Title
CONSIDERATION OF AWARDING OF BID 1516-33, APPROVAL OF CONTRACT K-1516-80 BY AND BETWEEN THE NORMAN UTILITIES AUTHORITY, THE CITY OF NORMAN, OKLAHOMA, AND CENTRAL CONTRACTING SERVICES, INC., IN THE AMOUNT OF $1,470,680; PERFORMANCE BOND B-1516-32; STATUTORY BOND B-1516-33; AND MAINTENANCE BOND MB-1516-23 FOR THE BERRY ROAD WATERLINE REPLACEMENT PROJECT, PHASE 3 (BETWEEN MAIN STREET AND ROBINSON STREET).
Body
BACKGROUND: For many years, the Norman Utilities Authority (NUA) has contemplated replacement of the 14-inch cast iron waterline along the west side of Berry Road from Robinson to Lindsey. This waterline was installed in the early 1940’s when North Base was a military facility; the waterline is in very poor condition resulting in lost water from numerous repairs, damage to the overlying roadway and inconveniences to the traveling public and the surrounding neighborhood. Similarly, the University of Oklahoma (OU) owns a 14-inch cast iron waterline generally along the east side of Berry Road from Robinson to Lindsey and then east along the north side of Lindsey to Chautauqua. Numerous repairs to the OU waterline have also occurred causing further disruption to the neighborhood.
Staff coordinated with OU to allow both 14-inch waterlines owned by both entities to be constructed parallel and directly adjacent to each other and bid as one project to reduce inconvenience to the public and achieve some cost savings through reduced excavation and reduced width of pavement repairs. The waterline improvements will be managed and paid by each entity under separate contract with the same contractor.
The Berry Waterline Replacement project (WB0305) has been funded by the NUA, in three phases and is expected to include 10,200 linear feet (LF) of 16-inch waterline along the west side of Berry Road from Robinson to Lindsey and approximately 3000 LF of 24-inch waterline east along Lindsey to Chautauqua where it will connect to the 16-inch Lindsey Waterline project completed in 2005. The 24-inch portion is part of an ongoing effort to upgrade the City’s water distribution system as a continuation of the Segment D Waterline which is included in Phase 1. Phase 2 includes the section from Avondale to north of Main St. with Phase 3 consisting of the section from Main to Robinson.
On May 10, 2011, the NUA approved Amendment No. 1 to Contract K-0910-61 authorizing Poe & Associates (Poe) to perform field surveying, preliminary design, final design and limited construction management services for the Berry Waterline Replacement for a total contract price of $172,000.
On March 10, 2015, the NUA approved Contract K-1415-70 with Central Contracting Services, Inc. for the construction of Phase 1 of the Berry Road Waterline Replacement project. Phase 1 construction was completed on August 24, 2015.
On September 22, 2015, the NUA approved Contract K-1516-43 with McKee Utility Contractors, Inc. in the amount of $1,206,023.50 for the construction of Phase 2 of the Berry Road Waterline Replacement project. Phase 2 construction is underway. On January 26, 2016, the NUA and the City of Norman (City) approved Amendment No. 1 to include the City as a party to the contract and also approved Change Order No. 1 on January 26, 2016 increasing the contract amount by $410,205 to a final contract amount of $1,616,228.50 to expand the road repair to include the full west lane of Berry Road.
DISCUSSION: Advertisement for Bid No. 1516-33 for the Phase 3 Berry Road Waterline Replacement project was published in the Norman Transcript on November 26th and December 3rd, 2015. Section A of the bid is to be funded by the NUA and the City while Section B is to be funded by OU; the bid is to be awarded to the lowest responsive bidder for Section A and Section B combined. As shown on the attached bid tabulation, three contractors submitted bids on December 22, 2015. The total bid ranged between $2,107,233 and $3,369,106 with Central Contracting Services, Inc. (Central) of Norman, Oklahoma submitting the low bid of at $2,107,233.00; the engineers estimate was $5,214,340. The bids for the NUA/City portion (Section A) ranged between $1,470,680 and $2,464,720 with Central providing the low bid of $1,470,680; the engineers estimate for Section A was $3,573,540.
Our design engineer, has reviewed the bid proposal and recommends awarding the bid to Central Contracting Services, Inc. of Norman, Oklahoma in the amount of $2,107,233 with the NUA/City share being $1,470,680.
The project is being partially funded by the City to expand the road repair to include the complete west lane of Berry Road. The NUA will provide funds in the amount of $1,248,745 and the City of Norman will provide funds in the amount of $221,935 for a total of $1,470,680. For the NUA portion, the Fiscal Year Ending (FYE) 2015 budget for the Berry Road Waterline Replacement project has an unencumbered balance of $1,342,155 in Construction (account 031-9521-462.61-01; project WB0305). For the City of Norman portion, the Fiscal Year Ending (FYE) 2015 budget for the Urban Asphalt Pavement Rehabilitation project has an unencumbered balance of $317,301 in Construction (account 050-9401-431.61-01; project BP0246). Therefore, funds are available.
The City of Norman is exempt from the payment of any sales or use taxes. Pursuant to Title 68 O.S., Section 1356 (10) and as allowed by Oklahoma Tax Commission Rules Part 27 Trust Authority 710:65-13-140, direct vendors to the NUA are also exempt from those taxes. A bidder and his subcontractors may exclude from their bid sales taxes on appropriate equipment, materials, and supplies that will not have to be paid while acting on behalf of the NUA. To minimize project costs, the NUA will make payment directly to vendors supplying equipment and materials for incorporation into the project.
RECOMMENDATION: It is recommended that the NUA and the City accept the bids received in response to Bid 1516-33 and award the bid to Central Contracting Services, Inc. of Norman, Oklahoma. It is further recommended that the NUA and the City approve Contract K-1516-80 in the amount of $1,470,680 with Central Contracting Services, Inc., and approve Maintenance Bond MB-1516-23, Performance Bond B-1516-32, and Statutory Bond B-1516-33; all bonds being the amount of the construction contract. Finally, it is recommended that the NUA and the City authorize and direct the Utilities Director to approve the purchase of equipment and materials for this project directly from vendors at prices agreed to by Central Contracting Services, Inc.