Agenda Item No. 16
CITY OF YUCAIPA
AGENDA REPORT
TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council
FROM: Fermin Preciado, Director of Development Services/City Engineer Benjamin Matlock, Deputy Director of Community Development/City Planner,,;`_�� FOR: City Council Meeting of May 13, 2024
SUBJECT: Contract Amendment No. 1 - On -call Professional Environmental Review Services for Private Development Projects
RECOMMENDATION:
That the City Council authorize the City Manager to execute Contract Amendment No. 1 with Ruth Villalobos & Associates, Inc., increasing their contract by $150,000 for a revised total of $225,000 for providing on -call Professional Environmental Review Services for Private Development Projects.
BACKGROUND/DISCUSSION :
The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) is a law that was established in the early 1970s to document and disclose project -related impacts to the environment during the decision -making process. All discretionary) projects undertaken by the City, including the approvals of private land development projects, are subject to the CEQA review process. Many smaller scale discretionary projects will qualify for an exemption from CEQA, which limits the total necessary review; however, many larger projects may require the preparation of Initial Studies (IS) and/or Negative Declarations (NDs), Mitigated Negative Declarations (MNDs), or Environmental Impact Reports (EIRs), along with supporting environmental technical studies, to provide the substantial evidence for the project's approval.
The environmental review process is a core element for the approval process for private land development projects, and the environmental -related impacts are often the key issues that surrounding residents and decision makers have regarding those projects. At the July 13, 2020, City Council Meeting, the City Council recognized that the technical standards, analytical methods, computer models, and legal requirements needed to comply with the CEQA review process has continued to expand, and that significant staff resources would be required to prepare these efforts "in-house." The use of on -call environmental consultants for the review of private land development projects is common to many cities, including every city that surrounds Yucaipa as well as all the cities surveyed in Inland Empire, which includes Calimesa, Redlands, Highland, Loma Linda, Colton, Ontario, and Rancho Cucamonga. As a result, the City Council directed staff to implement on -call environmental services to provide the required reviews for private development projects.
1 Ministerial projects, meaning projects that are approved by staff, are not subject to CEQA
To ensure a business -friendly approach, the City Council directed staff at their Regular Meeting of February 13, 2023, to research potential strategies that would maintain a business friendly and cost-conscious approach to the environmental review process for private land development projects, while still maintaining a thorough review process and effective use of staff resources.
Following that direction, the City Council ultimately expanded its list of environmental on -call consultants at their Regular Meeting of May 22, 2023, from 4 firms to 7 different firms, which would allow more competitive proposals from both a cost and timing perspective.
The on -call process has been effective at providing quality analysis of proposed projects and has resulted in a substantial time savings for projects to complete the review process, along with responding to any issues that may occur during the process (such as responding to tribal consultation inquires). Based on the current firms available with our process, there are enough options that can be tailored to the unique needs of a project, with technical resources available to support specific environmental concerns, as well as resources that can either meet tighter timelines or budgets.
One of the firms selected, Ruth Villalobos & Associates, Inc. (RVA), has become one of the preferred firms for our on -call process because of their responsiveness and competitive rates, and is now approaching the limit of their authorized contract of $75,000. Based on the quality of their work and their reasonable rates, an increase to their contract is requested so that projects can continue to have this firm as an option. Of note, two different private land development projects that are pending have recently requested RVA based on the scope of work and proposals that were received.
FISCAL IMPACT:
Private development projects that necessitate the preparation of environmental review documents to meet the requirements of CEQA are processed through a deposit account, where the project applicant bears the total processing costs of completing the review process for a project. Therefore, the cost for the proposed services would be the applicant's responsibility, and a deposit for the proposed task order would be required to begin the work.
No impact to the General Fund would occur with the proposed recommendations.
Attachments:
1) Contract Amendment No 1 - Ruth Villalobos & Associates, Inc.
Approved by: �--
ATTACHMENT 1
AMENDMENT NO. 1 TO "PROFESSIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
SERVICES FOR PRIVATE DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS"
THIS AMENDMENT, made and entered into this 1311 day of May 2024, by and between Ruth Villalobos & Associates, Inc., hereinafter called "CONSULTANT," and the City of Yucaipa, a municipal corporation, hereinafter called "City,"
NOW, THEREFORE, CONSULTANT and CITY mutually agree as follows:
Subject to the terms and conditions of the original agreement dated May 22, 2023, between the subject CONSULTANT and CITY, shall be as follows for the additional professional services.
Original Not -To -Exceed Amount $ 75,000
Proposed Amendment No. 1 for FY25 S 150,000
Revised FY25 Agreement Amount $ 225,000
Agreement Amendment No. I revises the total overall not to exceed contract amount from $75,000 to $225,000.
CITY Fee and Payment Thereof
The CITY will pay the CONSULTANT for services rendered in the total amount NOT TO EXCEED $225,000 for the work required to complete professional services for On -call Professional Environmental Review Services for Private Development Projects.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have executed this agreement on the 131h day of May, 2024.
ATTEST:
Date
City of Yucaipa
A Municipal Corporation
Ana V. Sauseda, MMC Chris Mann, City Manager
Director of General Services/City
Clerk
Date
Ruth Villalobos & Associates, Inc Date