Staff recommends the City Council award a contract for W.O. 23-11 Downtown 2-Way Street Conversion & Montana Avenue Road Diet to DOWL in the amount of $599,534.

A Downtown Traffic Study evaluating the current transportation network from Division Street to Main Street and 6th Avenue North to Montana Avenue was completed in August 2019. Generally, the study recommended prioritizing the conversion of streets from one-way to two-way within downtown Billings. The conversion from one-way to two-way moves toward a consistent network of two-way streets within downtown Billings. North 29th Street and North 30th Street were successfully converted from one-way to two-way in 2021. Work Order 23-11 will convert the remaining one-way north-south streets from Division Street to North 25th Street, as well as 2nd Ave North and 3rd Ave North. The project will also include necessary roadway maintenance chip sealing and traffic control upgrades to aging signal equipment. Other benefits include increased exposure for downtown businesses, multi-modal connectivity, and accessibility for users. This project will also include the design for a lane reduction, or road diet, on Montana Avenue from North 27th Street to North 21st Street. 

The scope of work includes preliminary and final design for the downtown street 2-way conversions as well as the Montana Avenue road diet. Construction contract administration and construction inspection services will be requested separately after the construction contract is bid and duration is determined.This project is an approved FY23 CIP design project. The project is anticipated to be constructed in FY24.

The City requested proposals for professional services from the prequalified list derived from the established Statement of Qualifications. DOWL was selected for the project using the proposal process. Three other proposals were received from KLJ Engineering, HDR Engineering, and Sanderson Stewart. The Consultant selection was based on Project Team and Availability, Project Approach, and Firm Qualifications and Experience related to project needs. 

City Council may:

• Approve award of Professional Services Contract with DOWL; or,
• Not approve a contract with DOWL. If this agreement is not approved, this work would be delayed and the downtown network will operate in the current state. 

The professional services contract is in the amount of $599,534. The project was budgeted in FY23 using Downtown TIF funds and there is sufficient budget to award the contract.