Explanation:
As part of their "District Plan," the Columbus Public Schools are currently planning to renovate 38 of their schools over the next 15-year period. As part of this process, Columbus Public Schools has proposed to make certain modifications to adjacent public roadways for the purpose of improving pedestrian and vehicular ingress and egress to these same schools.
Section 901.01(f) of Columbus City Codes, 1959, currently requires entities wishing to make such roadway improvements to enter into an "Agreement to Improve Streets" with the Public Service Director and to provide to the City a surety bond, or letter of credit, equal to the amount estimated to complete each of these roadway improvements. However, as a public entity, the Columbus Public Schools are also required to obtain a surety bond, or letter of credit, from their contractor(s) for all proposed work, including work within the public right-of-way on City streets. Therefore, the current requirements of the City and Columbus Public Schools would result in these proposed public roadway improvements being bonded twice, thereby doubling the Columbus Public Schools' cost for ensuring this work is completed in a satisfactory manner. Such dual bonding is estimated to cost the Columbus Public Schools approximately $500,000 over the next 15 year period, over and above the cost of bonding this work once, while providing little or no additional benefit.
In an effort to eliminate this additional expense, this ordinance authorizes the Public Service Director to waive on a project by project basis the surety bonding/letter of credit requirements associated with Section 901.01(f) of Columbus City Code, 1959, from within future "Agreements To Improve Streets" between the City and the Columbus Public Schools for public roadway improvements associated with the Columbus Public Schools' "District Plan" and each agreement shall remain in effect for so long as the Columbus Public Schools remain in compliance with the following conditions:
1. In lieu of surety bonding/letter of credit, the Columbus Public Schools shall, as a part of these future "Agreements to Improve Streets," certify that it shall not release its contractor's construction bond for each of its projects until such time that the City of Columbus, Transportation Division, has issued a "Letter of Acceptance" to the Columbus Public Schools noting the satisfactory completion of the improvement.
2. Furthermore, should the Columbus Public Schools' contractor fail to complete a public roadway improvement to the satisfaction of the City within one year of each agreement date, the Columbus Public Schools shall agree upon demand by the City Engineer, to immediately call its contractor's bond for the improvement and immediately seek another qualified contractor to complete the work to the City's satisfaction. Should the Columbus Public Schools be unable to obtain another qualified replacement contractor within thirty (30) calendar days after calling the contractor's bond, the City Engineer may determine the condition of the site presents a danger to the pedestrian and motoring public and demand that the Columbus Public Schools shall take all appropriate steps to either obtain a replacement contractor within an additional thirty (30) days or post security acceptable to the City Engineer necessary to secure the completion of the improvement. In the absence of a danger to the pedestrian and motoring public, the Columbus Public Schools shall continue with due diligence to pursue its contractual remedies against its contractor.
All other conditions associated with Section 901 of Columbus City Code (1959) and "Agreements To Improve Streets" shall remain in force.
Fiscal Impact:
This has no fiscal impact upon the City of Columbus, Public Service Department; however, it does save the Columbus Public Schools up to $500,000 over the next 15 years.
Emergency Justification:
Emergency action is requested in order to allow the immediate commencement of associated cost saving measures for the Columbus Public Schools and the general public.
Title
To provide the Director of Public Service with the authority to waive the surety bonding/letter of credit requirements associated with future "Agreements to Improve Streets" between the City and the Columbus Public Schools, and to declare an emergency.
Body
WHEREAS, the Columbus Public Schools are proposing to perform various public roadway improvements in conjunction with the renovation of 38 schools over the next 15 year period as a part of their "District Plan", and
WHEREAS, such work requires the Columbus Public Schools to enter into an "Agreement to Improve Streets" for each site proposing such roadway improvements with the City of Columbus, and
WHEREAS, both the Columbus Public Schools and the City of Columbus require surety bonds or letters of credit to ensure the proper execution of this work, and
WHEREAS, such dual bonding would place an additional financial burden of approximately $500,000 upon the Columbus Public Schools while providing little or no benefit to Columbus Public Schools or the City of Columbus, and
WHEREAS, waiving the surety bond/letter of credit requirements associated with future "Agreements to Improve Streets" as prescribed within Section 901.01(f) of Columbus City Codes, 1959 requires City Council approval, and
WHEREAS, the Columbus Public Schools has agreed to alternative assurance measures within future "Agreements To Improve Streets" whereby it shall not release its contractor's construction bond for each of its projects until such time that the City of Columbus, Transportation Division, has issued a "Letter of Acceptance" to the Columbus Public Schools noting the satisfactory completion of the improvement, and shall upon failing to satisfactorily complete said work within a prescribed period of time the Columbus Public Schools shall file a claim against the contractor's bond and seek another qualified contractor to complete the work to the City's satisfaction, and
WHEREAS, an emergency exists in the usual daily operation of the Public Service Department in that it is immediately necessary to authorize the Public Service Director to waive the surety bonding/letter of credit requirements of Section 901.01(f) of Columbus City Code (1959) from within future "Agreements To Improve Streets" with the Columbus Public Schools for public roadway improvements associated with their "District Plan" for so long as the Columbus Public Schools remains in compliance with alternative assurances previously outlined herein, for the immediate preservation of the public health, peace, property, safety and welfare; now, therefore
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF COLUMBUS:
Section 1. That the Public Service Director be and is hereby authorized to waive the surety bonding/letter of credit requirements of Section 901.01(f) of Columbus City Code from within future "Agreement To Improve Streets" with the Columbus Public Schools for public roadway improvements associated with the Columbus Public Schools' "District Plan" and that said authority shall remain in effect so long as the Columbus Public Schools remain in compliance with the remaining conditions of all such agreements.
Section 2. That for the reasons stated in the preamble hereto, which is hereby made a part hereof, this ordinance is hereby declared to be an emergency measure and shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage and approval by the Mayor or ten days after passage if the Mayor neither approves nor vetoes the same.