City Council Memorandum
TO: HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL DATE: JULY 16, 2024 FROM: PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT WARDS: ALL
SUBJECT: APPROVE PROFESSIONAL CONSULTANT SERVICES AGREEMENT WITH CHEN RYAN ASSOCIATES, INC. FOR INDIVIDUALIZED PEDESTRIAN AND BICYCLE SAFETY ACTION PLANS AND CUSTOMIZED SAFE ROUTES TO SCHOOL (SRTS) REPORTS FOR FIFTY (50) ELEMENTARY AND MIDDLE SCHOOLS CITYWIDE IN THE AMOUNT OF $790,005 FOR A TERM OF TWO (2) YEARS WITH AN OPTION TO EXTEND FOR AN ADDITIONAL TWO-YEAR PERIOD IN ACCORDANCE WITH REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS NO. 2365 ISSUE:
Approve a Professional Services Agreement with Chen Ryan Associates, Inc., of San Diego, CA, to complete individualized pedestrian and bicycle safety action plans and customized safe routes to school (SRTS) reports for fifty (50) elementary and middle schools citywide in the amount of $790,005.00, for a term of two years through June 30, 2026, with an option to extend for an additional two-year period.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
That the City Council:
Approve a Professional Consultant Services Agreement in accordance with Request for Proposals No. 2365 with Chen Ryan Associates, Inc. of San Diego, CA, to complete individualized pedestrian and bicycle safety action plans and customized safe routes to school (SRTS) reports for fifty (50) elementary and middle schools citywide in the amount of $790,005.00 for services through June 30, 2026; and Authorize the City Manager, or designee, to execute the Professional Services Agreement, including making minor and non-substantive changes and to extend the term, for up to two additional years, subject to the availability of budgeted funds.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
On March 7, 2023, the City Council authorized the submittal of a grant application to the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) to develop individualized pedestrian and bicycle circulation plans (Safe Routes to School Plans) for fifty (50) elementary and middle schools citywide.
BACKGROUND:
The City of Riverside has participated in several Caltrans grant programs, seeking funding for important active transportation planning documents and capital projects through the submission of multiple grant applications. To date, the city has been successful in securing millions of dollars in federal and state grants through these efforts.
On January 18, 2023, Caltrans announced the Sustainable Transportation Planning Grant Call for Projects. The Sustainable Transportation Planning Grant is expected to include approximately $29.5 million in State grant funds. In response to the call for projects, the City of Riverside submitted its application, requesting a total of $700,000.00 in state grant funds.
On August 31, 2023, Caltrans notified the Public Works Department that the City’s grant application requesting Sustainable Transportation Planning Grant funding had been successfully awarded.
DISCUSSION:
In meetings with the Riverside Unified School District (RUSD), Alvord Unified School District (AUSD), and individual elementary and middles schools, there has been a longstanding vision to establish and develop pedestrian and bicycle safety circulation plans to encourage both active transportation modes to school as well as increase the safety of pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure paths to school via operational, physical and program improvements. The City submitted a Sustainable Communities Competitive Planning Grant application and has been selected to receive $700,000.00 to bring that vision to life with the development of the Riverside Safe Routes To School Plan.
The City of Riverside Safe Routes to School (SRTS) Project will result in fifty (50) individualized SRTS studies and fifty (50) pedestrian and bicycle safety circulation plans for each public K-8 school within the City. Each plan will be tailored for an individual school with detailed operational and physical improvements intended to promote walking, biking, and safety. These improvements align with programmatic recommendations for each school for safer, more convenient walking and bicycling options for Riverside’s more than 32,500 K-8 students, their families, and residents.
Project tasks include:
Evaluate each participating elementary and middle school within the City and develop a comprehensive Safe Routes to School Master Plan for each individual school site as well as a Citywide SRTS Master Plan.
Extensive public outreach efforts for the SRTS plans including distribution via newsletters, websites, surveys, etc. and encourage non-vehicular transportation to school.
Evaluate pedestrian, bicycle, vehicular, collision data, and crossing guard data as well as coordination with the schools, school districts, and Parent-Teacher Associations (PTA) for each school.
Prepare the City for future SRTS Infrastructure Improvement Grant Applications built upon recommendations from individualized SRTS Studies. Non-infrastructure programmatic recommendations will also result from the SRTS efforts.
The City coordinated with Alvord Unified School District (AUSD), Riverside Unified School District (RUSD), and Riverside Unified Health Systems (RUHS) to garner over twenty-eight (28) letters of support for this project. Completion of the SRTS plan will realize Goal 4.1.5 within the Riverside P.A.C.T. Plan, which is to “Coordinate the implementation of the Active Transportation Plan with implementation and creation of a SRTS Plan so that children are encouraged to bike and walk to school.” The proposed projects will benefit citywide school communities by encouraging walking and biking to school, promoting a sustainable active lifestyle, increasing vulnerable road user safety, advancing social equity, protecting the environment by reducing harmful air pollutants from vehicles and identifying future infrastructure needs for each school.
The City originally advertised RFP No. 2339 in early 2024 and received zero proposals. City staff quickly met with several consultants to obtain feedback regarding challenges with obtaining proposals.
The City made some modifications to the RFP and conducted additional distribution strategies to advertise the project again under RFP No. 2365 during the period of April 1, 2024 to April 30, 2024. There were 774 vendors notified and 39 prospective bidders on the bidders list. The city received four (4) competitive proposals from qualified consultants and after completing a proposal evaluation by three (3) evaluators, Chen Ryan Associates, Inc. was the highest rated proposal. The proposal rating results, and proposed contract amounts are shown on Table 1.
Table 1 – Proposal Evaluation Results
Evaluation Ranking
Proposer’s Name
Evaluation Score
Proposal Amount
1 Chen Ryan Associates, Inc.
978.34
$790,005.00
2 Alta Planning + Design
859.12
$1,299,583.00
3 Kimley-Horn and Associates, Inc.
820.98
$1,225,151.88
4 Toole Design Group, LLC
814.53
$1,224, 208.00
Chen Ryan Associates, Inc. has extensive experience in developing Safe Routes To School Plans for multiple local agencies and has staff members that assisted with developing the city’s award-winning Riverside P.A.C.T. document. Chen Ryan Associates, Inc.’s proposal is the only fee proposal below the estimated budget amount of $790,692 and is over $500,000+ less than the next highest rated proposal. Chen Ryan Associates, Inc. is also a Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) company which aligns with the City’s and Caltrans DBE goals.
While the project agreement includes an optional extension, it is not anticipated that the core project work will continue beyond the initial contract term.
The Purchasing Resolution No. 24101, Section 508(c) states that “Contracts procured through Formal Procurement shall be awarded by the Awarding Entity to the Lowest Responsive and Responsible Bidder, except that…(c) Contracts procured through Formal Procurement for Services or Professional Services, where a Request for Proposals or Request for Qualifications was used to solicit Bids, shall be awarded by the Awarding Entity in accordance with the evaluation criteria set forth in the Request for Proposals or Request for Qualifications, except that a local Proposer may be given preference pursuant to Section 704 “Preference Policy”, where the difference in price proposal between the local Proposal and the lowest price proposal does not exceed five percent (5%) of the lowest price proposal”.
The Purchasing Manager concurs that the recommended action to approve the agreement is in compliance with Purchasing Resolution 24101, Section 508(c).
STRATEGIC PLAN ALIGNMENT:
This item supports Strategic Priority 1 – Arts, Culture and Recreation and Goal 1.5 – Support programs and amenities to further develop literacy, health, and education of children, youth and seniors throughout the community and Strategic Priority 2 – Community Well-Being and Goal 2.4 – Support programs and innovations that enhance community safety, encourage neighborhood engagement, and build public trust. As well as Strategic Priority 6 – Infrastructure, Mobility & Connectivity Goals 6.1, 6.2, and 6.4.
This item aligns with each of the five Cross-Cutting Threads as follows:
Community Trust –The project is consistent with the priority objectives of the Riverside P.A.C.T. Plan and in coordination with RUSD, AUSD, and RUHS. The City will develop individualized Safe Routes To School Plans with the goal of serving public interest, benefiting the City’s diverse populations, and meeting the needs of the school community based on their feedback.
Equity – Public Works strives to improve the City’s roadway network to provide safe and reliable multi-modal transportation across the City. The proposed plan will serve pedestrians and bicyclists across the City including the targeted school communities.
Fiscal Responsibility – Riverside is a prudent steward of public funds and ensures responsible management of the City’s financial resources by awarding consultant services contracts to the lowest responsive bidders and utilizing available grant funding from the Sustainable Transportation Planning Grant Program. CR Associates proposal amount of $790,005 and provides incredible value to the city since it is the only fee proposal that is below the estimated budget amount of $790,692 and is over $500,000+ less than the next highest rated proposal.
Innovation –The City will partner with several entities to develop comprehensive plans, and policies for each school to deliver a successful safe routes to school program.
Sustainability & Resiliency – The proposed plans aim to increase the proportion of biking and walking to connect residents to educational opportunities, improve community resilience, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The SRTS program will also promote a sustainable and healthy lifestyle by encouraging active non-vehicular transportation.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The total fiscal impact of this action is $790,005.00 (Table 2). Sufficient funds are budgeted and available in the Safe Routes to School Project account as listed in Table 3 below.
Table 2 – Project Costs
Project Name
Caltrans Sustainable Transportation Planning Grant Program Funds Requested Local Match Funds
Total Project Cost
Riverside Safe Routes to School Plan – Award to CR Associates $700,000.00
$90,005.00
$790,005.00
Table 3 – Project Funding Sources
Fund
Program/Project
Account
Amount
Capital Outlay-Grants
Safe Routes to School-Citywide
9410600-440236
$700,000
Measure A
Safe Routes to School-Citywide
9410630-440313
*$90,005
Total Expenditures
$790,005
*Denotes City match
Prepared by: Philip Nitollama, City Traffic Engineer
Approved by: Gilbert Hernandez, Public Works Director
Certified as to
availability of funds: Kristie Thomas, Finance Director/Assistant Chief Financial Officer Approved by: Kris Martinez, Assistant City Manager Approved as to form: Phaedra A. Norton, City Attorney
Attachments:
Agreement
Award Recommendation
Presentation
RFP 2365 – Individualized Safe Routes to School Plans Citywide ● Page 2