25A - BUILDING PLAN CHECK & BUILDING INSPECTION SVCS

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Plan Check and Inspection Agreements and Appropriation Adjustments October 17, 2005 Page 2 $3,000,000 in permit and plan check fees to the City (Exhibit 1). Among these are three Nexus proj ects, which include two 23 -story residential towers at MacArthur Lake site, one 23-story residential tower at MacArthur Cinema site, and one four-story, 350 unit residential project at Main Street and MacArthur Boulevard. Also included are 240 live/work units at City Place, the Geneva Commons project, with one 8-story tower and a second l8-story tower of residential and commercial units, and the Santiago Street Lofts with 72 residential units. These and other major projects expected to enter plan check within the next twelve months will put a significant burden on the plan check staff to provide timely and accurate processing of plans. After these proj ects break ground, the building inspection staff will face the same challenge of providing timely service in order to keep all projects moving forward. The City is presently contracting for the plan check of one project, the Bowers Museum expansion, to ensure timely processing without other proj ects in the pipeline. In order to provide an acceptable service level for these major projects--a goal of a three-week turn-around time for all plan submittals--it is necessary to augment plan check resources. The use of contracted plan check services will address the peak workload demands more efficiently than permanent staffing. Additional full-time employees may not be required when these maj or proj ects are completed. While the plan check of these high-rise projects will be accomplished in- house by City staff, the structural plan checks may be assigned to contractors who will utilize computer assisted design (CAD) software to improve efficiency. Of the seven consulting firms that responded to the Request for a Proposal, four consulting firms meet the City's requirements for availability of qualified engineering staff, turn-around time, locale, and fees. The four recommended firms will provide necessary services at a rate of 65% of the City's plan check fee for each project they receive, as well as appropriate hourly rates for processing required plan revisions. All four firms have agreed that no other costs will be added. Similar to many cities, the City of Santa Ana has utilized contracted building inspection service for many years when service demands peak and when there are temporary staff shortages. The recommended firm, Vandorpe Chou Associates, Inc., has been utilized by the City in the past for contracted inspection services. Its staff was knowledgeable in the pertinent codes and quickly became familiar with City procedures. Of the four firms considered, Vandorpe Chow has staffing immediately available at a rate of $48 to $58 per hour based on the specific qualifications of the individual inspector. The rates of other firms considered have escalated 25A-2