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HomeMy WebLinkAbout~Master - June 21, 2022, Special Meeting of the Ames City CouncilAGENDA SPECIAL MEETING OF THE AMES CITY COUNCIL CITY COUNCIL CHAMBERS - CITY HALL 515 CLARK AVENUE JUNE 21, 2022 CALL TO ORDER: 6:00 PM 1.Resolution approving Change Order No. 1 to RESCO of Elkhart, Iowa, in the amount of $18,247.64 (inclusive of sales tax) for the purchase of transformers for Electric Services in accordance with revised unit prices 2.Hearing on proposed amendment to Zoning Ordinance Section 19.809 regarding Campustown Service Center (CSC) requirements that 50% of each building facade shall have clay brick: a.Motion to continue hearing to June 28, 2022 3.Workshop regarding Inclusion and Diversity in Establishing ASSET Funding Priorities DISPOSITION OF COMMUNICATIONS TO COUNCIL: COUNCIL COMMENTS: ADJOURNMENT: Please note that this agenda may be changed up to 24 hours before the meeting time as provided by Section 21.4(2), Code of Iowa. ITEM # 1 DATE: 06-21-22 COUNCIL ACTION FORM SUBJECT: PURCHASE OF TRANSFORMERS FOR ELECTRIC SERVICES DEPARTMENT – CHANGE ORDER NO. 1 BACKGROUND: The Electric Services Department keeps transformers on hand in order to ensure failed transformers can be quickly replaced. Transformers are also kept in inventory to meet the needs for new construction and routine maintenance in commercial and residential applications. Electric Services entered into a contract for the purchase of transformers on an as-needed basis to meet the anticipated needs of the Electric Services Department. This contract was awarded to RESCO, Ankeny, IA (now Elkhart, IA) on May 25, 2021 for FY 2021/22 with four additional renewals possible. Recently, an order was placed under the contract for single phase, pole-mounted transformers. Due to the volatility of the market regarding the cost of transformers and extensive lead times (more than one year), RESCO indicated that they are unable to guarantee contract pricing for this fiscal year. In addition, Staff received notice from RESCO in May that it will not approve a contract renewal for FY 2022/23 due to market conditions. Therefore, this contract with RESCO will expire June 30. In early June, City staff attempted to obtain bids from vendors for a one-time purchase of transformers, rather than on an as-needed basis. However, only one bid was received, and it contained prices twice that of the existing RESCO contract and lead times of 102 weeks. The proposed pricing was $58,275, and did not include any padmount transformers. As another strategy, staff attempted to purchase refurbished transformers through a bidding process and received no bids. Because some of the transformer inventory is critically low, staff worked with RESCO to determine if anything could be done to obtain transformers earlier and at lower prices than the one-time bid that staff received in early June. RESCO has agreed to provide transformers under two previous purchase orders the City Council authorized on April 14, 2020, with modifications to pricing to account for the increased manufacturing costs of the units. Even with this increase, the pricing and lead time are both roughly half what was bid in early June from another vendor. To order the additional transformers, purchase order 59029 (pole-mount transformers) must be increased by $18,247.64. The original purchase order amount was $15,537.39. Additionally, purchase order 59032 (pad-mount transformers) must be increased by $14,285.68. The original purchase order amount was $120,641.75, which included a variety of electric equipment in addition to transformers. The additional amounts to be added to these purchase orders are sufficient to cover a 50% increase in transformer prices compared to the original pricing on these purchase orders. The requested purchase order increases exceed City staff’s approval authority; therefore, staff is requesting approval from the City Council for these Change Orders. ALTERNATIVES: 1. a. Approve Change Order #1 on PO 59029 to RESCO, Elkhart, Iowa, in the amount of $18,247.64 (inclusive of sales tax) for the purchase of Electric Services transformers in accordance with revised unit prices. b. Approve Change Order #1 on PO 59032 to RESCO, Elkhart, Iowa, in the amount of $14,285.68 (inclusive of sales tax) for the purchase of Electric Services transformers in accordance with revised unit prices. 2. Do not approve the change orders, and attempt to purchase transformers on an as-needed basis. CITY MANAGER'S RECOMMENDED ACTION: Transformers are a critical component to provide reliable electric service to customers of the Ames Municipal Electric System. It is important to purchase transformers at the lowest possible cost with minimal risk to the City. It is also imperative to have transformers available to meet customer needs. Therefore, it is the recommendation of the City Manager that the City Council adopt Alternative No. 1, as stated above. Memo Department of Planning & Housing TO: Mayor and City Council FROM: Kelly Diekmann, Planning & Housing Director DATE: June 17, 2022 SUBJECT: Continuance of Public Hearing for Zoning Text Amendment The proposed Zoning Text Amendment for zero lot line building exception to the 50% Clay Brick for each façade requirement within Campustown was noticed for a public hearing on June 21st. Subsequent to publishing notice for the meeting, it was determined that per Chapter 2 of the Ames Municipal Code that a meeting on the third Tuesday of the month is not a “Regular Meeting.” Planning and Zoning ordinances are a requirement by state law to be considered at Regular Meetings of the City Council. Therefore, the public hearing must be continued to June 28th, which is the next regularly scheduled meeting. Item No. 2 Smart Choice 515.239.5101 main 5.239.5142 fax Ave. w.CityofAmes.org MEMO To: Mayor and Ames City Council From: Deb Schildroth, Assistant City Manager Date: June 17, 2022 Subject: Inclusion and Diversity in Establishing ASSET Funding Priorities At the July 27, 2021 meeting, Council approved the ASSET funding priorities for FY 2022/23 and also took action on considering ways in which Council’s vision and goals related to inclusion and creating a diverse community should or should not be used in establishing the FY 2023/24 ASSET priorities. This action stems from a discussion at the November 10, 2020 Council meeting where recommendations from the “Policing in Ames…A Path Forward” report were considered. One of the recommendations in that report was, “If City Council wishes to do so, the allocation of ASSET funds could be reprioritized in the next budget cycle and concentrated in human services that better meet City Council’s social justice goals.” In lieu of reprioritizing the ASSET funding allocation, Council approved including social justice into the discussion of ASSET priorities at the November 10, 2020 meeting. One of Council’s values is a diverse, equitable, and inclusive community. When applying this value to the ASSET funding priorities, a focus could be placed on things such as equity, access, and participation in services that meet the individual and/or familial needs of all residents in our community. Out of these three focus areas, the ASSET agencies currently report on income, physical/mental disabilities, and more recently, race/ethnicity. The reporting of race/ethnicity started with the submittal of FY 2021/22 agency budgets. As a result, we have a limited trend line on this information. Additionally, the two years of data Item No. 3 collection primarily spans the COVID-19 pandemic and a majority of the agencies reduced or temporarily closed services, therefore, it is likely not the most accurate baseline. The current ASSET funding priorities are as follows: Priorities for FY 2022-23 Categories 1, 2, and 3 are in priority order as are the lettered services in each category #1 Meet mental health and substance use disorder needs through A. Community-based and outpatient mental health services B. Outpatient emergency access and crisis intervention services C. Awareness and education about suicide prevention and services D. Substance use prevention and treatment availability #2 Meet basic needs, with an emphasis on low to moderate income through A. Food cost offset programs to assist in providing nutritious perishables and staples B. Housing cost offset programs including utility assistance C. Sheltering D. Quality childcare cost offset programs including daycare and State of Iowa licensed in-home facilities E. Financial literacy and education programs F. Medical and dental services G. Transportation cost offset programs H. Legal assistance I. Disaster response #3 Provide youth development services and activities through A. Skill development and enhancement B. Summer enrichment/prevention of loss of learning This list of priorities is guided by the results of the 2020 Story County Community Needs Assessment. My plan is to bring the proposed ASSET funding priorities for FY 2023/24 to Council in July. The following options may be considered now and any changes will be incorporated into the priorities document for final consideration in July: 1. Add a priority reflecting inclusion and diversity. 2. Request additional reporting requirements of the agencies and provide staff with specific data to be collected. 3. Continue with the current data collection until a more accurate trend line is established.