To: Honorable Mayor and Members of City Council
From: Breyana Brandt, Parks & Recreation Director
Prepared By: Jeff Gittings, Parks and Urban Forestry Manager
TITLE:
Title
Irrigation Controller Replacement Project
LABEL
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Recommendation
Adopt a resolution: (1) approving and authorizing the Parks and Recreation Services Director to execute an agreement incorporating a cooperative/piggybacking contract with SiteOne Landscape Supply, for the Park Irrigation Controller Replacement Project in an amount not to exceed $431,000; (2) determining that the exception for procurement via existing contracts of other public agencies in Napa Municipal Code Section 2.91.060 applies to the agreement; and (3) determining that the actions authorized by this resolution are exempt from CEQA.
Body
DISCUSSION:
Project Scope
Napa City Council approved funding in the Capital Improvement Program (CIP) budget as part of a decision package to support the replacement of outdated irrigation controllers and antiquated irrigation management software. This project reflects the City’s ongoing commitment to improving recreational spaces for residents and supports the City Council’s Parks & Community Spaces Focus Area.
The City’s current irrigation system includes 65 individual irrigation controllers that control the irrigation system in the City's parks, public spaces, and along rights of way. 40 of these controllers are connected to an antiquated irrigation control software (Laguna) which relies on radio communication that suffers from frequent commination failures, that can equate to wasted water and staff time. The current system also requires all irrigation controller communication be run through a desktop computer at the parks office. Irrigation system failures or significant breaks require staff to be called into the office to make changes, repair or shut down the system. The remaining 25 controllers are residential type irrigation controllers that do not have the ability to perform water efficiencies programs and lack infrastructure to shut off the water when a leak is detected. Programming and troubleshooting require staff to manually adjust settings in the field at the controller which is very inefficient. When leaks occur on these systems with antiquated irrigation controllers the department is often unaware for hours or days depending on the size of the leak.
The scope for project will include demolition of the existing irrigation controllers and installation of new Weather TRAK controllers, flow sensors and master valves (where they do not exist) and a web based irrigation software to manage irrigations system digitally. The proposed software (Weather TRAK) is programmable from a web-based application that staff can access and control from their cell phones or tablets 24/7. This technology would alleviate the dependability on antiquated radio communication and enable staff to make modifications and respond to issues right from their phone. A tremendous number of programming functions are now available that support water efficiencies enabling the city to be a responsible steward of water resources.
The installation of the irrigation controllers and software is planned to occur this spring and early summer.
Project Background
The parks conditions assessment analyzed current and future City infrastructure needs, desired levels of service, and financial needs to sustain the delivery of park services for the community. This work is an implementation step of the 2040 General Plan Update, as well as the Department Capital Investment Policy, which both identify the need to develop a prioritization method for investing in the City’s parks system.
The City’s current irrigation system includes 65 individual irrigation controllers that control the irrigation system in the City's parks, public spaces, and along rights of way. 40 of these controllers are connected to an antiquated irrigation control software (Laguna) which relies on radio communication that suffers from frequent commination failures, that can equate to wasted water and staff time. The current system also requires all irrigation controller communication be run through a desktop computer at the parks office. Irrigation system failures or significant breaks require staff to be called into the office to make changes, repair or shut down the system. The remaining 25 controllers are residential type irrigation controllers that do not have the ability to perform water efficiencies programs and lack infrastructure to shut off the water when a leak is detected. Programming and troubleshooting require staff to manually adjust settings in the field at the controller, which is very inefficient. When leaks occur on these systems with antiquated irrigation controllers the department is often unaware for hours or days depending on the size of the leak.
The parks division manages over 90 acres of irrigated natural turf. These areas are highly utilized by the community, including organized sports and leisure activities. The condition assessment identified many of these turf areas as being in “poor” condition. Irrigation issues are a main culprit to these conditions. Improving natural turf may require many management strategies, however the irrigation system and management of that system is the most important factor to having healthy natural turf.
Compliance with Napa Municipal Code 2.91.060
By entering into the proposed agreement, the City will meet the purpose and goals identified in Section 2.91.060 of the Napa Municipal Code:
Napa Municipal Code 2.91.060: Procurement of Equipment & Materials
Under Napa Municipal Code 2.91.060, the City may enter into a contract that is based upon terms of an existing contract between a contractor and another public agency, without further complying with the requirements of the city’s purchasing and contracting policies. This code applies to procurement of equipment and materials for this project.
SiteOne Landscape Supply that will perform the work, has aa piggyback contract with the State of California and the State agreement piggybacks off the BuyBoard Purchasing Cooperative, which is a “Cooperative Purchasing” option for local municipalities. Cooperative Purchasing is procurement conducted by, or on behalf of, one or more Public Procurement Units as defined by the American Bar Association Model Procurement Code for State and Local Governments.
SiteOne Landscape Supply holds a competitively solicited cooperative contract with BuyBoard and the City will be piggybacking of the State agreement with BuyBoard. Through piggybacking and cooperative purchasing, the City will receive discounted pricing for all irrigation materials and supplies and will benefit from installation experience, support and warranty work from one provider with local representation. This results in an efficient use of staff time and resources to address aging infrastructure by providing cost savings on irrigation materials, supplies, and labor.
FINANCIAL IMPACTS:
There are no financial impacts. Sufficient funding for the project includes existing appropriations from the Irrigation Controller Replacement Project (33PK24PR01) adopted in the current CIP Budget.
CEQA:
City staff recommends that the City Council determine that the Recommended Action is exempt from CEQA pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15301(d), which exempts the restoration or rehabilitation of deteriorated facilities, and 15303 which exempts new construction or conversion of small structures.
DOCUMENTS ATTACHED:
ATCH 1 - Resolution
NOTIFICATION:
Parks, Recreation and Trees Advisory Commission