Title
Resolution to Approve the Professional Services Agreement with AECOM Great Lakes, Inc., for the Water Treatment Plant Facility Plan 2022 ($5,060,239.80) (RFP No. 20-04)
Memorandum
This memorandum and resolution requests approval of a Professional Services Agreement for professional engineering services with AECOM Great Lakes, Inc. (AECOM) for Water Treatment Plant (WTP) Facility Plan 2022 for a total of $5,060,239.80.
To ensure reliable, high-quality water into the future, the City of Ann Arbor (City) must invest in significant infrastructure improvements. The City of Ann Arbor WTP was constructed in 1938, and the City is still using components of this original infrastructure. Portions of the current plant are over 80 years old and have exceeded their service life. While the plant meets current regulatory requirements for drinking water, this aged and deteriorated infrastructure does not meet current design standards and results in many operational and maintenance issues.
To continue to provide reliable, high-quality services, the City evaluated a range of alternatives. In September 2016, staff presented to City Council a summary of the 2015 Water Treatment Plant Alternatives Evaluation, which recommended rehabilitating portions of the City’s water treatment plant in lieu of other options that included purchasing water wholesale from an external provider. The 2015 Study considered criteria such as impact on rates, water quality, environmental stewardship, operational impact, reliability of water supply over the long-term, consistency with the City’s strategic priorities, and other criteria.
Since 2015, there have been changes in governance with new Council members, changes in raw water quality with PFAS and Cryptosporidium, the continued migration of 1,4-dioxane, and the formation of the regional water supplier, Great Lakes Water Authority (GLWA). The City felt it prudent to review these changed conditions with City Council and obtain direction.
On September 13, 2021, the City staff held a work session with Council to provide a summary of the 2015 study and refresh the recommendations by incorporating changed conditions since 2015. The work session presentation included the WTP Staff’s recommendation to proceed with the rehabilitation of the WTP and to forego the investigation into the regional water supply. The presentation was shared with the Environmental Commission on September 23, 2021, after which a resolution was submitted by the Commission with the recommendation to proceed with the rehabilitation of the WTP and to forego the investigation into the regional water supply. Also noted, Ann Arbor Township and Scio Township both passed their own resolutions recommending that the City proceed with rehabilitation of the WTP.
In January/February 2020, the City issued a request for proposals for professional engineering services to prepare the WTP Facilities Plan (RFP No. 20-04). The scope of this project includes professional engineering services for the preparation of a facility plan that considers the operational, maintenance and regulatory needs of the City’s water system, while providing a focus on the conceptual engineering and preliminary design to rehabilitate the original components of the WTP. Additionally, the project includes a pilot plant which is a smaller-scale production system used to physically test and validate the proposed treatment changes before detailed design and construction. The pilot plant will specifically demonstrate whether the proposed treatment changes will reliably meet the City’s finished water quality goals. The results from the pilot plant have the potential for significant construction cost savings through the validation of newer more efficient technologies. The project also includes a robust public engagement plan incorporating equitable engagement efforts. The project scope will not include further development of the regional water supply alternative.
The City received three proposals. All three firms that submitted proposals were then interviewed by a selection committee. The final ranking by the selection committee was as follows:
|
Firm |
Ranking |
Avg. Score (out of 100) |
|
AECOM |
First |
89 |
|
Jacobs Engineering Group |
Second |
82 |
|
Black & Veatch |
Third |
70 |
It is recommended that City Council approve the professional services agreement with AECOM to complete the WTP Facility Plan 2022. AECOM is recommended because of their project team’s experience with similar projects, their expertise with the issues facing the City, and their detail and completeness of the scope of work. It is further recommended that the project proceed without delay in order to best position the City to access federal funding to support the improvements.
On January 14, 2022, the City received a proposal from GLWA to provide Ann Arbor with GLWA regional water. The proposal confirmed both the capital costs estimate for connection and the commodity costs to purchase water that were presented in the Council work session on September 13, 2021. As such, Staff’s recommendation remains to proceed with rehabilitation of the WTP.
The final negotiated price for the AECOM scope of work is $5,060,239.80. Despite the gap in time between the proposal due date and the award of Contract (due to the pandemic and the investigation into GLWA regional water), AECOM held their pricing from the original proposal. While the cost of constructing the pilot plant was not included in AECOM’s original proposal, the need for the pilot plant came out of the negotiation of the final scope. While a significant additional cost to this project, the pilot plant will add surety to final design decision and, depending on the results, has the potential to help the City realize a significant cost savings during construction. To ensure a prudent and responsible use of City resources, the pilot plant effort is structured in a manner to obtain competitive bids for appropriate elements where possible.
AECOM complies with the requirements of the City’s Conflict of Interest, Non-Discrimination and Living Wage ordinances.
Budget/Fiscal Impact: This project is included in the City’s Capital Improvement Plan (UT-WS-16-17) and is estimated to cost over $100,000,000.00. A variety of funding options are being pursued for the construction phase of the project including infrastructure grants. This phase of the project will be funded by the approved Water Supply System Capital Budget.
Staff
Prepared by: Glen Wiczorek, PE, Senior Utilities Engineer
Reviewed by: Brian Steglitz, PE, Interim Public Services Area Administrator
Approved by: Milton Dohoney Jr., Interim City Administrator
Body
Whereas, Significant investment in the City’s water system is needed to address current water quality challenges and aging infrastructure at the WTP;
Whereas, The City previously performed a WTP Alternatives Analysis in 2015 which recommended rehabilitation of the WTP;
Whereas, In September 2021, City staff presented an overview of the alternative to rehabilitate the WTP and the alternative to purchase water from a regional supplier to City Council and the Environmental Commission, and provided a recommendation to rehabilitate the City’s WTP;
Whereas, The Environmental Commission, Ann Arbor Township and Scio Township have submitted resolutions with the recommendation to proceed with the rehabilitation of the WTP and to forego further investigation of the regional water supply alternative;
Whereas, The City issued Request for Proposal #20-04 for a WTP Facility Plan;
Whereas, The WTP Facility Plan project will evaluate the need and feasibility for addressing several challenges facing the Water Treatment Plant, including the replacement of its original treatment basins;
Whereas, The tasks to be completed in the WTP Facility Plan are a necessary first step in the process to meet the new design standards, replace deteriorated infrastructure, and to address maintenance and operational challenges;
Whereas, Of the three proposals received, AECOM was selected as the most qualified consultant with the most comprehensive scope at a competitive price;
Whereas, The WTP Facility Plan will be funded from the approved Water Supply System Capital budget; and
Whereas, AECOM complies with the requirements of the City’s Conflict of Interest, Non-Discrimination and Living Wage ordinances;
RESOLVED, That City Council approves the proposal to prepare a WTP Facility Plan that focuses on WTP rehabilitation in lieu of connecting to a regional water supply;
RESOLVED, That City Council approves the Professional Services Agreement with AECOM Great Lakes, Inc. in an amount not to exceed $5,060,239.80 (RFP No. 20-04);
RESOLVED, That a contract contingency amount of $500,000.00 be established and that the City Administrator be authorized to approve change orders to the contract with AECOM Great Lakes, inc. in order to satisfactorily complete this project;
RESOLVED, That the professional services are to be funded from the Water Supply System Capital Budget if so approved by Council;
RESOLVED, That Council approve the contract for the life of the project with funds to be available until expended without regard to fiscal year;
RESOLVED, That the Mayor and City Clerk be authorized and directed to execute the agreement for services after approval as to substance by the City Administrator and approval as to form by the City Attorney;
RESOLVED, That the City Administrator be authorized to take the necessary administrative actions to implement this resolution; and
RESOLVED, That the City make the following declaration for the purposes of complying with the reimbursement rules of Treasury Regulations 1.150-2 pursuant to the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, that the City reasonably expect to reimburse itself for expenditures for the costs of the Project with proceeds of Bonds.