City Council
Report
City Council Meeting: November 18, 2025
Agenda Item: 4.H
1 of 6
To: Mayor and City Council
From: Anuj Gupta, Director of Transportation, Parking Operations (DOT) Subject: Approval of Ratification of Purchase Orders to Walter P Moore and Associates, Inc., Contech Services, Inc., and Commercial Scaffolding of California Incorporated for Emergency Repairs to Parking Structure #5 Recommended Action
Staff recommends that the City Council:
1. Adopt a finding of statutory exemption pursuant to Section 15269 and a finding of categorical exemption pursuant to Section 15301 of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines;
2. Ratify the Procurement Manager’s issuance of a purchase order with Walter P.
Moore and Associates, Inc. for the assessment of emergency structural repair, design, and permitting work for Parking Structure 5. The emergency purchase was made as an exception to the competitive bidding process pursuant to Section 2.24.250(i) and is for a total amount not to exceed $105,950 (including a 20% contingency);
3. Ratify the Procurement Manager’s issuance of a purchase order with Contech Services, Inc. for the non-destructive testing related to the assessment for emergency structural repair work for Parking Structure 5. The emergency purchase was made as an exception to the competitive bidding process pursuant to Section 2.24.250(i) and is for a total amount not to exceed $2,800;and
4. Ratify the Procurement Manager’s issuance of a purchase order with Commercial Scaffolding of California Incorporated for an emergency temporary shoring installation for Parking Structure 5. The emergency purchase was made as an exception to the competitive bidding process pursuant to Section
2.24.250(i) and is for a total amount not to exceed $175,260 (including a 20% contingency).
Executive Summary
Parking Structure 5 (PS5), located at 1440 4th Street, was temporarily closed to vehicle traffic on October 1, 2025, upon the discovery of an area of the structure in need of urgent structural repairs. Santa Monica Department of Transportation (DOT) Parking 2 of 6
Operations Staff discovered areas of chipping concrete and rusting structural steel in some of the floor slabs in the lower level of the structure. Structural engineering firm Walter P Moore and Associates, Inc (Walter P Moore) was hired to perform a structural assessment of the building, and determined this area needed urgent repairs and that the building was unsafe for vehicle traffic. The assessment recommended repairing the damaged areas and that if the structure were to reopen to vehicles (before the permanent repairs could be performed), temporary shoring should be installed.
Commercial Scaffolding of California, Incorporated (CSI) has completed installation of the temporary shoring.
Background
Parking Structure 5 (PS5) is a post-tensioned beam and slab structure constructed in 1969, with additional floors added in 1988. In this structure, post tensioned (PT) tendons provide the vertical load carrying capacity in the concrete slabs (all areas not directly on the ground and in between all of the beams). All driving, parking and walking areas above the ground level are on post-tensioned slabs. The PT tendons (in these slabs) must maintain their tension to carry the vertical load safely.
Discussion
Parking Operations staff discovered chipping concrete and rusting structural steel in the concrete slab of a storage area in PS5. This concrete slab area is also below the 1st level parking area of the structure. Upon realizing the seriousness of this apparent structural failure, staff contacted Walter P Moore to assess the condition of the floor/roof slab. Walter P Moore performed the previous 2016 structural assessment of the Cityowned parking structures and designed many of the repairs of the structures in recent Capital Improvement Projects, making them a good candidate for a rapid assessment.
Contech Services, Inc. was hired for some non-destructive testing associated with the assessment. Shortly afterwards, both firms began and completed the testing and assessment of the entire structure.
On September 29, 2025, staff received the Condition Assessment Report for PS5 from Walter P Moore. The report indicated several PT tendons have suffered “severe corrosion and tension loss,” and stated five of these tendons have “no effective tension” in the area of the storage room and above the alley adjacent ADA parking area of PS5 3 of 6
(see diagram below). The report indicates that “installing temporary shoring immediately is required to mitigate further damage and potential collapse of the slab.” The report added, “Alternatively, the City of Santa Monica can close the garage until repairs are completed.” The damaged area is the first drive aisle that all cars must drive through to enter the structure, therefore the entire structure needed to be closed to vehicles until temporary shoring was installed. Walter P. Moore verified that the City GoSaMo Center and SP Plus offices adjacent to 4th Street had no nearby structural damage, and only the area adjacent to the alley had damage. Therefore, the City offices remained open while the structure was closed to vehicles on October 1, 2025.
Parking Staff quickly solicited three informal bids from shoring companies and hired Commercial Scaffolding of California, Incorporated (CSI) to perform the work. They were selected based on their price and experience in shoring projects. CSI created a temporary shoring plan, it was reviewed by City staff, reviewed by Walter P. Moore, and was stamped by a licensed professional engineer. CSI began installing the shoring on 4 of 6
October 14, 2025, and completed the work on October 20, 2025. The structure was reopened to vehicles on October 20, 2025.
Why This Work is Considered an Emergency
For the permanent fix (per the assessment), the City must “replace PT tendons in the structural slab at west bay on the PT slab P1, or install an alternate engineered system” and “perform further investigation, including destructive and concrete testing, to determine the extent of deterioration and guide long-term repairs for the PT slab on the 1st elevated level.”
Staff believes these issues constitute what Santa Monica Municipal Code section
2.24.240 (d) (3) define as “An urgent, unforeseen event that threatens life, property, or the general public health, safety and welfare.” These failing PT tendons can lead to a slab failure resulting in a potential loss of life or property.
Temporary shoring alone does not resolve the underlying failure or restore the structural capacity of the affected member. Permanent repairs are needed and require specialized engineering and construction services to replace or re-tension the damaged posttension tendons, repair surrounding concrete, install new water proofing, and verify the integrity of adjacent tendons. Accordingly, both the temporary and permanent solutions meet the definition of an emergency under Santa Monica Municipal Code Section
2.24.240 (d). Deeming both the temporary shoring and the permanent structure repairs an emergency allows the City to expedite the procurement process for the firms and contractors needed to complete these assessments, temporary fixes, and repairs. This ensures that the structure is returned to a safely usable condition as soon as possible.
Next Steps
The City has authorized Walter P Moore for the design and permitting of the Post Tension Tendon Repair and Waterproofing needed to address the structural damage of PS5 in the amount of $81,600 (includes 20% contingency). This design and permitting is underway now. Once completed and fully permitted through the City’s Building and Safety Department, the work will be bid for construction through the City’s Master Service Agreements. Once a task order is issued, the work will be completed by the 5 of 6
contractor and the temporary shoring will be removed. This construction work is expected to cost $500,000 to $600,000.
Vendor Selection
Exception to Competitive Bidding
Staff awarded a purchase order to Walter P. Moore and Associates, Inc., Contech Services, Inc., and Commercial Scaffolding Incorporated to assess, design, and make these emergency repairs as an exception to competitive bidding per Municipal Code
2.24.250(i). The parking structure concrete slab is critical to public safety and required an emergency repair.
A solicitation is made under the emergency procedures set forth in Section
2.24.240(d)(3). Without these emergency repairs, the structure would be unsafe for vehicle travel and need to be shut down.
Environmental Review
The contract to conduct emergency repair for PS5 is statutorily exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to Section 15269 and categorically exempt pursuant to Section 15301 (Existing Facilities) of the CEQA Guidelines. Section 15269 exempts emergency projects that include (i) emergency repairs to publicly or privately owned service facilities necessary to maintain service essential to the public health, safety or welfare and (ii) specific actions necessary to prevent or mitigate an emergency. Section 15301 of the CEQA State Guidelines provides Class 1 (existing facilities) exemption for projects that consists of the operation, repair, maintenance, leasing, licensing, permitting, or minor alteration of existing public or private structures, facilities, mechanical equipment, or topographical features, involving negligible or no expansion of the existing or former use. The contract for emergency repair work to PS5, an existing public parking structure, is necessary to provide for public safety and prevent an emergency. Therefore, the contract is statutorily exempt pursuant to Section 15269 and categorically exempt pursuant to Section 15301.
Past Council Actions
None.
Financial Impacts and Budget Actions
Purchase orders to Walter P. Moore, Contech Services, Inc. and CSI Shoring were issued for the emergency shoring of PS5. Once Walter P. Moore’s design and permitting is complete, then the project will be bid for construction using the City’s 6 of 6
Master Service Agreements to expedite the process. This work is expected to cost from $500,000 to $600,000.
Contract/Purchase Order Request
Agreement # /
Vendor
FY 2025-26
Request
Amount
Department Account # Total Contract/ Purchase
Amount
Walter P.
Moore $105,950 01600004.525080 $105,950
Contech
Services, Inc $2,800 01600004.525080 $2,800
CSI Shoring $175,260 01600004.525080 $175,260
Prepared By: Zach Pollard, Parking Manager
Approved Forwarded to Council
Attachments:
A. CSI Oaks
B. WPM Levine Act Disclosure Form 2025
C. CSI Levine Act Disclosure Form 2025
D. WP Moore Oaks Form