To: Board of Supervisors
From: Brian M. Balbas, Public Works Director/Chief Engineer
Report Title: Consultant Services Agreement for On-Call Architectural Services with The Ratcliff Architects
☒Recommendation of the County Administrator ☐ Recommendation of Board Committee
RECOMMENDATIONS:
APPROVE and AUTHORIZE the Public Works director, or designee, to execute a contract amendment with The Ratcliff Architects, effective December 5, 2023 to increase the payment limit by $1,000,000 to a new payment limit of $1,750,000 for on-call architectural services with no change to the term, Countywide.
FISCAL IMPACT:
100% Various Funds. Projects will be assigned to the on-call architect when there is an approved project and funding.
BACKGROUND:
On April 18, 2023, the Board of Supervisors approved an on-call Consulting Services Agreement with The Ratcliff Architects in the amount of $750,000.
The contract payment limit has been nearly reached. The Ratcliff Architects is currently engaged to provide services on multiple County projects. Due to their demonstrated expertise and responsiveness, they have developed into the County’s preferred option to provide architectural services for most acute care medical projects and for electric vehicle charging station projects. Some of the County projects that The Ratcliff Architects is currently engaged on include eight (8) distinct electric vehicle charging station projects and four (4) projects at the Contra Costa Regional Medical Center (CCRMC).
The projects noted have nearly exhausted the fee limit available under the current Agreement between The Ratcliff Architects and the County. Meanwhile, new projects with immediate needs are presenting themselves, and some of these, such as the State-mandated seismic evaluations project for the CCRMC, preliminary planning for the East County Service Center, and new electric vehicle charging station projects, are projects for which The Ratcliff Architects is particularly well-suited.
To accommodate these projects and to prepare for future projects that will arise over the course of the Agreement with The Ratcliff Architects, Public Works needs to execute a contract amendment increasing the fee limit of the Agreement.
CONSEQUENCE OF NEGATIVE ACTION:
If the amendment is not approved, the County will not be able to use its on-call Consulting Services Agreement with The Ratcliff Architects for any new projects. Consequently, the County will need to select other options for retention of architectural services for projects that The Ratcliff Architects is particularly well-suited to provide. The timeline for completing certain important projects will increase, possibly eading to missed deadlines with the State, and Public Works would expect a decrease in the level of professional service rendered on these certain projects.