ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT

Date: October 8, 1997

Dept. File No. 4102-1

CC File No.: 1805

TO: Vancouver City Council

FROM: The General Manager of Engineering Services in

Consultation with the Director of Central Area Planning

SUBJECT:Award of Consulting Contract: Downtown Historic Railway Alignment Options Study

RECOMMENDATION

A.THAT the contract for the undertaking of the downtown Historic Railway Alignment Options Study be awarded to the consortium of Baker McGarva Hart/SNC-Lavalin/Ward Consulting Group, at an estimated fee of $80,000, including GST. Funds are available from the project budget, Account Code 14/33/0650/999.

B.THAT the General Manager of Engineering Services be authorized to enter into a Professional Services Agreement contract with the consortium of Baker McGarva Hart/SNC-Lavalin/Ward Consulting Group in consultation with the Director of Legal Services.

COUNCIL POLICY

Consultant contracts over $30,000 are to be awarded by Council.

Contracts are to be awarded on the basis of best value for fee.

Council approved the Terms of Reference and undertaking of the Historic Railway Alignment Study in July, 1997.

PURPOSE

This report recommends that the contract for the undertaking of the Historic railway Alignment Options Study be awarded to the consortium of Baker McGarva Hart/SNC-Lavalin/Ward Consulting Group.

BACKGROUND

In July of 1997, Council approved the undertaking of the Historic Railway Alignment Options Study. This will consist of two phases over five months. Phase I focuses on the identification and assessment of potential streetcar alignments in False Creek and the Downtown and Phase II involves an economic analysis to determine the financial impacts and the financing options of the preferred alignment and streetcar system. A consultation process involving specific stakeholders, the broader public, local authorities, and City staff will be part of Phase I while Phase II will be a more technical component. The team is to have expertise in areas of transportation planning, ridership projection, engineering design and construction of electric passenger rail system, as well as land use planning, urban design and heritage.

In response to the City’s call for proposal, formal proposals were received from the following consulting teams:

ND Lea Consultants/Hotson Bakker

UMA Engineering/Phillips-Farevaag-Smallenberg

Sypher Mueller International Inc./Stanley Consulting/Urban Forum

Baker McGarva Hart/SNC-Lavalin/Ward Consulting Group

Reid Crowther + Partners Ltd/Paul Merrick Architects

Out of the five proposals, two teams were short-listed for interviews which were conducted jointly by Engineering and Planning staff. Ultimately, the Baker McGarva Hart/SNC-Lavalin/Ward Consulting Group team was selected by staff as the successful consulting team to undertake the Downtown Historic Railway Alignment Options Study. Staff felt that the selected team would be the best choice because they:

-have a clear understanding of the City’s expectations for the project and the public process;

-have extensive experience with City projects plus thorough knowledge of City policies and initiatives;

-are technically strong in transportation planning and have considerable rail/streetcar experience world wide;

-were on budget, yet allowed for a highly inclusive public process;

-have considerable transit planning and scheduling experience as some of the team members are former BC Transit employees;

-have been involved in development and transportation projects on the north and south shores of False Creek, as well as throughout the downtown;

-have considerable expertise in urban design and public consultation; and

-are able to apply graphic and illustrative resources to presentations and report presentation.

The core members of the Baker McGarva/SNC-Lavalin/Ward Associates consortium who will be undertaking this study are Graham McGarva, Chris McCarthy, Robert Tribe, Tom Parkinson, Ronald Gratz, Anthony Steadman, Trevor Ward, and Stephen Gardner. Selected team experiences include the following:

- Tianjin Superhighway & Light Rail Transit Study,

Tianjin, China

- Kuala Lumpur Light Rail Transit System

- Vancouver ALRT Overall Systems Design Management & Operation, Vancouver, BC

- Burrard Station, Discovery Square

- West Coast Express Alignment Study & Route Planning,

Vancouver, BC

- Scarborough Extension to LRT System, Scarborough, Ontario

- Coal Harbour Rezoning Overview, Vancouver, BC

- Cassiar Connector, Vancouver, BC

- South False Creek Planning and Costing

Based on the above, staff were unanimous that the Baker McGarva/SNC-Lavalin/Ward Consulting Group team can provide the best value for the fee specified.

CONCLUSION

Staff recommends that the contract for the undertaking of the Downtown Historic Railway Alignment Options Study be awarded to the consortium of Baker McGarva Hart/SNC-Lavalin/Ward Consulting Group, at an estimated fee of $80,000 including GST.

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(c) 1997 City of Vancouver