City Council
Report
City Council Meeting: October 24, 2023
Agenda Item: 5.A
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To: Mayor and City Council
From: Anuj Gupta, Interim Director of Transportation, Department of Transportation, Finance & Administrative Services
Subject: Approval of Second Modification of Big Blue Bus (BBB) Lease Contract with Bear Communications, Inc. for Hollywood Hills Radio Site Recommended Action
Staff recommends that the City Council:
1. Adopt a finding of no possibility of significant effect pursuant to Section 15061(b)(3) (Common Sense Exemption) of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines.
2. Authorize the City Manager to negotiate and execute a second modification of agreement #10857 in the amount of $126,000 with Bear Communications, Inc., a California corporation, for the extension of an antenna site lease for the Santa Monica Department of Transportation (SMDOT). This will result in a 23-year amended agreement with a new total amount not to exceed $633,000, with future year funding contingent on Council budget approval.
Summary
In 2005, Big Blue Bus (BBB) entered into an agreement with Advanced Electronics, Inc., the predecessor-in-interest to Bear Communications, Inc. for the sublease of an antenna site in the Hollywood Hills to install and maintain radio transponders to allow BBB to communicate with its vehicles across its service area. The antenna site is the only location available to adequately provide data signals to BBB. Staff recommends that the City Council authorize the City Manager to negotiate and execute a second modification to the Antenna Site Sublease Agreement #10857 with Bear Communications, Inc., for a one-year extension with two additional one-year options, and for additional compensation in an amount not to exceed $126,000 over the three- 2 of 5
year period. The amount for the first year of the extension would be $39,440.92. This would result in a 23-year amended agreement with a new total contract amount not to exceed $633,000, with future year funding contingent on Council budget approval. This lease was entered into as an exception to the competitive process due to Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regulations regarding BBB’s ability to transmit radio signals.
Discussion
BBB implemented an Advanced Fleet Management System (AFMS) in 2003 that provides Computer Aided Dispatch/Automatic Vehicle Location (CAD/AVL) data for its fleet of transit vehicles. In support of the AFMS, the City entered into a sublease with Advanced Electronics, Inc., the predecessor-in-interest to Bear Communications, Inc., on February 8, 2005, to install and maintain radio transponders at the Hollywood Hills antenna site.
Currently, the Hollywood Hills antenna site houses BBB’s radio equipment, which provides support for the AFMS, voice communication (two-way radio between buses and dispatch), and data regarding the location of each bus in BBB’s fleet. This location data is used for real-time signage, customer trip-planning applications such as Transit and Google Transit, vehicle tracking, automatic passenger counters (APCs) onboard the buses, the city’s network of real-time bus arrival signs at more than 100 of its bus stops, text-based bus arrival predictions, and bus arrival predictions through Interactive Voice Response.
BBB utilizes these radio frequencies to communicate with vehicles, locate and monitor those vehicles, collect data for reporting purposes, and provide real-time scheduling information to many other transit agencies and systems, as well as to customers through various applications, providing an enhanced customer service experience to the community.
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In May 2021, City Council approved the staff recommendation to award a contract to Clever Devices, Ltd., for new radio and CAD/AVL systems. Clever Devices’ Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) radio system will replace the current analog radio system, eliminating the need to sublease an antenna site, but will not be fully implemented and tested until after the current contract with Bear Communications ends on April 30, 2024, necessitating a contract extension. While the new radio and CAD/AVL implementation is estimated to be completed by June 30, 2024, two additional one-year options are being requested out of an abundance of caution to ensure seamless, uninterrupted radio communications necessary to continue to provide essential transportation services to customers who depend on BBB each day.
The original sublease was for a five (5) year term with two separate options to extend for five (5) years each. The City exercised both options, with the second option expiring on April 30, 2019. In 2019, the City modified the agreement to extend the sublease for one (1) year, with four separate options to extend for one (1) year each. The City exercised all four (4) options, with the fourth option scheduled to expire on April 30, 2024, and now seeks to enter into a second modification to continue this sublease to prevent any interruption of its radio communications, which could negatively impact services provided by BBB and other regional transit operators.
Past Council Actions
Meeting Date Description
09/28/2004
(Attachment A)
Authorization of the City Manager to Negotiate and Execute an Amendment to the City’s Agreement with Advanced Electronics for an Antenna Site Lease over a Period of Five Years for an Amount not to exceed $112,000.
06/11/2019
(Attachment B)
Reinstatement and First Modification of
Antenna Site Sublease Agreement with Bear Communications, Inc. for Hollywood Hills Radio Site
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Environmental Review
This agreement modification is categorically exempt from CEQA pursuant to Section 15061(b)(3) of the CEQA Guidelines. The contract modification is covered by the commonsense exemption which states that CEQA does not apply, “where it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the activity in question may have a significant effect on the environment.” The modification will continue the City’s sublease of an existing antenna site in the Hollywood Hills to install and maintain radio transponders to allow BBB to communicate with its vehicles across its service area. The antenna site is the only location available to adequately provide data signals to BBB’s operational systems and is subject to Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regulations. Therefore, it can be seen with certainty that the proposed modification would not result in adverse physical impacts on the environment, and as such, is categorically exempt from CEQA.
Financial Impacts and Budget Actions
Staff seeks authority to approve available funding from the Big Blue Bus Fund to increase the amount of agreement with Bear Communications, Inc. to lease a radio antenna site for BBB.
Contract/Agreement/Purchase Order Modification Request
Agreement # Current
Authorized
Amount
FY 2023-24
Modified
Request Amount
CIP Account # Total Revised
Contract Amount
#10857 $507,000 $126,000 C6004770.689000 $633,000
Future year funding is contingent on Council budget approval. 5 of 5
Prepared By: Carolyn Connolly, Principal Administrative Analyst Approved Forwarded to Council
Attachments:
A. Authorization of Agreement with Advanced Electronics for an Antenna Site Lease (Web Link)
B. Approval of Big Blue Bus (BBB) lease extension with Bearcomm for Hollywood Hills Radio Site (Web Link)
C. OAKS INITIATIVE FORM Bearcom Fy 23-24
D. Original Agreement - Antenna Site Sublease
E. First Modification - Bearcom_Radio_Site_Lease_Agr