Title
Recommendation to Authorize the City Manager to Execute a Construction Agreement with McKim Corporation for the Grand Street Safety Improvements and Pavement Rehabilitation Project, P.W. No. 04-24-13 in an Amount Not-to-Exceed $1,330,065, including Contingency; and to Reject a Non-Responsive Bid from Rapid Grading Services.
In accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), this action is categorically exempt from further environmental review pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Sections 15301 (Existing Facilities) and 15304 (Minor Alterations to Land). (Public Works C11000)
Body
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: Jennifer Ott, City Manager
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The City of Alameda (City) issued plans and specifications for the Grand Street Safety Improvements and Pavement Rehabilitation Project, No. P.W. 04-24-13, for construction bids on December 3, 2024. The project is approximately 0.25 miles in length on Grand Street, between Shore Line Drive and Otis Drive. This Project is the first phase (“Segment A”) of the construction of an uninterrupted two-way bikeway on Grand Street from Shore Line Drive to Clement Avenue.
Staff is requesting City Council authorize the City Manager to execute the contract with McKim Corporation, the lowest responsive bidder, in an amount not-to-exceed $1,330,065, including a 10% contingency, for the construction of Grand Street Safety Improvements and Pavement Rehabilitation Project, No. P.W. 04-24-13. Staff also recommends City Council reject a bid from Rapid Grading Services deemed non-responsive for not meeting the bid requirement of having three years of experience as a licensed contractor.
BACKGROUND
Planning began in 2022 for the resurfacing and restriping of Grand Street. In November of 2022, City Council approved a resurfacing and restriping plan for Grand Street from Shore Line Drive to Otis Drive with a two-way, street-level bicycle facility on the east side of the street adjacent to Wood School and Rittler Park.
An updated design for the full length of Grand Street was approved by City Council in July 2023 which included a continuous two-way bikeway from Shoreline Drive to Clement Avenue to be constructed in three segments. “Segment A” extends from Shore Line Drive to Otis Drive and the construction contract for this segment is recommended for award. “Segment B” extends from Otis Drive to Encinal Avenue and is currently in design. “Segment C”, from Encinal Avenue to Clement Avenue is unfunded and staff is seeking grant opportunities for funding.
Grand Street is identified as a High Injury Corridor by the San Francisco Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) and Alameda County Transportation Commission (ACTC), and the City of Alameda Vision Zero Action Plan. In December of 2022, City Council approved the City of Alameda Active Transportation Plan, which identifies Grand Street corridor as a critical link in the City’s plan to create a citywide low-stress bicycle network. The Active Transportation Plan recommends separated bicycle lanes to be constructed in the corridor.
The Grand Street Safety Improvements and Pavement Rehabilitation project includes full width pavement rehabilitation, a street level two-way bicycle facility with a buffer, ADA compliant curb ramps, on-street parking, a mid-block crosswalk near Wood School with flashing beacons and pedestrian refuge island, bus stop improvements, and restriping for existing automobile travel lanes.
DISCUSSION
To solicit the maximum number of bids and most competitive price, plans and specifications for construction were provided to 15 separate builders exchanges throughout the Bay Area. Notices were also sent to contractors on the Public Works Department Contractor’s List. In addition, notices were placed on the City’s website and published in the Alameda Journal. Bids were opened on January 9, 2025. Fourteen contractors submitted bids. The bid results are as follows:
|
Bidder |
Bid |
|
Rapid Grading Services |
$1,150,000.00 |
|
McKim Corporation |
$1,209,149.70 |
|
Radius Earthwork |
$1,243,916.28 |
|
Gallagher & Burk |
$1,275,275.00 |
|
McGuire & Hester |
$1,283,919.00 |
|
Bay Cities Paving and Grading |
$1,339,017.39 |
|
Ghilotti Bros |
$1,436,319.60 |
|
Redgwick Construction Co. |
$1,445,738.00 |
|
S & H Construction |
$1,448,600.00 |
|
QA Constructors |
$1,459,459.00 |
|
E.E. Gilbert Construction |
$1,695,189.10 |
|
Interstate Grading and Paving |
$1,757,256.10 |
|
Sposeto Engineering |
$1,899,955.45 |
|
Frontline General Engineering Construction |
$2,374,772.00 |
The City received a bid protest from the second lowest bidder, McKim Corporation, regarding the experience of the low bidder Rapid Grading Services. The protest was deemed valid since Rapid Grading Services submitted a non-responsive bid by not meeting the requirements of the bid documents by having three years of experience as a licensed contractor.
Public Works staff reviewed the bid submitted by McKim Corporation and determined that a responsive bid was submitted. Staff contacted representative references provided by McKim Corporation and received positive feedback on the ability of the company to meet the project requirements, quality, and timeliness of their work.
Staff recommends rejecting the bid submitted by Rapid Grading Services as non-responsive and awarding a contract to McKim Corporation for a total amount of $1,330,065 which includes a 10% contingency amount of $120,914.97. The contractor is not guaranteed any of the contingency amount and use of the contingency will be at the sole discretion of the City for work not originally anticipated in the plans and specifications. The specifications also informed the successful bidder that they shall pay not less than the prevailing rate of per diem as determined by the Director of the California Department of Industrial Relations. The contract is attached as Exhibit 1.
ALTERNATIVES
City Council may consider the following alternatives:
• Uphold the bid protest and award the construction contract to McKim Corporation - staff recommendation.
• Reject all bids and do not award the construction contract. Failure to award the construction contract will require conducting a new bid process and significantly delay award while likely could lead to a loss of $827,000 of federal grant funds.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
The Grand Street Safety Improvements and Pavement Rehabilitation project is budgeted in Capital Improvement Program (CIP) Project C11000. This project is funded by federal and state grants, and Measure BB Local Streets and Roads monies (Table 1). Total project cost for Grand Street from Shore Line Drive to Otis Drive is approximately $1.65 million for design, construction, and management (Table 2).
Table 1: Funding Allocation
|
Funding Source |
Amount |
|
OBAG2 (Federal) |
$ 827,000 |
|
TDA-3 (State) |
$ 76,618 |
|
Measure BB LSR |
$1,000,000 |
|
Total |
$1,903,618 |
Table 2: Cost Allocation for Project Phase - Segment A
|
Project Phase - Segment A |
Amount |
|
Design |
$ 66,550 |
|
Design Admin Support (City Staff) |
$ 26,100 |
|
Construction Cost |
$1,330,065 |
|
Construction Management and Admin Support (Staff) |
$ 225,000 |
|
Total |
$1,647,715 |
No additional fund allocations are anticipated for this project and any funds remaining at the end of the project will be available for the Grand Street Segment B project.
MUNICIPAL CODE/POLICY DOCUMENT CROSS REFERENCE
The recommended improvements to Grand Street from Shore Line Drive to Otis Drive are consistent with Alameda General Plan mobility goals, including:
• Equity: Provide for mobility needs of all Alameda residents, workers, and visitors regardless of income, age, ability, and neighborhood.
• Safety: Eliminate fatalities and severe injuries on Alameda streets, sidewalks, crosswalks, and trails by 2035.
• Choices: Expand and improve options to low occupancy automobile trips to incentivize mode shift to more environmentally sustainable modes of transportation while recognizing the diverse needs for mobility.
• Sustainability: Reduce the impacts of transportation system on the environment, and transition to a more resilient transportation system to address the impacts of climate change.
The improvements are included in the City of Alameda 2023 Strategic Plan as Project # TIE13 to Implement Grand St safety improvements from Shoreline to Encinal.
The improvements are consistent with the Active Transportation Plan, which includes a separated bikeway along Grand Street, in the Bikeway Vision Network and the 2030 Infrastructure Plan that include Project #2: Grand Street Safety Project calling for pedestrian safety improvements and separated bike lanes.
This action is subject to the Levine Act.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
In accordance with CEQA, this action is categorically exempt from further environmental review pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Sections 15301 (Existing Facilities) and 15304 (Minor Alterations to Land). Additionally, in accordance with National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), Caltrans has specified that this project is a categorical exclusion under 23 Code of Federal Regulation (CFR) 771.117(d): activity (d)(13).
CLIMATE IMPACT
Since vehicle miles traveled is the largest source of greenhouse gas emission in Alameda, safety improvements in support of pedestrians, bicyclists, and transit will have a positive climate impact.
RECOMMENDATION
Authorize the City Manager to execute a construction agreement with McKim Corporation for the Grand Street Safety Improvements and Pavement Rehabilitation Project, P.W. No. 04-24-13 for a not-to-exceed amount of $1,330,065, including contingency; and to reject a non-responsive bid from Rapid Grading Services.
Respectfully submitted,
Erin Smith, Public Works Director
By,
Scott Wikstrom, City Engineer
Brendin Christolear, Supervising Civil Engineer
Ali Hatefi, Senior Engineer
Financial Impact section reviewed,
Ross McCarthy, Acting Finance Director
Exhibit:
1. Agreement