Agenda Item Wording:
title
Environmental Impact Report Consultant Contract: - Authorize the City Manager to award a contract for Professional Services to Dudek of Bakersfield in the amount of $654,085.00 for the preparation of the Storm and Sewer Master Plan Environmental Impact Reports; authorize the appropriation of $365,000 from Wastewater Trunkline Fund (231), $247,000.00 from Storm Sewer Construction Fund (221), $166,000.00 from Storm Sewer Deficiency Fund (222), and $3,000 from Storm Sewer Maintenance Fund (481).
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Deadline for Action: None
Submitting Department: Engineering and Building Department
Contact Name and Phone Number:
Katherine Woodhull-Fuget, Assistant Engineer, Katherine.Woodhull-Fuget@visalia.city, (559) 713-4447
Frank Senteno, City Engineer, Frank.Senteno@visalia.city, (559) 713-4331
Jason Huckleberry, Director of Engineering and Building, Jason.Huckleberry@visalia.city, (559) 713-4495
Department Recommendation:
Staff recommends that the City Council:
1. Authorize the City Manager to award a contract for RFP 23-24-05 Professional Services for Storm and Sewer Master Plan Environmental Impact Reports to Dudek in the amounts of $312,452.50 (CP0015 Sewer Master Plan EIR) and $341,632.50 (CP9067 Storm Drain Master Plan EIR) for a total amount of $654,085.00;
2. Authorize the additional appropriation of $365,000 from Wastewater Trunkline Fund (231) to CP0015; and
3. Authorize the appropriation of $247,000 from Storm Sewer Construction Fund (221), $166,000 from Storm Sewer Deficiency Fund (222), and $3,000 from Storm Sewer Maintenance Fund (481) to CP9067.
Background Discussion:
The updates to the Storm Master Plan (CP9067) and Sewer Master Plan (CP0015) are currently underway and will require CEQA compliance documentation prior to adoption.
Staff issued the Request for Proposals RFP-22-23-56 on July 6th, 2023 to procure professional environmental services for Environmental Impact Reports for the Master Plans. After receiving no proposals, staff re-issued the RFP as RFP 23-24-05 on August 17th, 2023.
The City of Visalia received three (3) proposals in response to RFP 23-24-05 from Dudek, Provost & Pritchard Consulting Group, and EMC Planning Group. A four-person proposal review committee was established to review, rate, and rank the proposals. The proposal review committee ranked the three firms close together, creating the need for interviews. Interviews were conducted October 23rd by a four-person interview panel. Following the panel’s evaluation of the interviews, staff identified Dudek as the most qualified candidate due to their thorough and well-structured proposal, their presentation during the interview, and their excellent responses and engagement during the interview Q&A which demonstrated a clear understanding of the scope of work. Dudek received the highest overall rating between the proposals and the interviews.
During the negotiations, Dudek strongly recommended starting with a scoping phase and Initial Studies for the CEQA compliance of the Master Plans instead of jumping directly to Programmatic Environmental Impact Reports (PEIRs) for both documents. This will enable the City to get regulatory agency input earlier in the process and develop more focused PEIRs. Starting with a scoping phase and Initial Studies will provide the public and regulatory agencies with an opportunity to participate earlier in the process before the City expends considerable time and resources on costly PEIRs. The PEIRs can instead be tailored to address community and regulatory agency concerns identified through the Initial Studies. This approach will make sure that the resulting CEQA compliance documents are as solid and legally defensible as possible. After considering the advantages, staff concurred with Dudek’s proposed approach.
City staff and Dudek will meet after completion of the Initial Studies to discuss the most appropriate CEQA path forward based on the results of the scoping. This may result in reduced efforts and cost savings if, during the Initial Studies, projects are identified as Categorically Exempt or eligible for a Mitigated Negative Declaration instead of the full PEIR.
Master Plan Nexus Study and CEQA Timeline
While staff intended to return to Council to present the proposed impact fees and service charges in Spring 2023, the finalization of the Master Plans and development of fees has proved more complicated than anticipated. The previous timeline brought to Council last December incorporated insufficient time for internal review by Engineering and other impacted divisions and did not account for the CEQA process. After further discussion with Legal, it was determined that the CEQA process for the Master Plans must be complete before the impact fees can be considered for adoption.
Staff have spent the past year reviewing and refining the Master Plan projects produced by the Consultant, developing operating cost estimates for use in updating the storm service charges, investigating and evaluating policy considerations related to the Master Plans, developing presentation materials for both internal meetings and future stakeholder meetings, and procuring an environmental consultant for CEQA compliance.
The Master Plan projects produced by the consultant required detailed review and many of the proposed Storm Master Plan projects required refinement due to ongoing development. Development of the operating cost estimates for use in updating the storm service charges involved incorporation of stormwater permit compliance cost estimates and discussions with various involved divisions. Development of the Nexus Study brought to light multiple policy considerations related to the Master Plans requiring investigation, evaluation, and discussion, many of which will be incorporated into the stakeholder meetings for public input. Staff have spent a substantial amount of time developing presentation materials for discussion of the aforementioned policy considerations and the Nexus Study as a whole. At the same time, staff worked on the procurement of an environmental consultant for CEQA compliance through the City’s Request for Proposal (RFP) process, leading to the selection of Dudek.
The City will proceed with the Nexus Study development impact fee and storm service charge stakeholder meetings after completion of the CEQA Initial Studies. The CEQA scoping phase will provide the public and stakeholders an opportunity to review and comment on the proposed Master Plans from an environmental perspective prior to discussion of fees. This approach, while a change from what was previously brought before Council, will ensure that the fees proposed to stakeholders are based on solid (unlikely to change) projects that have already undergone initial environmental review. This removes the risk of fees changing after their introduction to stakeholders due to project changes without delaying discussion of fees until after completion of the PEIRs.
CEQA Timeline:
The CEQA process from project initiation to PEIR certification is projected to take 58 weeks, putting adoption of the PEIRs, Master Plans, and development impact fees in early 2025. Completion of the scoping and Initial Studies phase is projected to be 18 weeks from project kickoff including the 30-day public review period, with the remaining 40 weeks for the technical studies and PEIRs themselves. Both City staff and Dudek will look for opportunities to shorten the schedule throughout the process, but the 58-week schedule already incorporates substantial overlap between the technical studies and the PEIRs and is considered aggressive by industry standards, so additional time savings may be minimal.
CEQA Costs:
The cost for undergoing CEQA was not originally included in CP0015 and CP9067, either by mistake or with the intent to create separate CIPs for the CEQA component. Given that, the undergoing CEQA is necessary in order to actually adopt and implement the Master Plans, the decision was made by current staff to append the existing CIPs instead of creating separate ones.
The contract costs of $312,452.50 for the Sewer PEIR and $341,632.50 for the Storm PEIR are Time and Materials Not to Exceed quantities and are intended to be all-encompassing. The scope of work includes Initial Studies, several Technical Studies and multiple drafts of each PEIR. Given that the Storm and Sewer Master Plans are City-wide and each include over thirty (30) distinct CIPs (the Storm Master Plan includes over forty (40) requiring program-level analysis, staff finds the proposed costs to be fair and reasonable.
If, after completion of the Initial Studies, City staff and Dudek determine that not all of the efforts originally scoped are necessary, the contract scope will be reduced through the City’s Change Order process.
Fiscal Impact:
The following tables show the budget details for CP0015 Sewer Master Plan Update and CP9067 Storm Water Master Plan Update.
|
Sewer Master Plan Update (CP0015) |
|
Funding Source: 231 Wastewater Trunkline |
|
|
Project Funding |
$ 350,987.40 |
|
Carollo Master Plan Contract |
$ (279,200.00) |
|
City Staff Project Management 2015/16 through 2022/23 |
$ (64,620.29) |
|
City Staff Master Plan Project Management 23/24 to 24/25 |
$ (22,000.00) |
|
Dudek Environmental Services Contract |
$ (312,452.50) |
|
City Staff CEQA Project Management 23/24 to 24/25 |
$ (35,000.00) |
|
|
|
|
Anticipated Project Deficit |
$ (362,285.39) |
Staff recommends an appropriation of $365,000 from Fund 231 to CP0015 to address the anticipated project deficit shown above.
|
Storm Master Plan Update (CP9067) |
|
Current Funding Source: 221 Storm Sewer Construction |
|
|
Project Funding |
$ 691,135.41 |
|
Carollo Master Plan Contract & Contract Amendments |
$ (556,313.00) |
|
City Staff Project Management 2015/16 through 2022/23 |
$ (125,898.00) |
|
City Staff Master Plan Project Management 23/24 to 24/25 |
$ (44,000.00) |
|
Dudek Environmental Services Contract |
$ (341,632.50) |
|
City Staff CEQA Project Management 23/24 to 24/25 |
$ (37,000.00) |
|
|
|
|
Anticipated Project Deficit |
$ (413,708.09) |
While CP9067 is currently funded solely with Fund 221 Storm Sewer Construction, staff recommends the CIP be multi-funded by funds 221 Storm Sewer Construction, 222 Storm Sewer Deficiency, and 481 Storm Sewer Maintenance moving forward due to the project scope. The following table shows the estimated proportional shares per fund of the remaining expenditures.
|
Storm Master Plan Update (CP9067) Remaining Expenditures Fund Distribution |
Fund % Share |
Fund $ Share |
|
|
Total Cost |
Fund 221 |
Fund 222 |
Fund 481 |
Fund 221 |
Fund 222 |
Fund 481 |
|
Carollo P0 Balance |
$ 29,665.76 |
44% |
53% |
3% |
$ 13,181.12 |
$ 15,621.30 |
$ 863.34 |
|
Master Plan FY23/24-on Staff Cost |
$ 44,000.00 |
44% |
53% |
3% |
$ 19,550.12 |
$ 23,169.38 |
$ 1,280.50 |
|
Dudek Contract |
$ 341,632.50 |
67% |
33% |
0% |
$227,755.00 |
$113,877.50 |
$ - |
|
CEQA Staff Cost |
$ 37,000.00 |
67% |
33% |
0% |
$ 24,666.67 |
$ 12,333.33 |
$ - |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total Estimated Remaining Expenditures |
$ 452,298.26 |
63% |
36% |
0% |
$ 285,152.90 |
$ 165,001.51 |
$ 2,143.84 |
|
FY 23/24 Budget |
$ (38,590.18) |
100% |
0% |
0% |
$ (38,590.18) |
|
|
|
Appropriation Required |
$ 413,708.08 |
60% |
40% |
1% |
$ 246,562.72 |
$ 165,001.51 |
$ 2,143.84 |
|
Rounded Appropriation Per Fund |
$ 247,000.00 |
$ 166,000.00 |
$ 3,000.00 |
Staff recommends the appropriation of $247,000 from Fund 221, $166,000 from Fund 222, and $3,000 from Fund 481 as indicated above.
Prior Council Action:
December 19th, 2022
Presentation on the Status of the Storm and Sewer Master Plan Updates and Introduction to the Nexus Study.
December 5th, 2022
Authorize the City Manager to approve a contract amendment for Carollo Engineers, Inc. in the amount of $97,070 for the Update to the Storm water Master Plan (Project Number 2450-72000/CP9067-999) and an additional appropriation of $100,000 from Storm Sewer Construction Fund 221.
August 16, 2021
Authorize the City Manager to approve a contract amendment for Carollo Engineers, Inc. in the amount of $132,543 for the Update to the Storm water Master Plan (Project Number 2450-72000/CP9067-999); and authorize the appropriation of $140,00 from Storm Sewer Construction Fund (221) to CP9067.
September 4, 2018
Council authorized the City Manager to execute an agreement for RFP 17-18-29 to Update the City’s Public Facility Master Plans for Storm Water and Sanitary Sewer Collection with Carollo Engineers, Inc. in the amounts of $326,700 (CP9067) and $279,200 (CP0015), authorized the appropriation of $155,285 from Fund 221 to CP9067, and authorized the appropriation of $12,000 from Fund 231 to CP0015.
June 6, 2016
Work session to review key topics related to the City’s sewer system and storm water master plans and receive Council feedback for incorporation into the scope of work and authorize the advertising of a Request for Proposals (RFP) to update these master plans.
Alternatives:
None Recommended
Recommended Motion (and Alternative Motions if expected):
recommendation
I move to:
1. Authorize the City Manager to award a contract for RFP 23-24-05 Professional Services for Storm and Sewer Master Plan Environmental Impact Reports to Dudek in the amounts of $312,452.50 (CP0015 Sewer Master Plan EIR) and $341,632.50 (CP9067 Storm Master Plan EIR) for a total amount of $654,085.00;
2. Authorize the additional appropriation of $365,000 from Wastewater Trunkline Fund (231) to CP0015; and
3. Authorize the appropriation of $247,000 from Storm Sewer Construction Fund (221), $166,000 from Storm Sewer Deficiency Fund (222), and $3,000 from Storm Sewer Maintenance Fund (481) to CP9067.
end
Environmental Assessment Status:
N/A
CEQA Review:
This contract would provide the necessary CEQA review for the Storm and Sewer Master Plans.
Attachments:
1. Disclosure Form for Consultant
2. Exhibit 1 - Draft Sewer MP Project Map from RFP 23-24-05
3. Exhibit 2 - Draft Storm MP Existing Deficiencies Project Map from RFP 23-24-05
4. Exhibit 3 - Draft Storm MP Future Improvements Project Map from RFP 23-24-05