To: Honorable Mayor and Members of Town Council
Through: David L. Corliss, Town Manager
Daniel Sailer, Director of Public Works
From: Spencer Raish, Project Manager
Title
Resolution Approving a Construction Contract with Morton Electric, Inc., for the 2024 Downtown Pedestrian Lighting Project
Body
________________________________________________________________________________
Executive Summary
Staff is seeking Town Council approval of a Resolution awarding a Contract between the Town of Castle Rock and Morton Electric Inc. (Morton) for the Downtown Pedestrian Lighting Project. The contract is in the amount of $364,900. A 10% contingency is being recommended for a total encumbrance of $401,390.
This is a federal grant award project with $300,700 remaining federal funds for construction. The Town is required to provide a 20% match, which is $60,000 toward construction, and cover any additional amounts over the combined total. In order to cover the price of the bid plus a 10% staff managed contingency, the Town’s contribution is $100,690 for a total project encumbrance of $401,390.
The project consists of installing twenty-nine pedestrian lights within downtown (Attachment A) in areas that were identified as “low lit” which means that they are in need of lighting improvements for visibility and accessibility.
CDOT issued Concurrence to Ad which allowed the Town to advertise for bidding. The Town is required to obtain Concurrence to Award from CDOT in order to issue Notice to Proceed with the project. Approving the project Contract now achieves the goal of continuing the project initiation and clearing project hurdles while ensuring CDOT process and procedures are completed. This assists in completing the project in as timely a manner as possible and staff feels awarding this contract in this manner is in the best interests of the Town. Prior to issuing Notice to Proceed the Town can terminate the Contract for any reason, therefore there is no risk to awarding the contract now.
A formal closed bid process was followed per the Town purchasing policy where four bidders responded. After bids were reviewed and contractor responsibility was checked, Morton is recommended as the lowest responsible bidder. We are now seeking approval by Town Council to award a construction contract with the goal of completing the project by the end of this year. The information presented herein includes: notification and outreach efforts, discussion of improvement scope, and budget impacts.
Notification and Outreach Efforts
Notification and outreach efforts for the project will be provided in conjunction with the Communications Division as well as the project construction team. Outreach efforts will include “know as you go” information, social media posts and mailers for the impacted businesses. This project is expected to have a low impact on businesses, homeowners, motorists and pedestrians. Therefore, the communication plan will consist primarily of social media and website posts, contact with adjacent businesses, coordination with the Downtown Alliance, and posted signs to limit parking in construction areas for limited time periods.
Discussion
Downtown Castle Rock is a high-density area which carries significant traffic from both motorists and pedestrians. The Downtown area is bordered on the west by Interstate 25, north by Wolfensberger Road, east by Perry Street and south by Plum Creek Parkway. Within these boundaries, various locations along already lit corridors have been identified as “low lit” areas which are in need of lighting improvements for visibility and accessibility.
The Town received a Community Mobility Planning and Implementation Set-Aside grant in 2022, which provides 80% of its funds from Federal sources, with 20% from local agency match funds. A little over a third of the funds have been utilized over the past year to contract with engineering consultant, Olsson, to design the project in compliance with CDOT project standards with FHWA oversight. It is desired to use the funds and close the project by the end of 2024 to meet reimbursement timelines of the set-aside grant funding.
The lighting project will complete all construction of new lighting facilities where the need is identified. Scope of work included in the contract includes:
- Installation of twenty-nine “acorn-style” pedestrian lights
- Electrical wiring
- Concrete and landscaping work
This project aligns with elements valued by the community:
Improving Safety - This project includes the installation of new lighting facilities which will help better light the downtown area including sidewalks and roadways to increase safety.
Improving Reliability - The construction of this project will increase the lighting and safety of the Downtown corridor while also improving visibility at crosswalks and mid-block crossings for pedestrians crossing roadways.
Achieving Low Life-Cycle Costs - The project includes utilizing existing power lines and meters currently powering lights in the Downtown area. Utilizing existing infrastructure will reduce costs and impacts to the Town.
Focus on Low Environmental Impacts - In order to minimize environmental impacts of the Downtown Pedestrian Lighting project, the project will stay within the Town’s existing Right of way eliminating any possibility for environmental impact.
An overview of the project area and proposed improvements to be evaluated/designed with this contract is depicted on (Attachment A).
The Town held an Invitation to Bid process that closed on July 16th, and four competitive bids were received. Morton was found to be the lowest responsible bidder and is recommended to construct the project. Below is a summary table of the bids received.
Budget Impact
The project design phase has concluded with a total cost of $224,577.81. The amount of the construction contract award is $364,900. An additional 10% of the construction bid, in the amount of $36,490, for staff managed contingency will be added to the construction project encumbrance for a total of $401,390. The total project cost for design and construction is $625,967.81. The amount of federal grant funds that will go to this total is $480,000. The balance of $145,967.81 is being covered by the Town.
The total amount budgeted for construction is $375,800 from the street light improvement capital project account (120-3175-431-75.26). An additional $25,600 will be utilized from the traffic safety improvement account (120-3175-431-75.25) to meet the project encumbrance need. These additional funds will not impact any other safety projects planned in 2024.
The total project for design and construction has been planned and approved with the execution of the IGA with CDOT; the entire federal grant award is $480,000. The Town’s minimum match amount is $120,000. Anything over the combined amount of $600,000 must be covered by the Town per our Intergovernmental Agreement with DRCOG. The design phase cost is $224,577.81, the construction phase cost is $401,390, for a total project cost of $625,967.81. Of these funds $480,000 is federal dollars and $145,967.81 are Town funds.
Project/Construction Management will be provided by the Town of Castle Rock staff.
Staff Recommendation
The Public Works Commission heard a presentation from staff on August 5, they unanimously recommended that Town Council approve the Resolution as introduced by title.
Proposed Motion
“I move to approve the Resolution as Introduced by title.”
Alternative Motions:
“I move to approve the resolution as introduced by title with the following changes ______”
“I move to continue this item to a future Town Council agenda”
Attachments
Resolution
Attachment A: Conceptual Project Overview (Light Locations)