TITLE
Recommendation to authorize City Manager to execute all documents necessary to increase Contract No. 33255 with Drill Tech Drilling & Shoring, Inc., a California corporation, by $1,297,772 for a total amount not to exceed $6,406,955, for the completion of the Ocean Blvd (Bluff) Erosion and Enhancement Phase 2 Project; execute all documents necessary to complete construction; and
Increase appropriations in the Tidelands Operations Fund (TF 401) in the City Manager Department (CM) by $1,739,669. (District 3)
DISCUSSION
The Ocean Blvd. (Bluff) Erosion and Enhancement Phase 2 Project (Project) was originally approved on July 9, 2013, when the City Council approved the Plans and Specifications (No. R-6959) and authorized a contract with Drill Tech Drilling & Shoring, Inc., in the amount of $5,109,183. On April 29, 2014 the City Council held a Special City Council meeting and requested staff to temporarily suspend construction work in order to conduct an engineering analysis (peer review) of the bluff and consider other alternatives to bluff stabilization. On July 1, 2014, the City Council considered a geotechnical peer review report and directed the City Manager to move forward with the top park portion of the Project and other critical components, and to evaluate biotechnical alternatives for the remaining portions of the slope that had not yet received the final shotcrete treatment. On December 16, 2014, the City Council authorized the completion of the Project pursuant to the originally approved Plans and Specifications.
City staff is ready to execute a change order to Drill Tech's construction contract, which is necessary in order to complete the project. Construction is estimated to be fully completed in Fall 2015, and includes completing shotcrete work, staining the shotcrete, new landscaping, installing more and bigger planter pockets (added to the design to enhance the Project) and installing new irrigation for the bluff landscaping.
The landscaping plan has been enhanced so that the Project includes significantly more and bigger planter pockets in the uncompleted bluff areas. An additional 69 planter pockets will be added, which is a 65 percent increase from the original plan. All remaining planter pockets will be increased in diameter from three feet to four feet. In December 2014, staff estimated that an additional $1.32 million would be necessary to complete the Project as originally designed, however, that estimate did not include modifying and adding more planter pockets. Larger (to accommodate 5-gallon plants) and more planter pockets on the uncompleted sections of the bluff will significantly improve the Project's overall landscaping plan and will help ensure maximum coverage of the shotcrete with native vegetation.
The contractor is committed to minimizing impacts to the recently renovated Bluff Park. To achieve this, some of the major construction activities will be performed from the bottom of the bluff area. The new sidewalk and handrail at Bluff Park will be protected in place. New project signs will be installed with the revised construction completion date.
This matter was reviewed by Deputy City Attorney Linda Vu on March 2, 2015, and by Budget Management Officer Victoria Bell on March 5, 2015.
TIMING CONSIDERATIONS
City Council action is requested on March 24, 2015 in order to reinitiate the Project and complete it as directed by the City Council on December 16, 2014.
FISCAL IMPACT
There is $5,800,000 currently budgeted for the Project in the Tidelands Operations Fund (TF 401) in the City Manager Department (CM). This amount has been fully expended or encumbered. An increase of $1,297,772 to the existing contract with Drill Tech is needed in order to complete the Project. This amount includes additional mobilization and demobilization costs that were not part of the original contract, additional overhead costs, and delay-related costs. The contract enhancement amount also includes the cost of constructing the modified planter pockets in the unfinished portions of the project.
In addition to enhancing the Drill Tech contract, additional funding of $441,897 is necessary to cover additional engineering design, engineering construction support, inspections, and materials testing costs. In total, an appropriation increase of $1,739,669 is requested in the Tidelands Operations Fund (TF 401) in the City Manager Department (CM) to complete the project. This additional budget is an outstanding obligation that the City is required to cover and, therefore, must be funded prior to the completion of the Tidelands project prioritization process that is ongoing. These additional project costs are the result of the City Council actions outlined above and the enhanced landscaping plan. Unassigned Funds Available that comprise part of the total $95 million available for the Tidelands prioritization process will be utilized as the funding source for this project.
SUGGESTED ACTION
Approve recommendation.
Respectfully Submitted,
PATRICK H. WEST
CITY MANAGER
APPROVED:
PATRICK H. WEST
CITY MANAGER