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SR-02-26-2013-3KCity Council Meeting: February 26, 2013 Agenda Item: -3' V_ To: Mayor and City Council From: Martin Pastucha, Director of Public Works Subject: Pier Bridge Interim Pedestrian Safety Improvements Recommended Action Staff recommends that the City Council: 1. Authorize the City Manager to negotiate and execute a first modification to Contract No. 9690 (CCS) in the amount of $150,000 (including a 10% contingency) with Meek Shea, Joint Venture, a California -based company, to implement Pier Bridge interim pedestrian safety improvements. This would result in a new contract amount not to exceed $8,350,000. 2. Appropriate the budget increases and authorize the budget changes as outlined in the Financial Impacts and Budget Actions section of this report. Executive Summary The Pier Bridge is an existing concrete structure connecting Ocean Avenue to the Santa Monica Pier. The bridge is the primary route for pedestrians to access the Santa Monica Pier from downtown Santa Monica. The bridge also provides the only vehicular access to the Pier deck parking lot. Police Department staff has expressed concern about the potential conflict between vehicles and pedestrians on the Pier Bridge since the narrow sidewalks are inadequate for the large volume of pedestrians traversing the bridge. Staff has identified interim modifications to the bridge's sidewalks which would improve safety until a new bridge is constructed. The new bridge construction is anticipated to begin in 2016. Staff recommends an amendment to an existing contract with Meek Shea, Joint Venture, the City's contractor for the Santa Monica Municipal Pier Replacement Project, to implement the Pier Bridge interim safety improvements in the amount of $150,000, for a new amount not to exceed $8,350,000. Background On September 11 2012, the City Council approved Agreement No. 9642 (CCS) with T.Y.LIN International, to provide public outreach, conceptual design, and environmental documentation services for the Pier Bridge Replacement Project. The Pier Bridge 1 Replacement Project is intended to replace the existing structure to improve pedestrian, bicycle, and vehicular access to the Pier utilizing federal transportation grant funds. On January 22, 2013, the City Council approved construction Contract No. 9690 (CCS) with Meek Shea, Joint Venture for the Santa Monica Municipal Pier Replacement Project for demolition and reconstruction of a 360 -foot long by 36 -foot wide section of the Municipal Pier from the high tide line to the westerly concrete pier constructed in the late 1980s. Discussion The Pier Bridge was built in 1939. On a daily basis, large volumes of pedestrians access the Santa Monica Pier from downtown Santa Monica via the Pier Bridge. The majority of the pedestrians access the bridge on the north side from the crosswalk at the intersection of Ocean Avenue and Colorado Avenue or from Palisades Park. The bridge has very narrow sidewalks and tall curbs and the height of the handrail above the walking surface is less than the height required by current standards. The sidewalks on the bridge are inadequate to accommodate the volume of pedestrians traveling to and from the Pier. Pedestrians often walk in the adjacent vehicle lanes as shown in the attached photo (Exhibit A). For this reason, the Police Department is concerned about the potential conflict between pedestrians and vehicles in the event a driver was to lose control of a vehicle. Staff has reviewed the safety issues on the Pier Bridge and Santa Monica Pier. Various options to improve the safety of pedestrians, bicycles and vehicular traffic were explored, including closing or limiting access to vehicles on the bridge and adjacent pier. To improve pedestrian safety until a new bridge is built, staff recommends removing the sidewalks on the bridge, shifting vehicle lanes to the south side and providing a wider pedestrian walkway on the north side of the bridge. Staff also recommends installing a temporary concrete barrier between the vehicle lanes and the pedestrian walkway and `a improving signage and roadway markings. The existing and proposed cross - sections of the Pier Bridge are attached (Exhibit B). The public outreach and conceptual design phase of Pier Bridge Replacement Project was recently initiated. The current schedule anticipates construction beginning in 2016 and lasting for approximately 18 months. Contractor Selection Meek Shea, Joint Venture, the only bidder, was awarded a construction contract on January 22, 2013 for the demolition and reconstruction of the Municipal Pier and bridge. The bid was evaluated on competitive pricing, understanding of the project's scope, direct experience with similar projects, approach to the work, technical competence, qualifications of the proposed staff, and the ability to meet the project schedule. Staff verified their experience on past projects and all agencies reported the contractor's work to be satisfactory. In light of safety concerns raised by the Police Department, it would be more expeditious to modify the existing contract with Meek Shea, Joint Venture. Furthermore, for this project, it would be more efficient and effective to mobilize the company currently on -site than to solicit this interim work under a new project bid. Therefore, staff recommends a modification to the existing contract with Meek Shea, Joint Venture to implement the Pier Bridge interim pedestrian safety improvements. Public Outreach The proposed pedestrian safety improvements were presented to the Pier Board on December 5, 2012. The Pier Board approved a motion providing general support for the interim pedestrian safety plan as a cost effective, interim solution that would provide safer pedestrian access to the Pier. Additionally, staff has discussed the proposed improvements with the Pier tenants and staff will continue to keep them informed of the implementation schedule and any temporary access impacts during implementation. In order to complete the interim pedestrian safety improvements prior to the summer season, staff recommends modifying existing Contract No. 9690 (CCS) in the amount of $150,000 with Meek Shea, Joint Venture as opposed to soliciting bids. Meek Shea will be mobilizing equipment and materials in and adjacent to the area of the proposed 3 interim safety improvements to construct the Santa Monica Municipal Pier Replacement Project allowing for effective coordination. Financial Impacts & Budget Actions The contract modification to be awarded to Meek Shea, Joint Venture, is $150,000 for an amended contract total not to exceed $8,350,000. Award of the contract modification requires the following budget actions: 1. Transfer of $24,995 from account 0010655.589000 to account C010655.589500. 2. Additional appropriation of $125,005 to account C010655.589500. Prepared by: Mark Cuneo, P.E., Principal Civil Engineer Approved: "- 0�� Martin Pastucha Director of Public Works 12 Forwarded to Council: Rod Gould City Manager EXHIBIT "A" 5 EXHIBIT "B" North EXISTING South North PROPOSED South 0 Reference Modified Agreement No. 9690 (CCS)