Council Agenda - City of Burbank

Tuesday, September 19, 2006

Agenda Item - 5

 

 
                        Burbank Water and Power

                                MEMORANDUM
 
 

 

DATE: September 19, 2006
TO: Mary J. Alvord, City Manager
FROM: Ronald E. Davis, BWP General Manager
SUBJECT:

A RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF BURBANK AUTHORIZING THE GENERAL MANAGER OF BURBANK WATER AND POWER TO SOLICIT DESIGN-BUILD PROPOSALS FOR THE REPLACEMENT SERVICE CENTER/ WAREHOUSE PROJECT

 

PURPOSE

Staff is requesting that the Burbank City Council (Council) authorize the General Manager of Burbank Water and Power (BWP) to solicit design-build proposals for the replacement Service Center/Warehouse Project (Project).

BACKGROUND

The Project will replace substandard structures within the BWP Yard, which will increase work efficiency and improve traffic circulation and parking. With the assistance of a space planning consultant, SGS, BWP developed a Yard Master Plan for their facilities located between Magnolia Boulevard (northern perimeter) and Olive Avenue (southern perimeter); and between Lake Street (western perimeter) and the Western Flood Control Channel (eastern perimeter).  Several factors prompted BWP to develop the plan:

  • The need to accommodate the Lake 1 Unit (now completed), the Magnolia Power Project (now completed), and to provide for other on-site generation needs

  • The need to build a replacement Burbank Station within the BWP Yard

  • The need to replace the existing BWP Warehouse which has uneven flooring and other problems

  • It has uneven and unsound flooring, and its useable space is too small.

  • It cannot be modified to meet seismic code

  • The need to consolidate substandard service facilities into a modern service center

  • The Water Division service activities are within an old brick building that requires seismic improvements, but bringing it up to code is impractical

  • Line Section work spaces are within a space that has shed-under-shed construction, which is a fire hazard.

  • The need to improve traffic circulation, making it more safe and efficient

  • The need to improve employee parking, and to incorporate solar panels

  • The need to improve workflows, particularly between warehouse and field operations

The Yard Master Plan incorporates the consultant�s space requirements and recommended massing of building and other elements.

 

The Project is a key element of the Yard Master Plan and is a part of BWP�s approved capital improvement budget. Staff estimates the total cost of the Project, which is included in BWP�s capital improvement budget, to be $7,579,000:

  • Designing and building the replacement Service Center/Warehouse, and adjacent structures, will cost an estimated $4,339,000:

Item

Estimated cost

Service Building

$2,790,000

Warehouse, shell

  1,150,000

Warehouse, interiors

      86,000

Covered loading dock

      97,000

Covered storage, 24 feet high on concrete pad

     216,000

Subtotal

$4,339,000

  • Designing and building the parking facilities, as well as the wash rack, will cost an estimated $1,824,000:

Item

Estimated cost

Covered parking (36 feet by 150 feet and 40 feet by 80 feet)

$ 297,000

New open parking area

  552,000

Open parking area resurfacing

  276,000

Three-foot perimeter wall for off-street parking along Lake Street

    52,000

Trees

    19,000

Landscaping and irrigation

    41,000

Wash rack, 24 by 80 feet, and eight-foot wall on both sides

    35,000

Allowance for wash rack water reclamation and filtering

    92,000

Allowance for site drainage

   230,000

Allowance for site utilities

   230,000

 

$1,824,000

  • Designing and building security-related facilities will cost an estimated $294,000:

Item

Estimated cost

Security Office

$ 122,000

Allowance for vehicle entrance control

     29,000

Entrance turnstiles

     37,000

Perimeter wall, eight feet high

     81,000

Perimeter fence, eight feet high

     25,000

Subtotal

$   294,000

  • Demolition and removal of existing sheds and buildings will cost an estimated $310,000.

  • Costs arising from insurance, bond and other general condition requirements are estimated to be $812,000, which is 12% of all the other Project costs.

Costs exclude storage racks for the Warehouse as well as furniture for the Service Center/Warehouse. Costs also exclude lead paint or other hazardous material abatement; however, the major uncertainty is continued cost inflation of construction projects over the past few years.

 

The work will take place over this fiscal year (2006-07) and the next (2007-08):

  • By the end of 2006, select the Design-Build Team.

  • Obtain Council approval for soliciting design-build proposals

  • Request Statement of Qualifications

  • Develop a Bidders List

  • Issue Request for Proposals

  • Evaluate the proposals

  • Obtain Council approval for awarding design-build contract

  • In early 2007, begin design of the replacement Service Center/Warehouse.

  • In mid-2007, begin construction.

  • By February 2008, complete construction and relocate staff.

  • By the July 2008, complete demolition, off-street parking and new yard entrance.

The replacement Service Center/Warehouse will total 34,045 square feet:

  • The replacement Warehouse portion will be 16,729 square feet and have service vehicle loading docks. A 6,000 square foot covered outdoor storage area will be next to the replacement Warehouse. (The existing Warehouse is 14,000 square feet.)

  • The replacement Service Center portion will be 8,768 square feet per floor, or 17,316 square feet for both floors, to accommodate electric and water shops, and field operations offices.

BWP will submit the replacement Service Center/Warehouse for LEED�s certification.

 

The CEQA Process has been completed.  The Service Center/Warehouse Project is included within the BWP Yard Plan Project which is categorically exempt under CEQA Guidelines 15301 Class 1(b) and 15302 Class 2(b), (c), and (d).  The Public Notice of Environmental Decision (NOED) was posted in the Planning Division for 21 days, beginning on May 30, 2006. The NOED was removed on June 21, 2006.

 

ANALYSIS

The design-build method works well for projects requiring extensive coordination. Successfully completing complex projects requires the smooth coordination of civil, structural, and mechanical/electrical engineering with site preparation, foundation and substructure work, and equipment installation. The design-build method concentrates responsibility for design, procurement, and construction with a single firm: 

  • Under the traditional design-bid-build approach, BWP would engage an engineering firm to design the project and then hire a construction company to build it.  This is useful and beneficial on many projects. However, on complex projects this can result in a lack of coordination and conflict among engineers of different disciplines, and between the designer and construction contractor or owner.

  • Under the design-build approach, BWP would engage a single firm to be responsible for design, procurement, and construction. Early collaboration between design and construction teams minimizes the chance of costly errors. And even if such errors do occur, the design-builders have the obligation to correct them at their own expense.

By the late 1990s, many utilities had found that the design-build approach increased the chances that complex projects would be completed within schedule, on budget, and with fewer disputes along the way.

 

BWP has had successful recent experience on design-build projects. In recent years, BWP has successfully used the design-build method to construct or expand new electric stations. BWP has used the design-build approach for four major station projects: the Alan E. Capon Switching Station, the new Hollywood Way Distributing Station, an expansion of the Olive Switching Station to accommodate the Magnolia Power Project, and, most recently, the installation of two major transformer banks serving the Burbank Station. In each case, BWP was within schedule and budget, and did not have the coordination problems with civil and electrical work that had dogged earlier station projects.  These projects, as well as BWP�s project management of the Lake 1 Project, the Olive 1&2 Projects, and the Magnolia Power Project, have provided BWP staff with the experience and knowledge necessary to utilize design-build as an effective means to develop projects.

 

BWP believes that the design-build method is the appropriate approach for building the replacement Service Center/Warehouse.  Building the replacement Service Center/Warehouse requires the smooth coordination of several engineering disciplines, and of design and construction as coordination with existing infrastructure and operations. A design-build contract, awarded after competitive bidding, affords BWP the best chance of completing the replacement Service Center/Warehouse within schedule and budget, and in a manner that meshes smoothly with related capital improvement projects.

 

BWP�s Request for Proposal (RFP) will enable staff to select a Design-Build Team on a �best value� basis, which would fulfill the requirement that use of the design-build method be consistent with principles of competitive bidding. Staff�s �best value� evaluation system will be able to encourage competitive pricing, but not so much that bidders would have an incentive to cut corners on the quality of their project management. The RFP would include an up-front scoring system that tells bidders the weight carried by each scoring factor, including quality of firm, quality of project team, and pricing. The City will have reasonable flexibility to negotiate the final terms with the firm offering the �best value� proposal.

 

Before issuing the RFP, BWP will request a Statement of Qualifications to identify interested teams and develop a short-list of bidders.

 

The Council can approve design-build projects on a case-by-case basis.  In 2001, the Council added Section 9-101(g) to the Burbank Municipal Code whereby the Council has the authority to approve design-build projects on a case-by-case basis when it finds that the use of this method is consistent with principles of competitive bidding.

 

FISCAL IMPACT

 

The Replacement Service Center/Warehouse Project is a key element of the Yard Master Plan and is a part of BWP�s approved capital improvement budget of $10,700,000. Staff estimates the design-build portion of the Project to be $7,579,000 million over the next two years. Soliciting design-build proposals to build this station offers BWP the best opportunity to complete this Project.

 

RECOMMENDATION

 

Staff recommends that the Council adopt a resolution to authorize the BWP General Manager to solicit design-build proposals for the Replacement Service Center/Warehouse Project.

 

If the Council concurs, the appropriate action would be a motion to adopt the Resolution entitled:

 

A RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF BURBANK AUTHORIZING THE GENERAL MANAGER OF BURBANK WATER AND POWER TO SOLICIT DESIGN-BUILD PROPOSALS FOR THE REPLACEMENT SERVICE CENTER/ WAREHOUSE PROJECT

 

WCH:GLS:jg

L:\City Council\Staff Reports\2006\Replacement Service Center-Warehouse.doc

 

 

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