BOARD AGENDA MEMORANDUM
SUBJECT:
Title
Approve Agreement with H.T. Harvey & Associates for Landscape Design Services for the Almaden Lake Improvement Project, Project No. 26044001, CAS No. 5044 (San José) (District 4). (PREVIOUSLY LISTED AS ITEM NO. 6.1)
End
RECOMMENDATION:
Recommendation
Approve the Consultant Services Agreement with H. T. Harvey & Associates for landscape design services for the Almaden Lake Improvement Project for a not-to-exceed amount of $361,474.
Body
SUMMARY:
Background
The Santa Clara Valley Water District (Valley Water) is proposing the Almaden Lake Improvement Project (Project) within the City of San José’s Almaden Lake Park (Park). The Project would restore the Alamitos Creek channel through the Almaden Lake (lake) footprint, and recontour and cap the bed of the separated lake. Doing so would reduce the production and release of methylmercury from the lake to downstream Guadalupe River and San Francisco Bay, and remove passage impediments, entrainment risks, and predatory impacts to native fish posed by the lake.
The Project is a Safe, Clean Water and Natural Flood Protection Program Priority D Project under Project D4 - Fish Habitat and Passage Improvement. The Project falls under Key Performance Indicator #1 of Project D4, which requires Valley Water to complete planning and design for two creek/lake separation projects to restore and maintain healthy steelhead trout populations by improving fish passage and habitat. Valley Water is undertaking the Almaden Lake Improvement Project as one of the creek/lake separation projects.
The Project’s landscaping (also referred to as revegetation) plan is one of the primary mechanisms for: depicting post-Project conditions for public and permitting agency review; analyzing the Project’s long-term environmental benefits; and estimating Project construction and long-term maintenance and monitoring needs and costs. To-date, most Project design elements have been prepared by Valley Water staff, including the conceptual revegetation design. To complete the 60%, 90%, and final Project designs, additional technical expertise of a licensed landscape architect are necessary, as well as regional ecological expertise to ensure the landscaping will establish successfully and meet the environmental objectives of the Project.
Consultant Selection Process
On September 6, 2019, staff published a Request for Proposals (RFP) for the Almaden Lake Improvement Project Landscape Design Services (RFP #5044) and distributed to approximately 37 firms on the Valley Water’s self-registered list for expertise AE20 - Landscape Architecture. Additional outreach was sent to approximately 210 firms on the Valley Water’s self-registered list for expertise EV15 - Biology General and EV20 - Environmental Flora and advertised in the SJ Post Newspaper and SBE, Inc. The RFP was posted on Valley Water’s Contract Administration System internet portal for a four-week period. During this time, staff held a pre-proposal meeting and issued two addendums to clarify details in the RFP and to respond to questions received from interested consultants. Two proposals were received by the submittal deadline of October 8, 2019.
A Consultant Review Board (CRB), consisting of three Valley Water Project team members with subject matter expertise and one representative of the City of San José’s Parks Department, evaluated and ranked the two written proposals and conducted an oral interview of the two consultant teams on October 28, 2019. Based on the combined (written and oral) rating scores, the CRB recommended that staff undertake contract negotiations with H. T. Harvey & Associates, the highest rated firm.
On December 2, 2019, staff initiated agreement negotiations with H. T. Harvey & Associates.
Consultant Agreement and Scope of Services
Under the Agreement, and with assistance from subconsultant Merrill Morris Landscape Architects, the H. T. Harvey & Associates team will prepare the 60%, 90%, and final designs, specifications, cost estimates for the landscape, irrigation, and establishment maintenance elements of the Project. They will prepare the associated sections of the Basis of Design Report, and will contribute ecological expertise to the Soils plans, specifications and cost estimates prepared by Valley Water. Since it is closely related to the landscape design, H. T. Harvey & Associates will also prepare the Restoration and Monitoring Plan to accompany the Project’s permit applications and guide long-term maintenance and monitoring, as well as visual renderings for decision-maker and public review. Lastly, the H.T. Harvey & Associates team will help Valley Water and the City of San José Parks Department develop an agreed-upon concept for the new park space created by the Project, and will prepare the design, specifications, and cost estimates for the concept. Tasks and budgets are summarized in Table 1. Services will be provided to align with the design schedule of other Project elements, and ultimate environmental review and projected construction schedule.
Table 1. Summary of H. T. Harvey & Associates Agreement Tasks and Budget
|
Task |
Description |
Not-to-Exceed Fees |
|
1 |
Project Management (and meetings) |
$30,566.23 |
|
2 |
Data Collection and Investigations |
$9,137.72 |
|
3 |
Basis of Design Report |
$16,731.52 |
|
4 |
60% Design Document Preparation |
$46,788.30 |
|
5 |
90% Design Document Preparation |
$45,312.48 |
|
6 |
Final Design Document Preparation |
$37,516.95 |
|
7 |
Contributions to Valley Water Soils Plans, Specifications, and Cost Estimates |
$7,948.12 |
|
8 |
Restoration and Monitoring Plan |
$44,797.84 |
|
9 |
Visual Renderings and Planting Design |
$6,706.84 |
|
10 |
New Park Area Concepts, Workshop, and Design |
$35,623.02 |
|
11 |
Supplemental Services (including design, specifications, and cost estimates for the new park area concept) |
$80,344.94 |
|
Total Not-to-Exceed Budget |
$361,473.96 |
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
Funding for this item is included in the FY20 Almaden Lake Improvement Project budget. This action will not increase the overall Project cost.
CEQA:
The recommended action does not constitute a project under CEQA because it does not have the potential to result in direct or reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment.
ATTACHMENTS:
Attachment 1: Agreement
UNCLASSIFIED MANAGER:
Manager
Ngoc Nguyen, 408-630-2632