TO:
Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
THROUGH:
Talyn Mirzakhanian, City Manager
FROM:
Ramzi Awwad, Public Works Director
Sean Roberts, Field Operations Manager
Christopher O’Brien, Maintenance Supervisor
Nicky Petroff, Senior Management Analyst
SUBJECT:Title
Consideration of a Resolution Approving Amendment No. 10 to the Landscaping Services Agreement with Merchants Landscape Services Inc., for Landscaping Services at a Cost Not-to-Exceed $986,797 (Budgeted) (Public Works Director Awwad).
ADOPT RESOLUTION NO. 26-0081
Body
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RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends that the City Council Adopt Resolution No. 26-0081, approving Amendment No. 10 to the Agreement with Merchants Landscape Services, Inc. (Merchants), for landscaping services at a total annual cost not to exceed $986,797.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
Sufficient funds for this agreement are available in the Public Works Department’s budget for the current fiscal year within the General Fund. Future years will be budgeted accordingly.
BACKGROUND:
The City has historically contracted for landscape services, including shrub and ground cover maintenance, maintenance of parks and public plazas, and irrigation repair, maintenance, and monitoring.
On September 1, 2018, following a competitive Request for Proposal process, the City entered into an agreement with Merchants for landscape maintenance services. The agreement included an initial five-year term with two options to renew for two years each and authorized annual Consumer Price Index (CPI) adjustments to account for increases in the cost of labor, materials, fuel, and equipment. Since execution of the agreement, the parties have amended the agreement to incorporate federally required contract provisions to maintain eligibility for FEMA reimbursement, modify chemical control practices, adjust compensation to reflect City budget reductions, restore landscape maintenance services following pandemic related service reductions, implement annual CPI adjustments, increase contingency funding to address unforeseen maintenance needs, add landscape maintenance services for City parks and sports fields, and exercise successive one year renewal terms. Following the expiration of the initial five-year term, annual CPI adjustments and renewal actions caused the total contract amount to exceed the City Manager's contracting authority. As a result, subsequent compensation adjustments and renewal terms required City Council approval through contract amendments. Amendment No. 10 would exercise the fourth and final one-year renewal option, extend the agreement through August 31, 2027, and revise the scope of services to reflect the City's current operational needs.
While this amendment represents the final available renewal term under the Agreement, staff recommends exercising the extension. Since the Agreement was executed in 2018, cumulative inflation has substantially increased the cost of labor, materials, fuel, and equipment used to provide landscape maintenance services. These broader economic conditions have been reflected in recent City procurements, where proposals for routine maintenance and service contracts have generally exceeded pricing received in prior years. Consequently, the current pricing under the Agreement remains favorable because the cumulative increase has been lower than the inflation rate since 2018. Conducting a new solicitation at this time would likely result in higher costs to the City. Extending the Agreement for one additional year will ensure continuity of service while allowing staff sufficient time to plan and budget for a future competitive procurement.
DISCUSSION:
The current annual cost for landscaping services provided by Merchants is $769,570. Effective September 1, 2026, Merchants has requested the annual three percent rate adjustment permitted under the Agreement, resulting in an increase of approximately $23,087. The proposed amendment also includes $42,240 for additional maintenance services requested by the City and approximately $20,000 for ongoing services that were previously added through Amendment No. 1. Collectively, these changes increase the annual contract amount by approximately $85,327, from $769,570 to $854,897.
Staff recommends that the City Council adopt Resolution No. 26-0081, approving Amendment No. 10 to the Agreement with Merchants Landscape Services for the final one-year extension of landscaping maintenance services through August 31, 2027, in an annual amount not-to-exceed $986,797. The annual amount includes monthly services of $71,241 (equating to $854,897 annually), plus a contingency of $131,900 for unforeseen maintenance activities, emergency response needs, and other supplemental services as necessary.
PUBLIC OUTREACH:
After analysis, staff determined that public outreach was not required for this issue.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW:
The City has reviewed the proposed activity for compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and has determined that the activity is not a “Project” as defined under Section 15378 of the State CEQA Guidelines; therefore, pursuant to Section 15060(c)(3) of the State CEQA Guidelines, the activity is not subject to CEQA. Thus, no environmental review is necessary.
LEGAL REVIEW:
The City Attorney has approved the amendment as to form.
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Resolution No. 26-0081
2. Amendment No. 10 - Merchants Landscape Services, Inc.
3. Agreement and Amendment No. 1 through 9 - Merchants Landscape Services, Inc.