TO:Andrew P. Powers, City Manager
FROM:Akbar Alikhan, Deputy City Manager
DATE:November 14, 2023
SUBJECT: Civic Arts Plaza Campus Master Plan Update and Site Strategy and Phasing Services Agreement Amendment (MI 2582)
RECOMMENDATION:
1. Receive update on Campus Master Plan project.
2. Approve First Amendment to Contract No. 13197-2023 with RRM Design Group of San Luis Obispo, CA (RRM) to add $536,355 for a new not-to exceed amount of $610,892 and extend the agreement for one additional year.
3. Waive formal Request for Proposal/Qualifications (RFP/Q) process for Civic Arts Plaza Campus Master Plan Site Strategy and Phasing and approve agreement with RRM Design pursuant to Thousand Oaks Municipal Code (TOMC) Section 3- 10-501.
4. Approve budget appropriation and expenditure in the amount of $216,226 from A/C #001-0000-311-1000 (General Fund – Fund Balance) to A/C #001-3570-612- 5300 (MI 2582, Private Contracted Services/Private/Other)
5. Find that this action is not a project as defined under the California Environmental Quality Act.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
$216,226 Increase to the Adopted FY 2023-24 General Fund Budget. A $216,226 increase to the Adopted FY 2023-24 General Fund Budget is requested for RRM to provide additional design consulting services. Pending approval, General Fund Reserves in the amount of $35.0 million have been assigned for future construction. $500,000 is included in the Adopted FY 2024-25 General Fund Budget in CI 5540 Civic Arts Plaza Campus Masterplan Improvements for Preliminary Design and Environmental work.
CAP Campus Master Plan Update and Design Agreement MI 2582 November 14, 2023
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0 BACKGROUND:
Downtown Core Master Plan
In 2017, the Downtown Core Master Plan set out to establish a vision for the downtown core and identified the initiatives the City should pursue to create an active, pedestrian-friendly area. Extensive community feedback was obtained through multiple outreach methods. On June 5, 2018, City Council endorsed the comprehensive vision for the Downtown Core Master Plan, which included the following key elements:
•Redesigning the Civic Arts Plaza to be more active and connected; to provide a “front-door” to City Hall and create a Town Square – a central event and gathering space for Thousand Oaks residents.
•Expanding arts, cultural, and entertainment programming; creating a regional hub offering events and programming for participants of all ages, interests, and abilities.
•Creating an entertainment and retail destination on City-owned properties; providing opportunities for outdoor dining, public art, and beautiful landscaping.
•Improving walkability and the pedestrian environment.
2019 AECOM Campus Master Plan Study
Development of the Civic Arts Plaza (CAP) Campus Master Plan was the first implementation measure in the Downtown Core Master Plan. Following a formal Request for Proposals/Qualifications (RFP/Q) process, AECOM was selected by City Council on January 8, 2019, to begin work on the CAP Campus Master Plan. City Council also established a CAP Campus Master Plan Ad Hoc Committee (Committee), to review draft concepts and provide guidance on plan development.
Under the stewardship of the Committee, staff and AECOM further explored the redesign of the CAP Campus and westside properties. Ultimately the Committee endorsed a “Main Street Concept” which was aligned with the Downtown Core Master Plan and integrated direct public feedback. On November 5, 2019, City Council unanimously endorsed the “Main Street Concept” and directed that further work be completed on the conceptual plans and report.
A follow-up item on the Campus Master Plan was presented to City Council on February 25, 2020. Nearly two weeks later, a Countywide State of Emergency was declared at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The project was put on hold while City leadership tended to the pandemic emergency.
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0 2023 RRM Design Campus Master Plan Analysis
As one of its Top Ten Priorities for FY 2022-23, City Council directed staff to revise the previous Campus Master Plan concept from 2019 and develop realistic phasing opportunities. In March 2023, following a competitive informal request for proposals process, staff engaged RRM Design Group (RRM) (Attachment #1) to revisit the site plan and develop a phasing strategy. RRM was selected based on their experience with similar projects and multi-disciplinary project team.
RRM was asked to incorporate any necessary changes to the site plan resulting from factors that had emerged since the pandemic began, such as the introduction of The Lakes residential project and general real estate market trends for the region.
Rather than start anew with creating a site plan, City staff and RRM set out to leverage the existing work performed by AECOM. The following key elements of the 2019 AECOM design had been previously endorsed by City Council and are retained in the RRM conceptual design:
•A new road configuration, including the creation of a new “Main Street” that connects the westside properties, CAP and The Lakes to the east - minimizing traffic impacts on Thousand Oaks Boulevard.
•A staircase, which creates an inviting and visual pedestrian connection from Thousand Oaks Boulevard to Kavli Theatre, via the new “Main Street” fronting the existing City Hall.
•A celebration of the majestic oak trees on site in key areas throughout the program.
•A reconfigured City Hall space to increase economic vibrancy, non-profit opportunity, and municipal services to the community.
Using the 2019 AECOM design as a foundation, RRM evolved the site plan to address emerging needs, better honor market viability, avoid costly structural edits, and solve other site plan issues. The following list represents the significant changes from the AECOM design.
•Relocation of the third-floor terrace restaurant near the Kavli Theater to the ground floor. Replacement of the existing fountain with a courtyard event space.
•Relocation of the access ramp to the Scherr Forum loading dock to the rear of the project site. The modification better screens the “back of house” operations, creates a point of arrival for the Scherr Forum, and improves wayfinding for visitors to City Hall.
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0 •The possible addition of a public market near the corner of Thousand Oaks Boulevard and The Lakes Drive to serve as an incubator space for budding restauranteurs and artisans.
•The possible addition of a mixed-use, podium-construction building on the westside parcel, in lieu of previously contemplated institutional uses. •Slight realignment of Main Street and conversion to one-way traffic to preserve oak trees, improve walkability, and avoid replacement of the façade to the existing City Hall.
The conceptual design produced by RRM incorporates the changes noted above.
It is important to note that the architecture, colors, and material selection are placeholders and intentionally generic in nature. Much like the 2019 AECOM conceptual design, the purpose of the current conceptual design is to ascertain the correct mix of compatible uses, general location of structures, and basic pedestrian and vehicular circulation. The architectural style and other details would be selected during preliminary design of the project.
The updated design by RRM is an evolution of the 2019 AECOM design that also attempts to solve other activation and access issues. The table below shows how well each conceptual design addresses the key issues in the site.
Project Goal Existing
CAP
AECOM
2019
RRM
2023
Creates downtown environment
Screens “back of house” operations
Improves wayfinding for City business
Connects Kavli Theater to Boulevard
Connects Civic Arts Plaza to The Lakes
Highest and best use of Westside parcels
Creates “sense of arrival” for theaters
Does not address / partially addresses / Fully addresses As outlined above, the RRM design borrows the connectivity elements of the AECOM conceptual design and builds upon it to better address other site needs.
CAP Campus Master Plan Update and Design Agreement MI 2582 November 14, 2023
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0 DISCUSSION/ANALYSIS:
First Amendment to Agreement with RRM Design
If City Council directs staff to advance the project, the conceptual design is a strong foundation upon which additional work and refinement will occur as the project moves forward. Fine-tuning the design will occur with input from the Committee, the consultant team, continued community engagement, and further discussion with institutional and private partners. Both the 2019 AECOM and 2023 RRM conceptual design efforts made assumptions as to what was possible economically, architecturally, and geotechnically. The proposed scope included in the recommendations will test these assumptions.
Attached for City Council consideration is the First Amendment with RRM Design Group (Attachment #2) for the not-to-exceed amount of $610,892. The initial agreement with RRM was a competitive selection through an informal request for proposal process. For this portion of the project, staff is seeking authorization to waive the formal RFP/Q process. RRM is uniquely positioned to continue their work with the City on the project as they were intimately involved in the conceptual design and can most efficiently test the assumptions made and arrive at a final conceptual design for City Council consideration. Additionally, during the selection process for the initial agreement, RRM demonstrated a superior understanding of the engineering obstacles that this project might face and, compared to other firms interviewed, better illustrated how they might develop solutions.
The proposed scope will further analyze the design and engineering assumptions made in previous planning efforts, and refine the conceptual design based on the existing physical and economic conditions. At the conclusion of the proposed scope in Spring 2024, staff will return to City Council for further direction on advertising the first phase of the project for preliminary design and design.
Staff’s goal through the proposed scope is to receive clarity on the outstanding questions on the conceptual design to allow City Council to make an informed decision on how best to advance the project. In particular, the proposed scope will address the following questions:
Economic
•What are the estimated costs for each phase of the project? •How have similarly sized cities financed projects like the Campus Master Plan?
•What demand is there for quality commercial tenant spaces along Thousand Oaks Boulevard?
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0 •In which portions of the Campus Master Plan can the City best make use of Public Private Partnerships to leverage private investment? •Does the proposed conceptual program create an environment for businesses to function – parking, visibility, etc.?
Phasing
•What portions of the Campus Master Plan should be included in Phase 1? •In what sequence should the project be phased to maximize cost efficiencies and limit disruptions to onsite uses?
Structural/Architectural
•Will the proposed modifications to the existing building (e.g., conversion of terraced stairs into grand staircase) present seismic/structural issues? •Is the proximity of new structures to existing structures achievable? Geotechnical (via separate agreement)
•Can desired grading and drainage be achieved in key areas of the project (e.g., rear loading dock of Scherr Forum)?
•What is the precise road alignment to minimize disruption to trees and existing structures?
In addition to addressing the questions above, the proposed scope will deliver preliminary grading and drainage exhibits, utility exhibits, road circulation plans, tree preservation analysis, floorplan program, structural analysis report, architectural analysis report, phasing plan exhibits with implementation plans, and a financing strategy analysis. Furthermore, the scope will deliver renderings of the conceptual design in three different architectural styles, allowing staff to garner feedback on community preferences. Based on the findings from the consultant’s scope of work and ongoing conversations with the community, staff anticipates there may be recommended edits to the conceptual design. Any changes to the conceptual design will be presented to City Council as the scope nears its conclusion in Spring 2024.
Next Steps
As the proposed scope nears its conclusion, staff will re-engage the community on the conceptual design, including the mix of proposed uses and architectural style preferences. It is important to note the 2019 AECOM design was the foundation for the 2023 RRM design. The “Main Street” concept, mix of commercial uses, and the adaptive reuse of the current City Hall structure were all the result of extensive community engagement efforts conducted for both the development of the Downtown Core Master Plan and 2019 AECOM conceptual design. As the RRM conceptual design evolves, staff will re-engage the community to gauge community support on the recommended changes to the conceptual design since 2019.
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0 Upon conclusion of the proposed scope, staff will return to City Council with findings of the analyses, an updated conceptual design in the various architectural styles, a summary of recent community feedback on the current iteration of the plan, and a recommended phasing strategy to advance the project. Pending direction from City Council to proceed with the project after reviewing the final conceptual design, staff will return to City Council for authorization to advertise a request for proposals for preliminary design and design of Phase 1 of the project.
Top Ten Council Priorities FY 2023-24
The recommended City Council action and staff efforts are in alignment with one of the City Council’s Top Ten Priorities, to renew community engagement on the Civic Arts Plaza renovation project and present phasing strategy to City Council and begin planning for potential Phase 1 construction.
COUNCIL GOAL COMPLIANCE:
Meets the following City Council goals:
B. Provide municipal government leadership which is open and responsive to residents, and is characterized by ethical behavior, stability, promoting public trust, transparency, confidence in the future, and cooperative interaction among civic leaders, residents, business representatives, and staff, while recognizing and respecting legitimate differences of opinion on critical issues facing the City.
J. Implement high quality revitalization projects within Thousand Oaks Boulevard and Newbury Road Areas; Develop a pedestrian-oriented, viable, and self- sustaining "Downtown;” and, continue to support production of long-term affordable housing.
PREPARED BY: Akbar Alikhan, Deputy City Manager
Attachments:
Attachment #1 – Contract #13197-2023 RRM Design Group
Attachment #2 – Amendment to RRM Design Group Contract
CMO:670-80\MH\H:\COMMON\City Council\Council Items\2023 Staff Reports\111423\Campus Master Plan Staff Report.docx