To: Board of Supervisors
Department or Agency Name(s): Sonoma County Public Infrastructure - Transit Division
Staff Name and Phone Number: Johannes J. Hoevertsz, 707-565-2550
Vote Requirement: Majority
Supervisorial District(s): Countywide
Title:
Title
Sonoma County Transit - Electric Bus Charging Facility, Construction Award
End
Recommended Action:
Recommended action
A) Approve Plans, Specifications, Estimate and Contract for Sonoma County Transit Project 2024-SCT-01-Electric Bus Charging Facility.
B) Award the construction contract for the Sonoma County Transit’s Bus Charging Facility to Anvil Builders, Inc., in the amount of $4,172,123.40; authorize a contingency up to 15% of the project cost in the amount of $625,819; and authorize the Director of Public Infrastructure to execute said construction contract and any other related, required documents, in form approved by County Counsel.
end
Executive Summary:
The Sonoma County Public Infrastructure Department (SPI) Transit Division is seeking Board award of the construction contract to Anvil Builders, Inc. in an amount not to exceed $4,797,942 (including a 15% contingency) for the construction of a new electric bus charging facility at the Sonoma County Transit yard located on West Robles Avenue in Santa Rosa. The new facility will provide charging for 30-foot, 35-foot, and 40-foot battery-electric transit coaches in compliance with the California Air Resources Board’s Innovative Clean Transit regulations that requires transit operators to transition their fleets to zero-emission vehicles.
Discussion:
Sonoma County Transit must comply with the California Air Resources Board’s Innovative Clean Transit rule passed in December 2018 that requires all California transit operators to transition their fleets to zero-emission vehicles, and Sonoma County Transit currently has nine electric buses in its fleet. On January 31, 2023, the Board of Supervisors awarded a purchase agreement to Proterra, Inc. for ten 40-foot electric coaches, and on May 9, 2023, the purchase of Proterra charging equipment for the new 40’ coaches was approved.
On August 7th, Proterra filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection seeking reorganization of its business units which include transit bus manufacturing, vehicle battery manufacturing and charging and infrastructure sales. The bankruptcy proceedings remain in progress. Depending on the bankruptcy process, the County’s contracts with Proterra may remain as-is with Proterra, may be acquired by and assigned to another entity to perform, or may be rejected. A process for auctioning existing Proterra executory contracts has been approved by the Bankruptcy Court and decision as to next steps as to Proterra’s contract with the County is anticipated by late October.
Staff has been meeting with Proterra on its reorganization process and will continue to do so for the next several months. The purchase of Proterra chargers, that are planned to be installed as part of this construction project, will continue as the chargers can be used on buses from other manufacturers should the Proterra bus order ultimately be cancelled. Unlike the Proterra bus purchase, which requires progress payments, the purchase of the Proterra chargers will be paid for after delivery and acceptance by Sonoma County Transit.
Should Proterra not be able to deliver the ordered chargers per their timeline, or at all due to bankruptcy, completion of this project will be delayed if other chargers are procured. The construction project will move forward as it calls for installation of the infrastructure needed to support chargers and dispensers. If a significant delay results from Proterra’s inability to deliver the ordered charger and dispensers, this contract will be amended to remove installation of the Proterra charging system.
Staff is working on a plan as to the electric coach vehicle purchase contracts with Proterra, pending further developments as Proterra bankruptcy process runs its course.
This contract provides for the construction of a 19-space electric bus charging facility at the Sonoma County Transit facility located on West Robles Avenue. It is anticipated that the facility will have the capacity to charge up to thirty-two vehicles overnight. This project is funded by local Transportation Development Act (TDA) $2,797,942 and state Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program (TIRCP) funds $2,000,000.
The project was released for bidding on July 11, 2023, and advertised to prospective bidders on the same date and included a base bid and one bid alternative. A mandatory pre-bid meeting was held on-site on Wednesday, July 19, 2023. The base bid was for the charging facility, while the alternative was for a natural-gas powered generator capable of providing sufficient power to charge ten buses at a time should power be disrupted at the transit facility.
Four bids were opened on August 22, 2023, for the full project (base bid plus alternative). All bids were deemed responsive and were as follows:
1. Anvil Builders, Emeryville, CA $4,172,123.40
2. CWS Construction, Novato, CA $4,340,700.00
3. GEMS Environmental Management Services, Concord CA $5,092,924.37
4. Ghilotti Bros & St. Francis Electric JV, San Rafael, CA $6,070,845.00
Anvil Builders’ bid was $168,576.60 less than the second lowest bid provided by CWS Construction.
Per PCC 20128, the board shall award the contract to the lowest responsible bidder who shall perform the work in accordance with the plans and specifications.
No protests were received. The contract requires that the project be completed by June 14, 2024.
Strategic Plan:
This item directly supports the County’s Five-year Strategic Plan and is aligned with the following pillar, goal, and objective.
Pillar: Climate Action and Resiliency
Goal: Goal 4: Maximize sustainability and emissions reductions in all County Fleet vehicles
Objective: Objective 3: Upgrade the existing County owned Electric Vehicle charging station infrastructure by 2023.
Racial Equity:
Was this item identified as an opportunity to apply the Racial Equity Toolkit?
No
Prior Board Actions:
5/9/2023 #41 - Board approved the purchase of Proterra electric bus charging units.
1/31/2023 #14 - Board approved the purchase of 10 40-foot Proterra battery-electric transit coaches.
Fiscal Summary
|
Expenditures |
FY23-24 Adopted |
FY24-25 Projected |
FY25-26 Projected |
|
Budgeted Expenses |
$4,797,942 |
|
|
|
Additional Appropriation Requested |
|
|
|
|
Total Expenditures |
|
|
|
|
Funding Sources |
|
|
|
|
General Fund/WA GF |
|
|
|
|
State/Federal |
$4,797,942 |
|
|
|
Fees/Other |
|
|
|
|
Use of Fund Balance |
|
|
|
|
Contingencies |
|
|
|
|
Total Sources |
$4,797,942 |
|
|
Narrative Explanation of Fiscal Impacts:
This project is included in the adopted FY 2023-24 Transit Budget (41401-34040102). Funding for this project includes $2,797,942 in TDA funds and $2,000,000 in TIRCP funds.
Narrative Explanation of Staffing Impacts (If Required):
None
Attachments:
Bid Book
Specifications
Plans
Related Items “On File” with the Clerk of the Board:
None.