TO: Mayor and City Council
FROM: Philippe Eskandar, City Manager
BY: Amber Shah, Parks & Public Works Director/City Engineer DATE: October 25, 2024
SUBJECT: ACCEPT DONATION FROM ROTARY CLUB OF SAN MARINO IN THE AMOUNT OF $75,000 FOR THE LACY PARK
PLAYGROUND REPLACEMENT PROJECT AND INCREASE
THE BUDGET FOR THE FIRST PHASE OF THE PROJECT TO
$325,000, AUTHORIZE THE PARKS AND PUBLIC WORKS
DIRECTOR/CITY ENGINEER TO FINALIZE THE DESIGN TO
PROCURE AND INSTALL THE FIRST PHASE OF THE LACY
PARK PLAYGROUND REPLACEMENT PROJECT AND
AUTHORIZE THE CITY MANAGER TO EXECUTE THE
AGREEMENT WITH THE SELECTED VENDOR IN AN
AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED $325,000
STRATEGIC PLAN CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS
Fiscally Responsible and Transparent City Government
Inviting and Relevant City Facilities
Safe Community
Well-Maintained Infrastructure
BACKGROUND
The existing play structures at the Lacy Park playground are over 10 years old and showing signs of age. Additionally, the manufacturer of the equipment is no longer in business and, as a result, the City is unable to obtain the required replacement parts necessary to address the pieces that have begun to show wear and will not be able to repair any equipment if it breaks or otherwise becomes unusable. Given these circumstances, beginning in FY 2022-2023 the City Council appropriated $150,000 for the Lacy Park playground and Steven W. Huang, DDS, Mayor
Gretchen Shepherd Romey, Vice Mayor
Tony Chou, Council Member
Calvin Lo, Council Member
Steve Talt, Council Member
formed a subcommittee comprised of members of both the Public Safety and Recreation Commissions to ensure there was sufficient input as staff evaluated options for the playground.
By early 2023, the freestanding 3-D net climber had become unusable and was ultimately removed due to safety concerns and the unavailability of replacement parts. A playground safety audit was also conducted by a Certified Playground Safety Inspector (CPSI) in 2023 to determine if repairs were feasible without a full replacement of the equipment. Unfortunately, the audit confirmed that was not an option, identified additional pieces of equipment showing signs of wear, and further recommended the City begin planning for the full replacement of the playground in the very near future.
Based on the result of the audit and subsequent meetings with the Playground Committee, staff recommended a multi-year phased approach to replace the playground during the FY 2024-2025 budget process. Staff’s recommendation was based, in large part on the fact that the Lacy Park playground is the City’s only playground and taking a proactive approach to the playground’s replacement now instead of waiting for one of the larger play structures to become unusable in the future will avoid a much longer closure of the playground. The phased approach will also allow the play structure that is not being replaced at that time to remain open during construction of the other phase.
On May 31, 2024, the City Council approved the Fiscal Year 2024-2025 Operating and Capital Improvement Program (CIP) budgets. As part of the CIP budget, the City Council approved the appropriation of $250,000 for the first phase of the Lacy Park Playground Management Program. In addition, the Rotary Club of San Marino is now generously providing a donation of $75,000 to also be used towards the playground replacement.
Of note, approximately $50,000 of that funding is coming from San Marino Rotary Charities and approximately $25,000 from the Paul Elieff Memorial Fund managed by the San Marino Rotary Club. The Paul Elieff Memorial Fund was established by the San Marino Rotary Club in honor of Paul Elieff, a long time San Marino resident who passed away several years ago. The fundraising campaign received many donations from community members in honor of Paul Elieff and in order to contribute towards a local project that would commemorate his impact on the City. Staff met with members of the San Marino Rotary Club as well as Peter Elieff, brother of Paul, to discuss the contribution to the playground replacement which was supported by all.
Staff is seeking the City Council’s acceptance of the donation from Rotary as well as authorization for the Parks & Public Works Director/City Engineer to finalize the design to procure and install the first phase of the project.
DISCUSSION
Staff has been in contact with multiple playground vendors over the course of this process to discuss potential design options for the new equipment as well as a phasing process that is within the City’s budget. Based on these discussions, staff proposed to renovate the playground over a four-year period with all playground equipment replaced in the first 2 phases; • Phase 1 (FY 2024-2025): Replacement of the 5-12 years playground structure & swing set
• Phase 2 (FY 2025-2026): Replacement of the 2-5 years playground structure & new freestanding
• Phase 3 (FY 2026-2027): Replacement of playground surfacing • Phase 4 (FY 2027-2028): Replacement of site furnishings Based on the prior removal of the 3-D net climber and the current condition of the existing playground structure for the 5-12 year age group, staff recommends replacing the 5-12 structure along with the swing set in the first phase. Damage to the existing 5-12 structure includes; the overhead ring ladder hardware showing signs of wear, the incline chain climber entrance to the tree house has significant rubber chain coating damage, the integrated shade structure canopy is missing, and one of the post tree toppers was cracked and recently had to be removed for safety. Increasing the current budget of $250,000 to $325,000 with the generous donation of $75,000 by the Rotary Club and the Paul Elieff Memorial Fund will enable the City to replace both the 5-12 structure and the swing set in the first phase, which will provide the greatest flexibility in redesigning the playground space to accommodate a larger structure that is more appropriate for this age group while also helping to reduce the chance of injury from children running back and forth between the 2-5 and 5-12 structures in front of the swing set.
As noted earlier, staff has been in contact with multiple prospective vendors to design, procure and install the new playground equipment. After careful consideration, staff narrowed down the selection to procure and install playground equipment through either Pacific Play Systems, Inc. or RecWest Outdoor Products, both located in Southern California with offices in Carlsbad and Westlake Village, respectively. The primary criteria staff considered for this selection focused on:
1. Responsiveness and understanding of the City’s goals and budget for the project, along with the proximity of the vendor to the City to assist with any issues that may arise with the equipment in the future.
2. Quality and reputation of the playground equipment in the industry, along with manufacturing in the United States will reduce time to receive replacement parts if needed in the future.
3. Length of time the playground equipment manufacturer has been in business to help minimize the risk of unavailability of replacement parts in the future if the manufacturer was no longer in business.
Both vendors offer playground equipment manufactured in the United States with Pacific Play offering equipment manufactured by Playcraft Systems in Oregon and RecWest offering equipment manufactured by Landscape Structures in Minnesota. Both have been manufacturing playground equipment for more than 30 years and each maintain a catalog of all the parts they have made in order to be able to readily provide replacement parts in the future if needed. Staff will be presenting the preliminary designs from both vendors for the Council’s consideration before moving forward with the final selection incorporating any feedback received during the presentation.
Both equipment manufacturers are part of cooperative purchasing alliances, Sourcewell, Omnia and/or CMAS, that manages the solicitation process and awards contracts on behalf of government and non-profit agencies. The selected vendor will provide pricing for the alliance that provides the most competitive pricing for the equipment. Agencies that purchase supplies and equipment through a cooperative purchasing alliance benefit from lower costs by combining the purchasing power of more than 50,000 government, education, and non-profit organizations. As such, the purchase would be in compliance with the City’s procurement policy per SMMC 2.06.05.B.6 and bidding requirements may be waived.
FISCAL IMPACT & PROCUREMENT REVIEW
The City’s adopted FY 2024-2025 adopted budget includes an appropriation of $250,000 in Account No. 394-50-4600-7039 for the Lacy Park Playground Management Program in the Capital Improvement budget. Supplementing the budget with the donation of $75,000 from the Rotary Club of San Marino and the Paul Elieff Memorial Fund in Account No. 281-50-4600-7039 would increase the total budget for the first phase of this project to $325,000.
The Finance Director has reviewed this Staff Report for compliance with San Marino City Code §02.06.05.
LEGAL REVIEW
The City Attorney's office has reviewed and approved as to form.
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends the City Council 1) accept a donation from the Rotary Club of San Marino in the amount of $75,000 for the Lacy Park Playground Replacement Project and increase the budget for the first phase of the project to $325,000, 2) authorize the Parks & Public Works Director/City Engineer to finalize the design to procure and install the first phase of the playground replacement as described in the Staff Report, and 3) authorize the City Manager to execute the agreement with the selected vendor in an amount not to exceed $325,000.
“I move to 1) accept a donation from the Rotary Club of San Marino in the amount of $75,000 for the Lacy Park Playground Replacement Project and increase the budget for the first phase of the project to $325,000, 2) authorize the Parks & Public Works Director/City Engineer to finalize the design to procure and install the first phase of the playground replacement, and 3) authorize the City Manager to execute the agreement with the selected vendor in an amount not to exceed $325,000.”
ATTACHMENTS
1. Lacy Park Playground Management Program CIP Form