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Home My WebLink AboutC31560 - Landscape Maintenance Area 17 - Month to MonthContract No. C31560 CITY OF PALM DESERT PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT STAFF REPORT REQUEST: ACCEPT, WITH CONSEQUENCES, TRUGREEN LANDCARE'S ELECTION TO NOT ACCEPT THE AWARD OF CONTRACT NO. C31560 FOR LANDSCAPE MAINTENANCE SERVICES IN LMA 17, AUTHORIZE THE NEGOTIATION OF MONTH -TO -MONTH LANDSCAPE MAINTENANCE SERVICES WITH KIRKPATRICK LANDSCAPING SERVICES, INC., REJECT ALL PREVIOUS BIDS FOR LMA 17 THAT WERE CONSIDERED AT THE MAY 24, 2012, CITY COUNCIL MEETING, AND AUTHORIZE STAFF TO RESTRUCTURE AND REBID THE CONTRACT FOR LMA 17 (PROJECT NO. 917-12) SUBMITTED BY: Mark Greenwood, P.E., Director of Public Works CONTRACTOR: TruGreen LandCare 1616 Marlborough Ave, Bldg S Riverside, CA 92507 DATE: June 28, 2012 CONTENTS: Notification Letter of Rejection of Contract Vicinity Map Recommendation By Minute Motion: 1. Accept, with consequences, the election of TruGreen LandCare (TruGreen) of Riverside, California, to not accept Contract No. C31560 for landscape maintenance services for LMA 17 (Project No. 917-12); 2. Authorize the City Manager to negotiate with Kirkpatrick Landscaping Services, Inc., of Indio, California, for month -to -month landscape maintenance services for LMA 17 for a period of time not to exceed 120 days and at a cost not to exceed $17,300 per month; 3. Authorize the City Manager to negotiate with Kirkpatrick Landscaping Services, Inc., of Indio, California, for the overseeding of turf areas in LMA 17 at a cost not to exceed $19,740; and 4. Reject all previous bids for LMA 17 that were considered at the May 24, 2012, City Council meeting and direct staff to restructure and rebid the contract for landscape maintenance services for LMA 17. Staff Report TruGreen LandCare Election to Not Accept Contract No. C31560 June 28, 2012 Page 2 of 3 Funds are available in General Fund Account No. 110-4610-453-3320, R/M Landscape Services, Account No. 110-4611-453-3320, R/M Landscape Services, and Account No. 110-4611-453-3371, Tri-Cities Sports Facility. Background On March 28, 2012, the City Clerk advertised and called for bids for LMA 17 for Fiscal Years 2012/2013 and 2013/2014, and on April 25, 2012, bids were opened and read aloud. The successful low bidder was TruGreen LandCare of Riverside, California, and Contract No. C31560 was awarded to them by the City Council on May 24, 2012. On June 14, 2012, TruGreen tendered a letter to the City indicating that they had elected to not accept the award of contract. The letter implied that TruGreen had significantly underbid the work. Staff contacted the City Attorney and at his request the bid bond documents were forwarded to him for action. The City Attorney has indicated that he will pursue TruGreen's bid bond to recover incurred costs due to their decision not to accept the award of contract. Landscape maintenance contracts have traditionally been bid as a public works project, making them subject to the low bidder requirement. This process has resulted in a chronic problem of underbidding. The result of these underbid contracts is increased staff time to oversee the maintenance contracts in order to bring the contractor into compliance with contract specifications, poor quality workmanship, and at times early termination of contract thus requiring additional staff time to re -bid the contracts. Staff would like to take this unfortunate event and use it as an opportunity to re -address the process of bidding landscape maintenance work by using a service based contract. This type of contract will allow the selection process to be based on price as well as other factors (i.e. man hours, equipment, and experience) rather than price alone. Staff expects to have this contract developed, bid, awarded, and executed within 120 days. In order to provide interim landscape maintenance services for LMA 17, staff has contacted Kirkpatrick Landscaping Services, Inc., who has successfully worked for the City as a landscape maintenance vendor in the past and has prior experience with and/or knowledge of this LMA. The time period for this interim landscape maintenance will extend into overseeding season and, as a result, a proposal has been requested and received for general landscape maintenance services and for overseeding. The proposed cost is $17,300 per month for general landscape maintenance services, and $19,740 for overseeding. The work requested is based on the current contract specifications, but is not all inclusive because the time period is substantially less than a full year. The intent of the scope of work is to maintain the LMA in good, functional, and safe condition until a new contract can be developed, bid, awarded, and executed. Staff Report TruGreen LandCare Election to Not Accept Contract No. C31560 June 28, 2012 Page 3of3 Fiscal Analysis This is an on -going maintenance activity with no fiscal impact beyond the contract amount. The City Attorney is pursuing TruGreen's bid bond, which will offset the additional expenses incurred as a result of the non -acceptance of the contract. Prepared By: H. Sp ncet ht, Laniercape Manager Paul S. Gibson, Director of Finance Approval: Wohlmuth, City Manager Departrpeatit)dead: Mark re nwood, P.l Directolr df Public Wo CITY COUNCTGi�GTI0X APPROVED DENIED RECEIVED OTHER MEETI G AYES: NOES: ABSENT: ABSTAIN: VERIFIED BY: Original on File with 's Office TRuGREEN r TruGreen LandCaxe San Diego Branch 6372 5248 Governor Drive San Diego, CA 92122 Office: 858453-1755 Fax: 858-453-7197 Mailing Address P.O. Box 22207 San Diego, CA 92192-2207 June 14, 2012 H. Spencer Knight Landscape Manager City of Palm Desert 73510 Fred Waring Drive Palm Desert, CA 92260 Dear Spencer: As per our phone conversation we are going to elect to not accept the award for LMA 1, 16, 17, and 18. At the time of submission we had, in our employ, two individuals that were soon to depart the company. After our internal approval process, numbers were altered, and an "unresponsive" bid was submitted to the City of Palm Desert. For this, on behalf of our team, I apologize. Following the notice of award, these red flags were noticed. We put together a team to look over the numbers and scope to ensure that we, in good faith, could perform the work at the submitted price. After a week of due diligence, our team has decided that it is not in the best interest of all parties involved, for us to move forward with this book of work. Again, I apologize for the inconvenience. Our team takes great pride in our work, and we are taking all action required to ensure that this does not happen in the future. We look forward to participating in future RFP processes. SincerelXice Jared Branch Manager San Pablo Median +/- 43,500 Sq Ft Magnesia Falls City Park +/- 312,486 Sq Ft AN ASQUAL HENNEL O Q m a z a � JO � � a