Minutes | Regular Meeting
IMPERIAL COUNTY TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION
MINUTES FOR OCTOBER 26, 2016
6:00 p.m.
______________________________________________________________________
VOTING MEMBERS PRESENT:
City of Brawley George Nava
City of Calipatria Maria Nava-Froelich
City of El Centro Cheryl Viegas-Walker
City of Holtville James Predmore
City of Imperial Doug Cox
County of Imperial Jack Terrazas
County of Imperial Ryan Kelley
NON-VOTING MEMBERS PRESENT: Caltrans District 11 Bill Figge
STAFF PRESENT: Mark Baza, Kathi Williams, David Aguirre, Michelle Bastidas, Cristi Lerma, Guillermo Gonzalez, Vicky Hernandez
OTHERS PRESENT: Norma Villicana: City of El Centro; Sam Amen, David Sanchez, Marcelo Peinado: Caltrans; Phil White: VTD; John Gay: County Public Works;
The following action minutes are listed as they were acted upon by the Imperial County Transportation Commission and as listed on the agenda for the meeting held Wednesday October 26, 2016 together with staff reports and related documents attached thereto and incorporated therein by reference.
I. CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL
Chair Predmore called the Commission meeting to order at 6:11 p.m. Roll call was taken and a quorum was present.
II. EMERGENCY ITEMS
There were none. However, staff requested to pull the CTP presentation under Caltrans reports section on the agenda.
III. PUBLIC COMMENTS
Mr. Brian McNeece and Mr. Jesse Zermin from the IV Velo Club were present for public comment. They stated their concerns regarding the public’s unfamiliarity with the new bike laws. They were present to inquire about possible signage that can be installed to notify the public of bicyclists, particularly on Old State Route 111 from Calexico to Brawley, including frontage roads. Mr. McNeece and Mr. Zermeno were encouraged to attend the Technical Advisory Committee the next morning at the ICTC office. Ms. Viegas-Walker also suggested that they reach out to SCAG through the GoHuman campaign. Mr. Nava stated the City of Brawley has a contract with Spectrum to create three minute video vignettes and they are willing to create a bike safety video.
IV. CONSENT CALENDAR
A. Approved ICTC Board Draft Minutes: September 28, 2016
A motion was made by Cox and seconded by Viegas-Walker to approve consent items A, Motion carried with 1 abstention from Calipatria.
B. Received and Filed:
1. ICTC Management Committee Draft Minutes: October 12, 2016
2. ICTC SSTAC Minutes: September 7, 2016
C. FY 2016-17 Appointment of the Social Services Transportation Advisory Council (SSTAC)
1. Appointed the Social Services Transportation Advisory Council (SSTAC) for FY 2016-17 for the positions and terms per the enclosure.
D. 2016 Active Transportation Program Regional Guidelines
1. Approved the following methodology for assigning points of the 2016 Active Transportation Program Regional Guidelines:
a. 10 points for projects that have been identified in an adopted local and/or regional plan; and
b. Zero points for projects that have not been identified in an adopted local and/or regional plan.
A motion was made by Cox and seconded by Viegas-Walker to approve consent items B, C and D, Motion carried unanimously.
V. REPORTS
A. ICTC Executive Director
Mr. Baza and staff had the following announcements:
- ICTC has initiated discussions with management and staff with Customs and Border Protections (CBP) Border Patrol regarding the potential to add a second inspection lane at State Route 86 (Northbound) Border Patrol checkpoint. Coordination efforts will follow with Border Patrol, Caltrans and the region to determine feasibility, costs and funding of required improvements within Caltrans right-of-way. A meeting was held on July 20th with all of the above stakeholders. Following the meeting input, Border Patrol will begin to draft concept alternates to meet short-term and mid-term needs. Our follow-up meeting is scheduled for October 24, 2016 at the El Centro Sector Office.
- A complete list of ICTC updates can be found on Page 29 of the agenda.
B. Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG)
Ms. Viegas-Walker had the following announcements:
- The Southern California Economic Summit will be held on December 1, 2016 in Los Angeles.
To register please visit the SCAG website at www.scag.ca.gov/economicsummit.
- SCAG has a new logo.
- A SCAG report can be found on page 34.
C. California Department of Transportation (Caltrans)
- Mr. Figge stated that a full report of Caltrans updates can be found on page 36 of the agenda.
- Mr. Kelley had questions regarding the process for the relinquishment of Hwy 86. Mr. Figge stated that the discussions are with the specific agency and how they want to handle it. Caltrans will be responsible for road improvements requested by the agency or funding will be given to the agency and they will be responsible for the road improvements.
- Ms. Nava-Froelich inquired what will happen to the Two Rivers Rest Area that was recently closed. Mr. Figge stated that it will be used as a Caltrans staging area.
D. Commission Member Report
- Ms. Viegas-Walker stated that the City of El Centro will be updating their master lighting plan between State and Main Streets from 4th to 8th Streets.
- Mr. Cox stated that the Worthington Square project will be opening next month.
- Ms. Nava-Froelich stated that the League of California Cities – Imperial Division meeting will be tomorrow. She also stated that a Niland Family Resource Center will be available soon. An MOU with the County of Imperial is being finalized. Services on site will be Social Services, Behavioral Health Services and Work Force Development Services.
- Mr. Nava stated that Cattle Call will be in November with events all week long.
- Mr. Predmore stated that he attended the Mobility 21 Summit where he was a part of the Chairman’s Roundtable. He said most agencies are having finding and congestion issues.
VI. INFORMATION CALENDAR
A. Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) Goods Movement Border Crossing Study
A presentation was made by Mike Jones, Senior Regional Planner from SCAG.
The Study was done to assess the mobility of commerce at the California – Baja California border and develop freight planning strategies that address long term trade and transportation infrastructure needs in the border region.
The primary purpose of the effort was to gather and synthetize information on goods movement across the U.S.-Mexico border moving through the San Diego and Imperial Counties international Land Ports of Entry (LPOEs) and to develop future projections of freight flows in order to assist SCAG and regional stakeholders in their assessment of future infrastructure needs and general planning efforts.
The study provided a better understanding of the characteristics of the movement of goods across the California – Baja California binational region, forecasted the future volumes of these flows and their impact on the SCAG transportation network and derived recommendations for improving the efficiency with which these flows move.
For a copy of the presentation please click here or visit the ICTC website at:
http://www.imperialctc.org/publications-&-reports/transportation-plans-and-studies/
VII. ACTION CALENDAR
A. Agreement for Professional Financial Reporting Services of the ICTC Transit Operations - FY 2015-16 through FY 2019-20
The Commission conducts fiscal reviews of its transit operators on an annual basis as a prudent management practice. The most recent five year agreement for this service completed its final year in FY 2014-15. The work associated includes but is not limited to; reviews and sampling of operator financial records i.e. invoices and billing, operator budget and schedule development, records management and financial controls, review of reportable revenue hours for billing purposes, review of spare parts inventories, monitoring of the accountability and security of the cash handling, conducted by each transit operator in the collection of fare revenue on a daily basis.
A competitive bid was completed in September 2016 for a new five year contract for the reporting period of FY 2015-16 through FY 2019-20. A Request for Proposal was circulated for the five year period in order to maximize pricing reductions, increase potential competition and reduce the level of effort for ICTC staff. An Evaluation Committee comprised of staff from Caltrans, the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) and ICTC conducted the proposal scoring and ranking process, as well as, an oral interview.
Two proposals were received as follows:
Firm Annual/Total hrs Total 5 Yr Cost/Avg Cost/Per hr
Vavrinek, Trine, Day & Co., LLP 362 / 1810 $228,227/$126.10
Hutchinson and Bloodgood, LLP 284 / 1420 $219,393/$154.50
For comparison, the expiring contract final year allowed 459 hours at a rate of $152 per hour, or a total annual cost of $69,768.
It must be noted that the current four transit operations are under separate contracts, but with one operator, First Transit Inc. This reduces the physical locations and accounting systems etc. that must be reviewed by the audit team, thereby reducing the annual cost. Should future competitive bids be conducted for transit services during this five year period, a contract modification may be required for additional time and expense.
The Evaluation Team recommends that a contract be awarded to the firm of Vavrinek, Trine, Day & Co., LLP (VTD). The proposal from VTD indicated that their project team were focused on governmental accounting at several peer transit agencies in Southern California, and are familiar with transit regulations and transit administrative practices. In addition, the VTD project team offered value added benefits through their knowledge and association with larger transit agencies including periodic review sessions with ICTC staff on financial reporting, validating and reporting transit related metrics, best practices, or a variety of other topics depending on the future needs and interests of ICTC.
Funding for this project is in the ICTC adopted 2016-17 Budget and specifically in the ICTC Overall Work Program and Budget/Transit Finance Plan: through the Transportation Development Act (TDA) Fund, approved on July 27, 2016.
The ICTC Management Committee met on October 12, 2016 and forwarded this item to the Commission for their review and approval after public comment, if any:
1. Authorized the Chairman to sign the agreement for the ICTC Transit Operators Fiscal Reporting services effective October 1, 2016, for the audit period FY 2015-16 through FY 2019-20, with the firm of Vavrinek, Trine, Day & Co., LLP:
a. For the fiscal reporting period of July 1, 2015 through June 30, 2016, the annual not to exceed fee set at $42,988
b. For the fiscal reporting period of July 1, 2016 through June 30, 2017, the annual not to exceed fee set at $44,277
c. For the fiscal reporting period of July 1, 2017 through June 30, 2018, the annual not to exceed fee set at $45,605
d. For the fiscal reporting period of July 1, 2018 through June 30, 2019, the annual not to exceed fee set at $46,974
e. For the fiscal reporting period of July 1, 2019 through June 30, 2020, the annual not to exceed fee set at $48,383
A Motion was made by Cox, seconded by Nava-Froelich, Motion Carried unanimously.
B. Funding Request from the City of El Centro to provide added Security at the El Centro Bus Transfer Terminal on 7th and State Streets
The City of El Centro is respectfully requesting funding through the Imperial County
Transportation Commission or any other available funding source that may be available in the amount of $90,000. This funding would assist with in providing additional security at the El Centro Bus Transfer Terminal located at State Street and 7 Street in El Centro. Over the last couple of months, the City particularly the transfer terminal and surrounding areas have been greatly affected by an increase in criminal activity and homelessness. Based on research, an armed security guard salary for 12 hour shift 7 days a week would cost approximately $88,400 for one year.
Various City departments have taken measures to address these concerns. Some of those measures include an increase in police presence in the downtown area, design plans to install additional lighting in downtown alleys, clean up, and code enforcement efforts. The El Centro Police Department will work closely with additional security if approved, to monitor the transfer terminal and surrounding areas. These efforts will improve the security but will not be enough and therefore, a need for armed security personnel is requested. An armed security guard would provide a sense of security to all the transfer terminal riders coming from different parts of the County.
The City of El Centro is requesting funding in the amount of $90,000 for a one-year period to assist with addressing the existing security concerns. We believe that once the armed security is in place the major concerns affecting the area should dissipate.
Ms. Villicana was present and available to answer questions. She assured that the process will be done through an RFQ process.
The ICTC Management Committee met on October 12, 2016 and forwarded this item to the Commission for their review and approval after public comment, if any:
1. Directed ICTC Staff to research funding sources in the amount of $90,000.00 to assist the City of El Centro in providing added security at the Bus Transfer Terminal on 7th and State Streets.
2. If funding is found available, directed staff to begin coordination with the City of El Centro to develop a fund transfer agreement and parameters of proposed armed security services for consideration to approve by the Commission and the City.
A Motion was made by Cox, seconded by Nava, Motion Carried unanimously.
VIII. NEXT MEETING DATE AND PLACE
A. The next meeting of the Imperial County Transportation Commission will be held on Wednesday, November 9, 2016 at 6:00 p.m., at the County of Imperial Board Chambers, at 940 W. Main Street, El Centro, CA.
IX. ADJOURNMENT
A. Meeting adjourned at 8:11 p.m. (Nava-Froelich/Cox) Motion carried.