Council authorizes geotechnical drilling for Cabrillo Mole; Phase 2 contract deferred after protest

City staff asked council to authorize targeted geotechnical work to support the Cabrillo Mole revitalization project, and council approved a request to solicit drilling services to obtain updated subsurface data. Staff said the plan is to drill approximately six holes, deploy geophones and update NGO's geotechnical report so the incoming design‑build team would have site‑specific foundation recommendations. The recommended procurement was a not‑to‑exceed $150,000 drilling contract to be awarded to the lowest responsive bidder.

Project engineers described how the mole was constructed with quarry material and variable fill and said some voids and fine migration have been observed. "So what they wanna do is they wanna drill 6 holes and then they drop down some geophones there," a staff presenter explained, describing tests that would inform whether grout curtains, polyurethane foam injection or other remediation is necessary to reduce water flow and stabilize the structure.

Separately, council approved an on‑call engineering/geotechnical agreement with NGO Inc. (annual cumulative NTE $100,000) to secure continuity on the mole and other CIP projects. Staff told the council that direct contracting with NGO would avoid markups associated with subcontracting and keep a firm familiar with local conditions involved in earlier studies.

Finally, staff notified council that the separate Phase 2 progressive design‑build contract (item 10) could not be acted on tonight because a timely bid protest was filed; staff said the city will schedule protest resolution and return with recommendations. The drilling RFP and on‑call NGO authorization were approved by roll call (4 ayes, 1 absent).