TO: Board of Supervisors
FROM: Steven Lederer, Director of Public Works
REPORT BY: Sydney Barclay, Associate Engineer
SUBJECT: Award Construction Contract and Approve a Budget Amendment for the “Chiles Pope Valley Road MPM 3.63 Culvert Repair Project” (RDS 22-27)
RECOMMENDATION
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Award a Construction Contract to Valentine Corporation; and approve a Budget Amendment in the amount of $1,046,000 for Project 23006, Chiles Pope Valley Rd MPM 3.63. (Fiscal Impact: $1,046,000 Expense; SB-1 Non-Operating Special Revenue Fund; Not Budgeted; Discretionary)
[4/5 vote required]
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BACKGROUND
The Chiles Pope Valley Rd MPM 3.63 project is located at the intersection of Chiles Pope Valley Road and Lower Chiles Valley Road. This project started off as a guardrail replacement project, however, after further inspection, the existing culvert located below the guardrails was eroded and incapable of handling the flows of lower Chiles Creek. The Chiles Pope Valley Road MPM 3.63 project required hydraulic, geotechnical, archaeological, and biological studies to determine the most suitable repair to the culvert at this location. As a result of these studies, the County will be removing existing concrete wingwalls at the project site, constructing new concrete wingwalls on each side of the culvert (upstream and downstream), pouring a concrete slab approach at the inlet of the culvert, providing rock slope protection at the outlet of the culvert, and providing safety improvements on the roadway, which include new guardrails and concrete bridge barriers.
Moreover, because these repairs will occur within the channel and banks of lower Chiles Creek, the United States Army Corps of Engineers, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, and the San Francisco Regional Water Quality Control Board required the County to obtain permits. These agencies have implemented strenuous requirements on the Chiles Pope Valley Road MPM 3.63 Project and require Tribal Monitoring, Biological Studies and Monitoring, and the implementation of a five (5) year Restoration Planting Plan.
The Chiles Pope Valley Rd MPM 3.63 Project was advertised on April 22, 2025. The Department of Public Works opened three (3) bids on May 29, 2025. The bid results of the three (3) apparent low bidders are listed below:
Valentine Corporation San Rafael, CA $763,369.00
Cats 4 U, Inc. Healdsburg, CA $828,557.00 (original)
$797,387.00 (corrected)
Gordon N. Ball, Inc. Walnut Creek, CA $1,101,700.00
The Engineer’s Estimate of $675,000 was based on previous project bid results and Caltrans bids. The three (3) lowest bids have been reviewed and are considered responsive. Construction is anticipated to commence in July 2025 and be completed by October 2025, weather permitting.
Valentine Corporation is not a local vendor; however, the Public Contract Code requires that the construction contract be awarded to the lowest responsible and responsive bidder, regardless of whether the low bidder is local or not. Staff reached out to the local construction contractor community by advertising the request for bids in the Napa Valley Register and the Solano-Napa Builder’s Exchange, and by posting on the County website. Staff also sent “Notices to Contractors” to the local construction community.
The total project budget, including engineering design, construction management, project management, inspections, and construction contingency is $1,570,562. In addition to previous appropriations totaling $524,562, a budget adjustment of $1,046,000 from SB-1 Non-Operating Special Revenue Fund (SB-1) is requested to move this project forward to construction.
It is recommended that the Board awards the construction contract to Valentine Corporation for their low base bid of $763,369, approve the budget amendment, and authorize the Chair to sign the construction contract agreement.
Requested Actions:
1. Award of Contract to Valentine Corporation of San Rafael, California for their low base bid of $763,369, to provide the scope of work required for the Chiles Pope Valley Rd MPM 3.63 Culvert Repair Project and authorize the Chair to sign the construction contract;
2. Approve a Budget Amendment for the following (4/5 vote required):
a. Increase Transfer Out appropriations by $1,046,000 in the SB-1 Non-Operating Special Revenue Fund (SB-1) (Fund 2440, Sub-Division 1220052, Account 56100) offset by use of its available fund balance to be transferred to Project 23006; and
b. Increase Construction Services appropriations by $916,000 and Consultant Services appropriations by $130,000 in Project 23006 (Fund 2040, Sub-Division 2040500, Accounts 52360 and 52310) offset by transfer-in revenue from SB-1.
FISCAL & STRATEGIC PLAN 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: |
This project is improving the safety of road users and will ensure the existing culvert crossing does not wash out Chiles Pope Valley Road MPM 3.63, which is an emergency and major collector route. |
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Is the general fund affected? |
No |
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Future fiscal impact: |
Construction will begin and be completed in FY 2025-26; however, the regulatory permits issued for the project require five (5) years of mitigation and monitoring, which is expected to be completed in FY 2030-31. |
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Consequences if not approved: |
This project will not move forward to the construction phase. |
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
ENVIRONMENTAL DETERMINATION: Adoption of a Categorical Exemption Class 1: It has been determined that this type of project does not have a significant effect on the environment and is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act. [See Class 1 (“Existing Facilities”) which may be found in the guidelines for the implementation of the California Environmental Quality Act of 14 CCR §15301; see also Napa County’s Local Procedures for Implementing the California Environmental Quality Act, Appendix B].