Planning and Building Agency
www.santa-ana.org/pb
Item # 14
City of Santa Ana
20 Civic Center Plaza, Santa Ana, CA 92701
Staff Report
April 7, 2026
TOPIC: Agreements for On-Call Building Safety Division Services
AGENDA TITLE
Agreements for On-Call Building Safety Division Services (Specification No. 25-130) (General Fund & Non-General Fund)
RECOMMENDED ACTION
Authorize the City Manager to execute agreements with the fifteen (15) firms listed below to provide On-Call Building Safety Division Services in a total amount not to exceed $1,900,000 for an initial term beginning May 17, 2026 and ending June 30, 2027, with provisions for two (2), one-year extensions for a total aggregate amount not to exceed $4,900,000 (Core Agreement No. A-2026-XXX).
Consultant Location
4LEAF, Inc. Pleasanton, CA
BPR Consulting Group Granite Bay, CA
Bureau Veritas North America, Inc. Costa Mesa, CA
CSG Consultants, Inc. Orange, CA
Interwest Consulting Group San Diego, CA
JAS Pacific Upland, CA
JLee Engineering, Inc. Alhambra, CA
Scott Fazekas & Associates Irvine, CA
Shums Coda Associates, Inc. Pleasanton, CA
The Code Group, Inc. (VCA Code) Orange, CA
Transtech Engineers, Inc. Chino, CA
TRB & Associates, Inc. Long Beach, CA
True North Compliance Services, Inc. Long Beach, CA
West Coast Code Consultants, Inc. Oceanside, CA
Willdan Engineering Anaheim, CA
GOVERNMENT CODE §84308 APPLIES: Yes
On-Call Building Safety Division Services
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DISCUSSION
Background
On May 17, 2022, the City Council approved fourteen (14) consulting firms to provide the City with as-needed Building Safety Division services with an aggregated not to exceed amount of $4,900,000, for a period of three years ending May 16, 2025, with the option to renew for up to one additional year.
Development activity in the City has been trending upward since the COVID-19 pandemic to present with many large transformative projects such as the Rafferty and The Row for residential mixed-use projects, as well as commercial/industrial projects such as the South Coast Technology Center. Continuing into the future, the City anticipates many large developments such as the Related Bristol and The Village Santa Ana Specific Plan projects to continue the development trends. Just these two proposed projects would include over 5,600 residential units, 250 hotel room keys, 200 units of senior continuum of care units, and 430,000 square feet of retail and restaurant uses.
Overview of Scope of Services
Building activity in the City remains at a high level and the approval of this consultant on- call list would allow for expedited customer services through plan check services that the building industry demands as services from the City. Maintaining a list of on-call consultants for building plan checks, contract inspection staff, and similar services provides a means to expeditiously service projects and reduce response time for plan reviews and inspection of general construction workload by permanent in-house staff. For example, projects for which the applicant has requested accelerated plan reviews complete the reviews within 10 business days, which is often a reduction of review time of up to two-thirds.
Moreover, the on-call list would allow for the City to retain other specialized services, including meeting with applicants to resolve complex, specialty plan-check issues, peer- reviewing structural calculations, digitizing of plans and permits to allow for easier public access to property records, specialty inspection services, and temporary in-house staffing for plan reviews, inspections, and permit services as needed. Together, these services maintain service levels for the community during times of heavy project loads and when large-scale projects are submitted, minimizing review disruptions to other projects.
The Planning and Building Agency has continued to improve customer service by streamlining review processes, including the introduction of a electronic plan review system, migration to a digital environment through scanning of all building permit and plan records, working to implement an online portal permitting system through a new comprehensive land management system, launching over-the-counter permit services known as PBx, and introducing a new concurrent plan check for same-day reviews known On-Call Building Safety Division Services
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as the Pod. In order to meet continued construction activity and the associated Building Safety services demand, staff requests a new agreement to allow continuity of timely and high-quality customer service through the on-call consultants.
Request for Qualifications
Request for Qualifications (RFQual) No. 25-130 was issued on November 14, 2025 on the City’s online bid management and publication system. A summary of vendor participation and results is as follows:
966 Vendors notified
1 Santa Ana vendor notified
37 Vendors downloaded the RFQual packet
15 Responsive submissions received
0 Responsive submissions received from Santa Ana vendors
Submissions were solicited, opened on December 16, 2025, and evaluated. Fifteen submissions were received by the RFQual deadline and were determined to be responsive to the specifications and met the City's requirements. While one Santa Ana- based vendor was notified of the RFQual submission opportunity, that vendor did not submit a proposal.
Staff recommends awarding agreements to all 15 qualified vendors. The selected vendors will provide on-call Building Safety Division services including plan review, technical, inspection services, and expedited services for the Planning and Building Agency.
Placement on the pre-approved list does not guarantee work to a consultant. When services are required, firms will be selected based upon their ability to perform the required work within the specified timeframe and budget. Approval of the recommended bench list will allow the Building Safety Division to timely engage services from experienced consultants for task specific projects. Staff will be better able to respond quickly to fluctuating demands and ultimately provide better service to the City of Santa Ana.
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
There is no environmental impact associated with this action.
FISCAL IMPACT
Accelerated plan check fees and expedited inspection fees paid to the City by the applicant for each project contracted out for Building Safety services will fully fund the consultants’ cost to perform the respective plan check and inspections. Other services provided that are non-applicant funded, such as digitizing of plans and permits and temporary in-house staffing, are paid through approved budgets for contractual services.
On-Call Building Safety Division Services
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Funding is available in the current FY 2025/26 budget and funding for subsequent fiscal years will be included in the proposed budgets for City Council consideration.
Proposed Budget FY 2026 - 2029
Fiscal Year Accounting
Unit
Fund Description Account Unit,
Account Description
Amount
2025-26
05316021-
62318
Non-General Fund Planning & Building –
Accelerated Plan
Check
$400,000
2026-27 05316021-
62323
Non-General Fund Planning & Building –
Expedited Inspections
$100,000
2026-27 01116520-
62300
General Fund Contract Services-
Professional
$300,000
2026-27 05316021-
62318
Non-General Fund Planning & Building –
Accelerated Plan
Check
$1,000,000
2026-27 01116530-
62300
General Fund Contract Services-
Professional
$100,000
2027-28 05316021-
62323
Non-General Fund Planning & Building –
Expedited Inspections
$100,000
2027-28 01116520-
62300
General Fund Contract Services-
Professional
$300,000
2027-28 05316021-
62318
Non-General Fund Planning & Building –
Accelerated Plan
Check
$1,000,000
2027-28 01116530-
62300
General Fund Contract Services-
Professional
$100,000
2028-29 05316021-
62323
Non-General Fund Planning & Building –
Expedited Inspections
$100,000
2028-29 01116520-
62300
General Fund Contract Services-
Professional
$300,000
2028-29 05316021-
62318
Non-General Fund Planning & Building –
Accelerated Plan
Check
$1,000,000
2028-29 01116530-
62300
General Fund Contract Services-
Professional
$100,000
TOTAL $4,900,000
On-Call Building Safety Division Services
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EXHIBIT(S)
1. Exhibit 1 – Template Agreement
2. Exhibit 2 – Scope of Services and Fees
3. Exhibit 3 – Insurance Requirements
Submitted By: Ali Pezeshkpour, AICP, Executive Director, Planning and Building Agency
Approved By: Alvaro Nuñez, City Manager