Meeting_Body
OPERATIONS, SAFETY, AND CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE COMMITTEE
NOVEMBER 20, 2025
Subject
SUBJECT: GRAFFITI ABATEMENT SERVICES
Action
ACTION: APPROVE RECOMMENDATION
Heading
RECOMMENDATION
Title
AUTHORIZE the Chief Executive Officer to:
A. AWARD a firm fixed unit rate Contract No. OP91160(3)001R1 for Region 1 to BriteWorks, Inc. to provide graffiti abatement services in the Not-To-Exceed (NTE) amount of $2,740,433 for the three-year base period, and $1,975,184 for the one, two-year option term, for a combined NTE amount of $4,715,617, effective February 1, 2026, subject to the resolution of any properly submitted protest(s), if any; and
B. AWARD a firm fixed unit rate Contract No. OP91160(3)002R2 for Region 2 to Strive Well- Being, Inc. to provide graffiti abatement services in the NTE amount of $3,424,320 for the three-year base period, and $2,387,760 for the one, two-year option term, for a combined NTE amount of $5,812,080, effective February 1, 2026, subject to the resolution of any properly submitted protest(s), if any.
Issue
ISSUE
In July 2025, the Board approved award of three contracts to Strive Well-Being (Region 1), BriteWorks, Inc. (Region 2), and Urban Graffiti Enterprises, Inc. (Region 3) to provide graffiti abatement services , subject to the resolution of any properly submitted protests. Following the issuance of the Notice of Intent to Award, staff received a protest and subsequent appeal, which has been denied, from one of the proposing firms, who raised concerns about the calculation of the final evaluation scores. After reviewing the final score calculations that were included in the July Board report, staff discovered an error in the calculation for Region 2 which results in a different recommended firm for Regions 1 and 2. Based on revised score calculations that have been validated, staff is recommending contract award to BriteWorks, Inc. for Region 1 and Strive Well-Being, Inc. for Region 2. There is no change to the award to Urban Graffiti Enterprises, Inc. for Region 3.
The existing regional contracts providing graffiti abatement services expire on January 31, 2026. The new contract awards are required to ensure continuity of maintenance services.
Background
BACKGROUND
On December 18, 2024, a new solicitation to provide graffiti abatement maintenance services for the three regions was issued under the SBE Set Aside Program and contract award was limited to one region per firm.
At the July 2025 Board meeting, staff recommended award to Strive Well-Being, Inc. for Region 1, BriteWorks, Inc. for Region 2, and Urban Graffiti Enterprises, Inc. for Region 3, subject to the resolution of any properly submitted protest(s). After discovering an error in the total score for Region 2 that was included in the July Board report, the recommended firm for Region 2 has changed from BriteWorks, Inc. to Strive Well-Being, Inc. Since the RFP limited contract award to one region per firm, Region 1 is now being recommended to BriteWorks, Inc. The corrected scores are illustrated in Attachment A, Procurement Summary through track changes.
Discussion
DISCUSSION
The protest and subsequent appeal that was submitted by one of the proposing firms alleged there were scoring variances and anomalies. After further review, staff discovered that one of the proposal evaluation team (PET) member’s total score for Qualifications of the Firm/Team criteria was inadvertently omitted from the overall formula calculation. When staff corrected the formula to include all PET members’ scores, the recommendation for Region 2 has changed to Strive Well-Being, Inc. Due to the one region cap in the RFP, the recommendation for Region 1 has also changed to BriteWorks, Inc., as the next qualified proposer not awarded a region. Staff has corrected the scoring calculation and the revised scores and rankings for Region 2 are included in Attachment A, Procurement Summary.
Staff conducted a spot audit of contract awards this calendar year and did not discover any calculation errors. Therefore, there is no reason to believe this is a systemic issue and staff is confident that this was an isolated issue. In order to reduce the risk of this error occurring in the future, staff has implemented an additional layer of review by senior management to ensure evaluation score formulas are properly calculated and include all elements of the evaluation criteria for each PET member.
Determination_Of_Safety_Impact
DETERMINATION OF SAFETY IMPACT
The approval of this item will ensure service continuity and meet Metro maintenance standards by promptly providing regularly scheduled and as-needed graffiti abatement maintenance services. A proactive approach to maintenance needs will ensure the delivery of safe, clean, on-time, and reliable services systemwide.
Financial_Impact
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Funding of $3,803,484 for systemwide graffiti abatement maintenance services is included in the FY26 budget under cost center 8370 - Facilities Contracted Maintenance Services, account 50308, Service Contract Maintenance, under various projects.
Since these are multi-year contracts, the cost center manager and Deputy Chief Operations Officer, Shared Mobility, will be accountable for budgeting the cost in future years.
Impact to Budget
The current source of funds for this action includes operating eligible funds, including Passenger Fares, Propositions A and C, Measures R and M sales tax revenues, State Transit Assistance (STA), and the Transportation Development Act. These funding sources are eligible for bus and rail operations. Given approved guidelines and provisions, using these funding sources leverages maximum project fund use.
Equity_Platform
EQUITY PLATFORM
Providing ongoing graffiti abatement maintenance services supports the beautification and cleanliness of Metro facilities, enhancing patrons' experience while utilizing Metro’s transit system. Survey results have shown that bus and rail station cleanliness was identified as one of the top areas of concern and was used to assist with funds allocation for the FY26 budget.
As part of this solicitation, Metro hosted two Systemwide Metro Connect Industry Forum Outreach events on August 23 and August 31, 2023, to provide an overview of the Small Business Programs requirements for competitively negotiated procurements.
This procurement was solicited under the Small Business (SB) Prime (Set-Aside) program and open to certified Small Business Enterprise (SBE) firms only. BriteWorks, Inc., an SB Prime, is performing 57% of the contract work with its own workforce for Region 1 and Strive Well-Being Inc., an SB Prime, is performing 30% of the contract work with its own workforce for Region 2.
Vehicle_Miles_Traveled _Outcome
VEHICLE MILES TRAVELED OUTCOME
VMT and VMT per capita in Los Angeles County are lower than national averages, the lowest in the SCAG region, and on the lower end of VMT per capita statewide, with these declining VMT trends due in part to Metro’s significant investment in rail and bus transit.* Metro’s Board-adopted VMT reduction targets align with California’s statewide climate goals, including achieving carbon neutrality by 2045. To ensure continued progress, all Board items are assessed for their potential impact on VMT.
As part of these ongoing efforts, this item is expected to contribute to further reductions in VMT. This item supports Metro’s systemwide strategy to reduce VMT through these maintenance activities that will improve bus and rail station cleanliness and further encourage transit ridership. Metro’s Board- adopted VMT reduction targets were designed to build on the success of existing investments, and this item aligns with those objectives.
*Based on population estimates from the United States Census and VMT estimates from Caltrans’ Highway Performance Monitoring System (HPMS) data between 2001-2019.
Implementation_of_Strategic_Plan_Goals
IMPLEMENTATION OF STRATEGIC PLAN GOALS
The staff recommendation supports Strategic Goal 2: Deliver outstanding trip experiences for all users of the transportation system. Performing ongoing graffiti abatement maintenance services will ensure providing safe and clean conditions while enhancing customers’ experience.
Alternatives_Considered
ALTERNATIVES CONSIDERED
The Board may elect not to approve the recommendations and direct staff to cancel and reprocure the graffiti abatement services. This option is not recommended as it would unnecessarily burden the small business vendor community to spend additional time and money preparing a new proposal and it would further delay a contract award recommendation, which could result in a gap in service that would impact Metro’s system safety, cleanliness, operations, and customer experience.
Next_Steps
NEXT STEPS
Upon Board approval, staff will execute Contract No. OP91160(3)001R1 for Region 1 with BriteWorks, Inc., and Contract No. OP91160(3)002R2 for Region 2 with Strive Well-Being, Inc. to provide graffiti abatement services, effective February 1, 2026.
Attachments
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment A - Procurement Summary
Attachment B - DEOD Summary
Prepared_by
Prepared by: Carolina Coppolo, Deputy Chief, Vendor/Contract Management, (213) 922-4471
Carlos Martinez, Senior Director, Facilities Contracted Maintenance Services, (213) 922-6761
Lena Babayan, Executive Officer, Operations Administration, (213) 922-6765
Shahrzad Amiri, Deputy Chief Operations Officer, Shared Mobility, (213) 922-3061
Michelle Navarro, Deputy Chief Financial Officer (Interim) (213) 922-3056
Reviewed_By
Reviewed by: Nalini Ahuja, Chief Financial Officer, (213) 922-3088
Conan Cheung, Chief Operations Officer, (213) 418-3034
