City Council Memorandum
TO: HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL DATE: DECEMBER 9, 2025 FROM: PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT WARD: 1
SUBJECT: AWARD BID NO. 8211 FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF FAIRMOUNT PARK STORM DRAIN – DEXTER DRIVE TO BOWLING GREEN DRIVE, PHASE I TO VORTEX SERVICES, LLC, OF HOUSTON, TEXAS IN THE AMOUNT OF $556,200 ISSUE:
Award Bid No. 8211 for the construction of Fairmount Park Storm Drain – Dexter Drive to Bowling Green Drive, Phase I to Vortex Services, LLC, of Houston, Texas, in the amount of $556,200.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
That the City Council:
Award Bid No. 8211 for Fairmount Park Storm Drain – Dexter Drive to Bowling Green Drive, Phase I to Vortex Services, LLC, of Houston, Texas, in the amount of $556,200; and Authorize the City Manager, or his designee, to execute the construction contract with Vortex Services, LLC., including making minor non-substantial changes.
BACKGROUND:
The storm drain pipes for Fairmount Park were Constructed in 1984 as part of the Fairmount lakes rehabilitation. The storm drain lines were cleaned and video inspected partially in 2016. The storm drain is an important component of the drainage system at Fairmount Park.
In November 2020, the City approved Eaglelift Inc.’s proposal, in the amount of $10,000, to complete joint repairs at 10 locations for the 36” reinforced concrete storm drain pipe at Dexter Dr and Field LN (approx. 458 FL Manhole to Manhole). The objective was to fill the voids around the pipe to seal the joints and prevent infiltration or exfiltration, and to lift settled sections of the pipe.
On March 19, 2021, the City executed an agreement with Pipe Tec Inc. for cleaning and video inspection of the existing Fairmount Park 36 inch storm drain in the amount of $30,000.
Despite efforts to clean and repair the pipes, the pipes are not performing according to the design intent due to erosion and sediment accumulation. Public Works staff identified that additional work was needed to ensure adequate flow through the pipes; however, this work is pending until a planned downstream maintenance project was completed to remove sediment from the outfall of the pipe. This additional maintenance work, under the supervision of the Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department (PRCS), would help ensure positive drainage flow downstream of the pipes and reduce the work needed to dewater the pipes during construction. With the downstream maintenance scheduled and necessary permits secured by PRCS in mid-2024, Public Works proceeded to schedule the storm drain work. Work by PRCS is scheduled to be completed by December 2025.
DISCUSSION:
On September 18, 2025, Bid No. 8211 for the Fairmount Park Storm Drain – Dexter Drive to Bowling Green Drive Phase 1 was posted on PlanetBids. The proposed project entails cleaning and lining the existing 36” reinforced concrete storm drain main line. Prior to bid opening, there was one (1) question received and answered, and no addenda were issued. The bidding notification table is summarized below in Table 1.
Table 1 - Bidding Notification Summary Table
Action
Number of Vendors
Vendors Notified
500
Vendors Who Downloaded Bid No. 8178
53 Questions and Answers Received
1 Addenda Submitted
0 Proposals Received
3 On October 19, 2025, three (3) bids were received for the construction of the project (Attachment 2). Siterep Construction Services, Inc., was deemed a non-responsive due to greater than 50% of bid being from a subcontractor. The lowest responsive bid was from Vortex Services, LLC, in the amount of $556,200, which is 2.71% over the Engineer’s Estimate as shown below in Table 2.
Table 2 – Responsive Bidders
Bidder
City Location
Bid Amount
Rank
Vortex Service, LLC.
Houston, TX
$556,200.00
1 Insituform Technologies
Cerritos, CA
$639,933.00
2 *Siterep Construction Services, Inc
San Dimas, CA
$658,850.00
N/A
*Non-responsive
Engineer's Estimate
$541,500.00
Purchasing Resolution 24101, Article Five, Section 508 states, “Contracts procured through Formal Procurement shall be awarded by the Awarding Entity to the Lowest Responsive and Responsible Bidder.” The Purchasing Manager concurs that the recommended actions comply with Purchasing Resolution 24101, Section 508.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The total fiscal impact of the award of the construction agreement is $556,200. The total project costs includes 10% change order authority, design, construction and construction engineering, as outlined in Table 3. Sufficient funds are budgeted and available to award the contract and complete the project as outlined in Table 4.
Table 3 – Project Costs
Task
Amount
Public Works Engineering (In House) Staff
$10,370
Total Contract Amount (Construction Contract)
$556,200
Construction Contingencies (10%)
$55,620
Construction Engineering, Inspection, and Survey (In House) & Construction Materials Testing
$52,810
Total:
$675,000
Table 4 – Project Funds
Fund
Project/Program
Account
Amount
Special Gas Tax
Fairmount Park Storm Drain Rehab
9921427-440223
$492,583.17
Special Gas Tax
Fairmount Park Storm Drain
9932927-440223
$182,416.83
Total
$675,000.00
Prepared by: Sweta Patel, Principal 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: Rebecca McKee-Reimbold, Interim City Attorney Attachments:
Project Location Map
Bid Award Recommendation
Bid 8211 – Contract Award ● Page 2