $15,000.00
6. McGuire & Hester $7,340,000.00 $50,025.00
Average of Six Bids Received $6,868,111.20 $51,980.00
Engineer’s Estimate (EE) $6,300,000.00
Design (Bellecci): $ 688,378.77
Engineering Staff: $ 60,000.00
Project Administration: $ 7,000.00
City-Furnished Materials: $ 501,510.39
County-Furnished Equipment: $ 30,000.00
Construction Management, Inspection, and Testing: $ 400,000.00 Construction Contract (Redgwick): $ 6,204,897.00
Construction Contingency (12%): $ 744,587.64
Construction Bid Alternative Bid Item 2 $ 72,105.00
Total: $ 8,708,478.80
Funding Sources:
FY 22-27 CIP approved budget: $ 7,367,000.00
Unified Street Lighting (221): $ 400,000.00
Traffic Congestion Relief Fund (Fund 232): $ 118,355.00 Measure K (additional allocation) $ 823,123.80
Total: $ 8,708,478.80
Future Reimbursements to Measure K:
City of Concord: $ 440,000.00
PG&E work for Alternative Bid Item 2: $ 72,105.00
Total Reimbursements: $ 512,105.00
Staff has confirmed with the Finance Department that sufficient funds are available to complete the project work.
PUBLIC CONTACT
Public contact was made through posting of the City Council agenda on the City’s official notice bulletin board, at the Pleasant Hill Senior Center, and at the Pleasant Hill Police Department.
The agenda and staff report are posted on the City’s web page.
RECOMMENDED CITY COUNCIL ACTION
Adopt a resolution to accept the bid and award a construction contract for the Contra Costa Boulevard Improvement Project (Viking Drive to Harriet Drive), Project 02-23, authorize the City Manager to execute a construction contract with Redgwick Construction Company, and authorize the allocation of an additional $1,270,000 of available funding.
ALTERNATIVES TO RECOMMENDED ACTION
Reject all bids and provide direction to staff. If all current bids are rejected, the City will likely lose the Measure J grant funding for this project, making it infeasible to rebid and build without providing alternate funding.
ATTACHMENT(S):
Proposed Resolution
Exhibit 1 – Contractor Agreement
Exhibit 2 – Project Location Map
Exhibit 3 – City of Concord Letter of Commitment for Funding Prepared by: Ryan Cook, Senior Civil Engineer
Reviewed by: Ann James, Interim Public Works Director
Approved by: Ethan Bindernagel, CityManager