Agenda Item #13.6
For Council Meeting of: April 16, 2024
CITY OF SANTA ROSA
CITY COUNCIL
TO: MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
FROM: DAN HENNESSEY, DIRECTOR, TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC WORKS
JENNIFER BURKE, DIRECTOR, SANTA ROSA WATER
SUBJECT: APPROVAL OF PROFESSIONAL SERVICES AGREEMENT WITH SAGE RENEWABLE ENERGY, INC., DBA NV5 GLOBAL, INC., FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE CITYWIDE ELECTRIC VEHICLE INFRASTRUCTURE MASTER PLAN AGENDA ACTION: RESOLUTION
RECOMMENDATION
It is recommended by the Transportation and Public Works Department and Santa Rosa Water that the Council, by resolution, approve the Professional Services Agreement with Sage Renewable Energy Consulting, Inc., DBA NV5 Global, Inc., in an amount not to exceed $370,000, to complete the Citywide Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Master Plan.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The City of Santa Rosa (City) must prepare for compliance with the recently enacted advanced clean fleet and innovative clean transit rules, which require municipalities in California to pursue a rapid transition to zero-emission vehicles in their operational and transit fleets. To determine the appropriate path forward and understand the necessary infrastructure to accommodate these vehicles, the City Council prioritized the development of a Citywide Fleet Electrification Plan (Plan). A request for proposals to complete the Plan was released and the City received 11 qualified proposals. A review committee comprised of staff from the Transportation and Public Works Department and Santa Rosa Water selected the proposal from Sage Renewable Energy Consulting, Inc., doing business as NV5 Global, Inc. (Sage Energy Consulting). Staff are recommending the approval and authorization of a professional services agreement with Sage Energy Consulting in the amount not to exceed $370,000.00.
BACKGROUND
In alignment with the City Council Goals, the Council directed staff to initiate the development of City-wide Fleet Electrification Master Plan in the Fiscal 2023-24 Workplan. The proposed Plan will make progress toward the City’s carbon neutrality goals, but it also will serve as an important roadmap to achieve regulatory compliance success in response to new statewide regulations for local government operational fleets.
The Advanced Clean Fleets Rule (ACF) is part of the California Air Resources Board’s overall strategy to accelerate a large-scale transition to zeroemissions medium- and heavy-duty vehicles. The ACF works in conjunction with the Advanced Clean Trucks Regulation, approved in 2021, which helps ensure that zeroemissions vehicles (ZEV) are available for sale. The ACF applies to high-priority large fleets throughout California, including large fleets owned by state, local, and federal government agencies and affects medium- and heavy-duty on-road vehicles with a gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) greater than 8,500 pounds. The City is required to ensure 50 percent of vehicle purchases are zero-emissions beginning in 2024, and 100 percent of vehicle purchases are zero-emissions by 2027. The City must also initially submit a compliance report by April 1, 2024. There are specific exemptions for the emergency services vehicles.
The Innovative Clean Transit Rule (ICT) regulation was adopted in December 2018 and requires all public transit agencies to gradually transition to a 100 percent zeroemission bus (ZEB) fleet. Beginning in 2029, 100 percent of new purchases by transit agencies must be ZEBs, with a goal for full transition by 2040. It applies to all transit agencies that own, operate, or lease buses with a GVWR greater than 14,000 lbs. It includes standard, articulated, over-the-road, doubledecker, and cutaway buses. A ZEB Rollout Plan is required from each transit agency, approved by its governing board, to show how it is planning to achieve a full transition to zero-emission technologies by 2040. Large transit agencies had to submit their Rollout Plan by July 1, 2020, and small transit agencies by July 1, 2023. The City Council approved the City of Santa Rosa ZEB Rollout Plan on June 6, 2023.
The capital purchase outlay and the implementation of the necessary improvements to accommodate the transition to electric vehicles is likely to be substantial and will be carried out over the next decade or longer. Local utilities, state, and federal agencies are offering broad incentives for local government agencies to rapidly pursue ZEVs. To respond to this challenge and position the city to receive future public funding, the city pursued a wide-ranging master planning effort to understand the expected cost of ownership for Fleet ZEVs, the potential energy demands, city facility infrastructure needs, energy resiliency needs of the fleet in an emergency, and further identify any policy considerations for the permitting of public charging infrastructure in the city right-of-way.
PRIOR CITY COUNCIL REVIEW
None
ANALYSIS
The proposed scope for the Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Master Plan (EVIMP) was developed collaboratively over several months by stakeholder staff in multiple operational departments. The EVIMP is intended be a “roadmap” to provide an understanding of how the city intends to respond to the new regulations, and a guide to help Santa Rosa consider future infrastructure investment decisions for accommodating ZEVs and ZEBs.
Using the online bidding platform, PlanetBids, the City released a Request for Proposals (RFP) on August 26, 2023 to develop an EVIMP. Eleven qualified proposals were received. In accordance with City Council Policy 600-01, a proposal review committee comprised of Transportation and Public Works Department and Santa Rosa Water staff was identified to review and rank proposals. Subsequent interviews with the highest qualified firms were completed. The committee selected the proposal from Sage Energy Consulting, and a best and final offer was supplied to the city in January 2024.
The scope of services in the EVIMP to be provided by Sage Energy Consulting includes three elements:
City of Santa Rosa Municipal Fleet Assessment and Transition Evaluation Municipal Property Energy Storage Options and Resiliency Considerations A Private Development Policy Considerations Evaluation and Summary In addition to the three technical elements to be completed above, there are multiple built-in opportunities to inform the Council on progress and gather input and to host meetings for coordination with energy utilities and other stakeholders. The proposed agreement includes two unprogrammed placeholder public meetings, two meetings to present information to targeted regional stakeholders, and four other public meetings with presentations to the City Council, Boards or Committees to share draft information and a final report.
FISCAL IMPACT
Approval of this action has an impact on the General Fund. $160,000 will be allocated from General Fund Reserves with the remainder coming from Water Enterprise Fund Reserves in the amount of $210,000. Funding for this contract in the amount of $370,000 has been appropriated to JL project number 54063 (Fleet Electrification Master Plan).
The City applied for funding under the Federal Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) Program for the EVIMP project. This funding was appropriated to the Federal Department of Energy under the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The funding formulary under the EECBG for the City is $210,570. Staff anticipate that this funding will be awarded to support this project soon and will return to the Council with the appropriate action to receive and appropriate the funds in accordance with City Grant Application and Administration Policy 000-62.
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
The Plan has been reviewed in compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and qualifies for a Class 6, Informational Collection Categorical Exemption pursuant to Section 15306 of the CEQA Guidelines. Class 6 consists of basic data collection, research, experimental management, and resource evaluation activities which do not result in a serious or major disturbance to an environmental resource. These may be strictly for information gathering purposes, or as part of a study leading to an action which a public agency has not yet approved, adopted, or funded.
Further, the Plan is statutorily exempt under Title 14 § 15262 of the California Code of Regulations because it involves only feasibility or planning studies for possible future actions which the agency, board, or commission has not approved, adopted, or funded. As such, the study parameters for this Plan do not require the preparation of an EIR or negative declaration but do require consideration of environmental factors, which have been included in the criteria and study methodology.
BOARD/COMMISSION/COMMITTEE REVIEW AND RECOMMENDATIONS
On July 5, 2023, the City Council Climate Action Subcommittee received an update on the proposed approach and provided feedback regarding the scope and deliverables of a potential Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Master Plan. Staff utilized that feedback to develop a Request for Proposals.
NOTIFICATION
Not applicable.
ATTACHMENTS
Resolution
Exhibit A - Professional Services Agreement with Sage Renewable Energy Consulting, INC. DBA NV5, INC.
PRESENTER
Peter Martin, Deputy Director Water Resources
APPROVAL OF PROFESSIONAL SERVICES AGREEMENT WITH SAGE RENEWABLE ENERGY, INC., DBA NV5 GLOBAL, INC., FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE CITYWIDE ELECTRIC VEHICLE INFRASTRUCTURE MASTER PLAN PAGE 3 OF 3