Agenda Item Wording:
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Authorize the City Manager to approve payment to California Water Service in the amount of $155,731 for the installation of six fire hydrants and one irrigation service along Riggin Ave between Akers St and Demaree St.
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Deadline for Action: None
Submitting Department: Administration - CIP Engineering
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
Nick Mascia, Assistant City Manager, Nick.Mascia@visalia.city, (559) 713-4323
Department Recommendation:
Staff recommends that City Council authorize the City Manager to approve payment to California Water Service in the amount of $155,731 for the installation of six fire hydrants and one irrigation service along Riggin as part of the Riggin Widening Project from Akers to Demaree.
Background Discussion:
The Riggin Widening Project from Akers to Demaree (CP0397) will widen the existing roadway to four lanes and provide bike lanes, sidewalks, drainage improvements, and new medians. The widening of the existing roadway requires the installation of six fire hydrants along the one mile span as well as one irrigation service meter to serve the new median landscaping.
The California Fire Code Appendix C table C102.1 note c states that “[w]here new water mains are extended along streets where hydrants are not needed for protection of structures or similar fire problems, fire hydrants shall be provided at spacing not to exceed 1,000 feet to provide for transportation hazards”. Per code, the one mile span of Riggin from Akers to Demaree should have had a minimum of five hydrants installed when the water main went in. Unfortunately, no hydrants along the frontage of this span were installed.
Cal Water only installs water main once an end user has been determined, which means main lines are installed with or by development. Developers are required to install hydrants as dictated by the City Fire Marshall during the Site Plan Review process.
The main in Riggin most likely went in with Summerfield Phase 2 in 2004. City Fire Department policy at the time only required the installation of hydrants along roads with fronting properties. Hydrants were not required along roads separated from development by block walls.
The Riggin Widening Project from Akers to Demaree presents an opportunity to address an existing deficiency. Furthermore, the addition of a median island and more traffic lanes makes it more difficult to use hydrants from the adjacent local roads to fight fires on Riggin, increasing the need to address the deficiency.
Due to the close proximity of the proposed fire hydrants to the Cal Water main in Riggin, Cal Water requires that the hydrants be installed by their preferred contractor, West Valley Construction. The initial estimate provided by Cal Water in October of 2021 for the installation of six hydrants was $288,753. In an attempt to reduce costs, City Staff met with Cal Water and determined that the major contributor to the estimated cost was traffic control. After discussion, Cal Water agreed to provide a revised cost estimate utilizing the assumption that West Valley could use the traffic control provided by the street widening project’s general contractor.
The revised cost estimate, provided June 17th, 2022, totals $156,731 (including $1,836 for state and federal taxes) for the six hydrants plus an irrigation service meter not accounted for in the previous project estimate. In order to initiate coordination with Cal Water, the City previously provided an advance deposit of $1,000. An additional advance deposit of $155,731 is needed for Cal Water to perform the installation. Once the project is complete, should the cost be different than the deposit, staff will follow the procurement code to ‘settle’ with Cal Water for payment.
The Riggin Widening Project from Akers to Demaree is currently slated for construction October 2022. This segment of Riggin will be constructed in multiple phases in order to minimize impact to residents and allow for through traffic.
Because the lack of hydrants being required has surfaced with this project, coordination has occurred internally between Community Development Department, Fire Department, Public Works, and Administration - CIP Engineering to determine means to coordinate with Cal Water to have hydrants along arterials installed. In some cases, by doing so, future projects may be required to relocate the hydrant to accommodate future right of way development.
Fiscal Impact:
This project is funded by Measure R Regional funds. The funds for design and construction of Riggin from Akers to Demaree will be reimbursed to the City by TCAG. The project has a budget of $3.5 million.
The cost to install the six hydrants will not be reimbursed by the surrounding developments because all of the proposed hydrants are along already-established subdivisions, and hydrants along Riggin were not identified as a requirement when the subdivisions came in per the fire code, so no funds were set aside for their installation. Moving forward, staff will be looking into how best to incorporate hydrant installation by CIPs into the developer reimbursement process.
By having West Valley utilize the general contractor’s traffic control, the City is expected to save an estimated $132,022.
Prior Council Action:
June 3, 2019
Authorized the City Manager to award a sole-source professional design services contract to 4 Creeks, Inc., for design of Riggin Avenue widening from Akers Street to Kayenta Street for an amount not to exceed $96,093.00. (CIP: 3010-72000/CP0304-999)
Alternatives:
Council may direct Staff to not authorize payment and attempt to negotiate further with Cal Water. Likely to create project delays with minimal or no further cost savings.
Recommended Motion (and Alternative Motions if expected):
recommendation
I move to authorize the City Manager to approve payment to California Water Service in the amount of $155,731 for the installation of six fire hydrants and one irrigation service along Riggin as part of the Riggin Widening Project from Akers to Demaree.
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Environmental Assessment Status:
Not Applicable.
CEQA Review:
Notice of Exemption filed October 31st, 2019
Attachments:
1. Riggin All Segments Exhibit
2. Cal Water Revised Cost Estimate Letter
3. Riggin Akers to Demaree Map Series