Calendar Details:
Monday, January 26
3:30pm - Transportation Committee, Room 280. AGENDA: Focus Area Plan, Transportation Action Plan, Sharon Road West/I-485 Transit Station Area Plan
4:30pm - Community Safety Committee, Room CH-14. AGENDA: Draft Focus Area Plan
5:00pm - Council Dinner Briefing, Room 267
6:00pm - Zoning/ Citizens' Forum/ Council Business Meeting, Council Chamber
Wednesday, January 28
12:00pm - Economic Development & Planning Committee, Room 280. AGENDA: FY2010/FY2011 ED Focus Area Plan; Small Business and Entrepreneurial Development, North Tryon RFP; First Ward Park/Parking Deck
Thursday, January 29
7:30am - BusinessFirst Charlotte Annual Meeting, Miller Auditorium
Agenda Notes:
Agenda Item 21: Reedy Creek Pump Station
Staff Resources:
Alban Burney, Economic Development, 704-336-4178, aburney@ci.charlotte.nc.us,
Donnell Wilson, Utilities, 704-391-5097, dwilson@ci.charlotte.nc.us,
Cynthia White, City Attorney's Office, 704-336-3012, cwhite@ci.charlotte.nc.us
Staff is recommending that the low bid for the Reedy Creek Pump Station project be rejected for failure to comply with the City's Small Business Opportunity Program. Haren Construction Company was low bid at $7,891,128, and Hickory Construction Company was second low bid at $8,063,023, a difference of $171,895. We expect Haren Construction to be in attendance at the January 26 Council Meeting.
Staff is recommending rejection of Haren's bid because the company failed to meet the SBE goal or comply with the Good Faith Efforts requirements:
- The SBE goal for this project was 7%. Haren's proposed SBE utilization at the time of bid was 2.78%.
- The minimum Good Faith Efforts (GFE) points were set at 155 for this project. Haren initially claimed to have met this minimum of 155 points; however, after a thorough review by Charlotte Mecklenburg Utilities and the Small Business Opportunity staff, credit was only given for earning 115.
Haren met with staff to discuss this recommendation on January 12, and submitted a letter to the City Manager on January 20 (attached) requesting review of the SBO Program Manager's decision. Staff responded on January 22 (attached). The City Manager met with Haren, its attorney and City staff on January 23 to hear and consider Haren's concerns. Below is a brief summary of the two issues Haren is raising, along with staff's response.
a. Haren believes they should have been awarded the 40 points assigned to GFE 5.3.7 (b) – Training and Mentoring – SBE Feedback and Mentoring because they felt that a bid addendum issued by staff to clarify the GFE made it untenable to comply with. Staff disagrees for the following reasons:
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The addendum was issued over 3 weeks prior to bid opening.
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Haren never questioned or challenged the addendum prior to bid opening.
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Haren never requested an extension of time or a reduction in point requirements prior to bid opening as a result of the addendum.
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Haren did not claim points for earning this GFE at the time it submitted its GFE compliance documentation, and
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Haren concedes that it did not comply with the GFE as revised by the addendum.
Additionally, staff does not believe that the addendum rendered the GFE untenable, and is concerned that allowing Haren to unilaterally disregard the addendum would be unfair to other bidders.
b. Haren asked for consideration for a waiver for minor non-compliance under Section 6.3(a) of the SBO Program policy for mistakenly directing its efforts toward MWBEs as opposed to SBEs. Staff does not regard Haren's non-compliance as minor and believes it reflects a lack of diligence on Haren's part. Haren was not close to meeting the SBE goal and was 40 points short of the required minimum of 155 GFE points. Staff believes that granting a waiver under these circumstances would not be fair to the second low bidder, Hickory Construction, which achieved the SBE goal. Granting Haren's request for waiver would make future enforcement of the SBO Program more difficult.
Charlotte Mecklenburg Utilities, with the concurrence of the SBO Program Manager, the City Manager and the City Attorney's Office, recommends that Haren Construction's bid be rejected for the reasons stated above.
We have provided this information to Hickory Construction Company, the second low bidder, and expect their representatives to attend Monday's Council Meeting also.
Information Items:
Fiscal Year 2008 Audit Communications to Management
Staff Resource:
Greg Gaskins, Finance, 704-336-5885, ggaskins@ci.charlotte.nc.us
At the December 1, 2008 Council Workshop, Finance and the external auditor presented the results of the FY2008 audit. The required communication letter mentioned by the external auditor – the SAS-114 Auditor's Communication With Those Charged With Governance – is attached for your review. The letter communicates informational items to elected officials such as the auditor's responsibilities under generally accepted auditing standards, an overview of the planned scope and timing of the audit, and significant findings from the audit. There are no substantive items included in letter.
State to Revise Charlotte Area's Air Quality Plan for Ozone
Staff Resource:
Eldewins Haynes, Charlotte Department of Transportation, 704-336-7621, ehaynes@ci.charlotte.nc.us
On January 9, the United States EPA notified the North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources (NCDENR) that they (EPA) intended to make a "finding of failure to submit" a State Implementation Plan (SIP) for the Charlotte region nonattainment area. The SIP is intended to show how the Charlotte area would meet the 1997 ozone air quality standard of 84 parts per billion (ppb) by the end of 2009. EPA stated that they would give NCDENR 18 months to resubmit the ozone SIP, or else EPA will impose sanctions, including a conformity lapse two years from now. A conformity lapse would cause the suspension of federal transportation funding in the Charlotte area (i.e., the counties of Mecklenburg, Union, Gaston, Lincoln, Cabarrus, Rowan, and the southern part of Iredell; and York, SC).
NCDENR submitted the SIP to EPA in June, 2007. At Council's dinner briefing on June 9, 2008, staff from the North Carolina Division of Air Quality (NCDAQ) presented information about the ozone problem in the Charlotte area. At that time, NCDAQ staff told Council that the SIP would enable the Charlotte area to meet the ozone air quality standard by the end of 2009. On November 17, 2008, however, EPA sent a letter to NCDENR stating that:
1. While the SIP lays out a plan to meet the ozone standard by the end of 2009,
2. The ozone air quality data through 2008 does not indicate that the Charlotte area can attain the ozone standard by the end of 2009, and
3. EPA would not approve that SIP.
Council was informed of this development via email just before Thanksgiving.
The November 17 letter from EPA allowed for two options:
1. NCDENR would ask EPA to reclassify the Charlotte area to a higher level of ozone nonattainment. This option would give our area two more years (to 2012) to attain the 1997 8-hour ozone standard.
2. EPA would move ahead with the process to formally disapprove the SIP. This option would be of immediate concern, as it would disrupt the current transportation planning updates within the Charlotte area, and cause suspension of federal transportation funding by May, 2010.
On December 19, NCDENR responded by proposing a third option to EPA. With this option, NCDENR would withdraw the SIP, so it cannot be disapproved and NCDENR would identify a timeline to submit a new SIP by November 30, 2009.
The January 9 letter from EPA indicated that they accepted NCDENR's third option and timeline for the new SIP. As a result there will be no disruption of the current transportation planning update. Staff is working with NCDENR staff to develop information for the new SIP. Staff will continue to update Council regarding SIP issues.
Statesville Avenue Landfill Redevelopment Project
Staff Resources:
Timothy O'Brien, Engineering &Property Management, 704-336-3149, tobrien@ci.charlotte.nc.us
J.R. Steigerwald, Engineering &Property Management, 704-336-3212, jsteigerwald@ci.charlotte.nc.us
During a November dinner briefing presentation, staff indicated that the agreement to sell the Statesville Avenue Landfill property to Environmental Liability Transfer Corporation (ELT) would be presented to City Council for approval in January. Agreement negotiations are progressing smoothly; however, final wording of the agreement, which will transfer environmental liability to ELT and spell out deed restrictions on use of the property, is not yet finalized. Presentation of the final agreement to Council for approval will be delayed until March.
Solid Waste Services Collection Update
Staff Resource:
Victoria Garland, Solid Waste Services, 704-336-3410, vgarland@ci.charlotte.nc.us
As of Friday, January 23, Solid Waste Service's Collections Division and Inland Services are back on our one-day delay holiday schedule for collecting garbage and recycling. All other services (bulky and yard waste) will remain suspended until next week. Our garbage crews will continue to be assisted by the yard waste and bulky crews to ensure our Thursday and Friday customers are serviced this week. Our recycling crews will also be collecting our Thursday customers today (Friday) and our Friday customers on Saturday, January 24. Beginning Monday, January 26, all services (garbage, bulky, recycling, and yard waste) will resume a normal collection schedule.
