Municipal Pier Renovation - Approval of Design

Recommendation:

It is recommended that City Council:

1. Approve Alternative II as the preferred design for the Municipal Pier Renovation Project.
2. Approve the Funding Plan as delineated herein and appropriate these funds to the Municipal Pier Renovation Project(CIP 95-620).
3. Increase the scope of the design contract with HLA Infrastructure/Paul Zajfen Architects to include additions to the design as shown on Alternative II. Appropriate the funds necessary to cover the subsequent design fee increase.

Background:

In 1994 the City of Hermosa Beach received $1.5 million in County of L.A. Proposition A (The Safe Neighborhood Act) funds for improvements to the Municipal Pier. In February of 1995 the City hired the design team of HLA Infrastructure (Alpha Engineering) and Paul Zajfen Architects (IBI Group) to prepare an assessment of the existing pier structure and development of repair and architectural plans for phase I of the project.

In July of this year, after months of negotiation, the City reached an agreement with the County Lifeguards with regards to design of new lifeguard facilities to be constructed in conjunction with the Pier Plaza Improvements. The County agreed to provide a total of $1,200,000 in funding towards improvements to the lifeguard building, new parking garages for their emergency vehicles and a new 911 center. These changes will provide Hermosa Beach with a state of the art lifeguard facility which will be integrated into the new pier plaza design.

Recently, with the November 5th voter approval of additional Proposition A funding, the City of Hermosa Beach was granted an additional $1,000,000 in funding for the Pier Improvements. In addition the City was granted FEMA funding of $90,000 towards repairs to the pier necessitated by the 1994 Northridge earthquake.

Originally phase I of the project consisted of retrofit improvements to the structural elements of the pier and construction of a pier plaza area. With receipt of these additional funds the scope of work as defined in phase I of the project can be increased to include items of work originally delineated in phase II.

Work on the structural retrofit portion of the design has gone through initial plan check and is virtually complete. The project architect, Paul Zajfen, has prepared two preliminary design options for the expanded phase I. Design of the preferred option should be complete within three months from the date of City Council direction on this item.

Analysis:

At the January 28, 1997 City Council meeting the project architect presented two preliminary design alternatives for review and approval by City Council. Staff was directed meet with members of the Pier Design Review Committee so that the two options could be thouroughly reviewed before City Council approval.

Alternative 1 as prepared by Paul Zajfen in coordination with the County lifeguards and City staff consists of all improvements originally specified as phase I work including structural retrofits to the pier piles, bent caps and deck and a redesigned of pier plaza area.

The proposed new plaza will expand beyond that originally proposed in phase I. The result is a completely covered parking area for emergency vehicles. A new 911 space, women's locker room and additional storage will also be incorporated into the new under plaza design. On top the new plaza will utilize the same pavement and lighting types as being constructed on Lower Pier Avenue. The lifeguard building exterior facade will be renovated using complementary materials to those in the streetscape.

This alternative additionally proposes to remove the degraded restroom presently located to the south of the plaza. A new restroom facility and storage area would be constructed on the north side of the proposed plaza.

The Pier itself will be retrofit to bring its structure back to original design standards. Epoxy coatings and removal and replacement of spalled and delaminated concrete sections will enhance the Pier's appearance as well as it's structural integrity. Items of work originally specified to be performed in phase II such as a new deck surface, stainless steel handrails with integral fiber optic lighting, removal of the existing structure and installation of benches. As such the final design will provide for a complete improvement. The only items of phase II work left undone would be the construction of fishing platforms and the cafe/observation deck at the end of the pier. It is suggested that a tenant be sought for the proposed cafe and that this structure be built to specification when a lease is agreed to. A preliminary architectual concept will be developed for the exterior of the structure that will be architectually consistent with the rest of the Pier development. This preliminary design will analyze the footprint of the building and aide in the leasing of this space.

The following are recently updated costs for the two Alternatives. They represent guidelines as to what the City can expect to pay for a complete upgrade to the Pier including all overheads and fees.

Costs to complete Alternative I include:

1. Pier Structural Retrofit Costs $ 680,000
2. Plaza, Lifeguard, Restroom, and Deck $1,950,000
3. Lighting and Handrail $ 920,000
4. Benches, Utilities and Gates $ 200,000
5. Overhead and Profit $ 292,500
6. Contingencies $ 195,000
7. Architecture and Engineering $ 241,500
8. Inspection and Management $ 200,000

Total Cost Alternative I: $4,679,000

Alternative II would allow for a somewhat smaller plaza area and eliminates the removal of the existing restroom to the south and construction of the restroom/amphitheater facilities on the north side of pier plaza. In all other aspects Alternative II is identical to Alternative I.

Costs to complete Alternative II include:

1. Pier Structural Retrofit Costs $ 680,000
2. Plaza, Lifeguard, and Deck $1,620,000
3. Lighting, and Handrail $ 920,000
4. Benches, Utilities and Gates $ 200,000
5. Overhead and Profit $ 243,000
6. Contingencies $ 162,000
7. Architecture and Engineering $ 241,500
8. Inspection and Management $ 200,000

Total Cost Alternative II: $4,266,500

The Design Review Committee, after meeting with the project architect, has recommended that Alternative II be the preferred design. The Committee also requested that a gateway be added at the easterly terminus of the pier to allow it to be shut down for cleaning and in the winter when storms can make occupancy hazardous. It was the Committee's feeling that the renovation of the existing restroom(a County facility) could be done at a latter time. The Committee was against construction of the fishing platforms Kirkpatrick's original design called for.

Addition of the Phase II items of work to the design will require a modification to the scope of the design contract and an increase in the fee to perform such. The architect/engineer is in the process of devleoping an amendment to their design contract with the City. This document will be available for City Council's review and approval at the meeting.

Fiscal Impact

The following is an updated list of available funding for the Pier Renovation Project showing the previously mentioned additions:

Proposition A, 1994	$ 1,500,000
Proposition A, 1996	$ 1,000,000
County Lifeguard Building Repairs	$ 500,000
County Lifeguard Plaza, 911 Upgrades	$ 700,000
FEMA, Northridge Earthquake Mitigation	$ 90,000
Coastal Conservancy Grant	$ 200,000
Sewer Fund	$ 100,000
Lighting Fund	$ 100,000
Park and Recreation Fund	$ 200,000

Total Suggested Funding $4,390,000

If the suggested funding is implemented there would be funding available to build Alternative II as specified herein.