HomeMy WebLinkAbout06/17/1997, C-6 - CITY OF SAN LUIS OBISPO ENTRY SIGNS, SPECIFICATION NO. 9546 jcouncil meding Mft611719-7
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CITY OF SAN LUIS OBISPO
FROM: Michael D. McCluskey,Public Works Dir r
Prepared by: John Rawles,Civil Engineer
SUBJECT: CITY OF SAN LUIS OBISPO ENTRY SIGNS,SpecificationNo. 9546
RECOMMENDATIONS:
1) Rescind Council Action No.2 of June 3, 1997-award of contract to Maino Construction
2) Award a contract in the amount of$68,198 to Vernon Edwards Constructors,Incorporated,the
second low bidder.
3) Rescind Council Action No.4 of June 3, 1997-transfer of$35,211 to the project
4) Authorize transferring an additional$28,135 to the project budget.
DISCUSSION:
On Tuesday June,3, 1997 Council acted to delete the architectural columns that were planned to be
constructed as part of this project.In so doing,it was assumed that the lowest bidder could be
determined based on comparison of the original bids with the revised contract.Staffhas determined
that this was not appropriate,that the order of bidders must be determined from the original bid.
Following award of the contract to the second lowest bidder,Vernon Edwards Construction,staff
will delete the columns portion of the contract at Council's direction. This action is permitted by
specification 4-1.03B(3)"Eliminated Items"of the contract document.This will result in an
effective contract of$60,456.
FISCAL EWPACT:
Project Construction Budget Needed:
Contract Price $68,198
Elimination of Bid Item#4(Four Columns) -7,742
Adjusted Contract Price $60,456
Contingencies@ 10 Percent 6,000
Total
Sources for Construction Budget:
Existing Project Budget Remaining $38,321
Economic Development Contract Services 4,000
Community Promotion Contract Services 15,000
Completed Projects 9,135
Total , ,,3S'
The$4,000 from Economic Development is money that was encumbered for Cal Trans signs which
designate the exits for"downtown"by placing that word above the freeway offramp signs. The
City was originally expected to pay for these signs,but Cal Trans eventually agreed to do so,
instead,freeing up these funds to be used on the large monument-style entry signs. Additionally,at
Council Agenda Report-SLO Entry Signs
Page 2
its May 20, 1997,meeting the Promotional Coordinating Committee approved
recommending to the Council the expenditure of$15,000 of enhanced promotional funds
to complete the entry signs project. Funds remaining at the conclusion of the project will
be returned to the completed projects account.
ALTERNATWE:
Council may reject all bids and re-advertise the project. Re-advertising the project will
delay construction by another 60 days. This project has already taken more than two
years to reach this point in the process. Further delay will mean that another tourism
season will go by without the signs being in place.
Attachments
1)Memo from City Attorney
2)Bid Summary
3)Agreement with Vernon Edwards Constructors,Inc.
4)Agenda Report of 6/3/97
�_Z
6-04-1997 3:16PM FROM ATTORNEY. SLA 8057817409 P. 1
MEMORANDUM
From the Office of the City Attorney
June 4, 1997
To: Mike McCluskey
From: Jeff Jorgensen
Subject: City of San Luis Obispo Entry Signs
(Specification No. 9546)
After a discussion this morning with Wayne Peterson, it became apparent that an
error was made in awarding the contract for the City of San Luis Obispo Entry Signs
on June 3, 1997, to the third lowest bidder. The reason for this conclusion is that the
columns were not set forth in the specifications as a deductive alternate, but rather
were an integral part of the specifications. Therefore, it is improper to deduct them for
the purpose of determining the lowest responsible bidder. The City should have
determined the lowest responsible bidder, including the columns, and awarded the
contract on that basis. (The City would then have had the discretion to delete the
columns from the project.) Conversely,had the columns been a deductible alternate,
then the City probably could have deleted them from the project based on the ARC
concurrence and awarded to the third lowest bidder.
Based upon the above, it is my recommendation that you bring this matter back to the
City Council at the June 17, 1997 meeting and request that the Council rescind its
previous award because of error and award the contract to Vernon Edwards
Constrictors,Inc., as the second low bidder. An alternative would be to reject all bids
and rebid the matter without the columns.
If you have questions or comments,please feel free to contact me at your convenience.
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John Duna
Bonnie Gawf
Sen Hampian
Wendy George
Wayne Peterson Post_tt'brand fax transmittal memo 7671 0orpow►
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6
CITY OF SAN LUIS OBISPO
CALIFORNIA
AGREEMENT
THIS AGREEMENT,made on this day of 19_,by and between the City of San Luis Obispo,
San Luis Obispo County, California, hereinafter called the Owner, and Vernon Edwards Constructors. Inc.,
hereinafter called the Contractor.
WITNESSETH:
That the Owner and the Contractorfor the consideration stated herein agree as follows:
ARTICLE 1,SCOPE OF WORK: The Contractor shall perform everything required to be performed,shall provide
and furnish all of the labor,materials,necessary tools,expendable equipment,and all utility and transportation services
required to complete all the work of construction of
City of San Luis Obispo Entry Sions.SnecificationNo.95-46
-in strict accordance with the plans and specifications therefor,including any and all Addenda,adopted by the Owner,in
strict compliance with the Contract Documents hereinafter enumerated.
It is agreed that said labor, materials,tools,equipment,and services shall be furnished and said work performed and
completed under the direction and supervision and subject to the approval of the Owner or its authorized
representatives.
ARTICLE 11, CONTRACT PRICE: The owner shall pay the Contractor as full consideration for the faithful
performance of this Contract, subject to any additions or deductions as provided in the Contract Documents, the
contract prices as follows:
Item Item Unitof Estimated Item Price Total
No. Measure Quantity (in figures) (in figures)
I. Construct Southerly Entrance Sign, LS 1 522,613.00 $22,613.00
Nol
2. Electrical,Southerly Entrance Sign, LS 1 $6,173.00 $6,173.00
No 1
3. Landscape and Irrigation,Southerly LS 1 $3,243.00 $3,243.00
Entrance Sign,No 1
4. Construct Four Columns,Southerly LS I $7,742.00 $7,742.00
Entrance.
5. Construct Northerly Entrance Sign, LS 1 $21,175.00 $21,175.00
Not
6. Landscape,Northerly Entrance Sign LS 1 $4,718.00` $4,718.00. .
No.2
7. Electrical,Northerly Entrance Sign, LS 1 $2,534.00 $2,534.00
No2
BID TOTAL: S 68,198.00
- 1 - �
Payments are to be made to the Contractor in accordance with and subject to the provisions embodied in the documents
made a part of this Contract
Should any dispute arise respecting the true value of any work omitted,or of any extra work which the Contractor may
be required to do,or respecting the size of any payment to the Contractor,during the performance of this Contract,said
dispute shall be decided by the Owner and its decision shall be final,and conclusive.
ARTICLE III,COMPONENT PARTS OF THIS CONTRACT: The Contract consists of the following documents,
all of which areas fully apart thereof as if herein set out in full,if not attached,as if hereto attached:
1. Notice to Contractors and information for bidders.
2. Contract General Conditions and Technical Specifications.
3. Accepted Proposal.
4. Public Contract code Section 10285.1 Statement and 10162 Questionnaire.
5. Noncollusion Declaration.
6. Plans.
7. List of Subcontractors.
8. Agreement and Bonds.
9. Insurance Requirements and Forms.
ARTICLE IV. It is further expressly agreed by and between the parties hereto that should there be any conflict
between the terms of this instrument and the bid or proposal of said Contractor,then this instrument shall control and
nothing herein shall be considered as an acceptance of the said terms of said proposal conflicting herewith.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties to these presents have hereunto set their hands this year and date first above
written.
CITY OF SAN LUIS OBISPO,
A Municipal Corporation
City Administrative Officer
APPROVED AS TO FORM: CONTRACTOR
City Attorney Vernon Edwards Corporation,Inc.
jcouncil 6=3-9 17
agenda RepoRt � 3
CITY OF SANLUIS OB ISPO
FROM: Michael D.McCluskey,Public Works Director BY �
Prepared by: Wendy George,Assistant to the CAO u�
John Rawles, Civil Engineer
SUBJECT: CITY OF SAN LUIS OBISPO ENTRY SIGNS, Specification No. 9546
RECOMMENDATIONS:
1) Reject as non-responsive the low bid in the amount of$53,627 from Diamond Air
Conditioning Corporation
2) Award a contract in the amount of$68,198,to Vernon Edwards Constructors,Incorporated,
the second low bidder
3) Authorize the Mayor to execute the contract.
4) Authorize transferring an additional$35,211 to the project budget
DISCUSSION:
On May 8, 1997 bids were opened for the"CITY OF SAN LUIS OBISPO ENTRY SIGNS"
project originally recommended by the Promotional Coordinating Committee(PCC) and approved
by the Council in 1995. All bids received were significantly higher than the engineer's estimate of
$38,000.
At the time that the signs were first proposed by the PCC,the designer believed that he might be
able to arrange for some of the work to be done on a donated basis and,thus,the original estimate
was based on that concept. As the design work progressed and the designer worked with the City's
engineer to develop specifications which met required engineering standards,the designer realized
that his initial hope to have part of the work prefabricated offsite and donated was not feasible. At
that point,the project became a standard City capital project and went though the normal bid
process. The result was bids which were considerably higher than the initial proposed funding.
During review of the bids Public Works discovered that the low bidder,Diamond Air Conditioning,
had not complied with specifications about maximum participation by subcontractors. The
specifications prohibit subcontractors from performing 50 percent or more of the contract work, and
the bid documents specifically cited this section of the specifications. But Diamond listed
subcontract participation of 72 percent In order to award the bid to the second lowest bidder, the
Council must officially determine that the low bid is non-responsive due to its failure to meet this
requirement
May the City declare the non-compliance in the"List Of Subcontractors"not significant and
award the contract to the low bidder,Diamond Air Conditioning?
The City's adopted specifications contain the this provision to ensure that the prime contractor is
directly accountable for the most important part of the work.The City Attorney recommends
against waiving this requirement for several reasons. First,it is a requirement of the bid process.
Second,other contractors might have bid if they had known the City would allow such a deviation.
And third,the second low bidder would probably protest such a waiver. Unsuccessful bidders
typically call to verify that the low bidder has met this requirement.
C-G-7
Council Agenda Report-SLO Entry Signs
Page 2
CONCURRENCES:
This project has received a categorical exemption from environmental review by Community
Development Department.
The PCC believes that the sign should be built as soon as possible so that it will have a positive
economic effect during this year's tourist season. It favors awarding a contract to the second low
bidder to expedite construction.
As noted in Alternative 3,the PCC intends to return to the ARC on June 2'to see if the ARC will
approve a change to the southern sign which could reduce the cost of its construction. Staff will
report on the outcome of that meeting at the June 3'd Council meeting.
FISCAL IlKPACT:
Project Construction Budget Needed:
Contract Price $68,198
Contingencies @ 7.8 Percent 5,334
Total $73,532
In order to pay for construction with the second low bidder,transfers from the following accounts
are recommended:
Economic Development Contract Services. $4,000 is available from this account. That amount
was set aside for Caltrans to designate downtown exits by placing the word"downtown"above
Highway 101 offramp signs. The City originally expected to pay for these modifications,but
Caltrans eventually agreed to cover the cost itself
Community Promotion Contract Services. The$39,300 in this account was designated as
"enhanced promotion funds". On May 20, 1997 the PCC recommended spending$15,000 of this
total to complete the entry sign project.
Completed Projects. There is currently$7,832 available in the capital outlay fund completed
projects account. In addition there is$8,379 remaining in the project budget for the Orcutt Road
Widening Acquisition,which is completed.
Summary of Recommended Sources for the Construction Budget:
Existing Project Budget Remaining $38,321
Economic Development Contract Services 4,000
Community Promotion Contract Services 15,000
Completed Projects 16,211
Total $73,532
ALTERNATIVES:
1) Reject all bids and readvertise the project. This project is on track for completion before
this year's tourist season. Readvertising would delay construction and could preclude the
benefit of having the signs in place for the tourist season. The PCC is extremely concerned
that it has been two years since this project was initially proposed and approved. Delays
Council Agenda Report-SLO Entry Signs
Page 3
have been caused by design difficulties and the need to acquire approval to place the
northern sign on private property. Two tourism seasons have already been missed,and the
additional delay caused by rebidding would cause a third season to pass without the signs.
2) Delete some of the bid items and construct only a portion of the project with the existing
project budget. Public Works believes that only one sign could be constructed with the
existing protect budget of$38,321. While the design of the signs themselves is the same,
the Architectural Review Committee(ARC)felt the that the southern sign needed a series
of approach columns to place the sign in its proper context within an open field. (See
Exhibit 1.) The high cost of constructing the four approach columns mandates that only the
northern entrance sign could be installed within the current budget. Since most of the
tourist traffic into San Luis Obispo arrives from the south,the PCC believes that the
economic benefit of the project would be significantly reduced without the southern sign.
To build the southern sign within the present budget,a reduced project would need to be
negotiated with the selected bidder and would possibly require ARC approval.
3) Eliminate the approach columns on the southern sign. The approach columns were added
to the southern sign at the direction of the ARC,in order to create a context for the sign
within an open field located between Los Osos Valley Road and Prado Road. Before the
columns could be eliminated,ARC approval would be required. The PCC intends to
request that the ARC consider such a change at its meeting on June 2.
4) Redesign the signs. If the signs were completely redesigned,the project would likely be
delayed another year while design modifications were completed,ARC approvals were
received,and the project was put out to bid a second time. This delay would mean another
tourist season without signs. There is also no guarantee that the new design would
necessarily be less expensive to construct than the current one. In order to significantly
reduce cost,the City would probably end up with billboard type signs,which would not
reflect an image the City wishes to project.
5) Eliminate the project. The PCC believes very strongly that the City needs entry signs.
Visitor signs have proven to be effective in persuading visitors unfamiliar with an area to
stop initially and visit a city,which,in tum,encourages an overnight stay in the future.
Staff has received comments from both local citizens and visitors that the City needs
tourism signs. Most neighboring cities have at least billboard signs to entice drivers off the
highway for a visit.
ATTACHMENTS:
1) Exhibit 1 -Sign Plan and Elevation
2) Exhibit 2-Vicinity Map for Southern Sign
3) Bid Summary
4) Proposed Agreement
5) Proposal from Diamond Air Conditioning
6) Proposal from Vernon Edwards
gArniu_eipWo entry signs 9546V546agn1