TO: Board of Supervisors
FROM: Steven Lederer - Director of Public Works
REPORT BY: James Reese - Associate Engineer
SUBJECT: Reject all Bids and authorize the Director of Public Works to re-advertise the Chiles Pope Valley Road Bridge Replacement RDS 15-23 Restoration and Monitoring Project.
RECOMMENDATION
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Reject all bids and authorize the Director of Public Works to re-advertise for sealed bids and opening of the bids at a time, date and location to be published by the Director of Public Works pursuant to Sections 20150.9 and 20150.8, respectively, of the Public Contract Code for the Chiles Pope Valley Road Bridge Replacement RDS 15-23 Restoration and Monitoring Project. (No Fiscal Impact)
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BACKGROUND
On January 23, 2024, the Board awarded a construction contract to Gordon N. Ball of Alamo, CA for the Chiles Pope Valley Road Bridge over Chiles Creek Project, RDS 15-23. Gordon N. Ball’s bid was $6,246,113 and at award the Board also approved a budget amendment of $9,181,038 to fund the construction. The Chiles Pope Valley Road Bridge over Chiles Creek Project is approximately 2.1 miles north of Highway 128 and was replaced in the spring, summer, and fall of 2024, and only minor bridge construction work remains. One such item remaining is to install the irrigation system and plants for the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) required mitigation.
Due to the work in Chiles Creek, Napa County entered into Lake and Streambed Alteration Agreement No. NAP-30757-R3 with the CDFW, along with section 401 permit WDID # 2 CW449251 with the San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board to includes mitigation measures to limit temporary and permanent impacts of the bridge replacement. The CDFW Agreement prescribes restoration practices be implemented and monitored for up to ten (10) years.
This project was advertised for bids on July 21, 2025, with a bid opening date of August 21, 2025. This project received only one bid which exceeded the $500,000 engineer’s estimate by $485,170. The bidder, and other prospective bidders, have expressed concerns with the bonding requirements due to the Project’s ten years timeframe; therefore, County staff is requesting permission to reject the bid, revisit the estimate and bonding requirements, and rebid.
In prior reports to the Board, staff described the need to implement the restoration and monitoring in the CDFW Agreement for this project. The proposed Chiles Pope Valley Road Bridge Replacement Restoration and Monitoring Project Plans and Specifications will implement the required environmental restoration and begin the first phase of monitoring required under the CDFW Agreement.
After the rebid opening, staff will ask the Board to award the construction contract for the restoration and monitoring work.
Requested Actions:
1. Reject all bids and authorize the Director of Public Works to re-advertise for sealed bids and opening of the bids at a time, date and location to be published by the Director of Public Works pursuant to Sections 20150.9 and 20150.8, respectively, of the Public Contract Code for the Chiles Pope Valley Road Bridge Replacement RDS 15-23 Restoration and Monitoring Project.
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? |
Chiles Pope Bridge Replacement, Project 14010. |
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Is it Mandatory or Discretionary? |
Discretionary |
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Discretionary Justification: |
A CDFW Lake and Streambed Alteration Agreement (No. NAP-30757-R3) for the Chiles Pope Valley Road bridge Replacement project requires environmental mitigation measures be implemented. |
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Is the general fund affected? |
No |
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Future fiscal impact: |
Monitoring and maintenance of the restoration work will continue into future fiscal years. |
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Consequences if not approved: |
The County would be out of compliance with the CDFW Agreement and would risk actions under CDFW’s enforcement authority. |
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
ENVIRONMENTAL DETERMINATION: The proposed action is not a project as defined by 14 California Code of Regulations 15378 (State CEQA Guidelines) and therefore CEQA is not applicable. On December 14, 2021, the Board adopted a Mitigated Negative Declaration for the Project.