TO:
Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
THROUGH:
Bruce Moe, City Manager
FROM:
Erick Lee, Public Works Director
Katherine Doherty, City Engineer
Gilbert Gamboa, Senior Civil Engineer
SUBJECT:Title
Consideration of a Resolution Approving Amendment No. 2 to the Professional Services Agreement with Moffatt & Nichol for Additional Design Services for the Pier Railing Replacement Project at a Cost Not-to-Exceed $32,004; and Consideration of the Preferred Aluminum Coating and Seafoam Green Color Specifications for the Project (Public Works Director Lee).
ADOPT RESOLUTION NO. 22-0012
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Recommended Action
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends that City Council:
1. Adopt Resolution No. 22-0012 approving Amendment No. 2 to the Professional Services Agreement with Moffatt & Nichol for additional design services for the Pier Railing Replacement Project at a cost not-to-exceed $32,004; and
2. Direct staff to prepare final plans and bid documents for this project that include Aluminum PVDF Coating and Seafoam Green color specifications available from preferred manufacturers 1) CraneVeyor Corp, and 2) Linetec.
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FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
The original contract amount for the Pier Railing Replacement Project design was $164,985. The additional services rendered under previously approved Amendment No. 1 increased the contract amount by $18,438. The additional services to be rendered under Amendment No. 2 will increase the contract amount by $32,004 to $215,427. Because the total amendment amount exceeds the City Manager’s awarding authority per the City’s purchasing policy, City Council approval of Amendment No. 2 is required. The additional services can be paid from the Pier Railing Replacement Project budget, which has a current balance of $1,662,904.
BACKGROUND:
The City awarded a design contract to Moffatt & Nichol on March 19, 2019 for conceptual design, permitting and final design services to replace the existing Pier railing system on the perimeter of the entire Pier deck, inclusive of the stairways railing adjacent to the Pier and the existing entrance security gates, as well as railing sections along the bike path. The comfort station railing will only be considered to provide consistency with the new design. The lifeguard tower railing was previously replaced and is not part of this project.
On February 16, 2021, the City Council approved the preferred design alternative for the Pier Railing Replacement Project (see attached). The preferred design alternative preserves the historic look of the Pier by matching the style of the existing railing with minor modifications to meet current building codes including the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and accommodates maintenance considerations. Please note that our goal is to maintain the current look of the Pier railings to the maximum extent possible.
The preferred railing alternative involves maintaining the overall character of the existing railing including the round shaped horizontal railings, posts and color. The preferred material for replacement includes a polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF, a.k.a Kynar), colored coated aluminum tubing to reduce corrosion. The preferred alternative will include a removable, segmented installation method which will accommodate future maintenance concerns and solve awkward transitions and incompatible railing types.
Meeting current building code standards for spacing between rails and posts necessitates the addition of a fifth horizontal rail and an extra post at the ends of removable segments. The height of the existing railing will for the most part remain the same and only be adjusted slightly to meet current building code provisions.
Permitting coordination outreach has been accomplished concurrently with the preparation of final design and construction documents. The project team followed formal application procedures and coordinated permit determinations with outside agencies to ensure all federal, state, and local requirements pertaining to the improvements were satisfied. These necessary governmental and regulatory approvals concluded with the final permit waiver determination by the California Coastal Commission at its October 2021 meeting and included:
• California Coastal Commission
• State of California, Department of Parks and Recreation
• US Army Corps of Engineers
• Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board
• Los Angeles County Department of Beaches and Harbor
• Los Angeles County Department of Public Works
DISCUSSION:
Amendment No. 2 - Staircase Replacement
Amendment No. 2 will provide coordination and design services for the removal and replacement of the two existing timber staircases at the base of the Pier. The handrail and guardrails on these staircases are already included in the design scope for the railing replacement project. However, due to the age and condition of these staircases, the City would like to have the option to replace these structures as part of the railing replacement project such that their condition will not limit their use in the future. In addition, the removal and replacement of the staircases will satisfy the City’s Building Division plan check review code requirements.
The project design elements that will be considered include: preparation of final design drawings for the proposed replacement staircase, preparation of building permit structural calculations, supplementary technical specifications for bidding, cost estimate of probable construction costs, and geotechnical recommendations for new stairway foundation system. Timber staircases are the preferred design alternative to preserve the historic look of the Pier by matching the style of the existing stairs with minor modifications to meet current building codes and accommodate maintenance considerations. This decision was discussed with maintenance staff, and an appropriate marine environment/corrosion protection preservative treatment and service grade will be specified for the timber, fasteners and connections.
Preferred Aluminum Railing PVDF Coating & Seafoam Green Color Specifications As mentioned above, the preferred railing concept was presented to the City Council at the February 16, 2021, meeting. At that meeting, the City Council directed staff to proceed with final design of the preferred railing replacement alternative. As a condition to the “approval-in-concept,” City Council requested a sample of the railing be provided for review prior to finalizing design and final bid documents.
In following this direction, staff has investigated and procured railing samples from three different coating manufacturers. The following two coating manufacturers have shown they can procure a custom color coating system that closely matches the existing Seafoam Green color and are ranked in order of closest color match.
1. CraneVeyor Corp, South El Monte, CA
2. Linetec, Wausau, WI
Additionally, the City received a sample from the following manufacturer that was determined by staff to not be a close match to the existing Seafoam Green color:
3. ACE, Hillside, IL
For reference purposes, photos of the samples from all three vendors are included as an attachment to this report.
Below is a summary that describes the railing material combinations currently available on the market as defined by the approved preferred alternative including material, finish and color.
1. Railing Material Type - During the conceptual design process, aluminum was defined as the base material for the preferred railing replacement alternative. Aluminum has superior corrosion resistant properties within marine environments in comparison to other similar metallic materials (i.e. carbon steel). All finish systems studied were specific to aluminum as the base material.
2. Coating Finish Type - Aluminum has several finishing options available to provide additional corrosion protection and/or color schemes desired. The following is a breakdown of the available finishing systems ranked in order of least-to-most durable:
• Mill Finish - This is essentially raw aluminum material. This is most susceptible to pitting overtime; however pitting can typically be buffed out with a citrus based aluminum cleaner. In severe cases a grinder can be used or sections of railing would be need to be removed and new section splice-welded in place.
• Powder Coating - The raw material from the mill finish is pre-treated with epoxy resins and a spray coating applied. The coating has good performance in anti-impact, anti-friction, anti-corrosion, and weather fastness. The main drawback is the surface color tends to naturally fade overtime.
• Polyvinylidene Fluoride (PVDF) Coating (a.k.a. Kynar) - Similar in process of application to powder coating, but superior in wear-resistant, weather-resistant, UV-resistant, and resistant to color fading overtime. This material has a good track record for use in aircraft, maritime boating industry, and outdoor architectural finishes.
• Anodizing - Anodizing is an electrochemical process that forms a protective coating of aluminum oxide on the surface of the aluminum. The lifetime of the finish is proportional to the thickness of the anodic coating applied. Aluminum oxide is a hard, durable, weather-resistant substance that protects the base metal. The coating is integral to the metal rather than having a separate applied coating on top of the material.
3. Color Matching - The type of finish dictates the color options available due to the process by which the finish is applied and available technologies on the market. A breakdown of the available colors for each finishing system has been provided below.
• Mill Finish - Only available in the color of the raw aluminum material, a silver metallic.
• Powder Coating - Most wide variety of color options. Color matching is available, including custom Seafoam Green.
• Polyvinylidene Fluoride (PVDF) Coating - Similar variety of color options as powder coating. Color matching is available, including custom Seafoam Green.
• Anodizing - Only available in a select few “off-the-shelf” colors. The desired Seafoam Green color is not practically available as it would be applied by dyes and not part of the electrolysis process and will fade out. As a result, manufactures would not provide a warranty for the color match. The process in which colored tones are provided in anodizing is different between lightfast and non-lightfast dyes. There are a few lightfast dyes available, but they are limited to four colors clear, bronze, black, and gold/champagne. Any color outside of these few are not practical for this application. Furthermore, providing a specific color dye is an expensive process that requires conversion of an anodizing tank to a specific color.
This study has concluded that all the manufactures contacted have provided the same feedback: For aluminum tubing in a marine environment, either PVDF Coating or Anodized finishes are the preferred methods. Given the limitations on available technologies, it is not currently feasible to present an anodized finish in the preferred Seafoam Green color. Therefore, the PVDF Coating is recommended as the preferred coating system to be able to provide a color match to the desired Seafoam Green.
In addition, staff recommends that the vendors to be listed in the project specifications as preferred manufacturers include 1) CraneVeyor Corp, and 2) Linetec because they can produce the closest match to the Seafoam Green color desired by the City. ACE did not produce a close color match and, therefore, will not be listed as a preferred manufacturer. However, under the California Public Contract Code, ACE or another manufacturer can be considered an “approved equal” if they can produce a close color match sample that meets the City’s approval at time of contract award. If the recommended construction contract award includes an “approved equal” allowance, this information will be brought to the City Council’s attention as part of the construction contract award process.
As it relates to the Coating Finish Type to be used and the Seafoam Green color to be pursued, staff recommends that the City Council direct staff to prepare final plans and bid documents for this project that include PVDF Coating and Seafoam Green color specifications available from preferred manufacturers 1) CraneVeyor Corp, and 2) Linetec.
Alternatively, if the City Council is not satisfied with the materials and color match specifications that have been developed by staff, the City Council can direct staff to conduct further research on these items for further consideration by the City Council.
Construction Considerations
Construction bidding will include a base bid and additive alternate strategy to provide cost control flexibility at the time of award of contract. The scope of work included in the base bid will include all the railings along the Pier and stairs, only, while additive alternate bids will include the railing adjacent to the bike path, lower Pier parking lots, and surrounding the existing Comfort Station restroom facility in order to maintain a consistent appearance with the final design.
The project team is anticipating the following main kinds of impacts requiring coordination and/or mitigation during construction:
• Public Access and Traffic Control
• Construction Phasing
• Construction Staging
• Coordination with Special Events
Provisions for construction coordination and mitigation measures will be implemented in the final construction bid documents accordingly so that the normal access and activities at the pier and parking lots can continue while the project is being constructed in short railing segments. Construction activities can be curtailed during certain special events to minimize any disruptions.
Project Timeline
Following approval of Amendment No. 2, the anticipated schedule milestones for the project are as follows:
• Complete Final Design February 2022
• City Plan Check February 2022
• Bidding March 2022
• Project Award May 2022
• Procurement Start June 2022
• Installation Start September 2022
• Project Completion June 2023
PUBLIC OUTREACH:
The Pier Railing Replacement Project Coastal Development Permit (CDP) waiver was appropriately noticed and reported to the California Coastal Commission at their regular meeting on October 13, 2021. A community information meeting was held on October 29, 2020, as well as a preliminary design kickoff meeting with the State Parks and Recreation Department on July 10, 2019. The project was also discussed at previous Capital Improvement Program budget meetings.
Once the project progresses to the construction phase, public outreach will include construction update notices, special event coordination, electronic message boards, media coordination, traffic alerts and updates on the City website.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW:
The City and State have reviewed the proposed project for compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and has determined that the project qualifies for a Categorical Exemption pursuant to Section 15302(b) of the State CEQA Guidelines (replacement or reconstruction of existing structures and facilities where the new structure will be located on the same site as the structure replaced and will have substantially the same purpose and capacity as the structure replaced). A Notice of Exemption was filed with the State Clearing House and Los Angeles County Clerk’s Office for the Project.
LEGAL REVIEW:
The City Attorney has reviewed this report and determined that no additional legal analysis is necessary.
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Resolution No. 22-0012
2. Amendment No. 2 - Moffatt & Nichol
3. Agreement and Amendment No. 1 - Moffatt & Nichol
4. Rendering of Approved Railing Replacement Alternative
5. Photos of Aluminum Railing Samples