July 26, 2022
Public Works
DATE: July 26, 2022
TO: Mayor Butt and Members of the City Council
FROM:
Joe Leach, Public Works Director
Subject:
Amend Contract with Ghilotti Bros., Inc.
FINANCIAL IMPACT: City staff is proposing to utilize Environmental and Community Investment Agreement (ECIA)
Transportation funds for this contract amendment
given that the Richmond Wellness Trail Project will
directly reduce Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions.
The request to use ECIA Transportation funds was not
reviewed by the ECIA Transportation Oversight
Committee based upon the lack of quorum for
scheduled meetings, and the immediate need to
complete this important project. If approved, the
following account strings will be used:
SB1 funding – 11931031-400708-SB106
ECIA Funding – 11731331-400708-23024
PREVIOUS COUNCIL
ACTION:
July 22, 2021, Resolution 92-21
December 21, 2021, Resolution 154-21
STATEMENT OF THE
ISSUE:
City staff is requesting approval to amend the contract with Ghilotti Bros., Inc., for construction of portions of Phase I of the Richmond Wellness Trail Project, in the
amount of $100,000 for a total contract amount not to
exceed $1,100,000, to be funded by ECIA Transportation
Funds in support of projects that reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
AGENDA
REPORT
July 26, 2022
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
ADOPT a resolution amending the construction
contract with Ghilotti Bros., Inc., for construction of portions of Phase I of the Richmond Wellness Trail
Project, in the amount of $100,000, utilizing ECIA
Transportation Funds, for a total contract amount not
to exceed $1,100,000 - Public Works Department (Joe
Leach 620-5478).
DISCUSSION:
In April 2017, the Richmond Wellness Trail (RWT) Vision Plan was adopted by City Council as an appendix to the City's Pedestrian Plan. Phase 1 of the Richmond Wellness Trail is currently under construction.
The RWT will serve the community at large; however, the alignment of the trail is intentionally placed to serve historically underserved areas of Richmond including the Iron Triangle, Richmore Village/Metro Village, and Coronado neighborhoods. These neighborhoods are included in the Qualified Census Tracts (both in 2021 and 2022, the latest years for which data is available), a designation for communities with a large portion of low-income residents. The Qualified Census Tract is defined as a census tract in which at least 50 percent of the households have an income less than 50 percent of the area median income, or where the poverty rate is 25 percent or higher.
Phase I of the trail begins at the Richmond lntermodal Station and proceeds in a southerly direction along 15th Street to the Richmond Greenway, at Unity Park. 15th Street is relatively narrow, is also lightly trafficked, and has been converted into a Bicycle Boulevard in anticipation of this project. Trail users would then turn west and travel along the Richmond Greenway for two blocks to the intersection of Ohio Avenue and Marina Way South. A 12-foot wide separated bicycle facility is currently under construction on the west side of Marina Way South from Ohio Avenue to Cutting Boulevard, with a median planting strip and buffer between the trail and the vehicular travel lanes. Marina Way South is a wide boulevard and parking will be maintained in both directions of travel.
Health and wellness benefits. The health and wellness benefits of the RWT cannot be understated. The trail connects the Richmond Greenway at Unity Park to the Martin Luther King, Jr., Park, a modern sports complex that is highly utilized by the community.
A future phase of RWT will connect Kaiser Permanente to the current Phase 1 and is intended to facilitate wellness prescriptions for local residents as well as Kaiser patients.
Finally, the terminus of the RWT is at the Bay Trail, a safe and convenient Class 1 facility which extends for miles along San Francisco and San Pablo Bays.
Greenhouse gas emission. The RWT project will also help in reducing greenhouse gas emission by getting people out of cars and on bikes.
July 26, 2022
Connectivity and alternative modes of transportation. The Richmond lntermodal Station includes the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) station and the Amtrak station, and it is also served by bus transit agencies, including AC Transit as well as a private operator. The station is one of only two bay area transfer points between BART and Amtrak. Phase I of the RWT will connect the Richmond lntermodal Station to the Richmond Greenway. Future phases will also connect to the Richmond Charter Academy and Benito Juarez Elementary School near the southern terminus of Marina Way South, and the Richmond Ferry Terminal.
Historical significance. Future phases of the RWT will connect to several points of interest and historical significance including Lucretia Edwards Park, Rosie the Riveter/World War II Home Front National Historical Park, with many interpretive signs and places of interest in the Marina and Port areas, and the Rosie the Riveter Visitor Education Center.
Aesthetics and recreation. The RWT will connect to the Richmond Bay Trail in Marina Bay, the crown jewel of Richmond’s south shoreline, with beautiful views of San Francisco Bay and Brooks Island, access to popular Meeker Slough/Hoffman Marsh birdwatching areas, and the East Bay Regional Park District’s Pt. Isabel Regional Shoreline Park.
On July 22, 2021, City Council adopted Resolution 92-21 awarding a sole source contract to Ghilotti Bros., Inc. (GBI), in the amount of $300,000, to perform asphalt, concrete, and ancillary construction work along the alignment of the Richmond Wellness Trail (RWT), to improve the City roadway infrastructure adjacent to the trail but not in the scope of work of the Urban Greening Grant-funded Richmond Wellness Trail project. On December 21, 2021, City Council adopted Resolution 154-21 to amend the contract by $700,000 to fund the asphalt paving scope along with other added work bringing the total contract amount to $1,000,000.
During the asphalt paving work during February and March of this year, the subgrade was found to be in poor condition resulting in significant additional work. The project also had to address asphalt repair work to trenches done by East Bay Municipal Utilities District (EBMUD) while relocating their water line. Their efforts caused additional asphalt paving scopes based on street slope variations.
City staff proposes to utilize ECIA funds to pay for the improvements on Marina Way South, adjacent to the Richmond Wellness Trail. The project reduces GHG emissions through a combination of three activities: tree planting (148 trees), energy use reduction from shading adjacent buildings (9 trees will shade buildings), and reduced Vehicle Miles Traveled (0.7 miles of new class IV bicycle and pedestrian facility). In addition, the project will also encourage non-motorized transportation by commuters and the disadvantaged communities of the Iron Triangle and Coronado to BART/Amtrak, the Richmond Greenway, MLK Park, Bay Trail, and local amenities such as church, schools, and grocery stores. The trail will eventually link BART/Amtrak all the way to the
July 26, 2022
future Richmond Ferry terminal and Rosie the Riveter Museum along the waterfront.
Combined, these activities will result in a net GHG benefit of 650.42 MT CO2e.
City staff recommends City Council authorize the $100,000 contract amendment to GBI’s contract.
DOCUMENTS ATTACHED:
Attachment 1 – Resolution
Attachment 2 – Original Contract
Attachment 3 – 1st Amendment to the Contract
Attachment 4 – Proposed Contract Amendment