City Council
Report
City Council Meeting: May 14, 2024
Agenda Item: 5.E
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To: Mayor and City Council
From: Rick Valte, Public Works Director, Public Works, Engineering and Street Services
Rick Valte, Public Works Director, Public Works Department Subject: Award Construction Contract for The Groundwater Recharge Well SM-11i and Monitoring Wells MWi-2 & MWi-3 Drilling and Equipping Project Recommended Action
Staff recommends that the City Council:
1. Adopt a finding that the groundwater recharge wells were analyzed in the adopted Olympic Arcadia Treatment Plant Initial Study/Mitigated Negative Declaration (State Clearinghouse No. 2020070129), and a finding of categorical exemption pursuant to Section 15302,15303 and 15304 of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines;
2. Award Bid #2678-C to Environmental Construction, Inc.to provide construction services to the Groundwater Recharge Well SM-11i and Monitoring Wells MWi-2 & MWi-3 Drilling and Equipping Project for the Public Works Department;
3. Authorize the City Manager to negotiate and execute a contract with Environmental Construction Inc., in an amount not to exceed $7,477,314 (including a 15% contingency);
4. Authorize the Director of Public Works to issue any necessary change orders to complete additional work within contract authority; and
5. Authorize budget amendment as outlined in the Financial Impacts and Budget Actions section of this report (requires 5 votes).
Summary
The Santa Monica Groundwater Subbasin Recharge and Monitoring Project (Project) would construct one new groundwater recharge well (SM-11i) and two new groundwater monitoring wells (MWi-2 and MWi-3). Well SM-11i would recharge the City’s second largest groundwater aquifer, the Olympic Well Field, with advanced treated recycled water from the Sustainable Water Infrastructure Project (SWIP) and Santa Monica 2 of 7
Urban Runoff Recycling Facility (SMURRF). Recharging the aquifer with advanced treated recycled water would help maintain sustainable groundwater production. State regulations for groundwater recharge projects also require monitoring wells (MWi-2 and MWi-3) to be installed to monitor groundwater quality. The Project is funded by the State of California Department of Water Resources’ (DWR) Sustainable Groundwater Management Grant Program. Staff recommends Environmental Construction, Inc. to provide construction services for the Project for an amount not to exceed $7,477,314 including a 15% contingency. City staff would be providing the construction management and observation services for the Project.
Discussion
Since 2018, staff has been implementing the Council adopted Sustainable Water Master Plan Update (2018 SWMP), aimed to reduce the City’s reliance on imported water (Attachment A). The 2018 SWMP included three key components aimed at achieving water self-sufficiency:
1) Continuing and increasing water conservation efforts to permanently reduce water demand;
2) Developing sustainable and drought resilient alternative water supplies; and 3) Expanding local groundwater production within sustainable yield limits. Well SM-11i supports Component 2 by utilizing the City’s recycled water supply from SWIP to recharge local groundwater supplies.
On December 13, 2022, the City Council adopted Resolution 11486 (CCS) authorizing the application and acceptance of a grant from the DWR Sustainable Groundwater Management Grant Program, if awarded (Attachment B). On May 23, 2023, the City Council awarded a contract to Kennedy Jenks Consultants, Inc., to provide engineering design services for one new drinking water production well (SM-14) to replace an existing well (SM-4), two new groundwater recharge wells (SM-11i and SM-12i) and up to four monitoring wells (Attachment C). On October 4, 2023, the City accepted grant funding from the DWR Sustainable Groundwater Management Grant Program in the amount of $6.17 million for groundwater recharge well SM-11i and two monitoring wells (MWi-2 and MWi-3). On March 29, 2024, Grant Agreement 460015871 between the City of Santa Monica and the DWR was executed, awarding the City of Santa Monica 3 of 7
$6,174,000 to assist in financing the Project. The grant requires the Project to be completed by April 30, 2026.
In order to meet the grant deadline, staff worked with the consultant team to expedite the design and construction bid package. The accelerated timeline allows the contractor to procure long lead items, such as electrical and pumping equipment, which may take up to 18 months to be delivered. The injection well, SM-11i, and the two monitoring wells (MWi-2 and MWi-3) would be constructed within the City Yard site as illustrated in the figure below.
Figure 1 – Proposed Well Locations
A portion of the $6,174,000 grant award will reimburse the Water Fund for qualifying expenditures on project related work dating back to October 5, 2022. The total reimbursement for qualifying expenditures that the City has already incurred is $755,266. The remaining balance of $5,418,734 would be used to partially fund the contract awarded to Environmental Construction, Inc. The remaining $2,058,580 would 4 of 7
be funded by available budget that was approved in the FY 2022-24 Capital Improvement Program budget for this project.
Vendor Selection
Bidder Recommendation
Best Bidder Environmental Construction, Inc.
Evaluation Criteria Price; the ability, capacity, and skill of the bidder to perform the services; the capacity of the bidder to perform the contract within the time specified; the sufficiency of bidder’s financial resources; the reputation and experience of the bidder.
Municipal Code SMMC 2.24.180
Submittals Received
Environmental Construction, Inc. $6,502,012
Cora Construction, Inc $6,995,996
Bid Data
Date Posted Posted On Advertised in
(City Charter &
SMMC)
Vendor
Downloaded
Date Publicly
Opened
02/13/2024 City’s Online
Site
Santa Monica Daily
Press
60 03/19/2024
Best Bidder Justifications
Staff recommends Environmental Construction, Inc. as the best bidder based on the price and completion of the past projects for the City of Orange, City of Santa Ana, Eastern Municipal Water District and Los Angeles County. The recommended bidder has demonstrated the ability to perform quality work on general building and engineering projects.
Past Council Actions
11/27/2018
(Attachment A)
Council direction to proceed with Sustainable Water Master Plan update and Pathway to Water Self Sufficiency
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12/13/2022
(Attachment B)
Council adopted Resolution 11486 (CCS) authorizing the
application and acceptance of a grant from the DWR
Sustainable Groundwater Management Grant Program, if
awarded.
05/23/2023
(Attachment C)
Award RFP #2678 to Kennedy Jenks Consultant, Inc., to
provide design services for one new drinking water production well (SM-14) to replace an existing well (SM-4), two new groundwater injection wells (SM-11i and SM-12i) and four monitoring wells.
Environmental Review
The potential environmental effects of the groundwater recharge wells were previously analyzed in the Olympic Arcadia Treatment Plant Initial Study/Mitigated Negative Declaration (IS/MND) (State Clearinghouse No. 2020070129), Council adopted on November 24, 2020. As determined in the previously adopted IS/MND, impacts would be less than significant with the implementation of adopted mitigation measures.
The two monitoring wells in the Santa Monica Basin are exempt from CEQA pursuant to Section 15303 (New Construction or Conversion of Small Structures), Section 15304 (Class 4 – Minor Alterations to Land), and Section 15306 (Information Collection) of the CEQA Guidelines.
• Section 15303 exempts the construction of new small facilities or structures, including utility structures and extensions.
• Section 15304 exempts minor alterations to land, which do not involve removal of mature or scenic trees. Activities include minor grading, trenching, and backfilling.
• Section 15306 exempts the basic data collection, research, experimental management, and resource evaluation activities which do not result in a serious or major disturbance to an environmental resource.
The groundwater monitoring wells would be drilled up to depths between 400 to 800 feet below the surface with minimal ground surface area disturbed. Upon completion, the appearance of the monitoring wells would be largely confined to a small area with each well covered by a concrete pad not larger than 4 by 4 feet. The monitoring wells would provide information and data necessary to implement long-term sustainable groundwater planning and management for the Basin. Therefore, the installation of the 6 of 7
monitoring wells qualifies for CEQA exemption pursuant to Sections 15303, 15304, and 15306 as they consist of the new construction of small structures, involve minor alterations to land, and information collection activities. In addition, none of the exceptions specified in Section 15300.2 of CEQA Guidelines would apply that would preclude the use of the CEQA exemptions:
• The project site is not located in a sensitive environment; • The project would not have a significant effect on the environment due to unusual circumstances;
• The project would not damage scenic resources within a designated scenic highway;
• The project would not be located on a hazardous waste site based on a review of relevant databases; and
• The project would not cause a change to a historical resource as there are no historic resources identified within the site locations.
Financial Impacts and Budget Actions
Staff seeks authority to establish a revenue budget and appropriate the corresponding expenditure budget from the Miscellaneous Grant Fund to fund the Project.
Approval of the recommended action(s) requires the following budget amendment:
FY 2023-24 Grant Budget Amendment
Establish Revenue Budget Appropriate Funds
Account Number(s) Amount Account Number(s) Amount
20500001.406080 $6,174,000 C2008560.689000 $6,174,000
Total $6,174,000 Total $6,174,000
Staff also seeks authority to approve available funding from the Miscellaneous Grant Fund and the Water Fund to award a contract to Environmental Construction, Inc. for the drilling and equipping of a new groundwater recharge well and two new groundwater monitoring wells.
Contract Request
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FY 2023-24
Request Amount CIP Account # Total Contract Amount
$5,418,734 C2008560.689000 $5,418,734
$2,058,580 C5008560.689000 $2,058,580
$7,477,314 Total $7,477,314
Future year funding is contingent on Council budget approval.
Prepared By: Tom Shahbazi, Civil Engineer
Approved Forwarded to Council
Attachments:
A. November 27, 2018 Staff Report
B. May 23, 2023 Staff Report
C. December 13, 2022 Staff Report
D. Grant - Acceptance and Delegation Letter and Resolution E. Oaks Initiative Disclosure Form - Environmental Construction, Inc.
F. Levine Act Disclosure Form - Environmental Construction, Inc.