CC SR 20240716 G - Amendment 6 to Staygreen Landscape Contract
CITY COUNCIL MEETING DATE: 07/16/2024
AGENDA REPORT AGENDA HEADING: Consent Calendar
AGENDA TITLE:
Consideration and possible action to ratify emergency response services invoices and
approve Amendment No. 6 to the professional services agreement with Stay Green Inc.
for Citywide landscaping and general maintenance services.
RECOMMENDED COUNCIL ACTION:
1) Ratify payments to Stay Green, Inc. in the amount of $491,798 for emergency
response services related to the landslide emergency declaration and January 31
to February 9, 2024 winter storm;
2) Approve Amendment No. 6 to the Amended and Restated Professional Services
Agreement with Stay Green Inc. for Citywide landscaping and general
maintenance services, thereby extending the term through September 30, 2024
and increasing the contract sum by $444,000 for the period of July 1, 2024 through
September 30, 2024 to bring the total contract sum to $11,399,641 over the seven-
year and seven-month term of the agreement; and
3) Authorize the Mayor and City Clerk to execute Amendment No. 6 in a form
approved by the City Attorney.
FISCAL IMPACT: Emergency response services in the amount of $491,798 were
funded from the City’s Emergency Fund in the General Fund, which
may be eligible for reimbursement through the Federal Emergency
Management Agency (FEMA) disaster recovery program with a City
cost share of no less than 6.25%. It is important to note that some of
the emergency work is related to the accelerated landslide
movement resulting from the January 31 to February 9, 2024 severe
winter storm, for which a federal disaster was declared by President
Biden. However, the California Governor’s Office of Emergency
Services (CalOES) informed the City that landslides are considered
pre-existing conditions and are typically not considered for damage
recovery. CalOES also stated that if the City can demonstrate that
the land movement was accelerated due to the winter storm and
meet other requirements, the City may be eligible for damage
recovery costs. Staff continues to work closely with CalOES and
FEMA to pursue cost recovery for these expenditures.
Approval of Amendment No. 6 will result in an expenditure of up to
$444,000 for the period July 1, 2024 through September 30, 2024,
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RANCHO PALOS VERDES
which is equivalent to three-months of the adopted Fiscal Year
2024-25 budget. VR
Amount Budgeted: $1,776,000
Additional Appropriation: N/A
Account Number(s): 101-400-3150-5201 $295,000 (General Fund – Trails & Open Space Repair & Maint. Services
101-400-3151-5201 $ 770,000 (General Fund – Parks Maint, Repair & Maint. Services)
202-400-3180-5201 $388,000
(Gas Tax – Landscape Maint., Repair & Maint. Median Services)
221-400-3180-5201 $ 292,000
(Measure M – Repair & Maint. Services)
223-400-0000-5201 $31,000
(Subregion 1 Fund – Repair & Maint. Services) VR
ORIGINATED BY: Juan Hernandez, Public Works Maintenance Superintendent
REVIEWED BY: Ramzi Awwad, Director of Public Works
APPROVED BY: Ara Mihranian, AICP, City Manager
ATTACHED SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS:
A. Amendment No. 6 to the Professional Services Agreement with Stay Green
Inc. (page A-1) Forthcoming as Late Correspondence
B. Amendment No. 5 to the Professional Services Agreement with Stay Green
Inc. (page B-1) Forthcoming as Late Correspondence
C. Emergency Response Services Invoices (page C-1) Forthcoming as Late
Correspondence
BACKGROUND:
On February 1, 2017, the City entered into a three-year Professional Services Agreement
(Agreement) with Stay Green, Inc. (Stay Green) for landscaping, trash removal, general
maintenance, and emergency response services for City parks, rights-of-way, trails, and
open spaces. The Agreement included three additional one-year optional extensions. The
total sum of the Agreement was not to exceed $3,224,909 with an annual limit of
$1,074,969.
On October 17, 2017, the City Council approved Amendment No. 1 to the Agreement,
increasing the level-of-effort and the not-to-exceed sum to $3,739,234 with an annual limit
of $1,332,132.
On June 18, 2019, the City Council approved Amendment No. 2 to the Agreement, adding
brush clearance fuel modification services. These services were for areas where goats
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cannot perform fuel modification because of access constraints or because manual
removal methods are necessary. This increased the not -to-exceed sum to $3,838,949
with an annual limit of $1,431,864.
On February 4, 2020, the City Council exercised the first one -year extension option,
extending the expiration date of the Agreement to February 4, 2021, and entering into an
Amended and Restated Agreement, thereby resetting the amendment numbering
system. The sum of the revised Agreement increased to a not-to-exceed amount of
$5,245,922 with an annual limit of $1,406,973.
On June 16, 2020, the City Council approved Amendment No. 1 to the Amended and
Restated Agreement, further expanding fuel modification services. The sum of the
Amended and Restated Agreement was increased to $5,400,060 with an annual limit of
$1,561,111.
On February 2, 2021, the City Council exercised the second one -year extension option
by approving Amendment No. 2 to the Amended and Restated Agreement. This extended
the expiration date to February 4, 2022, and increased the not-to-exceed contract sum to
$6,961,172 with an annual limit of $1,561,111.
On January 18, 2022, the City Council exercised the third one -year extension option by
approving Amendment No. 3 to the Amended and Restated Agreement. This extended
the expiration date to February 4, 2023, and increased the not-to-exceed contract sum to
$8,522,283 with an annual limit of $1,561,111.
On January 17, 2023, the City Council approved Amendment No. 4 to the Amended and
Restated Agreement, aligning the term to the City’s fiscal year by extending the
Agreement to June 30, 2023, and adding another one -year optional extension through
June 30, 2024 to allow time to re-solicit the services provided in the agreement. The sum
of the Amended and Restated Agreement was increased to $9,231,641 with an annual
limit of $1,724,000.
On June 20, 2023, the City Council exercised the additional one -year extension option by
approving Amendment No. 5 to the Amended and Restated Agreement to allow time to
re-solicit the services provided in the Agreement. This extended the expiration date to
June 30, 2024, and increased the not -to-exceed contract sum to $10,955,641 with an
annual limit of $1,724,000. (Attachment B)
DISCUSSION:
Regular Services
In anticipation of the expiration of Amendment No. 5, Staff prepared a new solicitation for
the services covered by the existing Agreement. On March 14,2024, Staff advertised a
Request for Proposals (RFP) on the PlanetBids platform for landscaping, trash removal,
general maintenance, and emergency response services for City parks, rights-of-way,
trails, and open spaces. Proposals were received from two firms by the RFP deadline of
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April 25, 2024. Staff evaluated the proposals and determined that neither proposal was
responsive to the RFP because the proposals included incomplete pricing or variations in
the pricing structure. Therefore, in consultation with the City Attorney, Staff rejected both
proposals.
Staff is now in the process of revising the RFP to make it clearer so that potential
proposing firms can more easily submit responsive proposals. Staff estimates that
approximately three months will be needed to revise the RFP, re -issue the solicitation,
evaluate proposals, and award a new agreement. However, as the current Agreement is
expiring, an additional amendment is needed to prevent a gap in services. Stay Green
has agreed to extend its Agreement at the rates currently in effect. Therefore, Staff
recommends increasing the sum and extending the term of the current Amended and
Restated Agreement while services are re-solicited.
Emergency Services
On October 3, 2023, the City Council adopted a resolution declaring the existence of a
local emergency within the geographic boundaries of the Greater Portuguese Bend
Landslide Complex. Staff was directed to implement any mitigation measures that could
slow landslide movement and to assist the Abalone Cove Landslide Hazard Abatement
District and the Klondike Canyon Landslide Hazard Abatement District with their efforts
to slow landslide movement within the Abalone Cove Landslide and the Klondike Canyon
Landslide, respectively. The local emergency has been timely extended since its
declaration and remains in effect.
From January 31 through February 9, 2024, the City was subjected to a severe winter
storm for which a federal disaster was declared by President Biden.
These two emergencies required the City to immediately deploy resources from Stay
Green to respond in a timely manner. The emergency response work was not part of the
Stay Green contract, but Staff could not wait to deploy Stay Green resources until after
the agreement was amended to add the emergency response services. Additionally, the
emergency services level of effort could not be easily enumerated as the situation, and
needed response, was evolving quickly. Therefore, Staff directed Stay Green to perfo rm
emergency work with the intent of returning to the City Council at the earliest opportunity
to ratify payment for the emergency work.
The emergency work included some immediate response to the winter storm such as
installing sandbags and clearing debris that had washed into roadways. Additionally, the
emergency work included responding to landslide acceleration resulting from the winter
storm such as filling fissures and clearing vegetation to allow access to Klondike Canyon,
Vanderlip Canyon, and Kelvin Canyon for landslide mitigation measures.
At this time, Staff believes that the majority of the emergency work requiring Stay Green
resources has been completed. Therefore, Staff recommends the City Council ratify
payment for these emergency services in the amount of $491,798 (Attachment C). The
emergency work was funded using the City’s emergency fund in General Fund. The cost
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of the emergency work may be eligible for reimbursement through the FEMA disaster
recovery program.
It is important to note that some of the emergency work is related to the accelerated
landslide movement resulting from the winter storm. However, CalOES informed the City
that landslides are considered pre-existing conditions and are typically not considered for
damage recovery. CalOES also stated that if the City can demonstrate that the land
movement was accelerated due to the winter storm and meet other requirements, the City
may be eligible for damage recovery costs. Staff continues to work closely wit h CalOES
and FEMA to pursue cost recovery for these expenditures, which would require a cost
share of at least 6.25% from the City.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
The landscape services and general maintenance agreement with Stay Green has, at
various times, included fuel modification work (where goats cannot be deployed).
However, fuel modification services were separated during 2023 and are now under a
separate contract rather than this amended and re-stated agreement.
CONCLUSION:
Staff recommends ratifying payment for emergency services in the amount of $491,798
and approving Amendment No. 6 to the Amended and Restated Professional Services
Agreement with Stay Green (Attachment A) for landscaping, trash removal, general
maintenance, and emergency response services for City parks, rights-of-way, trails, and
open spaces; extending the term through September 30, 2024, and increasing the
contract sum by $444,000 for the period of July 1, 2024 through September 30, 2024 to
bring the total contract sum to $11,399,641 over the seven-year and seven-month term
of the agreement.
ALTERNATIVES:
In addition to Staff recommendation, the following alternative actions are available for the
City Council’s consideration:
1. Do not approve Amendment No. 6 to the Amended and Restated Professional
Services Agreement with Stay Green Inc., ceasing landscaping and general
maintenance services while the services are re-solicited.
2. Take other action, as deemed appropriate.
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