Title
Staff Report for a Resolution Accepting the Work for the BART-Downtown Pedestrian Interface, Project No. 11-150-38-331, Federal Aid Project No. CML-5041(036)
Staffreport
SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Staff recommends the City Council accept the work and authorize the City Manager to file the Notice of Completion, release the maintenance bonds for the subject project upon successful completion of the one-year maintenance period.
BACKGROUND
This project installed pedestrian-friendly improvements in front of the San Leandro BART Station along San Leandro Boulevard (SLB) between Davis Street and Williams Street. These improvements are consistent with the goals presented in the Transit Oriented Development (TOD) Strategy’s “Development and Implementation Guidelines” for improving BART Station Access, and include the following features:
• Five vehicle travel lanes on SLB (a reduction from seven existing lanes) with new on-street parking and a bike lane in each direction
• Pedestrian bulb-outs at intersection corners
• Ornamental streetlights with supplementary pedestrian level lighting
• New street trees and expanded landscaping areas in the center street median and in planters adjacent to the pedestrian sidewalk
• A new traffic signal at the intersection of Parrott Street and SLB and accessibility upgrades to the intersections of SLB and Davis Street, SLB and West Juana Avenue, and at the BART station entrance
• Asphalt concrete pavement re-surfacing and re-striping crosswalks with decorative patterns
• New pedestrian curb ramps and high-visibility crosswalk striping on East 14th Street in the Downtown core area between Davis Street and West Juana Avenue
Analysis
Construction is now complete and was performed in compliance with the contract documents.
Project acceptance was protracted pending repair of punch-list corrective items, primarily graffiti removal on completed sidewalk panels. These repairs are now complete and the project can be accepted.
Previous Actions
• On September 4, 2007, by Resolution No. 2007-111, the City Council approved the TOD Strategy, a plan that makes SLB and the San Leandro BART Station more pedestrian-friendly, thereby increasing vibrancy in the Downtown core area
• On July 19, 2010, by Resolution No. 2010-093, the City Council authorized an application for a federal Surface Transportation Program (STP) and Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement (CMAQ) funding grant, also known as a Transportation for Livable Cities (TLC) grant, as managed by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC); this resolution also committed the City to provide the necessary matching funds
• On March 7, 2011, by Resolution Nos. 2011-056 and 2011-057, the City Council authorized funding for the design phase of the subject project and approved the federal program supplement agreement 017-E for the subject project
• On July 18, 2011, by Resolution No. 2011-150 the City Council approved a Contract Services Agreement with Golden Associates for landscape design services
• On September 4, 2012, by Resolution No. 2012-121, the City Council approved Plans and Specifications and called for bids on the subject project
• On November 19, 2012 by Resolution 2012-120, the City Council awarded a construction contract to Gallagher and Burk, Incorporated on the subject project
Committee Review and Actions
The project’s design was presented to the Facilities and Transportation Committee on two occasions. A project story board and options were presented at the September 12, 2011 meeting. Options for plants, ornamental lighting, sidewalk paving, and ornamental gateway features were presented for review. Based on the comments received, a final project conceptual plan was developed and presented to the Committee at the March 15, 2012 meeting.
After approval at the second meeting, the final project design was developed and the current project construction documents were prepared.
Applicable General Plan Policies
Goal 6: Downtown Revitalization, of the General Plan addresses the TOD Strategy. Specifically, Goal 6.10, BART Station Area Revitalization, states: “Foster the development of the BART Station area as a mixed use “transit village,” with a full complement of office, medium and high-density residential, and office-serving retail uses, along with pedestrian plazas, open space, BART parking, and other transit facilities (possibly including a Capitol Corridor rail station).”
Permits and/or Variances Granted
Encroachment permits from Caltrans for work on Davis Street and from BART for work adjacent to the station were obtained. Building and electrical permits from the City of San Leandro Building Department were also obtained.
Environmental Review
A NEPA Categorical Exclusion was completed for this project by Caltrans Local Assistance on June 11, 2011.
The project is a CEQA Section 15268 (a) Ministerial Project because it is consistent with the provisions of a prior Environmental Impact Report (EIR) certified by the City Council on September 4, 2007 for the adoption of the TOD Strategy. The current project was solely a ministerial action to grant an encroachment permit for construction in the right of way that implements this TOD Strategy.
Code Compliance Review
Electrical and building permits for pertinent construction items were obtained from the City of San Leandro Building Department.
Summary of Public Outreach Efforts
The project’s conceptual design was available for public review at the September 18, 2011 Farmer’s Market and was posted on the City’s website.
Extensive public outreach was conducted during the development of the TOD Strategy Plan. (This project was one of the several recommendations provided within the TOD Strategy Plan.) Between 2006 and 2007, there were a series of ten meetings with a 23-member Citizens Advisory Committee as the TOD was developed. Three community meetings were also held during this period.
Fiscal Impacts
The total project cost is $6,597,520 including design, construction, and construction management. A summary of the contract with Gallagher and Burk, Incorporated for construction of the work is listed below:
Original Contract: $4,846,700.00
Change Orders: $678,678.45
Total Contract Amount: $5,525,378.45
Major change orders involved the following work:
• Additional grading and paving to address unforeseen field conditions
• Addressing utility clearance conflicts between an existing high pressure gas main and footings for new street lights, traffic signals and storm inlets
• Accommodating revised water and electrical service points of connection,
• Providing an enhanced level of pedestrian traffic control to avoid sidewalk closures and facilitate BART access
• Landscape and irrigation revisions to accommodate existing and proposed developments on adjacent BART properties
• Incorporating miscellaneous design revisions related to wayfaring signage, crosswalk removal, additional ramps, and streetlight electrical connections
Budget Authority
The total project budget is $6,597,520 which was funded as listed below:
• $4,610,000 from a Transportation for Livable Cities (TLC) grant, Account 150-38-331 appropriated on July 19, 2010 by Resolution No. 2010-093
• $1,220,000 from the Kaiser Community Impact fund , Account 210-38-331 appropriated on March 7, 2011 by Resolution No. 2011-056
• $96,118 from the Development Fees for Street Improvements (DFSI) fund, Account 120-38-331 appropriated on March 7, 2011 by Resolution No. 2011-056
• $76,894 from Measure B Streets & Roads funds, Account 144-38-331 appropriated on March 7, 2011 by Resolution No. 2011-056
• $211,458 from Measure B Bike & Pedestrian funds, Account 144-36-331 in the 2011-12 Adopted Budget
• $350,000 in annual Gas Tax funds (Section 2103), Account 142-38-331 appropriated for street rehabilitation in the 2011-12 Adopted Budget.
• $12,000 in Water Pollution Control Plant Enterprise funds, Account 593-52-331 in the 2013-14 Adopted Budget
• $21,050 in grant funding from Stop Waste, Account 150-38-345 in the 2012-13 Adopted Budget.
ATTACHMENT
None.
PREPARED BY: Mark Goralka, Associate Engineer, Engineering and Transportation Department