Placerville approves $2.20 million for Placerville Drive pedestrian work and seeks accelerated funding for bridge replacement

Placerville City Council on Sept. 9 approved budget appropriations totaling $2,203,376 and contracts to build pedestrian improvements on Placerville Drive, and separately authorized staff to request local advanced construction authorization so the planned Placerville Drive bridge replacement can proceed on an accelerated schedule.

City engineering staff told the council the Placerville Drive Pedestrian Connectivity Project will “construct sidewalk on 1 side of the street on Placerville Drive from the Fairlane US 50 intersection to Armory Drive,” add crosswalk improvements at the Fairgrounds crossing and perform pavement grind-and-overlay work within the project limits. The council approved a construction contract with Doug Vierkamp General Engineering Inc. in the amount of $1,570,798.78, an engineering services agreement with Dewberry Engineers Inc. for $362,390.72, and a notice-to-proceed issuance to REY Engineers for $36,913, among other line items.

The project is described by staff as an interim safety solution until the larger Western Placerville Interchanges Project (Phase 3) can provide more substantial roadway widening. Staff said funding for the pedestrian project includes federal CMAQ/HUD-like funds and local funds; the motion approved the appropriation of $2,203,376 to proceed to construction.

Miss Savage, the project presenter from the city engineering department, told the council that two bids were received and staff found the apparent low bid to conform to contract requirements. “Staff is proposing to hold a construction contingency of approximately 10% for unforeseen and changed conditions,” Savage said. She also recommended awarding construction management and inspection services to Dewberry and noted Dewberry’s resident engineer, Dion Carr, was already coordinating with concurrent broadband work in the corridor to avoid conflicts.

During public comment, Sir Rodman, identified as a Placerville resident, supported the project: “I’m glad to see this one come forward because the fairgrounds has been a place where you just kind of held your breath every time the fair was on,” he said.

Separately, staff asked the council to authorize submittal of a local advanced construction (AC) request for the Placerville Drive Bridge Replacement Project so federal Highway Bridge Program (HBP/HPP) funds can be converted and used sooner than the current funding schedule would allow. Staff explained that unanticipated delays tied to utility relocations had pushed the federal authorization deadline and, without local AC, the HBP funds would be moved out into federal fiscal year 2027–28; that delay would leave the bridge as an unsafe pinch point while bicycle and pedestrian improvements proceed. The council authorized the city manager to execute the request for local AC and pursue phased conversion of HBP funds under expedited procedures.

Council action: the council moved and seconded staff recommendations for the pedestrian project and for authorizing the local advanced construction request; both measures passed on roll-call votes. The recorded roll calls for the pedestrian connectivity item showed “Council member Carter,” “Council member Noe,” “Vice Mayor Gottberg” and “Mayor Clerici” voting Aye. For the local advanced construction authorization the same council members recorded Aye.

Why it matters: the paired actions are intended to close a safety gap on Placerville Drive — building immediate pedestrian access while preserving a path to secure federal bridge replacement funds without waiting multiple federal fiscal years.

Implementation notes: staff said construction contingency was set near 10% because the project includes little underground utility work. Staff recommended holding authority for contract change orders up to $150,000 to the city manager for the pedestrian contract. The bridge conversion path requires strict adherence to Caltrans Local Assistance milestone dates and will split HBP funds over two fiscal years because the project cost is above the mid-level threshold for single-year programming.