TO: LINDA REICH, CITY MANAGER
FROM: HYE JIN LEE, PE, DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS
SUBJECT
title
Pine Avenue Improvement Amendments.
end
RECOMMENDATION
recommendation
1) Appropriate $311,439.47 from the unappropriated reserves of the General Fund; 2) schedule a corresponding year-end transfer in the same amount from The Preserve Circulation (Bridges/Signals/Thoroughfares) System Development Impact Fee Fund 260; 3) increase the Capital Improvement Program Budget Project ST203 (1007010 Fund) for Pine Avenue Improvements for Stage 4 in the amount of $311,439.47, for a total Stage 4 project budget not to exceed $3,335,184.47; 4) approve an amendment to the construction credit and reimbursement agreement with Chino Preserve Development Corporation to include additional costs for Pine Avenue Improvements Stage 4 in the amount of $311,439.47 for a total contract not to exceed $17,100,757.47; and 5) authorize the City Manager to execute the necessary documents on behalf of the City.
body
FISCAL IMPACT
Per terms of the agreement, the City is required to make progress payments to the developer for the Falloncrest Right of Way Improvements (“Falloncrest ROW”); West Preserve Loop Rehabilitation (“WPL Rehab”); and the proposed Pedestrian Improvements (“Ped Improvements”). The funding allocations are summarized below:
Project ST203 - Pine Avenue Improvements Stage 4:
CITY OF CHINO MISSION / VISION / VALUES / STRATEGIC ISSUES
The recommendation detailed above further the City’s values and strategic issues that serve as key pillars on which identified priorities, goals, and action plans are built, by fostering:
• Positive City Image
|
Revenue: |
Expenditure: 1007010-40010-ST203 |
|
Transfer In: 1001000-50000 |
Transfer Out: 2601000-40001 |
BACKGROUND
Pine Avenue, between Euclid and Hellman Avenues, is a major roadway arterial within The Preserve Specific Plan area that will be a total of six-lanes with a raised landscaped median when fully constructed. The phased construction of Pine Avenue includes, but is not limited to, additional right-of-way (“ROW”), relocation of existing utilities, changes in roadway grades, modification of intersections, new pavement and striping, provisions for new sewer, domestic water, recycled water, drainage, and water quality facilities.
Traditionally, new developments within The Preserve, which are adjacent to Pine Avenue, are required by the City to dedicate the necessary ROW and to design and construct portions of the roadway segments on Pine Avenue. As a result, the City of Chino issued Conditions of Approval (“COA”) to Chino Development Corporation and Chino Preserve Development Corporation for the Pine Avenue Street Improvements, Phase 1 (Stages 1-3) and Stage 4 as described below:
Pine Avenue Improvements Phase 1 (Stages 1-3)
In 2014, the Planning Commission approved Tract Map No. 18480 (the Harvest project), a 600-unit residential development generally located at the northwest corner of Pine and Hellman Avenues. Chino Preserve Development Corporation, a Lewis Management Corporation company (“Lewis”) was required as part of the COA to design and construct Stages 1-3 of the Pine Avenue Improvements (“Phase 1 Improvements”). Phase 1 Improvements on Pine Avenue extend from Euclid Avenue to Rincon Meadows Avenue. The improvements include the widening of Pine Avenue to four lanes to increase capacity; an extra turn lane at the intersection of Euclid/Pine Avenues to increase left turn capacity into The Preserve; and raising of the roadway grade to eliminate the dip between Meadowhouse and Rincon Meadows Avenues. The Phase I Improvements also include drainage and the relocation of utilities.
The developer completed Stages 1 and 2 of the Phase 1 Improvements as required under the Harvest project. However, Stage 3, which includes two eastbound and westbound lanes and raised roadway correcting the dip between Meadowhouse to Rincon Meadows, will be completed by Lewis within one year from the City obtaining all jurisdictional permits needed to start the project.
The design phase for Stage 3 is complete. However, the City is still working through the permitting process with the Orange County Flood Control District and the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). Under the USACE Section 408 program, the City is required to obtain approval from USACE when the City modifies, alters, or occupies an existing USACE-constructed flood protection project in The Preserve. The permitting process under the Section 408 program is estimated to completed by Summer 2025.
Pine Avenue Stage 4
Lewis’s application for the Town Center at The Preserve ("Town Center") project was approved by the City on April 5, 2021. The development project encompasses approximately 38.87 acres for commercial, vertical mixed use and high-density residential development within the Community Core 16 and High Density Residential 16 land use designations in The Preserve. The Town Center is conditioned to design and construct Pine Avenue Improvements that include, but are not limited to, sidewalk, pavement rehabilitation, streetlights, utility undergrounding and relocations, temporary and phased infrastructure, temporary storm drainage, and street widening to provide two westbound through lanes, a 14 foot wide landscape median, three eastbound lanes and south side parkway improvements from the westerly boundary of the Town Center at The Preserve to Harvest Way/Homecoming Drive (“Stage 4 Improvements”).
Additionally, Falloncrest at The Preserve (an adjacent development to the Town Center project) was also conditioned to design and construct certain Pine Avenue Improvements. The property owners recorded irrevocable dedications to the City for the required right of way (“ROW”) to complete the improvements on Pine Avenue. At the City's request, Lewis included the Falloncrest ROW improvements (“Falloncrest ROW”) as part of the Stage 4 Pine Avenue Improvements for the Town Center project. The Stage 4 Improvements are substantially complete with only a few punchlist items remaining for the two (2) traffic signals located at Pine Avenue / Main Street and Pine Avenue / Town Center Drive.
Approximately one year ago, the City began receiving calls and concerns from residents about the condition of the roadway pavement at the intersection of Pine Avenue/West Preserve Loop and the associated noise and vibration resulting from vehicles traveling through the intersection at a high speed. To better serve the residents and businesses in The Preserve and for efficiency purposes, City staff requested that Lewis include pavement rehabilitation at the Pine/West Preserve Loop intersection (“WPL Rehab”) as part of Stage 4. The scope of work included the subject intersection and roadway pavement on West Preserve Loop approximately 120 feet north of the intersection. The additional work to this intersection helped mitigate the issues surrounding the noise and vibrations experienced by residents. Construction of the WPL Rehab is substantially complete with only a few remaining punchlist items.
ISSUES/ANALYSIS
Pine Avenue is a major roadway arterial in The Preserve and is included in The Preserve Development Impact Fee Nexus and Calculation Report (“Nexus”). Public facilities included in the Nexus are eligible for Development Impact Fee (“DIF”) credit/reimbursement per the requirements set forth in Chapter 3.45 of the Chino Municipal Code.
On June 15, 2021, the City Council approved a construction credit and reimbursement agreement for the construction of Pine Avenue - Phase 1 (Stages 1-3) & Stage 4 with Lewis for an estimated total not to exceed $16,705,268. Subsequently, on May 16, 2023, the City Council approved an amendment to the agreement to include the WPL Rehab in the amount of $84,050, bringing the total contract amount to $16,789,318. Staff is now proposing to amend the agreement for a second time to include additional work as part of Stage 4, as better described below.
Block 1 The Preserve
Lewis is currently undergoing the entitlement process for a proposed residential development fronting the southside of Pine Avenue (referred to as Block 1) generally located east of Chino Corona Road, west of West Preserve Loop, and north of Legacy Park. The COA for Block 1 will require Lewis to complete frontage improvements including the sidewalk on the south side of Pine Avenue and various intersection improvements at Pine and West Preserve Loop, such as a traffic signal modification, crosswalk, and curb ramps.
More recently, the City requested that Lewis proceed with the construction of sidewalk and intersection improvements (“Pedestrian Improvements”) as shown in Exhibit A. The Pedestrian Improvements will be completed prior to Planning Commission approval of Block 1 to address various grievances associated with pedestrian access in the area. Completion of the Pedestrian Improvements will allow residents to safely cross Pine Avenue at West Preserve Loop and access the newly constructed Town Center commercial center. In addition, the Pedestrian Improvements allow students living north of Pine to safely walk to and from the new Legacy Academy school to be located on East Preserve Loop south of Pine. Lewis intends to complete the Pedestrian Improvements prior to the beginning of school, which is July 8, 2024. However, should they not be completed in time, the Chino Valley Unified School District (“CVUSD”) will be required to transport certain students by bus, which is estimated to cost $1,100 per bus, each day.
To ensure the timely delivery of these improvements, the City is proposing an amendment to the existing construction credit and reimbursement agreement. Lewis will include these improvements with the Pine Avenue Stage 4 Improvements under the Town Center project, which is in Block 1 vicinity. The improvements are estimated to cost $290,163, which includes 25% for contingencies and soft costs.
A written change order was issued to Lewis from All American Asphalt, Lewis’s contractor, prior to the construction of the Pedestrian Improvements. Although, the Pedestrian Improvements are additive to the original bid the proposed Block 1 frontage improvements along the southside Pine Avenue will provide connectivity to the existing sidewalk at the Town Center property line. Additionally, if Lewis were to separately bid and notice the Pedestrian Improvements, the costs would inevitably be higher, and Lewis would not be able to meet the CVUSD’s deadline to complete the improvements prior to school starting.
It should be further noted that some of the Pedestrian Improvements, namely a portion of the sidewalk, are considered interim public facilities. Pine Avenue will be built in phases to accommodate the incremental impacts of development, rather than a public facility that is immediately built out to its ultimate capacity. Phased interim public facilities are eligible for credits and reimbursement per the requirements outlined in the Chino Municipal Code, Chapter 3.45, titled Development Impact Fees.
Falloncrest ROW
The costs associated with the Falloncrest ROW improvements exceed the original cost estimate (shown below) by $21,276.47. An additional appropriation is required to offset what was paid to the Lewis per the terms of the agreement. There is no impact to the General Fund as these costs are completely offset by DIF.
Therefore, staff recommends that the City Council approve an amendment to the construction credit and reimbursement agreement for Pine Avenue Street Improvements Phase 1 (Stages 1-3) and Stage 4 with Chino Preserve Development Corporation for an amount not to exceed amount of $17,100,757.47. The altered or constructed public improvements shall comply with City requirements at the time of their construction and will be reviewed by the City Council prior to project acceptance.
Attachments: Exhibit A - Pedestrian Improvements
Exhibit B - Construction Credit & Reimbursement Agreement
Exhibit C - Amendment No. 1
Exhibit D - Amendment No. 2