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CC - Award of a Contract to R.E. Schultz Construction, Inc., as the Lowest Responsive and Responsible Bidder, for the Base Bid of $157,330.00, and Approval of an Amount of $28,319.00 in Change Order Authority for the Parks Manager, for a Total Not-To-Exceed Amount of $185,649.00, for the Veterans Memorial Park Age 5 - 12 Playground Equipment Replacement Project.
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Meeting Date: October 23, 2017
Contact Person/Dept: Patrick Reynolds/PRCS Department-Parks Division
Phone Number: (310) 253-6471
Fiscal Impact: Yes [X] No [] General Fund: Yes [X] No []
Public Hearing: [] Action Item: [] Attachments: Yes [] No [X]
Public Notification: (Email) Meetings and Agendas - City Council (10/18/17); (Email) Parks, Recreation and Community Services Commission (10/18/17); (Email) Interested Parties who Previously Submitted Comments on the Veterans Park Age 5 - 12 Playground Equipment Replacement Project (10/18/17); (Email/Telephone) All bidders (10/18/17)
Department Approval: Shelly Wolfberg, Assistant to the City Manager (10/11/17)
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RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends the City Council award a contract to R.E. Schultz Construction, Inc., as the lowest responsive and responsible bidder, for the base bid of $157,330.00, and approve $28,319.00 in change order authority for the Parks Manager, for a total not-to-exceed amount of $185,649.00, for the Veterans Memorial Park Age 5 - 12 Playground Equipment Replacement Project.
BACKGROUND
On February 13, 2017, the City Council (1) accepted $195,030.35 in Los Angeles County (County) Proposition A Maintenance and Servicing Excess (M&SE) Funds awarded to the City of Culver City; (2) approved a budget amendment to appropriate $187,000 of the funding for Veterans Memorial Park Age 5 - 12 Playground Equipment Replacement Project; and, (3) approved a budget amendment to appropriate the remaining $8,030.35 to partially fund the Fiscal Year 2016-2017 Haynes Custodial Contract for the Culver City Senior Center.
The City applied to the County for the Proposition A Maintenance and Servicing Excess Funds for the Playground through the County’s funding agency, the Los Angeles County Regional Park and Open Space District (RPOSD) in a category called "Extraordinary Expenses." These funds are for one-time, unanticipated repairs and cannot be used for capital improvements. For example, the Veterans Memorial Park Age 5 - 12 Playground Equipment Replacement Project qualified in the Extraordinary Expense Category, “Gradual Physical or Functional Deterioration, Obsolescence” because the current equipment is in disrepair, the play structure model has been discontinued and replacement parts are no longer readily available.
The RPOSD advanced the money for the playground repairs at the end of December 2016 with the stipulation that the repairs should begin immediately. However, due to staff’s workload, the Project was postponed during the first six months of 2017. In July 2017, staff was informed by the RPOSD that the Veterans Memorial Park Age 5 - 12 Playground Equipment Replacement Project was time-sensitive and must be completed as soon as possible. In order to comply with this directive, staff took this item to the Parks, Recreation and Community Services Commission (Commission) on August 1, 2017 to gather the community’s and the Commission’s input.
Public Requests for Shade Structures
During the public comment period for this Project, some members of the community expressed the desire to have shade structures installed over the playground equipment in those Culver City parks that do not already have them. As a point of clarification, the Proposition A Maintenance and Servicing Excess Funds may only be used to repair or, if necessary, replace equipment that already exists at the Veterans Memorial Park Age 5 - 12 Playground. Therefore, these funds cannot be used to add a shade structure as part of this Project. Furthermore, no funds are currently identified in the City Council Adopted Fiscal Year 2017/2018 Budget to add shade structures at Culver City parks.
At the October 3, 2017, Parks, Recreation and Community Services Commission meeting, Parks Manager/City Landscape Architect Patrick Reynolds presented an informational item regarding the preliminary cost estimates and conceptual plans for the addition of playground shade structures at Culver City parks. Staff is planning to discuss this information with the incoming Parks, Recreation and Community Services Director to obtain direction on the next steps in the process of adding shade structures at the parks.
Veterans Memorial Park Age 5 - 12 Playground Surfacing
For this Project, the extent to which the Engineered Wood Fiber Surfacing (EWF) is being replaced is minimal and will occur in only part of the play area where EWF already exists. Per the Project specifications, this particular line item is as follows: "Purchase and install Filter Fabric where damaged. Replenish Engineered Wood Fiber Surfacing (EWF) to existing conditions." The total budget available for this Project is $170,000, not including contingency. The estimated cost of this line item is $6,500, or approximately 4% of the Project budget. If the EWF at the Playground were to be replaced in its entirety (there are currently no plans to do so), the amount necessary to undertake this task, including the purchase and installation of materials, would be closer to $17,500 with like EWF material. It should be noted that at all Culver City playgrounds with EWF, the material is installed in layers and compacted before use. The playground surface is then certified by a licensed Certified Playground Safety Inspector (CPSI) for ADA compliance under federal and state law.
DISCUSSION
On August 14, 2017, the City Council approved the final plans and specifications and authorized the publication of a notice inviting bids for the Project. In accordance with the Culver City Municipal Code and the City’s standard practices, the Notice Inviting Bids was published in the local newspaper and posted on the City’s website. On September 27, 2017, the City Clerk’s Office staff publicly opened the sealed bids and announced the bid amounts. Three contractors* responded with the following bid amounts:
R.E. Schultz Construction, Inc. $157,330.00
CEM Construction $216,000.00
Fast-Track Construction $316,140.00
*Note: DD Systems, Inc., submitted a bid of $253,594.88 for the Project. However, their bid was deemed non-responsive, and therefore is not included in the above list of responsive bidders. DD Systems Inc., failed to meet the requirements for the project laid out in the plans and specifications, as approved by the City Council. These requirements were also explained in detail during the mandatory job walk, which was held on September 7, 2017, and was open to all prospective bidders.
Staff reviewed the bid documents and determined that R.E. Schultz Construction, Inc. submitted the lowest total base bid. Staff reviewed the bid proposal from R.E. Schultz Construction, Inc. and found its bid responsive and complete. The company’s bid bond, contractor’s license, and worker’s compensation insurance were reviewed and determined to meet City requirements. In addition to having excellent playground installation experience with other agencies, staff has been highly satisfied with the work at Syd Kronenthal Park that R.E. Schultz Construction, Inc. performed on the installation of the Age 5 - 12 Playground in 2015, and the Age 2 - 5 Playground and additional swing set near the Tennis Courts in 2017.
Therefore, staff recommends that the City Council award a contract to R.E. Schultz Construction, Inc., as the lowest responsive and responsible bidder, for the Veterans Memorial Park Age 5 - 12 Playground Equipment Replacement Project. Project management and inspection of the project will be conducted by City staff. Playground inspection and certification will be performed by a qualified firm.
FISCAL ANALYSIS
There are currently sufficient funds for the Veterans Memorial Park Age 5 - 12 Playground Equipment Replacement Project in the City Council Adopted Fiscal Year 2017/2018 Budget, in 41430908.600200 (Vets 5 - 12 / Repair & Maintenance - Equipment). The playground inspection and certification expense is estimated to be approximately $1,500.00. There are sufficient funds for this expense in 10130300.619800 (Parks Division / Other Contractual Services). Due to the favorable low bid amount, City staff recommends that the City Council increase the contingency amount to eighteen percent (18%) of the base bid amount, or an amount not-to-exceed $28,319.00.
ATTACHMENTS
None.
MOTIONS
That the City Council:
1. Award a contract to R.E. Schultz Construction, Inc., as the lowest responsive and responsible bidder, for the base bid of $157,330.00; and,
2. Approve $28,319.00 in change order authority for the Parks Manager, for a total not-to-exceed amount of $185,649.00, for the Veterans Memorial Park Age 5 - 12 Playground Equipment Replacement Project; and,
3. Authorize the City Attorney to review/prepare the necessary documents; and,
4. Authorize the City Manager to execute such documents on behalf of the City.