REPORT TO COUNCIL
SUBJECT
Title
Approve and Authorize the City Manager to Finalize and Execute an Agreement with Golder Associates, Inc. for Operation, Maintenance, Monitoring, and Compliance Services for the Closed All Purpose Landfill and Technical and Construction Support for the Related Santa Clara Project and the Related Budget Amendment [Council Pillar: Deliver and Enhance High Quality Efficient Services and Infrastructure]
Report
BACKGROUND
The City of Santa Clara (City) All Purpose Landfill was closed in 1993 and the City is required by multiple regulatory agencies to perform regular maintenance, monitoring and reporting. The landfill gas collection and control system at the closed All Purpose Landfill must operate continuously and be monitored and repaired on an ongoing basis to stay in compliance with Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD) Regulation 8, Rule 34 and Synthetic Minor Operating Permit Condition requirements. The Regional Water Quality Control Board (RWQCB) mandates groundwater monitoring and reporting from groundwater and leachate monitoring wells, as well as from the San Tomas Aquino Creek surface waters through Waste Discharge Requirements (WDR). The City is also required by the Santa Clara County Department of Environmental Health, acting as the Local Enforcement Agent for the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle), to fix low spots caused by settlement that can lead to ponding and maintain the integrity of the cover and side slopes in accordance with Titles 17 and 27 of the California Code of Regulations and the Solid Waste Facility Permit.
Golder Associates Inc. (Golder) has been the service provider performing maintenance, monitoring, and reporting services for the closed All Purpose Landfill continuously since 2008. On September 26, 2017, Council approved a three-year agreement with Golder. The agreement contains tasks for routine operations, maintenance, monitoring and reporting, emergency repairs, construction support services, and support for the Related Santa Clara (Related) project. The support services include assistance in updating post-closure regulatory documents, review of design plans that impact the landfill gas collection and monitoring system, and participation in discussions with applicable regulatory agencies.
The agreement was amended on January 9, 2020 to increase the spending authority amount to $1,557,000 (an increase of $300,000). The current agreement with Golder to provide services will expire on September 30, 2020.
DISCUSSION
The services that Golder will provide under the new five-year agreement being considered are broken into eight tasks that are listed below.
• Task 1 - operation, maintenance, and monitoring services of the landfill gas collection system
• Task 2 - air quality and landfill gas compliance reporting
• Task 3 - water quality monitoring and reporting services
• Task 4 - non-routine and emergency compliance services
• Task 5 - technical support for Related Santa Clara’s development project
• Task 6 - construction support for non-routine or emergency repairs and construction activities
• Task 7 - permitting support for the 5-year Solid Waste Facility Permit (SWFP) review due in 2024
• Task 8 - evaluation monitoring plan (EMP)
The tasks identified above are currently performed by Golder, but the scope has grown over the years as new WDRs have been issued and studies have been initiated to determine the feasibility of building on top of the closed landfill and the development of an EMP (Task 8) to assess chlorinated volatile organic compound releases. The existing landfill gas collection and monitoring and water quality monitoring systems will need to be expanded as Related starts construction activities on the Related Santa Clara project. Golder staff has and will continue to provide the City with subject matter expert review and comment on all plans and field studies associated with the development project and serve as a conduit between regulatory agencies, Related and its contractors, and City staff to obtain regulatory agency approval and/or concurrence on specific elements of the project.
The work covered under all tasks except for Task 5 will be paid out of the Solid Waste Capital Fund’s Sanitary Landfill Development - Post Closure capital improvement program project. The technical support for Related Santa Clara development project under Task 5 will be paid from the Related Santa Clara Developer Fund and those costs will subsequently be reimbursed by Related. The rates for the first three years of the project will be held flat, after which they will be adjusted to be consistent with Golder’s then standard rates, which are projected to increase by 7.8 percent compared to 2020 rates.
The City Attorney’s Office, Department of Public Works, and Finance Department reviewed the scope of services and a determination was made not to request competitive proposals in accordance with Section 2.105.330(e)1 of the Santa Clara City Code, which provides an exception for contracts for specialized services from licensed professionals. Golder is currently reviewing a proposed revised landfill closure plan and Related’s proposed construction methods, providing comments on concepts to remove and replace the landfill gas collection system, and developing an Environmental Management Plan (EMP) to enable the Related Santa Clara project to keep on track. The Related Santa Clara project would be delayed if the City were to seek competitive proposals and no other consultant would be familiar with all of the work done to date for the complex project.
Several key Golder staff members have extensive experience with the City’s landfill closure documents from 1993 and have worked on subsequent post-closure projects for the site through other contractors over the years. Golder provides similar landfill gas collection system operations and maintenance and/or groundwater monitoring and reporting services for 22 closed and active landfill sites throughout the state. The site familiarity and historical knowledge enable Golder to provide valuable contributions to the future development of the site.
This agreement is not a prevailing wage agreement because the Department of Industrial Relations has not made prevailing wage determinations for any of the Golder engineer, scientist, technician, draftsperson, or administrative support staff positions.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
The action being considered is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines section 15301 “Existing Facilities,” as the activity consists of the repair, maintenance or minor alteration of existing facilities involving no or negligible expansion of the use beyond that presently existing.
FISCAL IMPACT
The amount to be paid to Golder over the five-year term of the agreement is estimated to be $4,541,000, which includes a 10 percent contingency. Appropriations of $882,000 for FY 2020/21 and $623,700 for FY 2021/22 are included in the FY 2020/21 and FY 2021/22 Biennial Capital Improvement Program Budget’s Solid Waste Capital Fund - Sanitary Landfill Development - Post Closure project funded by solid waste customer charges. The agreement will also cover $1,400,000 for Related Santa Clara project technical support over the five-year term, $400,000 in FY 2020/21 and $350,000 in FY 2021/22. A budget amendment of $400,000 is needed to support this cost in the new Related - Other Development Project Services project in the Related Santa Clara Developer Fund for FY 2020/21. The Related Santa Clara development project charges will be billed to the City and reimbursed by Related. Future year contract amounts are subject to the appropriation of funds.
BUDGET AMENDMENT
FY 2020/21
|
|
Current |
Increase/ (Decrease) |
Revised |
|
Fund 540 - Related Santa Clara Developer Fund |
|
|
|
|
Revenues |
|
|
|
|
Developer Contributions |
$162,062 |
$400,000 |
$562,062 |
|
Expenditures |
|
|
|
|
Related - Other Development Project Services (New) |
$0 |
$400,000 |
$400,000 |
COORDINATION
This report has been coordinated with the Finance Department and the City Attorney’s Office.
PUBLIC CONTACT
Public contact was made by posting the Council agenda on the City’s official-notice bulletin board outside City Hall Council Chambers. A complete agenda packet is available on the City’s website and in the City Clerk’s Office at least 72 hours prior to a Regular Meeting and 24 hours prior to a Special Meeting. A hard copy of any agenda report may be requested by contacting the City Clerk’s Office at (408) 615-2220, email clerk@santaclaraca.gov <mailto:clerk@santaclaraca.gov> .
RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
1. Approve and authorize the City Manager to finalize and execute an agreement with Golder Associates, Inc. for operation, maintenance, monitoring, and compliance services for the closed All Purpose Landfill; and technical and construction support for the Related Santa Clara project for an amount not-to-exceed $4,541,000 over the five-year term of the agreement, subject to the appropriation of funds;
2. Approve the FY 2020/21 budget amendment in the Related Santa Clara Developer Fund to recognize Developer Contributions in the amount of $400,000 and establish the new Related - Other Development Project Services project in the amount of $400,000 to support the agreement costs included for the Related Santa Clara project; and
3. Authorize the City Manager to make minor modifications to the agreement.
Staff
Reviewed by: Craig Mobeck, Director of Public Works
Approved by: Deanna J. Santana, City Manager
ATTACHMENTS
1. Agreement