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CC - (1) Presentation of a Proposed Concept Design and Master Plan Developed by wHY Architecture to Replace City Hall’s Landscaping (Plan); (2) If Desired, Approval of the Plan; and (3) Direction to the City Manager as Deemed Appropriate.
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Meeting Date: March 18, 2019
Contact Person/Dept: Joe Susca/Public Works
Phone Number: (310) 253-5636
Fiscal Impact: Yes [] No [X] General Fund: Yes [] No []
Public Hearing: [] Action Item: [X] Attachments: []
Commission Action Required: Yes [] No [X] Date:
Public Notification: (E-Mail) Meetings and Agendas - City Council (03/13/19); wHY Architects (02/20/19); Members of the Project Review Committee Assigned to this Project (03/13/19); Members of the community who attended the February 23, 2019 workshop (03/13/19).
Department Approval: Charles D. Herbertson (03/08/19)
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RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends the City Council (1) receive a presentation from wHY Architects (wHY) of the proposed Concept Design and Master Plan developed for the City Hall Landscaping Replacement and Centennial Garden Project (the “Plan”); (2) if desired, approve the Plan for implementation; and (3) provide direction to the City Manager as deemed appropriate.
BACKGROUND
On November 28, 2016 the City Council formed an Ad Hoc Subcommittee (Subcommittee) comprised of Mayor Small and former Council Member Clarke to oversee a design competition amongst local City architects to construct a Centennial Garden to memorialize the City’s 100th year anniversary and to replace City Hall’s landscaping with drought-tolerant plantings (the “Project”). At the end of Council Member Clarke’s term, Vice Mayor Meghan Sahli-Wells was appointed to the Subcommittee.
On May 30, 2017 the City Council approved the content of a Request for Proposals (RFP) inviting conceptual design submittals by competing local firms. The RFP required them to breakdown their fees to complete the Project over three phases of construction and to prepare i) a drought-tolerant plant palette; ii) lighting and irrigation system modifications; iii) a storm water retention system and drainage plan; iv) a watering schedule; v) construction and bid documents; and vi) a landscape maintenance plan. The first phase of construction is the Lafayette Place facing side, the second phase is the center courtyard and the third and final phase is the Duquesne Avenue facing side of City Hall.
A nine-member Project Review Committee (Committee) was formed to evaluate the competing conceptual plans that was comprised of the following members:
• Patrick Reynolds, Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department
• Charles Herbertson and Joe Susca, Public Works Department
• Christine Byers, Cultural Affairs
• Mayor Thomas Small and then City Council Member Jim Clarke
• Len Dickter, Cultural Affairs Commissioner
• Darrel Menthe, Culver City Centennial Celebration Committee Member
• Julie Lugo Cerra, Culver City Historical Society
Upon conclusion of their interviews, the Committee selected two finalists and invited them to present their conceptual plans to the City Council. During their meeting of March 26, 2018, the City Council approved an agreement with wHY in the amount of $248,500 to prepare a Concept Design and Master Plan for the entire site with community input (Master Plan), to prepare cost estimates for its subsequent implementation in three phases, and to prepare construction documents to complete Phase One of the Project (the Lafayette Place facing side).
DISCUSSION
After meeting with the Subcommittee to discuss next steps, wHY hired a firm to perform a survey and another firm to perform a forensic study of City Hall to ensure it would structurally support hardscape and softscape alterations. wHY also conducted several key stakeholder one-on-one meetings to absorb their ideas on how to improve City Hall’s landscaping, which provided them the input they needed to prepare a Master Plan. A community workshop was also held on Saturday, February 23, 2019 to present a draft of the Master Plan, which was subsequently modified to reflect feedback received at the meeting. (See attached Community Workshop Comments and City Hall Concept Design and Master Plan).
A PowerPoint presentation highlighting the Master Plan will be presented by wHY for public comment and consideration by the City Council. If approved, wHY will be instructed to proceed to prepare cost estimates to construct the Project in three phases and to prepare construction and bid documents for Phase One, which will take approximately five months to complete.
ATTACHMENT
• February 23, 2019 Community Workshop Comments
• City Hall Concept Design and Master Plan
FISCAL ANALYSIS
The 2017/18 Fiscal Year budget included CIP No. PF-019 City Hall Centennial Garden amounting to $546,000 in General Funds to complete the Project with a $138,183 carry-over from CIP-PO-002 Water Conservation Programs for a grand total of $684,183 available to complete the Project. The grand total of $684,183 less $248,500 for the wHY contract leaves$435,683 remaining to construct the Project’s first phase.
Depending on the content of the final design, the landscape contractor bids received and the outcome of a value engineering exercise, the $435,683 remaining funds to construct Phase One will likely be insufficient, requiring an increase of approximately $150,000 to $250,000 to the Project’s budget. It is anticipated that once this additional funding requirement is determined, it will be included in a future CIP budget allocation request.
The Project’s cost may be somewhat offset by funds raised by the Cultural Affairs Foundation and/or the Culver City Centennial Celebration Committee for the Centennial Garden.
MOTIONS
That the City Council:
1. Approve the Concept Design and Master Plan to replace City Hall’s landscaping; and
a. Instruct staff to direct the consultant to prepare cost estimates for each of its three phases of construction; and
b. Prepare construction and bid documents to complete Phase One of the project; or
2. Provide other direction to the City Manager as deemed appropriate.