TO:
Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
THROUGH:
Bruce Moe, City Manager
FROM:
Erick Lee, Public Works Director
Katherine Doherty, City Engineer
SUBJECT:Title
Discussion of Options for the Replacement of the Existing Escalators at the Metlox Parking Structure (Public Works Director Lee).
(Estimated Time: 30 Mins.)
DISCUSS AND PROVIDE DIRECTION
Body
_________________________________________________________
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends City Council discuss and provide direction on the future replacement options for the existing escalators at the Metlox Parking Structure.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
Sufficient funds totaling $1,500,000 are currently available for the Replace Escalators in Metlox Plaza Project. The project budget consists of $1,125,000 within the Parking Fund and $375,000 within the Grants Fund. The Grants Fund portion is anticipated to be fully offset by a $375,000 contribution from The Tolkin Group as a cost share under the terms of the lease agreement, pending negotiation. Based upon direction received, staff will return to the City Council with the necessary cost information for discussion leading to a selected option.
BACKGROUND:
The Metlox commercial development opened to the public in a dedication ceremony held on December 1, 2005. The Metlox Parking Structure located beneath the development is a City-owned facility that serves the Metlox commercial development and the Shade Hotel, as well as surrounding businesses and civic functions. The parking structure has two parking levels below street grade with vertical access provided by stairwells, a gurney-compliant elevator, and two sets of two escalators (four escalators total).
The vertical lift devices are maintained by the City on a regular frequency through contracted services. Major components of vertical lift devices generally have a lifespan of 20 to 25 years. The escalators in the Metlox Parking Structure are nearing their useful life and are experiencing increased downtime and maintenance costs.
DISCUSSION:
In response to the decreasing reliability of the existing escalators, staff had all of the components of the vertical lift devices analyzed for their condition and lifespan by an outside consultant, HKA Elevator Consulting, Inc. HKA noted that the Metlox Parking Structure escalators have an expected lifespan of 20 to 25 years and, given their age, their replacement needs to be planned. The City is annually incurring approximately $50,000 to $100,000 in maintenance costs on the existing escalators. There are multiple options to be considered for the disposition of the escalators: 1) reconstruct the escalators in kind, 2) replace the escalators with new units, 3) construct elevator(s) in lieu of the escalators, 4) replace the escalators with a grand stairwell, or 5) abandon the escalators and direct users to the existing stairwells and elevator.
City Council discussion and selection of preferred option(s) will help to guide the necessary feasibility investigation and development of preliminary costs. Rough order of magnitude (ROM) estimations of delivery costs by option are as follows:
Option ROM Estimates of Cost
1) Reconstruct the escalators in kind $1,600,000 - $2,000,000
2) Replace the escalators with new units $1,200,000 - $1,500,000
3) Construct elevator(s) in lieu of the escalators $500,000 - $1,500,000
4) Replace the escalators with a grand stairwell $500,000 - $1,000,000
5) Abandon the escalators $100,000 - $250,000
It is noted that the Metlox Parking Structure escalators are an integrated feature of the Metlox commercial development and the space the escalators occupy provides both airspace and natural light into the parking structure. The disposition of the escalators should take into account the integration of this access into both the retail area and the air and light functions of the vertical corridor.
It is anticipated that the process of feasibility investigation, design, plan check, stakeholder engagement and the bidding process will require approximately 18 to 24 months before construction can be initiated. During this time, staff also recommends that City Council discuss potential interim measures to inform the public of the upcoming improvements such as discontinuing use of the escalators, potentially including boarding up the area with appropriate signage indicating the City’s direction on replacing the escalators, or continuing to respond to outages and incur maintenance costs to keep the escalators running as is done currently.
PUBLIC OUTREACH:
Stakeholder engagement will be integrated into the feasibility investigation process. Preliminary discussions have taken place with the Downtown Business + Professional Association and The Tolkin Group.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW:
The City has reviewed the proposed activity for compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and has determined that there is no possibility that the activity may have a significant effect on the environment; therefore, pursuant to Section 15061(b)(3) of the State CEQA Guidelines the activity is not subject to CEQA. Although environmental review is not necessary at this time, additional environmental review will be required as applicable prior to the approval of any future project specific development entitlements including, but not limited to, site development plans, building permits, land development permits, and conditional use permits.
LEGAL REVIEW:
The City Attorney has reviewed this report and determined that no additional legal analysis is necessary.
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Location Map
2. PowerPoint Presentation