Title
Recommendation to Authorize the City Manager to Execute a Second Amendment to the Agreement with Coastland Civil Engineering for City Engineering Services, in an Amount Not to Exceed $100,000 for an Aggregate Amount Not to Exceed $249,500. (Public Works 31041500)
Body
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The City of Alameda’s (City) City Engineer position became vacant in December 2020. On December 15, 2020, the City entered into an agreement (Exhibit 1) with Coastland Civil Engineering (Coastland) to provide City Engineer and general municipal engineering services while recruitment for the permanent hire takes place in the amount of $74,500. On April 20, 2021, the City Council authorized the first amendment to agreement (Exhibit 2) to increase the budget by $75,000 for continued civil engineering support through the end of the fiscal year. The spring recruitment was not successful, and the permanent hire is still pending. A second recruitment is underway with assistance from an outside firm. Staff is planning to have a permanent Deputy Public Works Director/City Engineer hired by November of 2021. In addition to the Deputy Public Works Director/City Engineer vacancy, we are working to fill three additional engineering vacancies in the department. The market for engineering professionals is competitive, and until we can make permanent hires we will require continued municipal engineering services from Coastland. A second amendment to the agreement (Exhibit 3) is necessary to increase the existing contract budget by $100,000 for a total not-to-exceed amount of $249,500. Salary savings from the vacancies will be used to support this contractual obligation.
BACKGROUND
The City Engineer position first became vacant in August of 2013. Recruitment for the permanent hire took longer than expected, and this necessitated a larger contractual support obligation and competitive solicitation. On April 10, 2015, staff issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) for an on-call contract for a City Engineer and general municipal engineering services. After a rigorous selection process, based on staff’s recommendation, the City Council awarded Coastland a contract for its engineering services to support wastewater, drainage, land development, permit review, public facilities, and transportation projects. Coastland successfully supported the Public Works Department through March 2016, when a permanent City Engineer was hired. In December 2020, the City Engineer position became vacant again. Staff needed to act quickly, and it turned again to Coastland for support. Coastland has served as contract City Engineer for 10 Northern California cities, including current roles for Emeryville and Piedmont. Staff contacted these cities as references and received positive feedback about the quality and timeliness of Coastland’s work, which confirmed the City’s experience with Coastland in 2015.
On December 15, 2020, the City entered into an agreement, in the amount of $74,500 with Coastland, with Russ Thompson, Principal Engineer (PE), as Interim City Engineer. On April 20, 2021, the City Council authorized the first amendment to the agreement for a budget increase of $75,000 to allow additional time for recruiting a permanent City Engineer. Staff now requests a second amendment to the agreement for a contract budget increase of $100,000, for a total, not-to-exceed contract amount of $249,500; this increase will provide Coastland’s continued civil engineering until a permanent Deputy Public Works Director/City Engineer is hired.
DISCUSSION
The first recruitment for a permanent Deputy Public Works Director/City Engineer was not successful. A second recruitment is underway and is planned to be complete in November of 2021. The City, therefore, requires Coastland’s extended support for day-to-day operations in City engineering services, including: land development processing; overseeing public works projects (both design and construction); interfacing with the public; master plans; administering state and federal funded projects; encroachment permits; and a myriad of other activities that occur as part of the Public Works Department’s daily needs. Recruitments are also underway for an Associate Civil Engineer, Transportation Engineer, and Supervising Civil Engineer. Due to these vacancies, and the time required for a successful placement, the Public Works Department estimates that, for the next few months, the projected service level will be double the past month’s average.
ALTERNATIVES
• Authorize execution of this second amendment, as recommended by staff.
• Authorize execution of this second amendment with a different level of service.
• Do not authorize execution of this second amendment.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Funds for this contract are budgeted under Public Works Administration (31041500) through salary savings and other available budget for professional services. In addition, certain engineering services performed by Coastland will be costs recoverable through the permitee. There is no impact to the General Fund.
|
Date |
Amount |
Description |
|
December 15, 2020 |
$74,500 |
Original Contract |
|
June 14, 2021 |
$75,000 |
First Amendment |
|
September 8, 2021 (Pending) |
$100,000 |
Second Amendment |
|
|
$249,500 |
Total Contract Amount |
MUNICIPAL CODE/POLICY DOCUMENT CROSS REFERENCE
This action is consistent with the Alameda Municipal Code.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) applies only to projects which have the potential for causing a significant effect on the environment. Any particular project that Coastland is involved with will go through separate environmental review.
CLIMATE IMPACTS
There are no identifiable climate impacts or climate action opportunities associated with the subject of this report.
RECOMMENDATION
Authorize the City Manager to execute a second amendment to the agreement with Coastland Civil Engineering for city engineering services, in an amount not to exceed $100,000 for an aggregate amount not to exceed $249,500.
CITY MANAGER RECOMMENDATION
The City Manager requests authorization for the City Manager to execute a second amendment to the agreement with Coastland Civil Engineering for city engineering services in an amount not to exceed $100,000.
Respectfully submitted,
Erin Smith, Public Works Director
Financial Impact section reviewed,
Annie To, Finance Director
Exhibits:
1. Original Agreement
2. First Amendment to Agreement
3. Second Amendment to Agreement
cc: Eric Levitt, City Manager
Gerry Beaudin, Assistant City Manager