REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS OHLONE GREENWAY NATURAL AREA AND RAIN GARDEN DESIGN SERVICES ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES DIVISION AND PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENTS 10890 SAN PABLO AVENUE EL CERRITO, CALIFORNIA 94530 (510) 215-4382 MELANIE MINTZ ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES DIVISION MANAGER TONY GOKOFFSKI CAPITAL PROJECT MANAGER PROPOSAL DUE DATE: DECEMBER 16, 2011, 2:00 PM GENERAL ....................................................................................................................................................................................3 PROJECT OVERVIEW..............................................................................................................................................................3 PROJECTS GOALS ....................................................................................................................................................................3 PROJECT LOCATION...............................................................................................................................................................4 SCOPE OF SERVICES ...............................................................................................................................................................4 PROPOSAL REQUIREMENTS.................................................................................................................................................5 SELECTION PROCESS .............................................................................................................................................................6 2 GENERAL The City of El Cerrito is seeking a qualified and responsible consultant to provide design, and permitting services for the Ohlone Greenway Natural Area and Rain Garden project. The project involves public outreach, permitting and design of grant funded trail, landscape, streetscape and public access improvements along the well-utilized Ohlone Greenway (on BART and City property). The goal of the project is to enhance environmental quality, sense of place and quality of life in the El Cerrito Plaza BART station and El Cerrito Plaza area. The project will add green elements to the existing resource by treating existing urban stormwater runoff; creating an informal exploration, natureplay and plaza/Gateway area; improving walkability; improving riparian habitat and biodiversity; and fostering a connection to nature in a highly urban and accessible location. The successful consultant team will have expertise in urban design with an emphasis on public places and natural areas, a commitment to public process, a strong landscaping architecture background, and familiarity with local and regulatory issues. The project is funded by the Urban Greening for Sustainable Communities Grant Program (Proposition 84). All requirements imposed upon the City as a grantee from the State of California Natural Resources Agency will be imposed upon the chosen consultant to the City, and are not negotiable. PROJECT OVERVIEW The Ohlone Greenway is a multi-use path that runs the entire length of the City of El Cerrito, connecting two BART Stations, and is parallel to San Pablo Avenue. It provides a non-motorized connection to the cities of Albany, Richmond and Berkeley. In 2009 the City completed and adopted the Ohlone Greenway Master Plan which seeks to reinvent the Greenway by improving its aesthetic and safety characteristics, creating nodes of activity, creating more recreation opportunities, improving the ecology and increasing connectivity between the Greenway and adjacent amenities. The City has developed a concept for a segment of the Greenway between the Albany city limits and Fairmont Avenue which integrates the Master Plan’s goals and that received funding through the Urban Greening for Sustainable Communities Grant Program—the Ohlone Greenway Natural Area and Rain Garden project (“Project”). (See Appendix 1: Ohlone Greenway Natural Area and Rain Gardens Urban Greening Project Concept and Ohlone Greenway Master Plan https://ca- elcerrito.civicplus.com/index.aspx?nid=478). The Project involves enhancing approximately 2.75 acres of open space, 0.3 miles of multi-use trail as well as the adjacent streetscape. The project includes development of rain gardens, a nature play area, riparian vegetation restoration, bio-swales, native plantings, and pedestrian enhancements. The Project is taking place in tandem with a BART Earthquake Safety Retrofit program, which entails modification to the trail alignment and limited revegetation. The landscape and trail alignment component of Bart’s Earthquake Safety Program’s construction documents covering the subject area will need to be modified to accommodate the Ohlone Greenway Natural Area and Rain Garden project. See Scope of Services for more information. PROJECT GOALS The project, congruent with the goals of the Strategic Growth Council, aims to provide multiple environmental benefits and aims to make the Ohlone Greenway even more attractive for active- transportation; restore and expand native plantings; provide environmental services; and feature the use of recycled materials and solar lighting and make continued infill development even more viable and attractive. Public projects such as this one thrive most when community members take “pride in ownership” of the project, thus the project aims to involve the community in the design and to foster continued community stewardship of the improvements. The resulting project should demonstrate appropriate technologies and low-maintenance public improvements. 3 PROJECT LOCATION The project is located along the Ohlone Greenway between Fairmont Avenue in El Cerrito and Brighton Avenue in Albany. SCOPE OF SERVICES The capital cost of the project is anticipated to be around $700,000. The consultant will work closely with the City to perform the work necessary to produce the final design and contract documents for the project. Final design of the project must be completed by June 30, 2012. The scope of services may include, but may not be limited to the items described in this chapter. 1. Data Collection and Field Surveys • Obtain available existing data that will aid in design, including pertaining ROW maps and BART Earthquake Safety Retrofit construction documents. • Review existing City’s documents: ADA Transition Plan, Circulation Plan for Bicyclists and Pedestrians, Ohlone Greenway Master Plan, General Plan, BART License Agreement, Proposition 84 Grant Application. • Prepare and transmit project notification to utilities with a request to identify existing and proposed facilities. • Review existing storm and sewer maps, perform utility coordination, identify points of connections, and obtain clearances. • Conduct site visual inspection. • Conduct topographic survey within the project limits as necessary to support design. • Obtain the necessary existing traffic, bicycle, and pedestrian data for the area as necessary for design. 2. Design Development and Public Outreach • Prepare conceptual design. • Develop preliminary selections for specific improvements, including trail alignment, focal areas, benches, receptacles, plant palette, pedestrian-scaled solar lighting fixtures, signage and others. • Conduct two public meetings (one weekend and one evening meeting) to review conceptual design. • Conduct third public meeting to respond to comments and present final design. • Prepare all meeting agendas, notices, presentation materials and minutes. 3. BART Earthquake Safety Program (ESP) Review and Revision • Meet with BART and present proposed changes to BART ESP construction documents • Upon agreement with BART prepare formal Amendment to BART ESP construction documents. 4. Obtain All Necessary Permits in the Name of the City • The consultant will support and provide all necessary services to obtain required permits. The project has received Categorical Exemption from the City of El Cerrito pursuant to CEQA but will likely need to obtain environmental permits through the Joint Aquatic Resources Permit Application process, possibly a building permit and an encroachment permit from BART. Other permits may be required. 5. Plans, Specifications and Engineering Estimates • Prepare plans, which will include at a minimum Title Sheet, General Notes, Layout Plans, Utility and Drainage Plans, Landscaping Plans, Lighting Plan, Signing Plans, and all necessary details to construct the project. • Prepare specifications and bid documents, which will include at a minimum, detailed projects description, working days for construction, bid schedule, bid item descriptions, payment methods, special provisions, technical specifications, and any specification detail sheets or standard plans, necessary to construct the project. • Prepare estimates consistent with the specifications and bid documents. • The following plan check submittals shall be provided, at a minimum: i. 1st Review – conceptual design 4 ii. 2nd Review - 65% design iii. 3rd Review – preliminary final design (screen check) Each submittal must be provided with comment resolution matrix and checked redlines. 6. Final Submittals • Submit two full-size and two half-size (bond paper) final plan set master with the design engineer’s seal and signature on each plan sheet and title sheet of specifications. • Submit an electronic copy of all plans in AutoCAD and Adobe Acrobat format on a CD. • Submit specification document in Microsoft Word format on a CD • Submit one set of quantity calculations and final engineering estimate in Microsoft Excel