Project Bidding
The Snowdrop Road project was approved by the Board of Supervisors to advertise for competitive bids on May 21, 2019. Following approval of the item, the Department released the bid documents through the County’s eProcurement system on May 28, 2019.
Shortly after the release of the bid documents, new design conflicts were raised by the project engineers regarding their coordination with utility agencies and review of the easements required for construction. To allow a revision of the project drawings and itemized bid items, the district extended out the mandatory pre-bid meeting to June 19, 2019, and the bid opening date to July 16, 2019, under Addendum 1 of the bid process.
Over the last three weeks staff have been in communication with residents of the district regarding their needs and concerns, while working directly with the project engineers to resolve matters affecting the bid of the project. After consulting with department management and legal counsel, it was determined that cancellation of the bid was necessary in order to minimize potential construction conflicts that would come at considerable additional costs after the award of the contract was made and experienced during construction.
At this time the district is working diligently to resolve matters directly with the project engineers, while exploring options regarding the possible inclusion of underground utilities as raised by residents of the district. A re-solicitation for bid is anticipated in the near future and updates regarding the status of conflicting items will be provided as they develop.
Environmental Compliance under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA)
District staff initiated consultation with the project’s regulatory agencies on the proposed impacts to streambed and habitat areas. Applications were submitted to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, U.S. Army Corp of Engineers, and the Regional Water Quality Control Board on May 30, 2019. District staff will be actively communicating with each of the regulatory agencies throughout this process to reach agreements in advance of the standard permitting timeline.