Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the On Call Contracts topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
DOTTI seeks two-year extensions and capacity restorations for vertical on-call contracts; council raises rebid and MWBE tracking concerns
Summary
DOTTI proposed amending vertical facilities on-call contracts to add two years and restore capacity for architectural, geotechnical and construction firms. Council members questioned using on-calls for strategic work, the timing of extensions versus rebidding and MWBE performance tracking.
DOTTI presented a package of amendments to the Transportation & Infrastructure Committee that would extend existing vertical-facilities on-call contract sets by two years and, in many categories, restore or add capacity for firms in architectural, geotechnical, structural and construction pools.
Cara Sequino, director of the Interagency Division, said the master on-call sets are a capacity tool for citywide projects ranging from small deferred-maintenance jobs to time-sensitive tenant improvements. She told the committee the 2023 on-call pools were publicly procured, that many task orders remain active and that the proposed change is an amendment rather than a full reprocurement.
Key proposals included restoring architectural firms to a $5 million capacity (the category originally had 15 firms with $5 million each), adding $500,000 to each geotechnical firm, and extending structural firms' terms without adding new money. For construction on-calls, DOTTI proposed adding $3 million to each SBE contract and restoring capacity for the large-contractor set. Sequino highlighted that the on-call contracts support a wide variety of small- to medium-sized projects and that many projects span multiple years, which DOTTI said motivates avoiding a lapse in capacity.
Councilmembers pressed staff on procurement strategy and equity tracking. Several members urged rebidding to create new opportunities for firms, while DOTTI emphasized the resource burden of reprocurement for broad contract sets and noted that task orders already executed would continue even if the master contract expires. On MWBE/SBE performance, DOTTI said official DISBO metrics are recorded at project completion, but staff use leading indicators (vendor-proposed subs and projected participation) to flag issues earlier and assist firms in meeting goals.
Councilmember Laura Vires asked why the city would extend contracts in April when the sets expire in July; DOTTI replied that many ongoing projects are incomplete and that reprocurement would risk losing capacity during active task orders. DOTTI also noted it had invited contractors to indicate interest in extensions; one large firm, Turner Construction, declined to amend its contract.
After questions, committee members moved and seconded the action to advance the on-call amendment package to the full council for approval. DOTTI said the amendments add time and capacity to preserve continuity for projects citywide.
Next steps: The amendment package will go to the full council for final approval; staff said they will provide the committee with quarterly reports and procurement summaries as requested.
