TO: Members of the Governing Board
FROM: Christopher Silke - District Engineer
REPORT BY: Annamaria Martinez - Assistant Engineer
SUBJECT: Amendment No 2 to Agreement No 230149B with GHD, Inc. for the Lift Station A - Sewer Collection Tank Replacement Project, LB 22-03R2
RECOMMENDATION
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Approve and authorize Amendment No. 2 to Agreement No. 230149B (LBRID) with GHD, Inc. for a new maximum of $468,877 for the Lift Station A - Sewer Collection Tank Replacement Project, LB 22-03R2. (Fiscal Impact: $229,089 Expense; Lake Berryessa Resort Improvement District Fund; Budgeted; Discretionary).
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BACKGROUND
The President authorized the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) in March 2021 to allocate $1.9 trillion in stimulus monies across a variety of programs. Of the total, $350 billion is allocated to state, local, territorial and Tribal governments to enable them to continue to support the public health response and to lay the foundation for a strong and equitable economic recovery. The U.S. Department of the Treasury released Final Interim Rule regulations on May 10, 2021 defining eligible use of ARPA monies that includes investments into water and sewer utility infrastructure. Local Fiscal Recovery (LFR) funds must be obligated by December 31, 2024 with projects completed no later than December 31, 2026. Napa County received $26,755,157 for ARPA appropriations.
Based on the Final Rule guidelines, water and sewer utility projects that would qualify for funding under the Safe Drinking Water and Clean Water Act Programs are deemed as eligible under ARPA. LBRID has four (4) high priority projects that satisfy ARPA and the Drinking and Clean Water Act funding criteria - one of the projects being the subject of this agenda report - the replacement of the 91,000 gallons raw sewage collection tank located at Sewer Lift Station A.
History of the Collection Tank at Lift Station A:
The original sewer collection tank at Lift Station A, which collects all raw sewage from Unit 2 of the Berryessa Estates subdivision, was installed in 1967. The tank was constructed of welded steel with a maximum capacity of approximately 50,000 gallons. In the late 1980s/early 1990s, deterioration of the upper tank wall due to corrosion from hydrogen sulfide vapors caused seepage of raw sewage from the upper tank panels requiring the operational level to be lowered to half the height of the tank. Due to lack of funding for full replacement of the tank, a reduced scope project was approved that required removal of the corroded panels above the reduced operational level - leaving LBRID with limited sewer collection capacity for growth and or storm events. The tank was operated at this reduced capacity for over a decade; increased flow as a result of community growth, and also from increased Inflow and Infiltration (I/I) in the collection system, resulted in multiple overflows from the tank and violations from the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board (CVRWQCB). An Administrative Civil Liability Complaint (ACL) that required payment of a fine, was issued and ultimately rescinded, but LBRID was required to replace the tank with a capacity sufficient to prevent overflows in the future.
In 2002, LBRID engineering staff solicited bids for replacement of the modified original welded steel tank with a 91,000-gallon bolted steel tank. The solicitation required setting the new tank within the footprint of the original tank, and the reuse of the original pad. The vendor, International Tank, Dry & Liquid Storage, Inc. from Kentucky was retained to complete the project design and installation.
The 91,000-gallon tank is over 20 years old, and as with the original tank installation, corrosion and pitting, due to the accumulation of hydrogen sulfide gases, accelerated along the top tank panels that sit above the fluid operating level of the tank. In an effort to prevent a repeat of prior violations and potential ACLs from the CVRB due to illicit discharges from the tank, staff proposed immediate replacement of the tank pending award of funding availability through the ARPA program.
On February 8, 2022, LBRID and Napa County executed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) outlining the terms of the transfer of the $800,000 ARPA earmark for the project, and on June 21, 2022, staff publicly advertised an RFQ / RFP engineering services package detailing the scope of work, submittal instructions and deadline for the Sewer Lift Station A Tank Replacement Project. After evaluation of the two proposals received, staff recommended and the Board awarded a contract to GHD, Inc. in the amount of $190,674 on September 13, 2022.
Design plans and specifications to demolish the corroded steel tank and construct a new cast-in-place reinforced concrete tank were approved and authorized to solicit competitive public bids by the Governing Board at its May 16, 2023, meeting. Contractor bids were subsequently opened on July 13, 2023. The lowest qualified bid exceeded ARPA appropriations to award a Contract. All Contractor bids were rejected by the Governing Board in the August 8, 2023, meeting. Supplemental project appropriations in the amount of $1,400,000 from Napa County for water and wastewater improvements were then secured as part of an additional funding award from the Department of Water Resources (DWR) through the California Budget Act of 2022 (AB 179, Stats. 2022, ch. 249, § 207). Including the remaining ARPA funding available, project appropriations with the DWR award totaled $2,009,326.
LBRID staff and GHD, Inc. design team deliberated the feasibility of downsizing concrete tank capacity and geometry simultaneous with replacing the remaining segment of undersized sewer force main as an alternative approach to upgrade sewer collection infrastructure. A preliminary construction cost estimate to build a smaller concrete tank and replace the vintage 6-inch asbestos cement sewer pipe with larger 8-inch diameter high pressure polyethylene pipe thereby increasing pumping capacity totaled less than the combined ARPA/DWR project appropriations. On December 19, 2023, Amendment No. 1 to the GHD, Inc. Agreement was approved by the Governing Board, authorizing the design scope change and directing GHD, Inc. to produce revised plans and specifications. Engineering design budget was increased by $49,114 for an adjusted total of $239,788, leaving total appropriations of ARPA/DWR funding of $1,960,212 to fund construction related services. The revised construction plans and specifications were approved by the Governing Board for readvertisement of the Project on March 12, 2024. The revised plans included replacement of the existing steel tank with a new cast-in-place reinforced concrete tank of 50,000 gallons capacity paired with replacement of the original 1960’s asbestos cement pipe sewer force main that will improve pumping efficiency. The new tank was proposed to be installed in the same location as the existing tank. Additional project components included a new tank foundation, piping reconfiguration to allow better control of waste volumes entering the tank, and other miscellaneous site improvements necessary to install the tank in the same footprint as the existing tank.
The District Secretary opened two (2) bids on May 30, 2024. While both of the bids submitted for the base bid items were less than the total appropriations for the project as defined above, an error in the bid documents was discovered after bids were opened creating uncertainty with how the various bid alternates would be awarded. After multiple discussions with legal counsel, LBRID staff requested that all bids be rejected on June 25, 2024 pursuant to Section 20150.9 of the Public Contract Code, and that the corrected bid packet be approved and authored by the Board for re-advertise for sealed bids.
The engineer’s opinion of probable construction cost for the third bid advertisement project was $1,793,234, which included the base scope, the tank alternate, and ten bid additives labeled Additive 10 - 19. The District Secretary opened two (2) bids on August 23, 2024. The available funding for construction of $1,900,000 was announced prior to opening bid and the apparent low bid was determined by the maximum number of additive items that could be awarded within the funding limit after the base scope and bid alternate for tank shape was considered. Piazza Construction of Penngrove, CA was determined to be the low bidder with a proposal totaling $1,551,640 that included all additive construction items and the construction contract was awarded to them on September 10, 2024. After consideration of the total construction contract value, remaining appropriations for the project are $397,974, which are earmarked for construction management and inspection services and construction contingency.
Today's requested action authorizes the Chair to sign Amendment No.2 to Agreement No. 230149B with GHD Inc. to provide construction management and inspection services for the project. LBRID requires these services to ensure the project is constructed per design and GHD’s familiarity with all aspects of the project design makes them the best qualified to oversee construction activities, perform required field-testing during construction, and ensure the project is built per the construction drawings and specifications. Amendment No 2 will increase the contract amount by $229,089 for a new maximum of $468,877. If approved, remaining appropriations for construction contingency will be approximately $168,885, which is on par with a 10% construction contingency that is typical for most project estimates.
GHD, Inc. is not a local vendor. The firm is located in Santa Rosa.
Requested Action:
1. Approve and authorize Amendment No. 2 to Agreement No. 230149B (LBRID) with GHD, Inc. for a new maximum of $468,877 for the Lift Station A - Sewer Collection Tank Replacement Project, LB 22-03R2.
FISCAL & STRATEGIC PLAN IMPACT
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Is there a Fiscal Impact? |
Yes |
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Is it currently budgeted? |
Yes |
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Where is it budgeted? |
Subdivision 5220500 Project 22014 |
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Is it Mandatory or Discretionary? |
Discretionary |
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Discretionary Justification: |
Construction management and inspection services for the project are required to ensure the project is built per the construction drawings and specifications. |
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Is the general fund affected? |
No |
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Future fiscal impact: |
None |
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Consequences if not approved: |
LBRID engineering staff will be required to complete these services without the benefit of professionals trained in inspection and testing services, and also at the expense of other administration and managerial duties for LBRID that may need to be placed on hold to complete services for the project. |
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
ENVIRONMENTAL DETERMINATION: The proposed activity is categorically exempt from the California
Environmental Quality Act pursuant to CEQA Guidelines section 15301, as the repair or maintenance of
existing facilities involving negligible or no expansion of existing or former use.