Honorable Mayor and Members of the Hermosa Beach City Council Regular Meeting of October 27, 2020
Title
APPROVAL OF PROFESSIONAL SERVICES AGREEMENT
WITH HAYER CONSULTANTS, INC. TO PROVIDE PLAN
CHECK AND RELATED SERVICES TO THE COMMUNITY
DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT
(Community Development Director Ken Robertson)
Body
Recommended Action:
Recommendation
Staff recommends that the City Council:
1. Award a Professional Services Agreement with Hayer Consultants, Inc., to provide plan check and related services to the Community Development Department; and
2. Authorize the Mayor to execute and the City Clerk to attest the Professional Services Agreement(s) subject to approval by the City Attorney.
Body
Executive Summary:
The City contracts with a third party consultant for plan check services as Community Development staff does not include licensed structural engineers, fire safety experts, and other specialists necessary to conduct the complex plan checking required by the California Building Standards Code and other State and Municipal Codes. The Community Development Department uses a plan check consultant for a majority of plan submittals, and has used this type of third party service for several decades.
The Community Development Department released a Request for Proposals (RFP) consistent with City policy to periodically test the market for renewal of outside contract services. After conducting an internal review of all the submitted proposals, staff recommends the selection of Hayer Consultants Inc.
Background:
Outline of the Plan Check Contractor Selection Process
RFP 20-02 (Attachment 1) was posted in the Easy Reader and sent to several plan check service consultants that supply this service and other building related services on July 30, 2020.
Consultant Selection
By the proposal submittal deadline, 14 companies submitted documentation of their qualifications and pricing. The 12 qualifying proposals were evaluated on each firm’s approach and methods, relevant experience and expertise, and plan check timeframe and cost. A list of the proposals is contained in Attachment 2. These criteria were evaluated by the Building Division of the Community Development Department, including: Building/Planning Technician, Office Assistant, Building Inspector, and Building/Code Enforcement Official.
All plan and permit submittals are logged in and tracked by the Building/Planning Technician, the Building Inspector conducts plan check for fire safety systems, and the Building Official determines which plans are sent to the contract plan check service company, and conducts the final review and plan check on all submittals. All Building Division staff within the Community Development Department are integral parts of the plan check service provided by the Department.
Project applicants interact directly with the plan check consultant when making necessary corrections before plans are determined to be fully compliant with relevant codes, and the Building Official conducts the final review and may intervene as necessary to resolve questions on interpretation. Related services that the plan check consultant may provide include providing field inspectors, performing in-house plan check, meeting with applicants and temporary in-house staffing by a Building Official or other certified specialist.
Hayer Consultants, Inc. is recommended based on the City’s familiarity with the work product, experience, and timely plan review times. Only one other proposing company matched Hayer Consultants in lowest cost for the service. The City is also familiar with Hayer Consultants, as they have provided plan check and related services to the City for the last 36 years.
General Plan Consistency:
Periodic review of consultant contracts is consistent with the following goals within the Governance Element, in that it improves transparency, and allows for testing the market to ensure the City is providing the best service to its customers:
Goal 1. A high degree of transparency and integrity in the decision making process
Goal 3. Excellent customer service through the use of emerging technologies
Providing expertise with outside consultants is consistent with the Goals of the Public Safety element to ensure safety in new construction, and is in line with the specific following implementation measure (page 239 of PLAN Hermosa): “SAFETY 1” Continue to adopt and enforce the most up-to-date California Building Standards Code and California Fire Code, with appropriate local amendments.
Fiscal Impact:
This professional services agreement generally has no direct fiscal impact as the proposed service fee is a percentage of the plan check fees paid by the applicant for the City to provide this service. However, with this new agreement there would be a minimal increase in the proportion of the service fee that would be passed on to the plan check service provider (40% as compared to 34%).
Attachments:
1. Request For Proposal 20-02
2. List of proposals submitted and their rankings
3. Draft Professional Services Agreement with Hayer Consultants Inc. including Hayer’s proposal
Respectfully Submitted by: Bob Rollins, Building/Code Enforcement Official
Concur: Ken Robertson, Community Development Director
Concur: Frances Estrada, Building/Planning Technician
Fiscal: Viki Copeland, Finance Director
Legal Review: Mike Jenkins, City Attorney
Approved: Suja Lowenthal, City Manager