TO: Board of Supervisors
FROM: Steven Lederer, Director of Public Works
REPORT BY: Dewey Phan, Assistant Engineer
SUBJECT: Project Creation, approval of Professional Service Agreements with ADKO Inc., and Budget Amendment for the Mt Veeder Road MPM 3.42, RDS 27-04
RECOMMENDATION
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Approve and authorize the creation of Project 27017 for the “Mt Veeder Road MPM 3.42, RDS 27-04”; Agreement No. 270140B for a contract maximum of $337,753 with ADKO Engineering Inc. for the Mt Veeder Road MPM 3.42; and approve a Budget Amendment. (Fiscal Impact: $457,753 Expense for the design contract and other project costs; General Fund; Reallocation of Budget; Discretionary)
[4/5 vote required]
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BACKGROUND
County Staff and Consultants have recently completed a comprehensive review of conditions along Mt. Veeder Road and numerous problem areas were identified where “preventative” maintenance can be considered to reduce risks of emergency repairs. The site that was judged to have the highest risk of damage that would be both costly to repair but also result in a likely complete closure of the roadway is at Mile Post 3.42 (just south of 2080 Mt. Veeder Road). Although it didn’t collapse then, the storms of November 2025 significantly weakened this area. The two “failures” that are possible at the site are significant roadway settlements due to a likely void where water has washed soils away below the culvert or an outward rotation/collapse of the wall which will result in a rapid drop of the roadway surface, likely closing the entire road. At this location, a 30-inch diameter culvert crosses under the roadway and an old concrete block wall is located on the downhill side of the road and around a culvert. The old wall extends down about 12 feet and below that, erosion from the culvert has resulted in another vertical slope so the total drop from roadway to ground surface below the culvert is about 16 feet. The old concrete block wall exhibits significant cracking and has apparently rotated from its original position and a bay tree seems to be providing the only lateral support to one end of the wall. Water flows under the culvert and through the wall face, likely eroding material from under the road and creating a void.
To keep the roadway open during repairs, a drilled pier and concrete lagging wall or poured-in-place concrete retaining wall is being considered. Due to the existing vertical drop, the new wall will be on the order of 16 to 18 feet high and include tiebacks to provide appropriate lateral support. Through a qualifications based process, the County selected ADKO Engineering, Inc. as the most qualified firm for the design and other supporting specialized services needed to complete the type of repairs best suited for this site. County staff recommends approving the proposed agreement with ADKO Engineering, Inc. for their professional services.
The total estimated project budget is $2,042,753 which includes both design and construction costs. At this time, $228,266 is requested for Design and Engineering Consultant, $20,000 for Engineering Consultant Contingency, $100,000 for County Project Management/Administration, and $109,487 for Environmental, Geotechnical and Special Inspections. Staff will return to the Board to request approval to advertise the project for bids and a future budget amendment may also be required to fund the construction upon award of the construction contract.
Included in the Fiscal Year 2026-27 budget is $7 million in Project RDS01 for a list of six 2025 November Storm projects with not-to-exceed project amounts approved by the Board, those projects have all been funded and the total is well beneath the $7 million dollar budget leaving a balance of $1,789,295. They are as follows:
Project Not to Exceed Actual Cost
Redwood Rd. 5.41 $1,000,000 $234,906
Mt. Veeder Rd. 3.25 and 4.35 $3,000,000 $2,220,799
Wall Rd. $1,000,000 $900,000
White Sulphur Springs $1,000,000 $955,000
Mt. Veeder Rd. Ditch $500,000 $500,000
Diamond Mtn. Rd. $500,000 $400,000
A budget amendment is being requested to allocate $457,753 of the unused funds approved for storm projects to project 27017 - Mt. Veeder Rd. MPM 3.42. Completing the proposed work now will mitigate the risk of a full collapse and road closure and an even more expensive emergency repair later.
Requested Actions:
1. Approve and authorize the creation of new project for the “Mt Veeder Road MPM 3.42, RDS 27-04” (Fund 2040, Sub-Division 2040500, Project 27017);
2. Approve and authorize Agreement No. 270140B for a contract maximum of $337,753 with ADKO Engineering Inc. for the Mt Veeder Road MPM 3.42 project; and
3. Approve a Budget Amendment to reallocate previously approved budget from RDS01 to capital project 27017: (4/5 vote required)
a. Increase appropriations for project 27017 - Mt. Veeder Rd. MPM 3.42 in the Roads Fund (Fund 2040, Sub-Division 2040500) in account 52145 - Engineer Services by $100,000 and 52310 - Consulting Services by $357,753 offset by the transfer in (48200) revenue from the reallocation of budget from project RDS01.
FISCAL IMPACT
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Is there a Fiscal Impact? |
Yes |
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Is it currently budgeted? |
No |
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Is it Mandatory or Discretionary? |
Discretionary |
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Discretionary Justification: |
The repairs are needed to prevent further damage and ensure public safety. |
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Is the general fund affected? |
No |
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Future fiscal impact: |
Funding will be needed in FY 26-27 for final design and permitting. Construction funding will likely be requested in the FY 27-28 budget. |
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Consequences if not approved: |
Landslide may occur and the roadway could be lost potentially locking residents in and result in a major disruption to traffic flow in the area. |
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Additional Information |
Build Healthy, Connected Communities |
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
ENVIRONMENTAL DETERMINATION: The proposed project action is not a project as defined by 14 California Code of Regulations 15378 (State CEQA Guidelines) and therefore CEQA is not applicable.