Title
Planning and Building Department, Airport Division, recommending the Board approve and authorize the Chair to sign the Fourth Amendment to Agreement for Services 532-S1311 with C & S Engineers, Inc., to extend the term for airport consulting services, with no change in rates or compensation, for one additional year to July 31, 2021 and include revisions to federal and state provisions and minor administrative revisions, with no change in rates or compensation.
FUNDING: Federal Aviation Administration Grants, State of California, Department of Transportation, Division of Aeronautics Grants (Federal Funds - 90%), and Accumulated Capital Outlay Fund (10%).
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DISCUSSION/BACKGROUND
Approval of the Fourth Amendment (Amendment 4) to Agreement for Services #532-S1311 (Agreement) will allow C & S Engineers, Inc. (C & S) to complete those airport Capital Improvement Program (CIP) projects at the Placerville and Georgetown Airports which are already in process and were initiated within the first five years of the Agreement.
Airport planning and engineering projects are sporadic and dependent on Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) grant funding, which fluctuates depending on the type of projects being handled at any one time. The County does not have any classifications for airport planners or engineers and airport engineering requires specialized skill sets and certifications that other County engineers do not possess.
On July 30, 2013 (Item 11), the Board awarded Request for Qualifications (RFQ) 13-918-029 for airport consulting services for the Placerville and Georgetown Airports (Airports) to C & S and approved the original Agreement for a term of three years, expiring July 29, 2016, or upon completion of all issued Task Orders, whichever is later, with a not-to-exceed compensation amount of $350,000. The Agreement authorized C & S to provide on-call services related to the airport portion of the County’s CIP for both Airports, and included airport planning, design and engineering, geotechnical, pavement evaluation, drainage studies, cost estimating, construction observation, testing and inspection, and project coordination.
On June 28, 2016 (Item 27), the Board approved the First Amendment (Amendment 1) to the Agreement which extended the term by one year to July 29, 2017, deleted the term language of “upon completion of all issued Task Orders, whichever is later,” and increased compensation for services to $878,000, along with minor administrative revisions.
Amendment 1 allowed for services to continue while a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) process was completed in Fiscal Year 2016/2017, which provided various consultant short lists in twenty-five professional service categories for use by the departments under the former Community Development Services umbrella. RFQ 17-918-020 was issued by the Procurement and Contracts Division of the County’s Chief Administrative Office (County Procurement), and included general specifications, but not specific FAA requirements related to selection of airport consulting services. A separate Request for Proposals (RFP) process was required in order to include language necessary for FAA consultant selection compliance.
On July 25, 2017 (Item 13), the Board approved the Second Amendment (Amendment 2) to the Agreement which again extended the term by one additional year to July 29, 2018, and provided for minor administrative updates, with no change in rates or compensation.
Amendment 2 allowed various projects to continue moving forward for both Airports and, at the same time, provided an opportunity for staff to research the County’s requirements for initiating a RFP process to secure FAA compliant consulting services following the expiration of this Agreement.
The Third Amendment (Amendment 3), was approved on July 17, 2018 (Item 16) and extended the term of the Agreement for two additional years as well as two additional days to July 31, 2020, which allowed the Agreement's term to coincide with the FAA grant closeout of some of those CIP projects which were in process at both Airports; no change in rates was required to extend the Agreement.
Since the Board’s approval of Amendment 3, unforeseen delays, including recent delays caused by COVID-19, occurred in FAA’s review and approval of various project components, resulting in the need to continue the contractual services of C & S beyond the term of the amendment. The FAA Advisory Circular, dated September 25, 2015, allows for contracts to be extended beyond a five-year term in order to conclude work on projects that were initiated within the first five years of a consulting agreement. Also, the FAA prefers working through a project with the same contracted consultant, from start to finish, eliminating potential cost increases from a mid-way project shift in consulting services.
The proposed Amendment 4 includes needed revisions to federal and state provisions, as well as minor administrative revisions to update the County’s address for notices, the Consultant’s notice recipient, and the Consultant’s Project Manager.
Research performed by staff and new FAA requirements resulted in a decision to conduct two separate RFQs, one for airport planning and environmental services, and one for airport development, from design through construction. Conducting two RFQ processes will ensure that the County will comply with new FAA requirements. The RFQs are currently being processed by County staff and then will be sent to the FAA for review and approval.
Projects in Process:
• Crack Seal, Joint Seal & Mark Runway, Taxiways, Aprons & T-Hangar Taxilanes; Change Runway End ID Project at the Georgetown Airport (CIP 93527);
• Taxiway Edge Lights Project at the Placerville Airport (CIP 93130); and
• Airport Layout Plan Update and Obstruction Survey at the Placerville Airport (CIP 93132).
Approval of Amendment 4 will allow these projects to continue moving forward for both Airports.
ALTERNATIVES
The Board could choose to:
1) Approve Amendment 4 with a different service term; or
2) Disapprove Amendment 4, which would cause delays on projects already in progress, as work on these projects cannot proceed without the support of an airport consultant, and costs for projects currently in process would likely increase due to the delay.
OTHER DEPARTMENT / AGENCY INVOLVEMENT
County Counsel and Risk Management.
CAO RECOMMENDATION
Approve as recommended.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Funding for CIP 93527 is provided by a grant from the FAA (90%), with the local match from the Accumulated Capital Outlay (ACO) Fund (10%). Funding for CIP 93130 and CIP 93132 is provided by grants from the FAA (90%), with the local match from grants from the State of California, Department of Transportation, Division of Aeronautics (4.5%), and from the ACO Fund (5.5%).
Planning and Building Department programmed adequate appropriations for CIP 93132 in the 2020 CIP Book and in the Planning and Building Department Fiscal Year (FY) 2020-21 Recommended budget.
At the time the 2020 CIP Book and the FY 2020-21 Recommended budget were prepared, staff anticipated that CIP 93527 and CIP 93130 would be completed by the end of FY 2019-20; however, as stated above, unforeseen delays, including recent delays caused by COVID-19, occurred in FAA’s review and approval of various project components, and, therefore, the projects were not completed by the end of FY 2019-20. The requested Board action to extend this Agreement one additional year will not create any additional financial impact; however, some adjustments will need to be made during the FY 2020/2021 budget addenda process to move appropriations for remaining work on CIP 93527 and CIP 93130 that needs to shift to FY 2020-21.
CLERK OF THE BOARD FOLLOW UP ACTIONS
1) Clerk of the Board will obtain the Chair’s signature on the two (2) original copies of Amendment 4.
2) Clerk of the Board will forward one (1) fully executed original copy of Amendment 4 to County Procurement, Building C of the County Government Center, for transmittal to C & S.
STRATEGIC PLAN COMPONENT
Infrastructure, Public Safety, and Economic Development.
CONTACT
Creighton Avila, Assistant Director
Planning and Building Department
Tiffany Schmid, Director
Planning and Building Department