REPORT TO THE CITY COUNCIL
November 20, 2014
FROM: JENNIFER K. CLARK, AICP, Director
Development and Resource Management Department
THROUGH: DANIEL ZACK, AICP, Assistant Director
Development and Resources Management Department
BY: KARANA HATTERSLEY-DRAYTON, M.A., Historic Preservation Project Manager
Development and Resource Management Department
SUBJECT
Title
Approve a consultant agreement in the amount of $88,930 with Architecture + History, LLC to conduct an intensive historic survey of Phase I of the South Van Ness Industrial District and authorize the Director of the Development and Resource Management Department or her designee to sign on behalf of the City (Council District 3)
Body
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that the City Council approve a consultant agreement with Architecture + History, LLC in the amount of $88,930 to prepare a Historic Property Survey Report for Phase 1 of the South Van Ness Industrial Area and authorize the Director, or her designee, to sign the agreement on behalf of the City.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
In its 2014 final report, the City's Business Friendly Fresno Task Force recommended that historic property surveys, for neighborhoods not previously surveyed, would help facilitate future investment and streamline environmental review. City staff identified the South Van Ness Industrial Revitalization Project Area, with its mix of commercial and residential properties, as a good candidate for a potential Certified Local Government (CLG) matching grant through the State Office of Historic Preservation. The Development and Resource Management Department included a $60,000 line item for this parcel-by-parcel survey in the Department's approved 2015 budget. Department staff prepared a CLG grant application and the City of Fresno was awarded a grant of $40,000.
City staff prepared and posted an RFP/RFQ for the historic property survey work for consultants' fees not to exceed $90,000. An additional $10,000 will be used for staff time and reimbursable expenses for a total project budget of approximately $100,000. Nine consulting firms from around the State submitted proposals. Planning and historic preservation staff carefully reviewed the proposals and based on qualifications and the quality of the sample work submitted by the applicants, chose Architecture + History, LLC, a woman-owned small business.
BACKGROUND
Nine plan areas are located within the (former) Redevelopment Agency's Merger No. 1 Redevelopment Project. Of these nine areas, all but one, the South Van Ness Industrial Revitalization Project Area, was included in full or part within the 304 parcel Downtown Fresno (Fulton Corridor) Historic Resources Survey. The South Van Ness Industrial District encompasses 593 acres south of State Route 41 and east of State Route 99. The District includes the southern-most section of Fresno's historic Armenian Town. Further south the neighborhood is a mix of commercial buildings which reflect the area's former (and current) history of fruit packing and general industrial uses. The area is a focus of the City's economic revitalization with both vacant lots and existing older buildings. The City-established "Business Friendly Fresno Task Force" recommended that any new development or adaptive reuse of buildings will proceed more expediently if property owners are aware of the historic status of a parcel, prior to project development. One recommendation of the Task Force was to have the City prepare historic surveys of areas not previously recorded.
In spring of 2014 Department staff prepared a grant application to the California State Office of Historic Preservation (OHP) for Phase 1 of the project area, thus a historic survey of the 207.6 acres north of California Avenue, which includes approximately 306 parcels. The OHP is required by federal law to pass through at least 10% of its annual Federal Historic Preservation Fund (HPF) allocation to Certified Local Government (CLGs) for Historic Preservation Fund-eligible activities. The CLG grant program is based on a match of both actual dollars and in-kind services from the applicant. The $60,000 line item in the Department budget was leveraged with the $40,000 grant as well as staff and volunteer time for a total estimated budget of $100,000.
The project timeline began October 1, 2014 and the project must be completed by September 30, 2015.
ENVIRONMENTAL FINDINGS
As defined in the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines Section 15378 the award of this contract does not qualify as a "project" and is therefore exempt from CEQA requirements.
LOCAL PREFERENCE
According to Fresno Municipal Code Section 4-109 local preferences did not apply to the award of this contract due to the matching CLG federal grant of $40,000.
FISCAL IMPACT
A $60,000 match for the project was previously approved as part of the Development and Resource Management Department's 2015 FY budget. The $40,000 CLG grant and related AAR were approved by the City Council on September 11, 2014.
Attachments:
Vicinity Map
Consultant Agreement