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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES Public Works Committee 1998-10-15BRADFORD PUBLISHING CO. RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS hublic Works Committee October 15, 1998 Committee: Chairman Baudek, Trustees Barker and Jeffrey Attending: All Also Attending: Town Administrator Widmer, Public Works Director Linnane, Manager Sievers, Clerk O'Connor, Task Team Members Mike Bryant/Larimer County, Todd Juergens/Ft. Collins, and George Miller/Loveland Absent: None Chairman Baudek called the meeting to order at 3:32 p.m. PROPOSED RIGHT-OF-WAY CONSTRUCTION STANDARDS PUBLIC INPUT/REQUEST TO PROCEED TO FINAL DRAFT PHASE. Public Works Director Linnane reported that for the past two years, the Multi -Agency Task Team, consisting of Mike Bryant/Larimer County, Berthoud, Greg Sievers/Estes Park, Todd Juergens/Fort Collins, and George Miller/Loveland, have been working on the adoption of one, universal street cut standard for Larimer County. With the exception of Berthoud, Team members were in attendance and introduced. In June, staff mailed a booklet to Estes Park Contractors, Utility Agencies, Engineers and Developers identifying construction specifications and procedures for work within the rights -of -way in Estes Park. Written response was requested by early June. Following modifications, and based on those responses, the Town scheduled a meeting for further review and discussion. Greg Sievers read the Team's Mission Statement. Copies of the Summary and Construction Guidelines were prepared and available for those in attendance. The draft Construction Guidelines include: 0 Permits shall be acquired 48 hours prior to any work within the right-of-way. 0 Traffic control plans be submitted prior to any work within the right-of-way. 0 Boring shall be attempted before an open cut is permitted. 0 Flowable fill required full depth in all trenches for utility service connections, repairs and minor main replacements. 0 When flowable fill is waived by the Town, compaction testing by an authorized engineer shall produce written reports. BRADFORD PUBLISHING CO. RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS Public Works Committee - October 15, 1996 - Page 2 0 Asphalt shall be saw -cut full depth (no jack hammers or wheel cutters). 0 Asphalt patching shall be 4" minimum or match existing depth. 0 New streets less than five years old may be denied permits for excavation. 0 Asphalt patching layout shall match examples on Pages 14- 20 of the Right-of-way Permit Application and Construction Guidelines. 0 Cold mix shall be placed on all cuts when asphalt work is not scheduled within two weeks. 0 Professional paving contractors with proper credentials and experience shall be used. 0 Basic fees shall be $50 for permit, and $200 to cut across a street. See Page B-2 of the Right-of-way Permit Application and Construction Guidelines for details. 0 The warranty period for all work shall be two years, and this period will be enforced. Manager Sievers stated that the purpose of meeting was not necessarily to judge the merits of this project/guidelines, but to reach an equitable solution to this problem. Public comment was heard from the following: Todd Plummer/556 Aspen Ave., and Estes Park Sanitation District (EPSD) Board member. The EPSD will be significantly impacted, and as a public official, it is imperative to assess what the problem is, and then prepare appropriate solutions. Upon his personal inspection, and in his opinion, the streets appear to be in good shape; in his opinion, there are a few problem areas (10- 20%); water and sewer utility cuts are in a different class, requiring deeper, wider trenches; gas is installed in narrow trenches —each pose different problems. In his opinion, the EPSD has expended considerable money to adequately compact ditches to produce good crossings and roadways, and, in his opinion, costs would be doubled to meet the proposed guidelines. Mr. Plummer questioned: what alternatives were reviewed in this process; the warranty period; compaction requirements when crossing a roadway; and the public's best interest. He believes there is a significant difference between the Estes Park and Valley soils, and Estes Park soils do not support boring. Manager Sievers responded that cost effectiveness does play a significant role when considering flow fill, and the Task Team is not recommending flow fill as the only option. Additionally, the Guidelines require an engineer to provide proof that the street cut meets the standards to ensure the integrity of the street. Staff confirmed that the boring requirement does not apply to water and sewer trenches. The Guidelines are not job specific; BRADFORD PUBLISHING CO. RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS Public Works Committee - October 15, 1998 - Page 3 however the Standards/Guidelines must be in place in order to achieve consistency throughout the County. There will be one uniform set of Guidelines modified for Estes Park, thus all contractors will basically be bidding on one set of identical specs. Mr. Plummer disagreed that once a cut is made, the roadway is never as good, and he reported on a sewer line installation at his residence over 15 years ago —the cut is not evident today. Manager Sievers noted that he receives complaints when a street is cut numerous times, and also the integrity of the street is breached, and therefore, the street is eligible to be overlayed. Cuts for private residential improvements or commercial buildings degrade the integrity of the road at a cost to the taxpayers. Mike Bryant stated common sense must be utilized —flow fill of a wide cut is costly. On depths greater than 10' it may not be practical to flow fill very wide and deep trenches. Staff intends to evaluate street cuts on a case -by -case basis, not all cuts fit into a certain category; staff will give the best recommendation to repair street cuts. Director Linnane suggested a revision be considered as to when/if the flow fill requirement would be waived, for example, flow fill would be waived if the trench is longer than a certain length. Task Member Bryant urged the public to step forward with their concerns, as all entities want the best possible guidelines and protection of the public in general. Trustee Barker sought clarification that when waiving flow fill, the compaction standards would apply. Staff responded in the affirmative. Chairman Baudek confirmed that Committee members did personally inspect Town streets prior to the meeting. Bill Van Horn/Engineer, agreed with the points raised by Mr. Plummer' s points, and questioned why Estes Park is adopting the same standards as other municipalities. Member Bryant reiterated the Mission Statement, adding that contractors urged municipalities to create a consistent policy within Larimer County. Mr. Van Horn strongly believes that from the public's standpoint, the public interest must be served. In the past, both water and electric could utilize the same trench, such is not allowed today; a damage guarantee could be provided to meet the 2-yr. warranty; there are existing over-riding problems that should have priority over the street cut issue. Director Linnane commented that at least 90% of all patches without flow fill will settle, and with a limited staff, it has been difficult to demand that contractors repair inferior patches. Approximately 90% of all patches under an overlay are visible within one year; after an overlay, there will be reflective cracking. With a capital maintenance budget of $300,000, staff believes at least $50,000 is contributed from inferior patches. Mr. Van Horn is in favor of consideration on a case -by -case basis, and commented on traffic control plans, warranty, and boring. Staff noted that the 2-yr. warranty has always been required; however, as the standards were not adopted by ordinance, the requirement was not enforced. Member Bryant reviewed the County's procedure on tracking street cuts, and that with the caliber of contractors in the Front Range area, his BRADFORD PUBLISHING CO. RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS Public Works Committee - October 15, 1998 - Page 4 Larimer County staff has not had difficulty in ensuring patches are repaired correctly and in a timely manner. Ron Witt/UTSD, reported that, overall, the District has no problems with the proposed guidelines. A bond will cover the warranty, and he questioned whether a licensed Arborist would be required. Manager Sievers noted that in previous discussion with Mr. Witt, the concerns raised by the District had been incorporated into the Guidelines, and he confirmed that an Arborist would not be required. Additional comments included: problems do arise with flow fill when water is encountered in a ditch, all public entities must be concerned with taxpayer dollars, and Larimer County does notify him if a patch is inferior (the District contracts their patching work). Jim Duell/EPSD, understands that everyone wants driveable roads; however, it appears utility companies are being perceived as the wrong -doers. Mr. Duell requested the Town plan future improvements by at least four years, this will assist the District in planning their improvements to ensure minimum street cuts. Staff agreed that a longer planning time -frame would be beneficial to all utility companies. Ed Kitchen/Contractor, believes that the flow fill requirement is excessive —compaction is cheaper and as good. Contractors should be given an option to decide which method should be used, while taking into consideration saving taxpayers money. If a patch is inferior, it must be repaired, and, contractors must adjust their work as standards are revised (i.e. crowning, T-cuts, saw cuts v. wheel cuts relative to bonding, etc.). Kerry Prochaska/Engineer, stated that he has extensively discussed the Guidelines with Sievers, and his primary concern is economics. Flow fill is not the answer for all cuts, and the public must receive the best product money can buy. Comments were also made on the establishment of a road cut assessment fund. Ron Duell, Jr./EPSD, stated that when cutting the asphalt, he has found that he prefers a wheel cut in lieu of a saw cut. Mr. Duell also questioned the requirement of matching the asphalt depth, particularly where some streets are extremely thick. Staff will review the requirement as it applies to thicker streets. Task Member Juergens stated that the City of Fort Collins adopted the Guidelines at the 1Bt reading, and he anticipates full adoption at the 2nd reading. It appears the majority of concerns expressed thus far are with flow fill. Mike Frederick/CDOT, reported he has worked with the Task Team on this project, serving as an Advisory Role, and it is good to see uniformity. CDOT supports this concept. When municipalities have more strict laws than the State, municipal law applies. Rebuttal comments were heard from Bill Van Horn who discussed housing costs and cost effectiveness. Mr. Plummer urged the Committee to decide what is in the best interest of the taxpayers. BRADFORD PUBLISHING CO. RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS Public Works Committee - October 15, 1998 - Page 5 Trustee comments: Trustee Barker questioned whether the warranty period is extended if a patch fails and requested staff consider this item. Staff confirmed that flow fill is the best way to repair the taxpayers' streets, however, it may not be less costly to the private property owner. Trustee Jeffrey acknowledged the public comment, stating standards are required, and every elected official is held accountable to their constituency. The Guidelines and flow fill have merit, and it appears discussion is warranted on any variances to flow fill and boring —such revisions and/or variances must be in writing and be very specific (i.e. exact length, depth and width of any variance for flow fill). It is important to consider public testimony, and follow through with accountability. Trustee Barker stated agreed that the Task Team has reviewed all options, the Town Board is held responsible to repair the streets to the best level possible, and supports the warranty period to guarantee that streets will be repaired the first time. Trustee Baudek requested staff review the variances, adding that the Guidelines should be very precise in stating when a variance may be granted. Trustee Baudek urged the Task Team to eliminate the $200 fee to public entities; Member Bryant stated that, according to Senate Bill 9610, everyone must be treated equally. Town Administrator Widmer stated the Guidelines are not an attack on utilities, specifically the sewer districts, the issue is maintaining the best streets for the public. Following completion of all testimony, the Task Team was directed to review the following issues: (1) long-term planning, (2) patch thickness, (3) when/if variances will be granted for flow fill, and (4) waiving the permit fee for public entities. The Committee will review the changes at their Committee meeting in November or December. Chairman Baudek declared a brief recess at 5:18 p.m.; the meeting was reconvened at 5:22 p.m. WATER DEPT. WATER LINE PROJECTS - CHANGE ORDERS. Change orders for the Big Horn, Phases 1 and 2, Big Thompson, and Devil's Gulch Water Line Projects were presented: Big Horn, Phase I - quantity adjustments and additional asphalt for an increase of $4,595.50. Payment of this change order will close-out this project. Big Horn, Phase II - actual asphalt quantity exceeded the engineer's estimate for an increase of $1,140. Big Thompson - unknown underground water line locations required changes to four water main connections for an increase of $5,220. Devil's Gulch - to avoid additional crossings of the natural gas line, two extra bends were required for an increase of $728. The total change order cost is $10,683.50. Kerry Prochaska confirmed that the Big Horn and Devil's Gulch change orders are actual figures, the others are estimates. The Committee BRADFORD PUBLISHING CO. RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS Public Works Committee - October 15, 1998 - Page 6 recommends approval of the change orders identified above, for a total additional expenditure of $10,683.50. FLEET DEPT. SOFTWARE PACKAGE - AUTHORIZATION TO PURCHASE. The current Fleet Computer System was installed in 1990, and it has been very dependable and useful in fleet management; however, the system is not Y2K compatible and must be replaced prior to Year 2000. It has been determined that preventive maintenance projection problems will begin affecting the current system in mid-1999. Staff has researched various systems to replace the existing system and they have determined that the H.T.E. Fleet Management System, which would be an addition to the Town's H.T.E. current accounting system, will provide equipment tracking and information needed to manage the Town's fleet. The Town's CTAC Team and the Fleet Dept. have determined that the H.T.E. System will work well for the Town. The new software package is $22,000, and an additional $10,000 is requested for data conversion and fuel interface with Larimer County for a total budget expenditure of $32,000. Staff has confirmed with the Finance Dept. that funds are available, and staff is seeking approval to: (1) purchase the H.T.E. Fleet Management System for a total expenditure of $32,000, and (2) amend the 1998 Fleet Dept. Budget by an additional $32,000 in 1998. In 1999, $12,000 will be budgeted for training and maintenance. The Committee recommends approval of the H.T.E. Fleet Management System and associated conversion/interface for a total expenditure of $32,000, to include a 1998 Budget Amendment for the Fleet Dept. Budget. GLACIER WATER PLANT REHAB, FLOW METER. As stated at the 8/20/98 Committee meeting, staff reported that the cost of the flow meter has now been confirmed at $5,300 plus shipping. The Committee recommends staff be authorized to expend $6,000 for the purchase of the flow meter. Following completion of all agenda items, staff requested and received consensus to enter Executive Session for Attorney -Client discussion. Therefore, Chairman Baudek adjourned the meeting at 5:31 p.m. to Executive Session for reasons stated above. Chairman Baudek opened the meeting at 5:57 p.m. RURAL WATER TAPS - AMEND POLICY. Existing policy authorizes staff to approve rural water tap applications. The Committee recommends staff be authorized to approve rural water taps that are not contiguous with Town limits; rural water taps contiguous with Town limits will be he Committee for consideration. RriaizHaf t OCT 271998 ourned the meeting at 6:06 p.m. ckie O'Connor, CMC/AAE, Town Clerk