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La Verne council awards Arrow Highway urban‑greening contract after scope reduction; member recuses
Summary
The La Verne City Council on Oct. 20 awarded a reduced‑scope Arrow Highway urban‑greening construction contract to Oppenheimer National for $318,500, authorized up to 25% in change orders (total possible $389,125) and approved a $45,000 construction management purchase order; Council Member Laauo recused herself and the motion passed 4–0.
La Verne on Oct. 20 voted to award a public works construction contract for the Arrow Highway urban‑greening project after staff cut the project's scope to match available grant funding.
Public works staff told the council that the project — originally planned for roughly 1.3 miles of medians — was reduced to the segment from White Avenue to Fulton to close a funding gap. Mr. Howling, the reporting engineer, said the city was the grant recipient for $561,825 but rising construction costs required a smaller footprint. "We want to protect the grant money but really didn't have a way to spend it," he said, explaining the decision to pare back the scope and reuse plans developed in 2023.
Staff said bids were opened Sept. 23, 2025, with eight bidders responding. Oppenheimer National submitted the lowest responsible bid at $318,500; the engineer's estimate had been $430,000 and the high bid approached $591,000. Council authorized the city manager to execute the construction agreement with Oppenheimer National and allowed the public works director to approve change orders up to 25% of construction (bringing the possible construction total to $389,125). Council also authorized a $45,000 purchase order to RKA Consulting Group to provide construction‑phase management.
The project remains subject to grant limitations intended to encourage carbon sequestration; as a result, plant materials are limited to 15‑gallon stock rather than the larger specimen trees typically used in municipal streetscape projects. Mr. Howling said the planting palette is low‑water and drought tolerant; staff noted the plans include species such as California laurel.
A resident urged the council to prioritize California native plants and pollinator‑friendly species during plant selection. "I would like to request that... you kindly look at California native plants which are sorely lacking," the resident said, citing benefits to pollinators and drought resilience. Staff responded that the landscape architect (Albert Webb & Associates) prepared the plans and that plant selection passed state review as part of the grant award process.
The motion to award the contract was made by Council Member Johnson, seconded by Cashel Fagita. Council Member Laauo recused herself; the motion carried 4–0.
What happens next: staff will finalize the contract documents and begin preconstruction work. Construction management is expected to follow the city’s procurement and change‑order procedures. The council did not set a separate timeline for construction in the public meeting record.
