Council approves Greenwich Village undergrounding: $2.3M construction contract, bonds to cover assessments

The Hermosa Beach City Council approved multiple actions to advance the Greenwich Village North Underground Utilities Assessment District, including awarding the construction contract to CEM Construction, authorizing issuance of bonds to fund district work, and directing staff to enroll property assessments on the Los Angeles County tax roll.

Staff described the project as the undergrounding of roughly 17 utility poles and about 3,000 linear feet of conduit along Fifth Street and Hermosa Avenue. The city advertised the project on behalf of the assessment district, received six bids in May and recommended CEM Construction as the apparent low bidder at about $2.3 million. Staff asked the council to approve the contract with a 20% construction contingency and to authorize bond issuance of up to $4 million on a 20-year schedule (the staff recommendation included flexibility not to exceed a 6% interest rate). The bond proceeds will cover construction costs, inspection services and administrative costs; property owners in the district will repay their assessments through the county tax roll or may prepay their portion.

The council also approved an amendment to the city’s existing contract with NV5 (design and engineering team) to increase the agreement by $100,000 and extend the term for construction inspection and project management services; those costs will be paid from bond proceeds. Staff noted a prepayment option for property owners (prepayment deadline reissued in June) and emphasized a target deadline of August 10 to finalize prepayments and placement on the tax roll — meeting that date will save the district an estimated $8,000 in interest.

Councilmembers praised staff and the district residents for persistence on a project that began with an application in 2017 and a district formation in 2020. Council moved, seconded and approved the suite of motions unanimously. The roll-call vote approved awarding the construction contract, authorizing the 20% contingency, directing the issuance of assessment bonds up to $4 million for up to 20 years, authorizing the paying agent agreement, and enrolling the assessments with Los Angeles County Assessor for levy on the property tax roll.

Next steps: staff will finalize the construction contract with CEM, execute the NV5 amendment, start construction and issue bonds once underwriting is complete. Property owners who elected prepayment must complete payments by the August deadline to lock in savings; staff will record the required notices and manage the tax-roll enrollment.