REPORT TO THE CITY COUNCIL
June 22, 2017
FROM: SCOTT L. MOZIER, PE, Director
Public Works Department
BY: ANDREW BENELLI, PE, Assistant Director / City Engineer
Public Works Department
RANDALL MORRISON, PE, Deputy City Engineer
Public Works Department
SUBJECT
Title
Approve the Third Amendment, in the amount of $42,200, to the agreement with FirstCarbon Solutions for environmental construction monitoring services on the Fulton Street Reconstruction Project (Council District 3)
Body
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that the City Council approve an amendment to the contract with FirstCarbon Solutions of Fresno, California, for environmental construction monitoring services on the Fulton Mall Reconstruction Project, and authorize the Public Works Director or designee to execute the amendment on behalf of the City.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The City of Fresno is underway with the reconstruction of the Fulton Street corridor as a complete street between Tuolumne Street and Inyo Street. The construction phase of Fulton Street is approaching completion with an estimated opening in late summer 2017. FirstCarbon Solutions has played a vital role in the construction phase by providing the required environmental construction monitoring services, which includes biological, paleontological and vibration monitoring. Due to the increased rainfall this year the construction schedule has been extended to allow the contractor sufficient time to complete the improvements. The original scope of services and contract period in our agreement with FirstCarbon Solutions needs to be amended, in order to continue the required environmental construction monitoring services through the completion of the project. Staff recommends the approval of the Third Amendment to the contract with FirstCarbon Solutions for the Fulton Street Reconstruction Project.
BACKGROUND
The Fulton Street Reconstruction Project will improve the half mile stretch of Fulton between Tuolumne Street and Inyo Street. The existing pedestrian mall has been removed and is being reconstructed with a complete street 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 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 as well as 16 of the 21 original water fountains.
On January 15, 2016, the City and FirstCarbon Solutions entered into an agreement in the amount of $449,252.40, which included a contingency amount of $95,000. The original agreement was later amended on June 16, 2016 and May 3, 2017, utilizing the available contingency funds allocated in the original agreement, to provide additional structural engineering support, crack gauge monitoring and vibration monitoring. Due to the increased rainfall this year, the estimated completion date of construction has been extended by approximately three months. During the periods where construction activities where stalled due to weather, the environmental construction monitoring continued in order to comply with the requirements of the project’s environmental documents. The increased construction period will require additional environmental construction monitoring through the end of construction, thus increasing the original scope of services provided in the consulting services agreement and subsequent amendments.
The original agreement with FirstCarbon Solutions totaled $449,252.40. Staff negotiated the additional scope to the contract for an increase of $42,200, which brings the total sum of the contract to $491,452.40. The costs of this amendment will be reimbursable by the TIGER, Measure “C” TOD, and Local Gas Tax funds appropriated for construction and are within the amounts included as part of the project’s approved budget.
Therefore, staff recommends that the City Council approve an amendment to the contract with FirstCarbon Solutions of Fresno, California, for environmental construction monitoring services on the Fulton Street Reconstruction Project, for a net increase of $42,200 and authorize the Public Works Director or designee to execute this amendment on behalf of the City.
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
Local preference was not implemented; this item is an amendment to an existing agreement.
FISCAL IMPACT
The project is located in Council District 3. The total Public Works transportation construction funding amount is $20,566,600. 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 funds, $95,000 in local Measure C Flexible funds, $172,500 in Proposition 1B funds, $19,200 in Job Access Reverse Commute funds, and $250,000 from the Downtown Fresno Partnership.
This amendment for environmental construction monitoring services will be funded within the existing construction budget listed above. The project will not have any impact to the General Fund.
Attachments:
Vicinity Map
Fiscal Impact Statement
Third Amendment to Agreement with FirstCarbon Solutions