REPORT TO STADIUM AUTHORITY BOARD
SUBJECT
Title
Action to Award a Purchase Order to PCP Motorsports to Purchase Kawasaki Utility Vehicles for Levi’s Stadium Events (Santa Clara Stadium Authority CapEx Project)
Report
COUNCIL PILLAR
Ensure Compliance with Measure J and Manage Levi’s Stadium
BACKGROUND
Public safety personnel (such as police, fire and emergency medical personnel) use utility vehicles, commonly known as “Side by Sides,” to quickly access hard-to-navigate places and small spaces normally inaccessible to full-size vehicles. Side by Sides resemble a golf cart, complete with an overhead roll cage for safety, a bench seat for transport, and rear flatbed and all-terrain tires to carry specialized gear.
With the opening of Levi’s Stadium in 2014, the Santa Clara Stadium Authority (Stadium Authority) purchased five Side by Sides. Subsequently, five additional units have been purchased to bring the number of units currently in the fleet to ten. In addition to the ten current units, two units were very recently purchased in March 2024 (also purchased from PCP Motorsports), at a cost of $39,200 which was budgeted for that purpose in the Stadium Authority Fiscal Year (FY) 2023/24 Capital Expense (CapEx) Budget. These two units have not yet been delivered, but when received, will bring the total inventory to twelve.
The Police and Fire Departments were the first departments in the City of Santa Clara (City) to purchase and utilize Side by Sides associated with the massive footprint of event day operations at Levi’s Stadium. This mobility fleet is maintained by the City’s Fleet Maintenance Division of the Public Works Department (Fleet Division). The Fleet Division developed maintenance and replacement schedules according to the owner’s manual to address normal wear (e.g., fuel filter, air filter, oils and fluids, grease, etc.). It is important to note, hours, idle time and slow creeping are equally as hard on vehicles with high RPM motors as miles, contributing to wear. The Fleet Division recommended replacement of the Side by Sides at 10-years based on the decision that more costly maintenance and repairs would likely ensue at this time, with diminishing resale returns.
As of the writing of this report, there have been 182 events at Levi’s Stadium, plus city-wide special events. In many cases, the Side by Sides are utilized the day prior and day after an event as well for set up and clean up purposes. On four occasions during the 2023 NFL season the deployment was such that the Police Department’s Side by Side inventory was not sufficient for the Police Department’s needs, and multiple law enforcement equipped units were borrowed from allied agencies; routinely, the department could benefit from additional units. Renting units is not ideal but will likely be necessary given the increased need for the 2026 major events.
Law enforcement utilizes the Side by Sides for such uses:
• Pre-event explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) sweeps by the K-9 Unit to secure event footprint
• Deployment of specialized Task Forces
• Movement of staff to conduct sidewalk vendor regulation and enforcement
• Special Response Team (SWAT) exterior/interior mobilization
• Management of the Traffic Management Operations Plan
• Placement and/or relocation of personnel assets during deployment
• Timely responses to critical incidents on both interior and exterior of stadium (e.g., medical emergencies, fights in progress, terrorist threats, etc.)
• In-custody transport, both interior and exterior, to the Temporary Holding Facility
Seven of the Side by Sides were scheduled for replacement in 2023 and 2024. After a careful diagnostic check of the vehicles, review of their past maintenance patterns and less frequent use during the pandemic, Fleet Services feels the useful life of these units may be extended beyond what was originally anticipated.
While the Stadium Authority typically sells vehicles at auction, with the proceeds going back to the Stadium Authority CapEx budget, staff recommends handling this situation uniquely due to the upcoming major events at Levi’s Stadium in 2026.
In this case, staff plans to delay sending the Side by Sides to auction as they anticipate needing additional units for the enhanced deployment expected for Super Bowl LX (February 2026) and FIFA World Cup 2026 (June - July 2026). Maintaining the twelve current units would bring the total Side by Sides inventory up to seventeen.
While the total number of Side by Sides needed for the 2026 major events has not yet been identified, it is safe to say that more units will be needed than the currently purchased inventory of twelve and an additional two that is budgeted in the Stadium Authority FY 2024/25 CapEx Budget. In fact, the need is very likely to exceed the requested inventory level of nineteen vehicles. As event planning for these significant events evolves, the Police Department will be reaching out to local, State and Federal partners with requests for additional equipment assets. The utilization of Side by Sides throughout the 2026 major events will allow for better mobilization, create a visual deterrence of a strong security posture, facilitate the relocation of personnel and equipment assets, enable a more efficient tactical response to potential threats, and address all of the uses listed above. The cost to continue to insure, maintain and store these vehicles over the next two years is nominal, and various storage solution(s) have been identified. Staff expects to send the seven vehicles that were scheduled for replacement in 2023 and 2024 to auction in Fall 2026.
During this timeframe, the Side by Sides may also continue to be utilized for city-wide special events in our community (e.g., festivals, parades, organized runs, etc.). In these cases, a reimbursement formula has been created for non-Stadium uses.
DISCUSSION
Seven of the Side by Sides utilized by the Police Department are scheduled for replacement in 2023 and 2024 according to the Fleet Division’s original replacement schedule. Both the Fleet Division and Police Department are recommending the Stadium Authority Board authorize the purchase of seven units; however, they plan to continue to utilize the existing vehicles for immediate and future needs, rather than send the units to auction. A careful diagnostic check of the Side by Sides, review of their past maintenance patterns and less frequent use during the pandemic, support the Fleet Division’s approval to extend their useful life through Fall 2026.
The Stadium Authority FY 2024/25 CapEx Budget includes two line items for purchase of these Kawasaki mules. The first line item is in the amount of $139,125 - with Board approval, these funds will be used for the purchase of five units. The second line item is in the amount of $55,650 - these funds are planned for the purchase of two additional units in FY 2024/25, bringing the inventory to nineteen units. The timeline for the purchase of these two units has not yet been finalized.
Pursuant to Santa Clara City Code Sections 2.105.140(b) and 17.30.080, an informal Request for Quotes (RFQ) was conducted, with the award recommendation based on the lowest and responsible bidder. Staff received four quotes as listed in Table 1 below.
|
Bidder Name |
Unit Price |
|
PCP Motorsports |
$19,600 |
|
Gilroy Motorcycle Center |
$19,953 |
|
Clawson Motorsports |
$22,712.90 |
|
G.P. Sports |
$21,731.05 |
Staff recommends awarding a purchase order to PCP Motorsports as the lowest responsive and responsible bidder. The cost per vehicle is $19,600, inclusive of sales tax, totaling $98,000 for five vehicles.
Public Works’ Fleet Maintenance staff will coordinate the upfitting of the units, to include the installation of necessary equipment such as emergency lights, siren, mirrors, and decals. The estimated one-time cost of these items is approximately $1,250 per unit. Items will be purchased through established vendors. Public Works staff estimates the installation of this equipment will require 20 hours of labor per unit.
In accordance with Santa Clara City Code Chapter 17.30 (Stadium Authority Procurement Policy), the Executive Director is granted signature authority to execute contracts for services and public works, as well as to acquire supplies, goods, and equipment up to and including $100,000, as allocated to and authorized by the Stadium Authority by adoption of the annual budget. While this recommended purchase is below the $100,000 threshold, the preceding purchase of two units (as noted above, March 2024) was made with the same vendor through the same quote, in the amount of $39,200. Therefore, the total amount to be paid to this vendor under the single RFQ exceeds the $100,000 threshold and staff is therefore requesting the Stadium Authority Board’s approval of the purchase order with PCP Motorsports.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
The action being considered does not constitute a “project” within the meaning of the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines section 15378(a) as it has no potential for resulting in either a direct physical change in the environment, or a reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment.
FISCAL IMPACT
The Stadium Authority Fiscal Year FY 2024/25 CapEx Budget includes $139,125 for the purchase of five Kawasaki Side by Sides; the PCP Motorsports portion of the purchase is $98,000.
Fleet Maintenance staff will coordinate the upfitting costs of each unit. The additional equipment and accessories are projected to cost approximately $1,250 per unit, for a total of $6,250. The combined vehicle and equipment costs total $104,250. Fleet Division staff anticipates that installation will require approximately 20 hours of labor per unit.
This purchase is expected to be treated as a Public Safety Capital Expenditure pursuant to Section 7.5.2(b) of the Stadium Lease between Stadium Authority and Forty Niners SC Stadium Company LLC (StadCo), which means that it will be allocated to Non-NFL and NFL events and is subject to the Public Safety Cost Threshold with respect to NFL events. Additionally, use of this equipment with some allocation of costs is expected to be addressed in future agreements relating to the provision of municipal services for the 2026 major events.
COORDINATION
This report was coordinated with the Stadium Authority Counsel and Treasurer’s Offices.
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> or at the public information desk at any City of Santa Clara public library.
RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
1. Authorize the Executive Director to execute a purchase order with PCP Motorsports, in a final form to be approved by the Stadium Authority Counsel, in the amount of $98,000 for the purchase of five Kawasaki Side by Sides, plus approximately $1,250 in upfitting costs, with installation conducted by Fleet Maintenance staff (estimated twenty hours of labor per unit) for a total equipment cost expected to reach approximately $104,250.
Staff
Reviewed by: Pat Nikolai, Chief of Police
Approved by: Jovan Grogan, City Manager