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CC - (1) Approval of the Final Plans and Specifications and Authorization to Publish a Notice Inviting Bids for the Tellefson Park Playground Project, PP006; and, (2) Approval of a Budget Amendment to Allocate $100,000 in Park Facilities (419) Funds to Add Shade Structures Over the Play Equipment (Four-Fifths Vote Requirement).
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Meeting Date: October 28, 2019
Contact Person/Dept: Corey Lakin/PRCS
Phone Number: (310) 253-6682
Fiscal Impact: Yes [X] No [] General Fund: Yes [] No [X]
Public Hearing: [] Action Item: [] Attachments: Yes [X] No []
Commission Action Required: Yes [X] No [] Date: September 17, 2019
Public Notification: (E-Mail) Meetings and Agendas - City Council (10/23/19); (Email) Parks, Recreation & Community Services Commission (10/22/19); (Email) Parks, Recreation & Community Services Department Updates (10/22/19)
Department Approval: Corey Lakin, PRCS Director (10/16/19)
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RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends the City Council (1) approve the final plans and specifications and authorize the publication of a notice inviting bids for the Tellefson Park Playground Project, PP006; and, (2) approve a budget amendment to allocate $100,000 in Park Facilities (419) Funds to add shade structures over the play equipment (budget amendment requires a 4/5ths vote).
BACKGROUND
During the Fiscal Year 2017/2018 Budget process, the City Council allocated Park Facilities (Quimby; 419) Funds for the Tellefson Park Playground Project, PP006. Two other playground improvement projects were scheduled to be completed before the Tellefson Park Playground Project could commence. The Veterans Memorial Park Age 5-12 Playground Equipment Replacement Project was completed in 2018 and the Blair Hills Park Playground Rehabilitation Project was completed earlier this year.
PRCS Department Playground Design Community Outreach Program
Based on feedback from the community, the City Council and the Parks, Recreation and Community Services (PRCS) Commission, the PRCS Department has developed a Playground Design Community Outreach Program to provide opportunities for the public to view proposed playground designs and participate in the selection process. For the Tellefson Park Playground, two Design Workshops were held, and surveys were conducted by both printed ballot and through online posting.
Tellefson Park Playground Design Workshop #1
Tellefson Park Playground Design Workshop #1 was held at the Culver City Senior Center on Thursday August 8, 2019 at 6:30 PM. Outreach efforts to publicize Workshop #1 began on July 18, 2019 with a postcard mailing to approximately 1,400 owners, residents and businesses within a 1,000-foot radius of Tellefson Park. Targeted emails, social media and website posts, flyer distribution and posted notices at Tellefson Park were also done three weeks before the meeting date. A slide promoting Workshop #1 was added to the City TV rotation on July 23, 2019.
At Workshop #1, two playground equipment companies, Landscape Structures and GameTime each presented two design concepts at the meeting for review and comment by community members. The meeting was well attended with approximately 50 to 60 participants, including adults and children. PRCS Commissioners Heineman and Rickards attended the meeting along with PRCS Department staff. Twenty-three (23) ballots were cast at Workshop #1. Attendees were informed that those who did not vote for their favorite design at the meeting would have the opportunity to vote online.
Online Voting Ballot
On August 9, 2019, images of the four playground designs and a link to an online survey were posted on the PRCS Department homepage of the City’s website. The availability of this opportunity to vote was publicized via target emails and social media posts. The online survey collector was open from August 9, 2019 through 10:00 PM on September 17, 2019. A News Story was featured on the homepage of the City’s website beginning August 15, 2019 and running through the date of Tellefson Park Playground Design Workshop #2.
Tellefson Park Playground Design Workshop #2 and Voting Results
Tellefson Park Playground Design Workshop #2 was held at the September 17, 2019 PRCS Commission meeting. At that meeting, the Commission discussed the following Agenda Item:
Tellefson Park Playground Design Workshop #2: (1) Discussion of the Survey Responses Received as of 2:00 PM on September 13, 2019; and, (2) Consideration of a Recommendation to the City Council Regarding the Design of the Tellefson Park Playground.
As of 2:00 PM on Friday, September 13, 2019, eighty-seven (87) online ballots and thirty-six (36) printed ballots were received for a total of one hundred and twenty-three (123) ballots. Four ballots could not be included in the analysis because a clear favorite was not indicated by the respondents, leaving one hundred and nineteen (119) usable ballots. In addition, seven votes were received after 2:00 PM on September 13, 2019 though the end of Workshop #2 (five online ballots and two printed ballots). These last few ballots were tallied during Design Workshop #2 and it was determined that they did not alter the outcome of the voting as presented in the staff report.
The Design Voting Results for the Tellefson Park Playground (Attachment 1) are based on a total of 126 ballots. Design B was the clearly the favorite design with 66 or 58% of the 113 votes cast in the “Favorite Design” category. Design A was voted as the “Second Favorite Design with 47 or 44% of the 107 votes cast in that category. Ninety percent (90%) of the 125 respondents to the proximity question said that they lived within a three-mile radius of Tellefson Park. One hundred (100) respondents chose not to submit comments. The twenty-six (26) comments received are included on Attachment 1.
Tellefson Park Playground Sun/Shade Study
Since the PRCS Department began its Playground Design Community Outreach Program, one recurrent theme has been the importance of shade in playground areas. There were some requests for the inclusion of shade during the voting for the Tellefson Park Playground Design. In response to this community input, Parks Manager / City Landscape Architect Patrick Reynolds and the Parks Division’s Consultant, Associate Landscape Architect Linda Endler, performed a Sun/Shade Study at the Tellefson Park Playground and presented their conclusions at Design Workshop #2. The Study found the need for afternoon shade after 2:00 pm until sunset in late summer when both playground areas are in full sun. The photographs presented to the PRCS Commission as part of the Sun/Shade Study are displayed on pages 1 through 3 of Attachment 2. In addition, staff has included a diagram (page 4) and a site map (final page) in Attachment 2 to further illustrate the Study.
DISCUSSION
PRCS Commission Recommendation to the City Council
After an extended discussion, and based on the information presented in Attachments 1 and 2, the PRCS Commission took the following action:
Moved by Commissioner Heineman, seconded by Vice Chair Amezola and unanimously carried, that the Parks, Recreation and Community Services Commission recommends that the City Council approve Tellefson Park Playground Design Concept B, as evidenced by the votes already received from the community; and, based on the comments from voters and the Shade Study, consider funding shade including shade structures and/or trees.
Subsequent to the meeting, staff determined that the most effective and efficient means of providing shade over the playground is the addition of shade structures. Hence the proposed two shade structures, a sail design for the large climbing apparatus for the 5-12 area and a cantilevered canopy design for the 2-5 play area, were added to Design B for consideration by the City Council (Attachment 3).
FISCAL ANALYSIS
There is no fiscal impact created by the approval of the plans and specifications for the Project. There is a nominal cost to the City to publish the Notice Inviting Bids, which has been included in the City Council Adopted Budget for Fiscal Year 2019/2020.
Regarding the addition of the shade structures, the vendor projected the cost as approximately $50,000 for the equipment and $50,000 for installation. This $100,000 includes a contingency factor. There is sufficient fund balance in the Park Facilities (419) Fund for the approval of a budget amendment in the amount of $100,000 for the Tellefson Park Playground Project, PP006 (budget amendment requires a 4/5ths vote).
ATTACHMENTS
1. 2019-10-28_ATT - 1 Design Voting Results - Tellefson Park Playground
2. 2019-10-28_ATT - 2 Sun-Shade Study Illustrations - Tellefson Park Playground
3. 2019-10-28_ATT - 3 Recommended Final Design with Renderings - Tellefson Park Playground
MOTION
That the City Council:
1. Approve the final plans and specifications and authorize the publication of a notice inviting bids for the Tellefson Park Playground Improvement Project, PP006; and,
2. Approve a budget amendment of $100,000 for the Tellefson Park Playground Improvement Project (PP006) from Park Facilities (419) fund balance. Approval of a Budget Amendment requires a 4/5ths vote.