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AGENDA BILL Agenda Item No. 5(C) Date: November 19, 2013 To: El Cerrito City Council From: Stephen Prée, Environmental Programs Manager/City Arborist Garth Schultz, Operations + Environmental Services Manager Yvetteh Ortiz, Interim Public Works Director/City Engineer Subject: City Tree Pruning and Removal Contract with West Coast Arborists ACTION REQUESTED Adopt a resolution authorizing the City Manager to amend the current City Tree Pruning and Removal Contract with West Coast Arborists (WCA) to increase the contract amount from $25,000 to $100,000 and time of completion from December 31, 2013 through June 30, 2014. BACKGROUND AND ANALYSIS The City maintains approximately 10,300 trees on streets, in parks, and on City properties. In the spring of 2013, each tree was inspected and assessed for maintenance needs by Davey Resources Group as a component of the Cal Fire/US Forest Service grant funded tree inventory. The assessment classified 684 of the trees as requiring priority pruning or removal work and 9,269 trees in need of routine pruning. Historically, El Cerrito City tree pruning service contracts have addressed tree pruning on a time and materials basis. There are inefficiencies in this type of contract due to the complexity of the tracking service and the high cost of mobilization when pruning trees in multiple locations. The previous contracts have not addressed the maintenance needs for all trees in the City in the most cost effective and thorough manner. Consequently, many trees throughout the City have not been pruned in several years, and tree calls remain one of the most frequent Public Works maintenance service requests. In October 2013, City staff negotiated a tree service contract that will maintain a greater number of City trees given available funding. The contract is derived from a competitive bid process conducted by the City of Union City in July 2013: the lowest qualified bid for tree pruning was submitted by, and the contract awarded to, West Coast Arborists. This same price structure has been extended to the City of El Cerrito (Attachment This process, known as piggybacking, is commonly used by municipalities to receive competitive pricing in an expeditious manner. This piggyback contract and procurement approach was reviewed and approved by the City Attorney, and is commonly used by local agencies for procurement of goods and services. ---PAGE BREAK--- Agenda Item No. 5(C) Page 2 In order to respond to urgent pruning and removal needs, the City entered into an interim $25,000 piggyback contract with West Coast Arborists (Attachment 3) based on Union City’s agreement with WCA. Staff is requesting City Council approval to increase this contract amount to $100,000 for tree pruning work to be performed through June 30, 2014. At this contract amount, WCA will be able to prune or remove all high priority trees throughout the City and begin grid pruning the street trees in Pruning Zone One (Attachement Grid pruning is the most cost effective near and long term pruning management strategy for City tree maintenance because every tree in a given Zone is pruned each pruning cycle. When each tree, small or large, is inspected and structurally pruned on a regular cycle, both short and long term maintenance costs are reduced due to efficiencies in mobilization, scheduling, and service tracking; both preventative and reactive maintenance are performed in one operation and the need for future priority pruning is minimized. Staff estimates that the requested contract amount will be sufficient to prune the highest priority trees Citywide and approximately 70% of all trees in Pruning Zone One. Based on the historical pruning patterns throughout the City, Staff intends to request tree service contract funds in the Fiscal Year 14-15 (FY15) Operating Budget that will be sufficient to complete work in Pruning Zone One and all of Pruning Zone Two. Staff anticipates proposing a cost-effective longer term contract for tree pruning services starting FY15, in accordance with the City’s procurement policies. West Coast Arborists is a California based company that has been in business since 1972. They maintain tree service contracts in the Bay Area cities of Alameda, Atherton, Berkeley, Concord, Dublin, Palo Alto, Pleasanton, Menlo Park, Milpitas, Sunnyvale, Union City and others. They have successfully provided El Cerrito with tree pruning and removal services since 2011 when they acquired the previous City tree service provider and assumed their existing time and materials contract. STRATEGIC PLAN CONSIDERATIONS Approval of the proposed Amendment to the Tree Pruning Contract with WCA would help fulfill the following City of El Cerrito Strategic Plan goals: • Goal A: Deliver exemplary government services with the strategy of increased productivity and efficiency by utilizing data driven analysis to ensure appropriate resources allocation. Grid pruning is an excellent example of this. • Goal E: Ensure the public’s health and safety by minimizing tree hazards. ENVIRONMENTAL CONSIDERATIONS Healthy City trees contribute aesthetically, add to property values and contribute to the environment by sequestering carbon, retaining stormwater and improving air quality. Fossil fuels are used during tree service work, but because each tree in a given block is pruned in the same mobilization, vehicle miles are significantly reduced. The City utilizes the chipped trees as landscape mulch which is also available to the public; wood chip mulch builds healthier soils and suppresses weeds. WCA provides supervisors with ---PAGE BREAK--- Agenda Item No. 5(C) hybrid cars and the company repurposes some of the lumber from tree removal (see benches at City Hall 2nd floor elevator and at the recycling center lobby). FINANCIAL CONSIDERATIONS WCA's bid was the most cost competitive compared to the other bids received and reviewed by the City of Union City, as discussed above. The $100,000 in expenses anticipated under this contract is included in the approved Fiscal Year 2013-14 Operating Budget, and will be paid from the Citywide Landscape and Lighting District fund. According to the 2013 Resource Analysis of El Cerrito City Trees by Davey Resource Group, City residents receive $4.28 in benefits for every $1 spent on City trees. LEGAL CONSIDERATIONS The City Attorney has reviewed proposed actions and found that legal considerations have been addressed. Attachments: 1. Resolution 2. City ofUnion City 2013-14 Tree Pruning & Removal Project- Bid Comparison Sheet 3. Current Tree Pruning and Removal Contract with WCA 4. El Cerrito's Tree Trimming Rotational Map Page 3 ---PAGE BREAK--- Agenda Item No. 5(C) Attachment 1 Page 1 RESOLUTION 2013–XX RESOLUTION OF THE EL CERRITO CITY COUNCIL AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER TO AMEND THE TREE PRUNING AND REMOVAL CONTRACT WITH WEST COAST ARBORISTS INC. TO A TOTAL CONTRACT AMOUNT OF $100,000 THROUGH JUNE 30, 2014 WHEREAS, the City maintains approximately 10,300 trees on streets, in parks, and on City properties; and WHEREAS, all of these trees require regular pruning and maintenance in order to prevent and mitigate hazards and promote the healthy lives of the trees; and WHEREAS, the City currently has a Tree Pruning and Removal Contract (Agreement) with West Coast Arborists to prune and maintain El Cerrito trees in an amount not to exceed $25,000; and WHEREAS, staff recommended the selection West Coast Arborists Inc. based on past performance and on pricing from a competitive bid process conducted by the City of Union City; and WHEREAS, in order to address priority tree pruning and removal needs and maintain the City’s tree pruning rotation schedule, staff is recommending that the City Council approve an amendment to the Agreement, increasing the contract amount to $100,000 through June 30, 2014; and WHEREAS, this level of contract expenditure for tree pruning was included in the adopted Fiscal Year 2013-14 Operating Budget; and WHEREAS, the City Council finds that approval of the amended agreement is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (Public Resources Code 21000 et seq., “CEQA,” and 14 Cal. Code Reg. 15000 et seq., “CEQA Guidelines”) under the general rule that CEQA applies only to projects that have the potential for causing a significant effect on the environment, and in this case it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the activity in question may have a significant effect on the environment (CEQA Guidelines § 15061(b)(3). Additionally, approval of the Agreement is categorically exempt from CEQA under CEQA Guidelines section 15301(h) (maintenance of existing landscaping). NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the City Council of the City of El Cerrito authorizes the City Manager to execute an amendment to the tree pruning and removal contract with West Coast Arborists Inc. increasing the total contract amount to $100,000 for performing tree services in the City through June 30, 2014. ---PAGE BREAK--- Agenda Item No. 5(C) Attachment 1 Page 2 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that this Resolution shall become effective immediately upon its passage and adoption. I CERTIFY that at a regular meeting on November 19, 2013 the City Council of the City of El Cerrito passed this Resolution by the following vote: AYES: COUNCILMEMBERS: NOES: COUNCILMEMBERS: ABSENT: COUNCILMEMBERS: IN WITNESS of this action, I sign this document and affix the corporate seal of the City of El Cerrito on November XX, 2013. Cheryl Morse, City Clerk APPROVED: Gregory B. Lyman, Mayor ---PAGE BREAK--- CITY OF UNION CITY 2013-14 Tree Pruning & Removal Project CITY PROJECT NO. 12-15 Item No. Description Estimated Quantity West Coast Arborists, Inc. Arbortech Tree Care, Inc. AAA Tree Service, Inc. 1 Block/Grid Pruning-A Tree Structurally Pruned 1700 $64.00 ea. $155.00 ea. $500.00 ea. 2 Single Tree Pruning-A Medium Size Structurally Pruned 14.1”- 25” DBH 100 $80.00 ea. $140.00 ea. $ 450.00 ea. 3 Single Tree Pruning- A Large Size Structurally Pruned 25”- 36” DBH 100 $175.00 ea. $275.00 ea. $550.00 ea. 4 Tree Removals - Medium Size Tree Removal 14.1” – 25” DBH 10 $150.00 ea. $450.00 ea. $800.00 ea. 5 Tree Removals – Large Size Tree Removed 25” – 36” DBH 10 $750.00 ea. $675.00 ea. $1,100.00 ea. 6 Tree Removals – Very Large Size Tree Removed Greater than 36”DBH 30 $750.00 ea. $1,800.00 ea. $1,500.00 ea. 7 Stump Removals - Medium size Stump Removed 10 $50.00 ea. $150.00 ea. $150.00 ea. 8 Stump Removal - Large Size Stump Removed 10 $190.00 $250.00 ea. $200.00 ea. 9 Stump Removal – Very Large Size Stump Removed 30 $225.00 $ $350.00 ea. $250.00 ea. TOTAL BID $174,950.00 $384,750.00 $1,025,000.00 Agenda Item No. 5(C) Attachment 2 ---PAGE BREAK--- Agenda Item No 5(C) Attachment 3 ---PAGE BREAK--- ---PAGE BREAK--- ---PAGE BREAK--- ---PAGE BREAK--- ---PAGE BREAK--- Tree Trimming Rotational Map Four Year Pruning Cycle to Occur Each Fall of Each Listed Year Zone Four Fall 2016 Zone Three Fall 2015 Zone Two Fall 2014 Zone One Fall 2013 Agenda Item No. 5(C) Attachment 4