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C. 95

To:	Board of Supervisors
From:	Brian M. Balbas, Public Works Director/Chief Engineer
Date:	February 7, 2023

Contra

Costa

County

Subject:

Advertisement and CEQA actions for the Cooling Towers Replacement Project at CCRMC (WH536B)

APPROVE	OTHER
RECOMMENDATION OF CNTY ADMINISTRATOR	RECOMMENDATION OF BOARD COMMITTEE

Action of Board On: 02/07/2023

APPROVED AS RECOMMENDED

OTHER

Clerks Notes:

VOTE OF SUPERVISORS

AYE:

John Gioia, District I Supervisor
Candace Andersen, District II Supervisor
Diane Burgis, District III Supervisor
Ken Carlson, District IV Supervisor
Federal D. Glover, District V Supervisor

Contact:

Jeff Acuff, 925-957-2487

I hereby certify that this is a true and correct copy of an action taken and entered on the minutes of the Board of Supervisors on the date shown.
ATTESTED: February 7, 2023
Monica Nino, County Administrator

BY:	, Deputy

RECOMMENDATION(S):

1. APPROVE the design and bid documents, including the plans and specifications, for the Cooling Towers Replacement Project at the Contra Costa Regional Medical Center (CCRMC).


2. AUTHORIZE the Public Works Director, or designee, to solicit bids to be received on or about March 16, 2023, and issue bid addenda, as needed, for clarification of the bid documents, provided the changes do not significantly increase the construction cost estimate.

RECOMMENDATION(S): (CONT'D)

3. DIRECT the Clerk of the Board to publish, at least 14 calendar days before the bid opening date, the Notice to Contractors in accordance with Public Contract Code Section 22037, inviting bids for this Project.

4. DIRECT the Public Works Director, or designee, to send notices by email or fax and by U.S. Mail to the construction trade journals specified in Public Contract Code Section 22036 at least 15 calendar days before the bid opening.

5. DETERMINE the Project is a California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), Class 2 Categorical Exemption, pursuant to Article 19, Section 15302 (c) of the CEQA Guidelines, and

DIRECT the Director of the Department of Conservation and Development, or designee, to file a Notice of Exemption with the County Clerk, and

AUTHORIZE the Public Works Director, or designee, to arrange for payment of a $25 fee to the Department of Conservation and Development for processing, and a $50 fee to the County Clerk for filing the Notice of Exemption.

FISCAL IMPACT:

100% Enterprise I Funds.

BACKGROUND:

The Cooling Towers Replacement Project is located at the Contra Costa Regional Medical Center in Martinez, California. The cooling towers serve the heating, cooling and ventilation system for the main hospital. They provide space cooling to the interior spaces in the hospital. The three existing cooling towers are over 25 years old and have exceeded their expected useful life. Maintenance costs to keep the existing towers functional have increased over the last few years. Contra Costa County Public Works Department is engaged in a project to replace the existing rooftop cooling towers with new, at-grade cooling towers. A new exterior support structure for the new cooling towers will be constructed at grade on the northeast side of the hospital near a service loading dock. The replacement cooling towers will be installed there. Taking advantage of the existing turn-around space adjacent to the service loading dock, very little new hardscape will be required. New overhead utility service lines will be installed connecting the new cooling towers to the existing hospital mechanical plant and power plant. The new towers will be tied in to the hospital’s HVAC system before the existing rooftop towers are decommissioned and demolished.

CONSEQUENCE OF NEGATIVE ACTION:

If the advertisement is not approved, the Project will not be constructed, subjecting the hospital to increasing maintenance effort and expense to keep the existing equipment operational and leaving the hospital increasingly vulnerable to a catastrophic system failure that would leave the hospital without space cooling, potentially forcing the closure of the hospital. Alternately, the County might pursue the replacement of the towers in-place, on the roof of the hospital. However, this approach would be more costly, would take longer to execute, would result in a temporary (days to weeks) shutdown of the hospital cooling system, and would miss an opportunity to make the system easier to maintain.