Agenda No. 5.
CITY COUNCIL MEMORANDUM
| City Council Meeting: | August 15, 2023 |
| Department: | Engineering |
| Subject: | Resolution 23-R-78 - Authorizing a resolution for a construction contract with R.L. Jones LP for the 2023 Trainer Hale Repair Project. (B.James/K.Woodlee/J.Nowak) |
BACKGROUND
Trainer Hale is currently a relatively low volume street in southern Schertz running parallel to and north of IH-10. While the street is in serviceable condition, there are some portions of the street where the pavement has settled and/or failed leading to unsafe conditions. Some of the failed areas are relatively small, less than a lane width, while one area near the intersection with FM 1518, the entire street width has failed.
Trainer Hale is classified as a secondary arterial by the City’s Master Thoroughfare Plan (MTP). As development continues in southern Schertz, Trainer Hale will need to be widened and improved as outlined in the Master Thoroughfare Plan. Such a project is not expected to occur in the near future. It is prudent to make some repairs to the street now, in order to keep it serviceable until the future widening/improvement project occurs. The proposed project will remove the existing pavement in the settled/failed areas, recompact the base underneath, and add some asphalt base to “level up” the areas as needed, and place a new layer of asphalt on the repair area. This will help improve the overall condition of the street and increase the serviceability.
Two bids were received on July 19, 2023, for the project. The bids ranged from a low of $114,325.00 to a high of $136,025.00. The low bid received was 42% above the Engineer’s Estimate for the project. Selection of the best bid was based primarily on cost. All bidders were required to submit additional information, such as experience on similar projects; experience on public projects; available resources to complete the project; corporate history and stability; and references. The additional information was used to verify the bidders were capable of completing the project. Based on the information provided, all bidders are capable of completing the project work. The lowest bid received for was from R.L. Jones LP. R.L. Jones LP successfully completed the Elbel Storm Drain and Overlay project in 2022.
In performing the bid analysis, Staff noted that the unit pricing for the asphalt removal and the new asphalt placement is significantly greater than the unit pricing in the Engineer’s Estimate. Staff believes this is due to a couple of factors. First, construction pricing appears to be continuing to increase more than normal due to the volatility in oil pricing. Secondly, due to the relatively low quantity of work, the unit prices may have increased more than the Engineer estimated they would. Even though the low bid is significantly more than the Engineer’s Estimate, there is adequate funding in the street preservation line item in this fiscal year’s budget to cover the cost of the project, including some contingency.
Trainer Hale is classified as a secondary arterial by the City’s Master Thoroughfare Plan (MTP). As development continues in southern Schertz, Trainer Hale will need to be widened and improved as outlined in the Master Thoroughfare Plan. Such a project is not expected to occur in the near future. It is prudent to make some repairs to the street now, in order to keep it serviceable until the future widening/improvement project occurs. The proposed project will remove the existing pavement in the settled/failed areas, recompact the base underneath, and add some asphalt base to “level up” the areas as needed, and place a new layer of asphalt on the repair area. This will help improve the overall condition of the street and increase the serviceability.
Two bids were received on July 19, 2023, for the project. The bids ranged from a low of $114,325.00 to a high of $136,025.00. The low bid received was 42% above the Engineer’s Estimate for the project. Selection of the best bid was based primarily on cost. All bidders were required to submit additional information, such as experience on similar projects; experience on public projects; available resources to complete the project; corporate history and stability; and references. The additional information was used to verify the bidders were capable of completing the project. Based on the information provided, all bidders are capable of completing the project work. The lowest bid received for was from R.L. Jones LP. R.L. Jones LP successfully completed the Elbel Storm Drain and Overlay project in 2022.
In performing the bid analysis, Staff noted that the unit pricing for the asphalt removal and the new asphalt placement is significantly greater than the unit pricing in the Engineer’s Estimate. Staff believes this is due to a couple of factors. First, construction pricing appears to be continuing to increase more than normal due to the volatility in oil pricing. Secondly, due to the relatively low quantity of work, the unit prices may have increased more than the Engineer estimated they would. Even though the low bid is significantly more than the Engineer’s Estimate, there is adequate funding in the street preservation line item in this fiscal year’s budget to cover the cost of the project, including some contingency.
GOAL
To obtain authorization from City Council to execute a construction contract with R.L. Jones LP for $114,325.00, and a not to exceed amount of $130,000.00, for the 2023 Trainer Hale Repair Project.
COMMUNITY BENEFIT
The project will repair some settled and/or failed section of the street, providing a smoother and safer driving surface.
SUMMARY OF RECOMMENDED ACTION
Authorize execution of the construction contract for the 2023 Trainer Hale Repairs Project to R.L. Jones LP, for $114,325.00 and a not to exceed amount of $130,000.00.
FISCAL IMPACT
Funding for the project will come from the street preservation line item in the FY 22-23 budget.
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends Council approve Resolution 23-R-78 and authorize the City Manager to execute a construction contract in substantially the same form as attached with R.L. Jones LP for $114,325.00 and a not to exceed amount of $130,000.00 for the 2023 Trainer Hale Repair Project.