Template revised January 10, 2019.
COMMISSION
AGENDA MEMORANDUM
Item No.
6c
ACTION ITEM
Date of Meeting
September 10, 2019
DATE: August 29, 2019
TO: Stephen P. Metruck, Executive Director
FROM: Elizabeth Leavitt, Senior Director, Environment and Sustainability
Sandra Kilroy, Director, Maritime Environment and Sustainability
SUBJECT: Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) Contract to Perform Environmental
and Regulatory Support for Marine Stormwater Utility
Total estimated contract
amount:
$3,000,000
ACTION REQUESTED
Request Commission authorization for the Executive Director to execute one professional
services indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract to perform Environmental and
Regulatory Support for Marine Stormwater Utility with a total value of $3,000,000 and a
contract period of five years plus two option years for Maritime properties. No funding is
associated with this authorization.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Marine Stormwater Utility proposes to advertise and select one qualified firm to provide
environmental and regulatory services in support of stormwater permit requirements and
utility obligations. This IDIQ would be used to meet requirements of the Phase I Municipal
Stormwater Permit and obligations of the Marine Stormwater Utility.
The Port has been using a balanced approach of staff and consultants to deliver the specialized
work of the Stormwater Utility. In 2019 we added a staff position and have been able to reduce
our use of outside services. This procurement supports the Port’s strategy to manage our
finances responsibly, provides a cost-efficient means to secure services for tasks that present
variable workload and allows us to maintain the balance and access the specialized stormwater
services that we would not be able to adequately provide with in-house staff.
JUSTIFICATION
The Port of Seattle Maritime Division operates under a Phase I National Pollutant Discharge
Elimination System (NPDES) Municipal Stormwater Permit (MS4 permit) issued by the
Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology) and is required to develop and maintain a
stormwater management program that meets MS4 Permit requirements. The Port also
COMMISSION AGENDA – Action Item No. __6c__ Page 2 of 6
Meeting Date: September 10, 2019
Template revised June 27, 2019 (Diversity in Contracting).
maintains a Marine Stormwater Utility (Utility), which collects fees for all Port properties that
are used to assess, maintain, repair, and rehabilitate stormwater infrastructure.
To effectively comply with permit and utility obligations, a variety of specialized environmental
services are required including those related to stormwater pollution prevention plans, illicit
discharge detection and elimination, stormwater monitoring, inspections, mapping, pre- and
post-construction plan review, infrastructure system assessment and rehabilitation, and
environmental training.
Remaining in compliance and being proactive about the performance of our stormwater Best
Management Practices align with the Port’s Century Agenda of being the cleanest and greenest
Port, and specifically Objective 14 – Meet or exceed agency requirements for stormwater
leaving Port-owned or operated facilities.
Failure to comply with the conditions of NPDES permits will result in permit violations and
potential fines.
Diversity in Contracting
The Diversity in Contracting Department has been contacted regarding this procurement and an
aspirational goal of 10 percent has been established for women- and minority-owned business
enterprise.
DETAILS
This contract will enable the Port to meet stormwater permit requirements and utility
obligations by providing environmental, technical and regulatory expertise to supplement Port
staff.
The Port of Seattle is responsible for ensuring compliance with the Phase I NPDES MS4 permit
issued by the Washington State Department of Ecology. Applicable regulations are promulgated
and enforced by City of Seattle and Washington Department of Ecology. To effectively comply
with MS4 permit requirements regular efforts involve developing and updating stormwater
pollution prevention plans for Port and tenant operations, updating pollution prevention best
practices for MS4 properties, inspecting infrastructure, responding to and reporting spills and
illicit connections, updating operation and maintenance guidance to meet state and city
regulations, conducting environmental training, and reviewing pre- and post-construction
projects for compliance with stormwater and utility requirements.
The Marine Stormwater Utility, formed in 2014, is responsible for maintaining stormwater
assets on maritime properties. This includes collecting fees for all Port properties that are used
to assess, maintain, repair, and rehabilitate stormwater infrastructure. Regular efforts involve
coordination with Seattle Public Utilities on an interlocal agreement, evaluating and prioritizing
the upgrading of infrastructure, updating the GIS map of the stormwater system, providing rate
COMMISSION AGENDA – Action Item No. __6c__ Page 3 of 6
Meeting Date: September 10, 2019
Template revised June 27, 2019 (Diversity in Contracting).
billing for properties, establishing annual rates with Commission approval, and long-range
planning for system resilience. The 2020 annual rate approval is on the Commission calendar
for October 8, 2019.
Other stormwater program support efforts involve coordination with the Northwest Seaport
Alliance on managed properties, support for industrial stormwater permits held by the Port,
outreach to tenants and Port operations on stormwater regulatory changes and permit
revisions, monitoring green infrastructure elements, technical research on stormwater
treatment, participation in local and regional water quality panels and conferences, and
continuing Salmon-Safe certification for parks and public access areas.
Remaining in compliance with water quality permits and being proactive about performance of
our stormwater management system align with the Port’s goals of being the cleanest and
greenest Port in North America.
Failure to comply with the conditions of the NPDES permit can result in permit violations and
potential fines. Failure to assess and repair the stormwater infrastructure can result in property
damage, operational delays and damage to Port operations and tenants.
Individual service directives consisting of a scope, fee agreement, and schedule will be
negotiated and processed before any work is performed. Service directives will span the life of
the contract, which is expected to be five plus two years.
Scope of Work
The Marine Stormwater Utility Services contract is a crucial component for meeting stormwater
permit compliance and Utility obligations of the Marine Stormwater Utility.
The Marine Stormwater Utility Services Scope of Work consists of five principal tasks:
(1) Marine Stormwater Utility support
(2) Municipal stormwater permit support
(3) Industrial stormwater permit support
(4) Stormwater regulatory research
(5) Stormwater resilience and voluntary programs
Schedule
Commission authorization
Contract execution
Service directives issued
COMMISSION AGENDA – Action Item No. __6c__ Page 4 of 6
Meeting Date: September 10, 2019
Template revised June 27, 2019 (Diversity in Contracting).
Cost Breakdown
This Request
Total Project
From yearly expense budgets
$0
$3,000,000
From capital project budgets
$0
$0
Total
$0
$3,000,000
ALTERNATIVES AND IMPLICATIONS CONSIDERED
Alternative 1 – No Action
No new IDIQ contract would be awarded and no additional Port staff hired.
Cost Implications: $0 per year
Pros:
(1) Lowest cost alternative.
(2) Contract administration needs would be eliminated.
(3) Port staff would increase their technical depth, range, and capacity for stormwater
regulatory and utility work.
Cons:
(1) Port would be unable to maintain compliance with its stormwater permits.
(2) The expertise to cover all tasks related to stormwater regulations, municipal permit
compliance, and stormwater utility obligations would not be available with existing
staff resources.
(3) Risk of state and city regulatory violations and associated third party lawsuits if
stormwater regulatory requirements are not fulfilled.
(4) Risk of damage to Port properties if stormwater utility assessment and repairs are not
addressed.
This is not the recommended alternative.
Alternative 2 – Stormwater Permit and Marine Stormwater Utility Support Addressed Only by
Port Staff
This would add two (2) additional Port positions to provide the staffing required to cover all
permit and utility work.
Cost Implications: $300,000 to $450,000 per year
Pros:
(1) Contract administration needs would decline.
(2) Port would have additional employees to address the variety of stormwater regulatory
and utility tasks.
(3) Port staff would increase their technical depth and capacity for stormwater regulatory
and utility work.
COMMISSION AGENDA – Action Item No. __6c__ Page 5 of 6
Meeting Date: September 10, 2019
Template revised June 27, 2019 (Diversity in Contracting).
Cons:
(1) Extensive training would be needed for new staff to address variety of stormwater
regulatory and utility obligations.
(2) The variability of tasks and timing would not support full-time work for two new staff
throughout the year.
(3) The expertise to cover all tasks varies considerably and finding two staff with technical
depth, range, and capacity to fulfill all requirements would present a challenge.
(4) Two new Port positions would need to be approved, which would cause delays in
meeting permit requirements and utility obligations in 2020.
This is not the recommended alternative.
Alternative 3 – Stormwater Permit and Marine Stormwater Utility Support Addressed Through
IDIQ Contract and Port Staff
Existing Port staff address permit and utility work with supplemental or specialized tasks
performed by outside contractor.
Cost Implications: $375,000 to $430,000 per year
Pros:
(1) Provides access to highly skilled, specialized and technically broad consultant
workforce for varied stormwater regulatory and utility requirements on demand.
(2) Provides flexibility where low utilization of contract will result in reduced cost below
the annual estimate.
(3) Allows Port staff to develop technical skills and be fully engaged in stormwater
regulatory and utility programs.
Cons:
(1) Requires coordination and management of contractor by Port staff.
(2) Requires contract administration process to procure new contract.
This is the recommended alternative.
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
Funds for this IDIQ contract will come from the Stormwater Utility fund (00075). Annual
expenses will be budgeted in the Marine Stormwater Utility (8001) expense operating budget.
Cost Estimate/Authorization Summary
Capital
Expense
Total
COST ESTIMATE
Original estimate
$0
$3,000,000
$3,000,000
COMMISSION AGENDA – Action Item No. __6c__ Page 6 of 6
Meeting Date: September 10, 2019
Template revised June 27, 2019 (Diversity in Contracting).
Annual Budget Status and Source of Funds
Funding for Service Directives under this contract will be from authorized division operating
budgets. Consequently, there is no funding request associated with this request.
ADDITIONAL BACKGROUND
Consultant support for the Maritime Division stormwater program and the Marine Stormwater
Utility, formed in 2014, dates to 2013 with an awarded IDIQ contract valued at $8,757,000,
which expires December 31, 2019. Since that time, two staff positions have been added to
support the Stormwater Program Manager: Utility Program Manager and Environmental
Management Specialist. This has led to our ability to reduce the use of outside consultants. The
intent of this IDIQ request is to continue a sufficient level of specialized environmental,
technical and regulatory support to supplement the skills and abilities of existing Port staff and
ensure that regulatory deadlines are met.
The Commission meeting when the 2020 Stormwater Utility rates approval will be considered is
October 8, 2019.
ATTACHMENTS TO THIS REQUEST
None
PREVIOUS COMMISSION ACTIONS OR BRIEFINGS
None