To: Board of Supervisors
Department or Agency Name(s): Sonoma County Public Infrastructure
Staff Name and Phone Number: Johannes J. Hoevertsz, 707-565-2550
Vote Requirement: Majority
Supervisorial District(s): Countywide
Title:
Title
Contract for Pavement Condition Assessment Consultant
End
Recommended Action:
Recommended action
A) Approve and authorize the Director of Sonoma County Public Infrastructure (SPI) to execute the proposed four-year professional service agreement with Nichols Consulting Engineers, Chartered (“NCE”), to collect pavement condition data for the County’s Pavement Management System, for a base contract amount not to exceed $1,077,360.
B) Authorize the Director of SPI to issue task orders for additional, optional services under the subject agreement, in any amount up to a total of $200,000.
end
Executive Summary:
Sonoma County Public Infrastructure is requesting authorization to execute a four-year professional services agreement with Nichols Consulting Engineers, to conduct annual inspections of the 1,369 miles of County-maintained roads and provide updates on road conditions summarized in the Pavement Management System (StreetSaver). SPI also requests authorization for the Director of SPI to issue task orders under the agreement up to $200,000 for supplemental services in support of the Department’s Pavement Management Program, including Metropolitan Transportation Commission coordination and pavement design and testing services.
Discussion:
Sonoma County Public Infrastructure (SPI) maintains a database (SteetSaver) of current road conditions in order to remain eligible for Federal transportation funding and to make educated decisions regarding road construction and maintenance priorities. Information collected on the 1,369 miles of County roads is entered in the database and used to generate a Pavement Condition Index (PCI). The PCI is an industry standard which ranks pavement conditions on a scale of 0 to 100 (100 being best) and is used in conjunction with other information such as traffic volume by SPI staff, the Board of Supervisors, and the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) to make informed decisions regarding road maintenance priorities and funding.
SPI Roads Division has historically retained a consultant to perform the semi-automated and physical inspections of the roads and calculate the distress and density of the pavement. This information is uploaded into the StreetSaver database and used to calculate the PCI for each County road. Most recently, the Board awarded a four-year contract on February 9, 2021 to Harris & Associates to perform this work. Anticipating the expiration of that contract, SPI staff initiated a competitive procurement process by advertising a Request for Proposals (RFP) on the County’s Supplier Portal on November 22, 2024. Of the nine hundred sixty-three firms invited to respond to the solicitation, SPI received responses from the following five consultants:
• Applied Research Associates, Inc. (ARA) - Ventura, CA
• Harris & Associates - Concord, CA
• InfraHub - Dover, DE
• Nichols Consulting Engineers (NCE) - Richmond, CA
• Silent Falcon - Front Royal, VA
The five proposals were evaluated by an evaluation committee and ranked based on: demonstrated ability to perform the services described; experience, qualifications and expertise; quality of work as verified by references; costs relative to the scope of services, a demonstrated history of providing similar services to comparable entities; and willingness to accept the County’s contract terms. At the conclusion of this evaluation process, Nichols Consulting Engineers, Chartered (“NCE”) was selected as the highest ranked proposer, and SPI staff is recommending the award of a new, four-year contract valued at $1,277,360, including $200,000 in optional services, to NCE.
The agreement is planned to be funded as part of the Road division annual budget. Notwithstanding, SPI intends to seek funding assistance from MTC’s Pavement Technology Assistance Program (PTAP) grant program, which if obtained will be used to fund the agreement in that corresponding grant year. However, SPI will self-fund the agreement in the event MTC grant assistance is not available.
Strategic Plan:
This item directly supports the County’s Five-year Strategic Plan and is aligned with the following pillar, goal, and objective.
Pillar: Resilient Infrastructure
Goal: Goal 3: Continue to invest in critical road, bridge, bicycle, and pedestrian infrastructure.
Objective: Objective 1: Continue to maintain road segments, including designated turnouts where feasible, increase efforts on vegetation removal and drainage features, and improve pavement conditions in neighborhoods.
Racial Equity:
Was this item identified as an opportunity to apply the Racial Equity Toolkit?
No
Prior Board Actions:
2/9/2021: Agreement for engineering consulting services with Harris & Associates to provide pavement inspection and supplemental services.
6/21/2016: Agreement for engineering consulting services with NCE to provide pavement inspection and supplemental services.
4/16/2013: First Amendment for engineering consulting services with Harris & Associates to provide pavement inspection and supplemental services.
4/24/2012: Agreement for engineering consulting services with Harris & Associates to provide pavement inspection and supplemental services.
Fiscal Summary
|
Expenditures |
FY23-24 Adopted |
FY24-25 Projected |
FY25-26 Projected |
|
Budgeted Expenses |
$75,138 |
$300,552 |
$300,552 |
|
Additional Appropriation Requested |
|
|
|
|
Total Expenditures |
$75,138 |
$300,552 |
$300,552 |
|
Funding Sources |
|
|
|
|
General Fund/WA GF |
|
|
|
|
State/Federal |
|
|
|
|
Fees/Other |
$75,138 |
$300,552 |
$300,552 |
|
Use of Fund Balance |
|
|
|
|
General Fund Contingencies |
|
|
|
|
Total Sources |
$75,138 |
$300,552 |
$300,552 |
Narrative Explanation of Fiscal Impacts:
Appropriations for these services are included in the FY 2024-25 Roads Administration adopted budget (11051-34010101). Appropriations for subsequent year expenses will be included in future Recommended Budgets beginning in FY 2025-26. The Department intends to seek funding assistance from the Metropolitan Transportation Commission’s (MTC) Pavement Technology Assistance Program (PTAP) grant program. Funding sources for expenses not funded by MTC include allocations from the State Highway Users Tax Account (HUTA) as well as proceeds from vehicle code and parking fines.
Narrative Explanation of Staffing Impacts (If Required):
None.
Attachments:
NCE Agreement
Related Items “On File” with the Clerk of the Board:
None.