To: Sonoma County Board of Supervisors
Department or Agency Name(s): General Services
Staff Name and Phone Number: Caroline Judy: 707-565-8058
Vote Requirement: 4/5th
Supervisorial District(s): Countywide
Title:
Title
New Generator and Power Systems Upgrades at Sheriff’s Administration Building
End
Recommended Action:
Recommended action
Adopt a resolution approving budget adjustments to the FY 21-22 Budget in the amount of $940,050, using $300,000 of General Fund and $640,050 of Tobacco Securitization funds.
(4/5th Vote Required)
end
Executive Summary:
To ensure crucially important emergency power requirements, the Board approved initial funds to replace the aged, inadequately-sized emergency generator and associated power system upgrades at the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Main Administration Building in FY 2019/2020. With preliminary design and engineering work completed, staff have revised initial cost estimates to reflect increased materials costs, additional staff time required for permit coordination and support, and a higher contingency budget reflecting the overall budget increase for the project. Completion of the project is necessary to ensure that the Sheriff’s Main Administration building and the essential functions of providing 911 service and law enforcement are operational at all times especially during PSPS events and disasters.
Discussion:
Background
The existing emergency power generator system at Sheriff’s Office Main Administration Building was constructed nearly 20 years ago and is near the end of its useful lifespan. The urgency for replacement was made clear when the generator struggled to sustain operations at the onset of the Tubbs Fire in 2017. In addition, new programs and operations require significantly more power than the existing generator is capable of producing. The current generator does not provide adequate power to the entire building, especially during peak events. Staff proposed a new emergency generator nearly twice the size of the original, that would, along with interior building systems upgrades, help ensure that all Sheriff’s Office building electrical outlets are fully functional during any loss of power.
Project Costs
In FY 2019/2020, the Board approved $1,242,000, and $793,000 in FY 2020/2021, for a total of $2,035,000, which allowed the project to move forward through the design phase. With more refined information as well as the benefit of recent experience with generator projects, staff analysis has determined that an additional $940,050 is required to complete the construction phase of the project. The increase is primarily due to: higher materials costs, additional staff time to coordinate the successful navigation through a multi-agency permitting process, and, accordingly, a higher contingency set-aside.
Of the total $940,050 required to complete the project, approximately $289,000 is due to material cost increases and volatility. For example, steel, copper and aluminum have increased significantly - up to 215%, since the project costs were estimated in December, 2020. Materials cost increases are largely due to increased demand and manufacturer scale-back of production during the Covid-19 pandemic. Recent experience demonstrates that an additional $381,000 is required as a realistic estimate in total for staff time and support from Facilities Operations, County Counsel staff costs, permit costs including Permit Sonoma, Santa Rosa Fire Department, and Bay Area Air Quality Management District, generator freight costs, and commissioning costs. Attachment 3 provides a comparison of the original and the revised budget estimated expenses. An additional ten percent project contingency ($270,000) is recommended to be added given the higher total project costs to ensure sufficient funds to address any unforeseen issues with the construction and installation. General Services typically includes a 10 - 15% project budget contingency depending upon the complexity of the capital project. See Attachment 1 Sheriff’s Office Emergency Power Upgrades Revised Costs.
This item and recommended action pertains to project funding only, for remaining project needs. Once sufficient funding is secured, the project will progress eventually to the procurement of all needed contractors to perform the work, the approval of which will involve subsequent action by your Board to award of the applicable contract(s).
Project Status
Project design and engineering documents for construction have been completed and submitted to Permit Sonoma and Santa Rosa Fire Department for permitting. The application to the Bay Area Air Quality Management District will be submitted following receipt of the permits. Project is expected to be completed by March 2022.
Capital Project Budget Reviews
Recognizing demand is outpacing materials availability; staff has engaged on-contract cost estimating consulting services to review all currently funded Capital Project budgets to evaluate the risks of exposure to materials price increases such as those experienced by the Sheriff Generator and Power Systems project. If adjustments are necessary, staff will prioritize projects and return to the Board once this activity is complete with the appropriate plan of action for the Capital Program and each project so impacted.
Prior Board Actions:
Capital Budgets FY 2019/2020 and FY 2021/2022
Fiscal Summary
Expenditures |
FY 21-22 Adopted |
FY 22-23 Projected |
FY 23-24 Projected |
Budgeted Expenses |
$2,035,000 |
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|
Additional Appropriation Requested |
$940,050 |
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|
Total Expenditures |
$2,975,050 |
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|
Funding Sources |
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General Fund/WA GF |
$2,335,000 |
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State/Federal |
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|
Fees/Other |
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Use of Fund Balance |
$640,050 |
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Contingencies |
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Total Sources |
$2,975,050 |
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Narrative Explanation of Fiscal Impacts:
General Services is requesting additional project funding in the amount of $940,050, to cover estimated increased material costs ($288,098), additional staff time, counsel and required permits ($381,493), and a ten percent project contingency ($270,459). Of the $940,050 requested General Services will offset $300,000 with General Funds transferred from previously obtained grant funds from Department of Emergency Services. The $300,000 in DEM funding had been allocated to augment General Funds budgeted for the Sonoma, Petaluma and Santa Rosa generator projects. Those projects have all completed under-budget and therefore surplus funds are available to transfer to the Sheriff’s Generator and Power system project. The DEM funds were specifically intended to improve the resilience of County infrastructure, therefore the reallocation meets the funding objectives. The remaining $640,050 is available from the Tobacco fund balance, which stands at $751,800.
Staffing Impacts: |
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Position Title (Payroll Classification) |
Monthly Salary Range (A-I Step) |
Additions (Number) |
Deletions (Number) |
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Narrative Explanation of Staffing Impacts (If Required):
None
Attachments:
Attachment 1 - Sheriff’s Office Emergency Power Upgrades Revised Costs
Attachment 2 - Resolution
Attachment 3 - Budget Comparison
Related Items “On File” with the Clerk of the Board:
None