Staff Report
PREPARED BY: LISA PETERSEN
Town Engineer
Reviewed by: Town Manager, Assistant Town Manager, Town Attorney, and Parks and Public Works
Director
110 E. Main Street Los Gatos, CA 95030 ● 408-354-6832
www.losgatosca.gov
TOWN OF LOS GATOS
COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT
MEETING DATE: 12/19/2017
ITEM NO: 15
DATE: DECEMBER 11, 2017
TO: MAYOR AND TOWN COUNCIL
FROM: LAUREL PREVETTI, TOWN MANAGER
SUBJECT: PPW JOB NUMBER 831-3104 – BACHMAN PARK REHABILITATION PROJECT
A. APPROVE THE SCOPE ELEMENTS FOR THE PROJECT;
B. AUTHORIZE THE PREPARATION OF PLANS AND SPECIFICATIONS IN
ALIGNMENT WITH THE SCOPE;
C. AUTHORIZE A REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE BUDGET ADJUSTMENT OF
$214,537 TO RECOGNIZE A GRANT AWARD FROM THE URBAN COUNTY
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT FUND TO THE PUBLIC
ACCESS INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENT PROJECT (421-821-2102);
D. AUTHORIZE A TRANSFER IN THE AMOUNT OF $214,537 OF GRANT
FUNDS FROM THE PUBLIC ACCESS INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENT
PROJECT (421-821-2102) TO THE BACHMAN PARK REHABILITATION
PROJECT (411-831-3104); AND
E. AUTHORIZE THE TOWN MANAGER TO EXECUTE THE COMMUNITY
DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT AGREEMENT WITH THE COUNTY OF
SANTA CLARA
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends that the Town Council:
1. Approve the scope elements for the project.
2. Authorize the preparation of plans and specifications in alignment with the scope.
3. Authorize a revenue and expenditure budget adjustment of $214,537 to recognize a grant
award from the Urban County Community Development Block Grant Fund to the Public
Access Infrastructure Improvement Project (421-821-2102).
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SUBJECT: PPW JOB NUMBER 831-3104 – BACHMAN PARK REHABILITATION PROJECT
DECEMBER 11, 2017
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RECOMMENDATION (cont’d):
4. Authorize a transfer in the amount of $214,537 of grant funds from the Public Access
Infrastructure Improvement Project (421-821-2102) to the Bachman Park Rehabilitation
Project (411-831-3104).
5. Authorize the Town Manager to execute the CDBG agreement with the County of Santa
Clara (Attachment 1).
BACKGROUND:
Town Council approved the Bachman Park Improvement Project during the Town budget
process. The project has a total funding allocation of approximately $540,000 of which 60% are
derived from Town General funds and 40% are grant funds from the CDBG. To receive the
CDBG funds, the grant funding must be spent by the fall of 2018 and be used for construction of
park pathway accessibility upgrades.
DISCUSSION:
Community Meeting
PPW staff held a community meeting with sixteen Town residents on November 16, 2017 as an
opportunity for residents to provide input regarding possible upgrades to Bachman Park. The
meeting was noticed two weeks before the event with door hangers placed on residences
within a 300-radius of the park, notices placed on A-frames at all park entrances, information
on the Town’s webpage and NextDoor, and through the newly created Bachman Park webpage
that allows residents to sign up for automatic project updates through a “Notify Me” icon.
During the public meeting, staff emphasized that the goal of the project was to maintain the
charm of a local neighborhood park while providing both necessary and community desired
upgrades. Staff provided a PowerPoint presentation that discussed the project background,
required scope elements of the grant, necessary maintenance elements, optional scope items,
and the anticipated schedule. As mentioned in the background section of this report, to receive
the CDBG grant funds the Town must include pathway accessibility upgrades. Additionally,
replacement the rusting light poles, two failing retaining walls, an irrigation controller, and
electrical panel safety upgrades are categorized as necessary.
Following the PowerPoint presentation, staff requested residents provide suggestions on
additional upgrades, as funding may allow. These suggestions were documented on a large
easel board and residents were each provided with two stickers to mark the suggested
upgrades they would give the highest priority. Eleven of the sixteen residents who attended
the meeting voted and the following is a list of the suggested park
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SUBJECT: PPW JOB NUMBER 831-3104 – BACHMAN PARK REHABILITATION PROJECT
DECEMBER 11, 2017
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DISCUSSION (cont’d):
upgrades (and number of votes) that staff could include in the project. Only a limited number
of these suggested park upgrades can be included under the current project budget, however,
the remaining upgrades could be included if additional funds remain following development of
the final engineer’s cost estimate.
Suggested Upgrades:
1. Build a sidewalk on the Bachman Street side of the park – 6 votes
2. Provide better garbage cans – 5 votes
3. Provide landscaping improvements – 5 votes
4. Repair the rubber in the play area – 2 votes
5. Shrubs/barrier uphill to basketball court – 1 vote
6. Provide a barrier to prevent teen drivers in the park – 1 vote
7. Remove the wall in the play area – 1 vote
8. Provide a second basketball hoop – 1 vote
9. Resurface/restripe basketball court – 0 votes
10. Provide a new water fountain with bottle filling station – 0 votes
11. Build an ADA path to the basketball court and benches – 0 votes
Residents at the meeting also mentioned desired maintenance work for the park such as
cleaning out ivy, reseeding the lawn, filling go pher holes, placing signs to state no dogs allowed
in the park without a leash, maintaining the water fountain, and correcting high bench issues
caused by eroding soil. Of these items, staff is recommending the ivy replacement, lawn
reseeding, grading to fill holes, and correction of high benches to be included in the project
scope and the remaining items to be completed by in house maintenance staff.
Parks Commission
The Parks Commission reviewed the input from the community at its December 4, 2017
meeting and agreed with the priorities. The Parks Commission noted that, in its safety
evaluation conducted earlier in the year, several of the project priorities were also highlighted,
creating alignment between the project and those items the Commission saw as important.
These items included uneven turf due to gopher holes, failing retaining walls, and high benches.
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SUBJECT: PPW JOB NUMBER 831-3104 – BACHMAN PARK REHABILITATION PROJECT
DECEMBER 11, 2017
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DISCUSSION (cont’d):
Proposed Scope
Staff recommends the main project components include upgrades required by the grant, safety
upgrades, and those items highlighted as a priority by the community. Inclusion of these items
is based on a preliminary engineer’s cost estimate and are listed below:
Park pathway accessibility upgrades
Replacement of rusting light poles
Replacement of failing retaining walls
Electrical panel/irrigation controller upgrades
Repair of rubber in the play area
Correct high bench problems
Ivy removal, reseeding and grading to fill gopher holes
Building a sidewalk on the Bachman side of the park
Landscape improvements such as planting trees and/or bushes (to also accomplish park
barrier desires expressed by residents)
Following development of the plans and specifications and final engineer’s estimate for these
items of work, staff recommends adding the remaining scope elements in the following order if
additional funds remain:
1. Resurface/restripe basketball court
2. Provide a new water fountain with bottle filling station
3. Build a ADA path to the basketball court and benches
Staff does not recommend including the resident suggested upgrade to install a second
basketball hoop in the scope, even if additional funds are available. The majority of residents at
the meeting noted they were opposed to improvements that might cause additional members
from outside of the area to come into the park to use the park for organized sports games.
Project Delivery with Multiple Contracts
Recently, due to the high number of projects being bid in the Bay Area, project capital costs
have been increasing. To save money on the Bachman Park project, staff proposes bidding out
and issuing separate contracts for individual components of the project such as the concrete,
electrical, landscaping, etc. as opposed to using one general contractor. Although this process
requires additional staff time to develop the individual bid packages, it provides a high
likelihood for cost savings due to the large number of subcontractors required for these project
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SUBJECT: PPW JOB NUMBER 831-3104 – BACHMAN PARK REHABILITATION PROJECT
DECEMBER 11, 2017
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DISCUSSION (cont’d):
upgrades. Additional information regarding this process will be provided to Council when staff
returns to Council for approval of the plans, specifications, and engineer’s estimate.
Next Steps
Staff anticipates returning to Council in February to request approval of the plan s and
specifications and engineer’s estimate for the main project components and any additional
scope items that can be included based on the final engineer’s estimate. At that time, staff will
also discuss the final project scope and design development and anticipated project schedule.
CONCLUSION:
Approval of the staff recommendation will define the elements of the project scope such that
staff can begin to prepare the design documents.
ALTERNATIVES:
Alternatively, Council could add or remove scope elements as desired from the main project
scope.
FISCAL IMPACT:
Grant funds of $214,537 are available to the Town for use on this project through the Urban
County Community Development Grant program upon execution of the grant agreement with
the County of Santa Clara. The budget adjustment for these grant funds is reflected in the fiscal
table below.
Source Budget
GFAR 325,000$
Park Rehabilitation - Bachman Park Budget 325,000$
CDBG Allocation 214,537$
Public Access Infrastructure Improvement Projects Budget 214,537$
Total Project Budget 539,537$
Park Rehabilitation - Bachman Park & Public Access Infrastructure Improvement
Projects (Projects 831-3104 & 821-2102)
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SUBJECT: PPW JOB NUMBER 831-3104 – BACHMAN PARK REHABILITATION PROJECT
DECEMBER 11, 2017
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ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT:
This is a project as defined under CEQA but is Categorically Exempt [Section 15301 (a and d]. A
Notice of Exemption will be filed.
Attachment:
1. Santa Clara County Community Development Block Grant Town/County Contract