Report to: Development Services Committee                           Report Date: December 4, 2007

 

SUBJECT:                          Consultant Selection RFP #078-R-07

                                            Class Environmental Assessment for Main Street Markham

                                             Highway 407 to the future Donald Cousens Parkway

 

PREPARED BY:               Allan Arbuckle, Manager, Infrastructure and Capital Works, ext. 3120

                                            Lloyd Fernandes, Senior Capital Works Engineer, ext. 2414

 

 

RECOMMENDATION:

THAT the report entitled “Consultant Selection RFP # 078-R-07, Class Environmental Assessment for Main Street Markham, Highway 407 to the future Donald Cousens Parkway” be received;

 

AND THAT the Request for Proposal #078-R-07 be awarded to the highest ranked qualified firm, McCormick Rankin Corporation for an upset limit of $497,000 exclusive of GST ($526,820 inclusive of GST);

 

AND THAT a contingency amount of $74,550 exclusive of GST ($105,364 inclusive of GST) be established to cover any additional costs and that the Director of Engineering be authorized to approve expenditure of this contingency amount up to the specified limit;

 

AND THAT the sum of $214,490 exclusive of GST be pre-approved in the 2008 Capital budget to increase the existing approved budget amounts as described in the financial considerations of this report, and be funded by Development Charges;

 

AND THAT upon payment of all invoices, any remaining funds be returned to the original funding source;

 

AND THAT staff be authorized and directed to do all things necessary to give effect to this resolution.

 

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:

Past transportation studies, including the 2002 Markham Transportation Planning Study and the Greensborough and Wismer Secondary Plan Transportation Studies, have indicated the need for improvements on sections of Main Street Markham/Hwy 48 to deal with future north-south traffic demand. The Town has also identified the need for streetscaping improvements on Main Street in accordance with heritage and urban design objectives.  The Environmental Assessment is being undertaken to establish a preferred design concept for Main Street Markham between Highway 407 and the future connection of the Donald Cousens Parkway north of Major Mackenzie Drive. The goal of the study is to establish appropriate road cross sections, pedestrian and bicycle facilities, streetscape features and urban design characteristics for the corridor. The study will also provide recommendations for improvements to the Rouge River crossing north of Highway 407, the Robinson Creek crossing south of Major Mackenzie Drive and the rail line crossing located north of Bullock Drive/Parkway Avenue. 

 

The project will be undertaken as a Schedule C activity in accordance with the requirements of the Municipal Class Environmental Assessment for municipal road projects and will include extensive public consultation including a Community Advisory Group.

 

In April 2007 Council endorsed the Terms of Reference for the Main Street Markham Class Environmental Assessment and the prequalification of four consulting firms to be invited to submit detailed proposals for the work. A Request for Proposal was subsequently issued by staff in accordance with the requirements of the Town’s Purchasing Bylaw. 

 

FINANCIAL CONSIDERATIONS:

Funding for this project in the total amount of $408,500 is currently included in the approved Capital Budget. It is recommended that the budget for the project be increased by $214,490            to cover the additional costs for this project in the following amount, 

 

Project Costs (exclusive of GST)

Consultant Fees

$       497,000.00

Contingency (15%)

 $         74,550.00

Engineering Department Project Management Fee @ 9 %

 $         51,440.00

Total Project Costs (A)

 $       622,990.00

 

Current Project Funding (exclusive of GST)

Capital Account

No. 83-5399-6125-005

$      150,600.00

Capital Account

No. 83-5399-7719-005

$      257,900.00

Total Existing Funding (B)

 $      408,500.00

Shortfall (A) –(B)

$      214,490.00

 

It is recommended that the shortfall of $214,490.00 (exclusive of GST) be included in the 2008 Capital Budget and be pre approved and funded by Development Charges.

 

1. Purpose   2. Background   3. Discussion   4. Financial  

PURPOSE:

The purpose of this report is to award the consulting contract for the preparation of the Class Environmental Assessment for Main Street Markham from Highway 407 to the future Donald Cousens Parkway to McCormick Rankin Corporation whose proposal is complete and comprehensive and received the highest overall evaluation score.

 

BACKGROUND:

Main Street Markham is an important link which serves as a connection to the historic village and surrounding heritage features as well as a link to major arterial roads – Highway 407, Highway 7, 16th Avenue, Major Mackenzie Drive and the future Donald Cousens Parkway.  The corridor also traverses a number of significant natural features including the Rouge River and Robinson Creek and the GO Transit Rail Line north of Ramona Boulevard.

 

In addition to the continued build out of the north and east limits of Markham, a number of Regional transportation links including Donald Cousens Parkway and the 9th Line improvements are being completed. The Class Environmental Assessment for Main Street Markham will build upon the work completed in past studies and associated design principles to establish a comprehensive solution for the future of Main Street Markham in its entirety from Highway 407 to the future Donald Cousens Parkway.  Given the size and complexity of the study, the consultation process will be expanded beyond the minimum requirements as set out for a Schedule ‘C’ project to ensure that those individuals or groups having interest in the study have the opportunity to actively participate in the Study and that all issues including natural environment, heritage, urban design, municipal servicing and transportation are considered and appropriately evaluated through the environmental assessment process.

 

Past Studies

A number of studies have been undertaken for Main Street Markham/Highway 48, including the 2002 Markham Transportation Planning Study, the 2003 Main Street Markham Streetscape and Traffic Management Study and the 2005 Highway 48-16th Avenue to Major Mackenzie Drive Urban Design Study.  These studies established the forecasted traffic demands on Main Street Markham/Hwy 48, identified the required improvements to meet these demands and established the community’s vision including streetscape and urban design principles for the section of road between Highway 7 and 16th Avenue. Consultation was also an integral part of these previous studies with public information centres and “hands on” sessions with interested stakeholders including representatives of the various ratepayers associations and Council.

 

Infrastructure

The completion of Donald Cousens Parkway from Highway 407 to Major Mackenzie Drive now serves as a by-pass in the eastern end of Markham and provides an alternative for traffic currently using Main Street Markham.  In addition, improvements to the 9th Line currently underway from Highway 7 to Bur Oak Avenue will provide additional capacity for north-south movements in the east end of Markham including the Cornell and Greensborough communities. The completion of these two projects was identified in past studies as triggers to initiate the Main Street EA. 

 

Jurisdiction

In 2006 the Ministry of Transportation’s (MTO) connecting link agreement for Main Street Markham was cancelled thereby allowing for rerouting of heavy truck traffic away from the historic Markham Village.  In the Spring of 2007, ownership of Highway 48 between 16th Avenue and Major Mackenzie Drive was transferred from the MTO to the Town thus allowing implementation of urban design principles for development applications on lands fronting onto this section of Main Street.

 

Terms of Reference

One of the key elements identified in the Terms of Reference for this EA endorsed by Council in April 2007 was the need for an extensive consultation process which would go beyond the requirements of the Environmental Assessment Act.  The consultation process developed for this project includes the establishment of a technical advisory committee (TAC) and a community advisory group (CAG), two presentations to Committee and Council and up to 30 hours of meeting time for interaction with individual stakeholders.  In order to ensure that all viewpoints are considered and appropriately evaluated through the environmental assessment process, the Terms of Reference required the consultants to include a public consultation facilitator as a member of the project team and to provide a detailed consultation work plan.  Use of a formal public facilitation process will assist in promoting open dialogue with the community and soliciting input from all interested stakeholders while permitting more efficient management of the project from both a cost and schedule standpoint.

 

 

Project Schedule

 The project schedule calls for completion of the EA by the end of 2008.  The Engineering Department’s current 10 Year Capital Works Plan identifies a multiphase construction program for improvements to Main Street commencing in 2009/2010 subject to Council and budget approved.

 

OPTIONS/ DISCUSSION:

Consultant Selection

The selection of a consultant team to conduct the Main Street Markham Class Environmental Assessment has been conducted as a two stage process. The first phase of the selection process involved the prequalification of consultant teams based on the team qualifications in a variety of disciplines, past experience with similar projects, project approach and public consultation program.  Four consultant teams were pre-qualified under this process.

 

The Request for Proposal # 078-R-07 was issued in accordance with the Purchasing By-law 2004-341 to the four prequalified consultants. Engineering and Purchasing staff have reviewed the bid documents and are satisfied that all terms, conditions, bid prices and specifications comply with the Town’s requirements.  The details of the Request for Proposal process are summarized below:

 

Request for Proposal Information

 

  Direct mail to 4 prequalified firms

Wednesday June 6, 2007

Bids closed

Wednesday July 11, 2007

 

Proposals were received from each of the four prequalified firms. Detailed pricing information which reflect clarifications made by staff with the vendors in accordance with the Purchasing Bylaw and the Terms and Conditions of the RFP is as follows:

 

Lead Consultant Submission

Total Consultant Fees

(exclusive of GST)

Totten Sims Hubicki Ltd.

$ 410,000.00

National Capital Engineering Ltd.

$ 489,000.00

McCormick Rankin Corporation

$ 497,000.00

Earthtech Canada Inc.

$ 597,015.00

 

Each consultant team was required to respond to the terms of reference with a comprehensive submission outlining the project team, the work plan and required fees. Accordingly, the consultant’s fees reflect each team’s interpretation of the items of work, staff resources and time required to successfully deliver the project and results in a variation in upset fee limits ranging from $410,000 to $597,015 with an average of the four estimates being approximately $498,300.

 

Evaluation of Submissions

As per the purchasing by-law procedures, evaluation criteria were included in the Request for Proposal to identify the method for scoring the four submissions.  The criteria and scoring used in the evaluation process are as follows:  

1 Qualifications of Lead Consultant and Project Team. 30%

2. Project Delivery   40%

3. Price    30%

  The evaluation of the consultant submissions was conducted by Engineering staff and facilitated by the Purchasing Department.  The proposals were evaluated based on the above noted criteria and scoring with the following results:

 

Lead Consultant

Ranking

McCormick Rankin Corporation

1

National Capital Engineering Ltd.

2

Totten Sims Hubicki Ltd

3

Earthtech Canada Inc.

4

 

Discussion of Evaluation Results

McCormick Rankin Corporation was identified as the highest ranked consultant submission for the following reasons;

§         A thorough consultation program to engage and extract meaningful resolution from the public information centres, working meetings with the Community Advisory Group and individual stakeholder groups as well as the Technical Advisory Committee.

§         The use of comprehensive consultation methods using interactive communication strategies and advanced technologies.

§         An advanced facilitation program to allow for open dialogue with stakeholders having a variety of interests and background.

§         The dedication of facilitation resources appropriate to address all points of public interaction.

§         A comprehensive work program coupled with an experienced project manager and a strong project team.

§         Past experience with similar studies (Main Street Unionville EA, 2004).

§         Familiarity with Town of Markham and the area (Markham By-Pass EA)

 

Contingency

Given the size and complexity of the study and the large number and diverse nature of stakeholders, a contingency amount equal to15% of the study cost is recommended.  This contingency will be used to cover the cost of additional services which may be required during the course of the study including;

§         Additional Public Consultation Centres including preparation/analysis, attendance by consultant team, facilitator, meeting reports and documentation, follow-up with public and Council working meetings,

§         Additional Public Notification and Project Advertising: including enhanced notification in area newspapers, door to door mail drops, dedicated Town webpage link for updates and interaction with public

§         Additional natural environment inventories or studies pertaining to the crossing of the Rouge River and tributaries

§         Rental of external meeting venues and presentation equipment

§         Enhanced project reporting: including additional presentations and/or working sessions with Committee/Council.

 

Any funds remaining at the end of the project will be returned to the respective engineering accounts for use to fund future steps associated with the project including detailed design and construction.

 

 

 

FINANCIAL TEMPLATE: (external link)

 

BUSINESS UNITS CONSULTED AND AFFECTED:

The Finance and Planning Departments have reviewed this report and their comments have been incorporated.

 

RECOMMENDED BY:  

 

 

 

_______________________                                      ________________________

Alan Brown, C.E.T.                                                      Jim Baird, M.C.I.P., R.P.P.

Director of Engineering                                                                                                 Commissioner, Development Services

 

Q/development/engineering/reports/2007/november