Meeting_Body
CONSTRUCTION COMMITTEE
MARCH 17, 2016
Subject/Action
SUBJECT: UNIVERSAL CITY PEDESTRIAN BRIDGE
ACTION: AUTHORIZATION FOR LIFE OF PROJECT BUDGET AND CONTRACT MODIFICATION AUTHORITY
Heading
RECOMMENDATION
Title
APPROVE:
A. INCREASING the Life of Project Budget (LOP) Budget for Metro Red Line Universal City Pedestrian Bridge (CP 809382) by $2,285,000 from $27,300,000 to $29,585,000;
B. INCREASING the Contract Modification Authority (CMA) for Contract C1043 with Griffith Company in the amount of $577,000 from $2,542,000 to $3,119,000; and
C. AMENDING the FY16 Budget by $4,406,000 from $9,732,000 to $14,138,000 as shown in Attachment D.
Issue
ISSUE
Design/Build Contract No. C1043 was awarded to Griffith Company in the amount of $21,425,000 on November 14, 2013. The original schedule for completion of the project was January 9, 2016. As of this report, the project is approximately 85% complete and is scheduled to open for revenue service on or before April 6, 2016.
The approved LOP budget was based on the 30% complete design prepared during the Project Development phase of the project. Project staff have been working diligently to complete the project within the approved budget; however, the LOP as established prior to Contract notice-to-proceed (NTP) has been determined to be inadequate given the complexity of the project.
During the course of construction there were numerous unanticipated design issues and differing site conditions which resulted in significant impact to the project budget and scheduled completion date. Additionally, construction management and staff oversight has increased in cost due to the above issues, including multiple shifts, weekend work, and a significantly mitigated construction schedule. This mitigated schedule has been deemed necessary as it is a more cost-effective approach to project completion and also ensures substantial completion of the bridge construction prior to the opening of NBC Universal’s ‘Harry Potter’ attraction, which opens to the public on April 7, 2016.
This increase addresses all current and future direct and indirect cost impacts, and will provide sufficient funding and CMA to cover the increased costs through completion of the project.
Discussion
DISCUSSION
During the course of construction, there were several unanticipated design changes that occurred for technical or unforeseen reasons. For example, the project power transformer location shown in the preliminary engineering (PE) drawings had to be changed to a new location, due to an insufficient Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) power voltage Point of Connection. The new location required new design development cost and increased construction costs to install the transformer and transport the power to the desired location.
The design of the bridge foundations is another example of significant changes to the PE design. The PE design provided for spread footings, a design chosen due to the significant increase in costs that would be associated with providing a Cast In Drilled Hole (CIDH) piling support system. The spread footing design was based upon geotechnical information obtained during the construction of the Metro Red Line Universal Station, a report which did not contain timely information or any data for the foundation system that was located on Universal property. After award of the contract, the Contractor performed a geotechnical survey of the project site and determined that the liquefaction layer, a geotechnical feature which determines the foundation system for the bridge, was located at a depth that eliminated the possibility of spread footings and in fact dictated the need for a CIDH piling system.
Additionally, several structural connections for the major supports of the bridge were determined to be inadequate to meet the requirements of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) manual. The structural connections required a new design which resulted in a significant amount of rework and increased fabrication costs.
The project also experienced several differing site conditions such as contaminated soil, unmarked underground utilities and appurtenances, and existing structures not identified on as built drawings.
Because of these unanticipated conditions, as well as a provision for a global claim settlement on various time impact requests and design discrepancies, the construction cost is expected to increase by $977,000 above what was originally budgeted.
Staff has also experienced additional overhead costs, including $166,625 for Third Party reviews and field services, $99,500 for environmental services necessary for noise, hazardous waste, and archeological finding purposes, $605,716 for Agency labor necessary for increased submittal reviews and related design support services needed to support the accelerated schedule, and $176,000 for other professional services such as DEOD consultants and Legal support. Further, to ensure that Metro provides a complete project safely and to the high standards of Metro quality within an aggressive and mitigated completion schedule, staff has increased construction management oversight by $254,000.
Determination_Of_Safety_Impact
DETERMINATION OF SAFETY IMPACT
This Board action will not have an impact on established safety standards.
Financial_Impact
FINANCIAL IMPACT
If all actions are approved, the LOP budget will be increased by $2,285,000. The increase will be distributed to affected project line items with a majority of the increase added to Cost Center 8510 (Construction Contracts/Procurement) Project 809382 (Metro Red Line Universal City Pedestrian Bridge). The project will require a $4,406,000 amendment to the FY16 budget and $2,436,000 in FY17 for contract closeout. Since this is a multi-year project, the Project Manager, Cost Center manager, and Executive Director, Program Management, will be responsible for budgeting the cost in future fiscal years.
Impact to Budget
If recommendation A is approved, the $2,285,000 LOP increase will be funded using Proposition A 35%. If recommendation C is approved, FY16 budget will be increased by $4,406,000 from $9,732,000 to $14,138,000 as funded per Attachment D also using Prop A 35% funds. Project 809382 was originally approved using a combination of Prop A 35% funds and a $3.9 million contribution from NBC Universal. Prop A 35% funds are eligible for rail operations and capital.
Alternatives_Considered
ALTERNATIVES CONSIDERED
The Board may choose to not authorize the increases to the LOP Budget, CMA or FY16 amendment for this project. This alternative is not recommended because rejection of the LOP budget and CMA increase would prohibit staff from completing this much-needed Pedestrian Bridge while the project is under construction and to make payment to the contractor against the approved contract modifications.
Next_Steps
NEXT STEPS
Upon Board approval, Metro’s project team will continue the Universal City Pedestrian Bridge project to substantial completion and diligently work with the contractor to resolve current and potential changes within the revised LOP budget. The construction is scheduled to be substantially complete on April 6, 2016.
Attachments
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment A - Procurement Summary
Attachment B - Contract Modification
Attachment C - DEOD Summary
Attachment D - Funding/Expenditure Plan
Prepared_by
Prepared by: Milind Joshi, Director Project Engineering, (213) 922-7117
Tim Lindholm, Executive Officer, Capital Projects, (213) 922-7297
Reviewed_By
Reviewed by: Ivan Page, Interim Executive Director, Vendor/Contracts Management, (213) 922-6383
Richard Clarke, Executive Director, Program Management, (213) 922-7557
