REPORT TO THE CITY COUNCIL
January 14, 2016
FROM: SCOTT L. MOZIER, PE, Director
Public Works Department
BY: RANDALL MORRISON, PE, Deputy City Engineer
Public Works Department
SUBJECT
Title
Actions pertaining to the Fulton Street Reconstruction Project (Council District 3)
1. Approve an amendment to the contract with Axis Art Consulting, LLC for artwork conservation consulting services on the Fulton Street Reconstruction Project for a net increase of $50,000.00, which will be funded from the Construction Management/Consultants portion of the approved Fulton Street Reconstruction Project budget;
2. Approve a professional services agreement with FirstCarbon Solutions in the amount of $354,252.40 with a contingency amount of $95,000 for environmental construction monitoring services on the Fulton Street Reconstruction Project, which will be funded from the Construction Management/Consultants portion of the approved Fulton Street Reconstruction Project budget.
Body
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that the City Council approve an amendment to the contract with Axis Art Consulting, LLC of Fresno, California, in substantially the form attached and presented, for artwork conservation consulting services on the Fulton Street Reconstruction Project, for a net increase of $50,000.00; and approve a professional services agreement with FirstCarbon Solutions of Fresno, California, in substantially the form attached and presented, in the amount of $354,252.40 with a contingency amount of $95,000 for environmental construction monitoring services on the Fulton Street Reconstruction Project. These contracts are to be funded from the “Construction Management/Consultants” portion of the approved project budget and are not a part of American Paving’s “Construction Contract” portion of the project budget. Staff also recommends that the City Council authorize the Public Works Director or designee to sign both contracts on behalf of the City.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The City of Fresno seeks to reconstruct the Fulton Street corridor with a complete street between Tuolumne Street and Inyo Street. As staff prepares for the start of construction, these two consultant contracts are essential elements to ensure that staff has adequate professional support during construction. Linda Cano, of Axis Art Consulting, has played a key role in the project throughout the design phase and this amendment will ensure that her expertise and guidance will be available throughout the construction phase of the project.
The conservation and reinstallation of all artwork within the project limits is a key component of the project. The professional services contract with FirstCarbon Solutions includes a consultant team with the expertise to provide biological, paleontological and vibration monitoring throughout the construction phase of the Fulton Street Reconstruction Project. The environmental monitoring services provided by this agreement are required environmental mitigation measures specified in the project’s environmental documents. Staff recommends the approval of both contracts for the Fulton Street Reconstruction Project.
BACKGROUND
The Fulton Street Reconstruction Project will improve the half mile stretch of the Fulton between Tuolumne Street and Inyo Street. The existing pedestrian mall will be removed and reconstructed with a complete streets design that includes reintroducing two-way vehicular traffic on Fulton and the side streets of Merced, Mariposa, and Kern. Street reconstruction includes new two-way streets, parallel parking, and wide sidewalks. Perpendicular parking is introduced to one side of Mariposa between Fulton and Federal Alley. In some locations along the street, parking will not be provided in order to preserve existing, healthy, shade trees. Wide sidewalks, bulb outs, and mid-block pedestrian crossings, identified with special paving treatments will contribute toward creating a pedestrian-friendly environment. The project also includes the restoration and reinstallation of all of the existing art pieces and water fountains.
On March 6, 2014, staff entered into an informal consultant services agreement with Axis Art Consulting for artwork conservation consulting services, in the amount of $48,530. The agreement was amended twice, on September 29, 2014 and on March 30, 2015, in order to extend the term of the agreement. At this time, the original consultant contract amount has nearly been exhausted and does not provide enough funds for further services needed during the construction phase of the project. Staff feels that Linda Cano plays a key role in the project team and her services are essential as the project now moves into the construction phase.
The second contract is related to professional environmental monitoring services needed during the course of construction. Per Administrative Order 6-19, Public Works staff mailed out and posted on the City’s website, a notice requesting a statement of qualifications from consultants for the environmental construction monitoring services contract. Based on the statement of qualifications, staff selected FirstCarbon Solutions to provide professional environmental construction monitoring services during construction.
Staff has negotiated a fee with FirstCarbon Solutions of $354,252.40 for professional services to provide environmental construction monitoring services, which will be billed on a time and materials basis. The agreement also includes an additional $95,000 contingency to be used for any additional monitoring services above what is estimated within the existing scope and contingent on the director’s approval as set forth in the executed agreement. The costs of this agreement are reimbursable by the TIGER, Measure “C” TOD, and Local Gas Tax funds appropriated for construction and were already included as part of the projects approved budget.
Therefore, Staff recommends that the City Council approve an amendment to the contract with Axis Art Consulting, LLC of Fresno, California, for artwork conservation consulting services on the Fulton Street Reconstruction Project, for a net increase of $50,000.00; and approve a professional services agreement with FirstCarbon Solutions of Fresno, California, in the amount of $354,252.40 with a contingency amount of $95,000 for environmental construction monitoring services on the Fulton Street Reconstruction Project. Staff also recommends that the City Council authorize the Public Works Director or designee to sign both contracts on behalf of the City. The work to be performed by these two consulting agreements is a part of the “Construction Management” portion of the current project budget and is not a part of the construction project that has been subsequently value engineered to reduce costs by approximately $2.5 million.
The Amendment with Axis Art Consulting and the Agreement with FirstCarbon Solutions will substantially be in the form attached and will be reviewed by the City Attorney’s Office. The recommended action authorizes the Public Works Director or designee to execute the agreement, subject to approval as to form by the City Attorney’s Office.
ENVIRONMENTAL FINDINGS
An Environmental Impact Report (EIR) No. SCH2013101046 for Plan Amendment Application No. A-13-008 was adopted by the Council on February 27, 2014, for this Project. An analysis has been performed pursuant to CEQA Guidelines §15162 to determine whether subsequent environmental review is required for the Project. Based on this analysis the following findings are made to support the determination that no subsequent environmental review is required:
1. No substantial changes are proposed in the Project which will require major revisions of the previous EIR due to the involvement of new significant environmental effects, or a substantial increase in the severity of previously identified significant effects.
2. No substantial changes occur with respect to the circumstances under which the Project is undertaken which will require major revisions of the previous EIR due to the involvement of new significant environmental effects, or a substantial increase in the severity of previously identified significant effects.
3. There is no new information which was not known or could not have been known at the time of the previous MND that the Project will have significant effects not discussed in the EIR.
Furthermore, since an EIR was previously adopted for this Project, the considerations set forth in CEQA Guidelines §15162(a)(3)(C) and (D), related to the adequacy and feasibility of previously adopted mitigation measures, are not applicable. Based upon these findings, it has been determined that no further environmental documentation is required for this Project.
LOCAL PREFERENCE
The local preference was not implemented based on the conditions of the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER V) Grants program.
FISCAL IMPACT
The project is located in Council District 3. The total Public Works transportation construction funding amount is $20,279,900. The Public Works transportation funding includes $15,924,620 in Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER), $1,800,000 in local Measure C Transit Oriented Development Funds, $2,305,280 in Local Gas Tax funding, and $250,000 from the Downtown Fresno Partnership.
Both, the consultant amendment and environmental services agreement, will be funded within the existing construction budget listed above and were previously included in staff’s original construction estimates The project will not have any impact to the General Fund.
Attachments:
Vicinity Map
Fiscal Impact Statement
Third Amendment to Agreement with Axis Art Consulting, LLC
Consultant Agreement with FirstCarbon Solutions