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HomeMy WebLinkAboutFIN-07-015 - E06-063 - Consultant Services - King St (Frederick/Benton to Victoria) & City Centre District Streetscape Master Plan Report To: Mayor Carl Zehr and Members of Council Date of Meeting: 2007 -02- 26 Prepared By: Larry Gordon Date of Report 2007 -02-19 Report No: FIN 07-015 Subject: E06-063 - Consultant Services - King Street (Frederick/Benton to Victoria) and City Centre District Streetscape Master Plan RECOMMENDA TION That Expression of Interest E06-063, Consultant Services - King Street (Frederick/Benton to Victoria) and City Centre District Streetscape Master Plan, Phase I - Pre Design and Tendering, be awarded to IBI Group, Waterloo at their estimated fee of $269,171., including a contingency of $23,085. and G.S.T., based on a satisfactory contract being negotiated and further that the Mayor and City Clerk be authorized to execute an agreement satisfactory to the City Solicitor. BACKGROUND Over the course of the past few years, a number of concerns have been brought forward regarding lighting in the Downtown, in particular, lighting along the King Street corridor. Some of the concerns raised have been centred on the level of comfort felt by pedestrians while walking in the Downtown at night. Typically, these concerns have focused on maintenance issues, overall light levels, "holes" in the street lighting and how best to address "dark" areas. In follow-up to these concerns, the City, in conjunction with the Downtown Advisory Committee (DAC), the Safe and Healthy Community Advisory Committee, Kitchener- Wilmot Hydro and the Kitchener Downtown Business Association (KDBA), formed a working group to identify and help resolve these issues. As a result, it became quite apparent that there was a strong need to improve the existing light levels in the Downtown, and more specifically, King Street between Frederick / Benton Streets and the CN Railway tracks west of Victoria Street. Historically, lighting improvements have been undertaken in conjunction with road and streetscape construction projects when underground utility infrastructure is upgraded. To date, approximately one third of the King Street corridor (1.5 km within the limits of the Downtown), has been rebuilt including new road and streetscape standards. Thus, it is the intent of City staff to redevelop the remaining portion of King Street as part of an accelerated road improvement and streetscape enhancement project. As such, it is the intent of City staff to carry out a comprehensive road and streetscape design process for King Street & the City Centre District in accordance with the requirements of the Municipal Class Environmental Assessment Act (Class EA Act). The King Street & the City Centre District Class EA and Master Plan, shall provide the City with a strategy to redevelop the downtown streetscape. The Class EA and Master Plan process shall encompass a series of projects and provide the City with the framework to fulfill its obligations to the public. The public, including all applicable stakeholders / interest groups, will be welcomed and encouraged to participate in a thorough public consultation process. As part of the Class EA and Master Plan, the public consultation process will establish a decision-making mechanism and/or model to evaluate the technical, social, economic and environmental effects of each streetscape alternative. The Consultant shall be required to develop alternatives based on previous processes and present potential opportunities for public comment. The feedback from this process will ultimately determine the preferred streetscape solution for King Street and strategy for the City Centre District. REPORT In accordance with Chapter 170 of the Municipal Code pertaInIng to the Selection of Professional Services/Consultants, a Consultant's Review Committee was established consisting of L. Lynch, Manager, Engineering Infrastructure, E. Saunderson, Design & Construction Project Manager, C. Curtis, Senior Project Manager, J. McBride, Director, Transportation Planning, S. Wright, Manager Downtown Community Development, R. Mounsey, Senior Planner Urban Design, C. Bluhm, Urban Investment Advisor, and L. Gordon, Director of Purchasing. Expressions of interest were advertised in The Record, The Globe and Mail, on the City of Kitchener Home Page and on the internet thorough the Ontario Public Buyers Electronic Tendering Information System relative to this project. Documents were picked up by ten (10) interested parties. By the closing date of Friday August 18th, 2006, seven (7) responses had been received. The Review Committee met on Tuesday September 19th, 2006 to review the submissions. A shortlist of four (4) Consultants was selected for further interviews. The Review Committee met on Tuesday January 23rd, 2007 to interview the shortlisted candidates. The Committee reduced the shortlist to two firms and requested additional cost information from them. The Committee reconvened on January 29th, 2007 and elected to award the project to IBI Group, Waterloo. A listing of the responding parties follows for your reference. Planning Alliance, Toronto Marshall Macklin Monaghan, Thornhill IBI Group, Waterloo McCormick Rankin Corporation, Kitchener MTE Consultants Inc., Kitchener Planning & Engineering Initiatives Ltd., Kitchener Stantec Consulting Ltd., Kitchener FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS Funding will be provided from index 852018 - Downtown Streetscape REVENUES Balance in Account Dec 31/06 Contribution from EDIF TOTAL REVENUES $ (16,602.) $330,000. $313,398. EXPENSES Construction Costs E06-063 Less G.S.T. Rebate $ 48,497. $269,171. ($ 15,236.) $253,935. $253,935. $302,432. TOTAL EXPENSES BALANCE $ 10,966. * Any surplus funds will be retained in the account for projects in subsequent years Larry Gordon Director of Purchasing