Title
Recommendation to Authorize the City Manager to Reject All Bids for the Safe Routes to School Project, No. P.W. 04-25-11. (Public Works 310)
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 Safe Routes to School Project (Project), No. P.W. 04-25-11 on July 1, 2025. The project will improve safety of children walking and biking to eight school campuses in the City. Following a competitive bid process, only one bid was received for an amount significantly higher than the engineering estimate and exceeding the project budget. Staff believes the bid estimate does not represent a good value or use of public funds and recommends City Council to reject all bids on this project. Staff intends to reduce the project scope to focus on the highest safety impact components of signage and striping in order to complete the project within the required grant timelines.
BACKGROUND
The City of Alameda (City) was awarded $84,000 in grant funding from the Alameda County Transportation Commission (Alameda CTC) for the Safe Routes to School Project (Project) to evaluate and implement improvements in eight School Site Assessments (SSAs) in the City. Between 2016 and 2021, the Countywide Safe Routes to School program developed eight SSAs for Alameda schools and the grant agreement was finalized in 2022.
While some of the recommended improvements have already been constructed, many remain outstanding. City staff prepared plans and specifications to construct the remaining improvements such as signing and striping, and curb ramp improvements. Additionally, the City has advanced several street safety policies as part of the Alameda Vision Zero Policy. The Safe Routes to School project includes improvements consistent with these policies to improve bike and pedestrian safety.
DISCUSSION
To solicit the maximum number of bids and most competitive p...
Click here for full text