For City Council Meeting January 28, 2025
TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council
APPROVAL: G. Michael Milhiser, Interim City Manager
FROM: Tim Sullivan, Director of Public Works
Title
Request City Council to: 1) Award Professional Services Agreements to Bureau Veritas North America, Inc., Onward Engineering, and SPECS Engineering Group, Inc. for On-Call Professional Construction Management, Inspection, and Materials Testing Services; and 2) Authorize the City Manager or Their Designee to Execute All Related Documents.
Body
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that the City Council:
1. Award a Professional Services Agreement to Bureau Veritas North America, Inc. for On-Call Professional Construction Management, Inspection, and Materials Testing Services;
2. Award a Professional Services Agreement to Onward Engineering for On-Call Professional Construction Management, Inspection, and Materials Testing Services for On-Call Professional Construction Management, Inspection, and Materials Testing Services;
3. Award a Professional Services Agreement to SPECS Engineering Group, Inc. for On-Call Professional Construction Management, Inspection and Materials Testing Services; and
4. Authorize the City Manager or Their Designee to Execute All Related Documents.
BACKGROUND
The City has several capital improvement projects planned for future construction that will require the services of a professional services firm to provide construction management and inspection services. Additionally, the City has many private development projects requiring services provided by the proposed firms.
The City solicited the services of professional construction management, inspection, and materials testing firms, on an on-call basis, to provide construction management, inspection, and materials testing consulting services for capital improvement projects, encroachment permit/utility construction projects, and private land development projects within the City.
ANALYSIS/DISCUSSION
On October 22, 2024, the City released Request for Proposals (RFP) No. 25-016 for “On-Call” Construction Management, Inspection, and Materials Testing Services on PlanetBids.com and the City’s website. The RFP scope of services included but was not limited to support for various City projects, including electrical & lighting projects, landscaping projects, stormwater projects, street projects, traffic signal improvement projects, and private developments during pre-construction, construction, and post-construction phases. The RFP was written to ensure that the selected firms demonstrated successful experience and capacity to provide services to municipal government agencies similar to the City of Rialto.
On November 26, 2024, the City received sixteen (16) statements of qualifications from the following firms, listed in alphabetical order:
1. 4LEAF, Inc.
2. Albert A. Webb Associates
3. Anser Advisory Management, LLC
4. Bureau Veritas North America, Inc.
5. Engineering Resources of Southern California
6. FSG Consultants Inc.
7. Fountainhead Consulting Corporation
8. Kane Construction Services, Inc.
9. KOA Corporation
10. Onward Engineering
11. Southstar Engineering & Consulting
12. SPECS Engineering Group, Inc.
13. TKE Engineering, Inc.
14. Transtech Engineers, Inc.
15. Willdan Engineering
16. Z&K Consultants Inc.
Following a review of the proposals by the evaluation panel, the top three (3) ranking firms were identified for selection. The primary factors involved in the selection process were the firm qualifications, understanding the demands of the on-call contract, scope of services, responsiveness and attentiveness to client needs, and past performance and experience with other on-call contracts with other agencies. A complete copy of each firm’s proposal is available at the City Clerk’s office.
The top three (3) firms were identified as follows in alphabetical order:
1. Bureau Veritas North America, Inc.
2. Onward Engineering
3. SPECS Engineering Group, Inc.
Staff recommends that the City Council approve an On-Call Professional Services Agreement with each of these firms to provide the requested services for the City with terms of the Agreement to not exceed four (4) years, with two (2) additional one (1) year extensions upon approval of the City Manager and mutual consent of the selected firms, for a total maximum of six (6) years. The important points for City Council consideration related to these Agreements include:
Contract Sum: Section 2.1 “Contract Sum” reflects the on-call nature of the Agreements, in that there is no defined cost other than the consultant’s schedule of hourly rates and fees. This fact is reflected in Section 2.1 of the Agreement, which states:
City and Consultant acknowledge and agree that the Services required by this Agreement will vary dependent upon the number, type, and extent of the Services the Consultant shall provide; and no guarantee of the extent or the type of Services required of Consultant under the terms of this Agreement is made by the City. The annual or total level of Services required by this Agreement is unknown and may significantly increase or decrease from year to year. In acknowledgment of the fact that the number and type of projects requiring the Consultant’s Services has not been identified for this Agreement, City and Consultant acknowledge and agree that a specific “Maximum Contract Amount” shall be imposed on each separate project that the City may assign Consultant as provided in Section 1.9 and in this Section 2.1. Each such separate project shall be identified as a Task Order authorized by the City Manager or designee as provided in this Section 2.1. The Maximum Contract Amount of this Agreement is undefined and is subject to the number and type of projects requiring the Consultant’s Services throughout the duration of the term of this Agreement, if any. Consultant’s compensation shall be limited to the Maximum Contract Amount identified on each separate, individually authorized Task Order corresponding to a project requiring the Services of the Consultant in accordance with the Schedule of Compensation set forth in the attached Exhibit “C”. Subsequent approval of individual Task Orders shall be approved in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 2.48 of the Rialto Municipal Code.
As projects are assigned to the on-call firms, a Task Order will be negotiated, and the subsequent approval of individual Task Orders will be approved by the City Manager for those with total cost less than $100,000 or by the City Council for those with total cost more than $100,000.
Conflict Disclosure Statements are included as Attachment 1. Bureau Veritas North America, Inc.’s On-Call Professional Services Agreement is included as Attachment 2. Onward Engineering’s On-Call Professional Services Agreement is included as Attachment 3. SPECS Engineering Group, Inc.’s On-Call Professional Services Agreement is included as Attachment 4.
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
The requested City Council action is not a “Project” as defined by the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). Pursuant to Section 15378(a), a “Project” means the whole of an action, which has a potential for resulting in either a direct physical change in the environment, or a reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment. According to Section 15378(b), a Project does not include: (5) Organizational or administrative activities of governments that will not result in direct or indirect physical changes in the environment.
GENERAL PLAN CONSISTENCY
This action is consistent with Guiding Principle 3A in the General Plan:
Our City government will lead by example, and will operate in an open, transparent, and responsive manner that meets the needs of the citizens and is a good place to do business.
Approval of this action also complies with the following City of Rialto General Plan Goals and Policies:
Goal 2-30: Incorporate green building and other sustainable building practices into development projects.
Policy 2-30.3: Promote sustainable building practices that integrate building materials and methods that promote environmental quality, economic vitality, and social benefit through the design, construction, and operation of the built environment.
Goal 4-1: Provide transportation improvements to reduce traffic congestion associated with regional and local trip increases.
Policy 4-1.1: Establish and maintain standards for a variety of street classifications to serve both local and regional traffic, including Major Arterial Highways, Major Arterial Highways, Major Arterials, Secondary Arterials, Collector Streets, and Local Streets.
LEGAL REVIEW
The City Attorney’s Office has reviewed the agreements and approved them as to form.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Operating Budget Impact
The proposed action will not affect the Operating Budget.
Capital Improvement Budget Impact
The proposed agreements provide services to the City as on-call agreements and have no specific contract sum. The scope of services required by these agreements will vary depending on the number and type of projects assigned to the various firms. The annual level of on-call services required by these agreements is unknown and may increase or decrease yearly.
Expenditures for individual “Purchase Orders” approved for specific assignments associated with capital projects will be encumbered from funding previously budgeted and appropriated for that capital project. Expenditures for individual Purchase Orders approved for private land development projects will be encumbered from funding provided through construction permit fees charged to developers for the work.
Licensing
Prior to the execution of the Professional Service Agreement, each vendor shall submit a business license application and pay a Business License tax, as well as Administration and State fees.