MINUTES OF MEETING
March 18, 2002
The meeting was called to order by Acting Chairman William Mosley at 5:45 PM due to the fact that Co-Chairman Phillips was unavoidably detained at a previous meeting.
Committee members present were Gabriel Avila, Jennifer Brogin, Lori Dinkin, William Mosley, Sally James, Diann Corral, and Kenn Phillips. Those absent were, Scott Svonkin, Edwin Young, Marshall Long, and Co-Chair Carlos Ferreyra.
Others present were Valley College President Tyree Wieder and LAVC Project Management team members Kathleen Radcliffe, Chidi Ugwueze, Fred Parker, Alix O'Brien, and Aysun Sarikardasoglu. Jeanne Rubin, Executive Assistant to President Wieder, acted as recording secretary, taking the minutes of the meeting. Members of the public in attendance were David Falk (LAVC Earth Science Department), Alan Sacks (Chair, LAVC Media Arts Department, and Joanne Waddell (LAVC AFT Chapter President).
Acting Chairman Mosley called for public comments. Mr. Falk stated that he is pleased that members of the community are involved in the project. Mr. Sacks also expressed his pleasure with community involvement.
Acting Chairman Mosely submitted the draft of the minutes of the committee's meeting on February 11, 2002 to the members for their review. Co-Chairman Phillips had previously suggested several changes to the draft minutes, and these were submitted to the members by the Recording Secretary. The minutes were unanimously approved and accepted as amended. A true and exact copy of the minutes as amended and approved is attached hereto.
Mr. Fred Parker of URS Corporation (LAVC Project Manager) then commenced a presentation on his company. He introduced the members of the team, and expressed that URS is proud and honored to have been selected by LAVC.
A PowerPoint presentation was given for the committee. It described URS Corporation; (number of employees, experience, and many college campus projects completed). It gave an explanation of URS' role in budget management and master scheduling of all elements of the Proposition "A" Bond projects (programming, procurement, construction, etc.). A description of the "Early Start Projects" was given: temporary facilities for the Financial Aid Office, restrooms to serve the bungalows, the North Gym, the Campus Center elevator, and A.D.A. pathways, ramps, and restrooms. The presentation then described communications with the campus community regarding the Proposition "A" projects, which will include e-mail, information boards and bulletin boards, a dedicated section of the Valley Star, announcements to students made by their teachers, and a telephone hotline directly to URS for concerns and complaints to be fielded. With regard to the surrounding community at large, there will be frequent Town Hall meetings to which the public will be invited, and there will also be a hotline for utilization by members of the public.
Ms. Dinkin expressed the concern that Town Hall meetings are not well-attended, and asked if there is any way URS can notify all residents within, say, 1,000 feet of the site where bond project activity is planned to take place. Mr. Parker responded that, in his experience, traffic is usually a significant issue for the neighboring community and he described mitigation efforts that will be made. He stated that URS will put together an information system so that the neighborhood will be kept informed of what is happening. Dr. Wieder pointed out that many of LAVC's Citizens' Committee members are also Homeowners' Association representatives, and that they can be helpful in keeping their membership informed. She stated that LAVC will also be doing ZIP code mailings.
Mr. Avila asked what the frequency of the Town Hall meetings would be. Mr. Parker said that a meeting schedule will be developed, and that URS will be looking for suggestions from the committee on how to best reach out to the community.
Mr. Parker then described the steps involved in the Master Plan: 1. Technical Review; 2. LAVC Campus Community Comments; 3. Scope Definition for Master Architect; 4. Environmental Impact Report; 5. Procurement of Master Architect (teams to be interviewed and selected by 3/21/02). He went on to describe the three deliverables schedule that the architect will be required to meet: at 30% completion, the work will be submitted for public comment, and again at 60% completion public comment will be sought. At 90% completion, the review will be limited to technical comments.
Mr. Parker described the term "programming" for the members. The programmer meets with representatives of the various academic disciplines that will be housed in a building, finds out what they need, and puts all this information together. It is submitted to the architect, who then designs the building in question. He explained the design management process and its relation to exteriors, interiors and use of space. Mr. Parker then gave the committee an overview of the construction phase, consisting of sealed bids being solicited, the lowest responsive bidder being selected, and review of the bid to make certain that the bidder is in fact qualified.
Ms. Dinkin inquired, "Why not just one Master Plan?" Mr. Parker responded by saying that LAVC has approximately forty-five different projects going on, and that is why separate architects for certain projects are needed, and then one Master Architect to ensure that it all works together as a campus-wide vision. Ms. Dinkin also asked about completion dates. Mr. Parker said that the contracts are structured so that there are per diem liquidated damages. A better control, and one that URS also uses, is that they monitor progress on a weekly basis, and if the contractor falls behind, this is immediately recognized and remedied. If the contractor does not remedy the situation, they are "gotten off campus". Mr. Mosley inquired about the selection process for the Master Architect, and Mr. Parker explained how it works.
Ms. Brogin asked whether URS would make the hiring decision for the Master Architect. Mr. Parker responded "Absolutely not." Dr. Wieder explained the function of the LAVC Space and Work Committee and how it works as the selection committee. Mr. Avila asked if the Citizens' Committee would receive the results of the reference checks on the candidate selected, and Dr. Wieder said that she would provide information on the selected candidates..
Mr. Parker then addressed safety concerns, describing that, under Cal OSHA requirements, a safety plan would be put in place. He also described the "Zero Tolerance Rule - - any harassment of anyone by a construction worker will result in the offending person being removed from the site".
Ms. James asked about the Early Start projects. Mr. Parker responded that in about eight weeks, the bungalow restrooms will be demolished and replaced with temporary structures. Trailers will be provided as temporary quarters for the Financial Aid Office and the Computer Lab. There will be a swing space trailer. With regard to the North gym, trenching for infrastructure will take place, and the disabled students Gym will be moved into it (with temporary ramp access) as well as the Health Center and Dance Studio. The North Gym is the first of the existing buildings that will be programmed.
Ms. Dinkin asked Mr. Parker to comment on the Central Library budget. Mr. Parker said, "Our company came in on time and under budget". He then described some URS success stories, including the CSUN project, saying that his firm came into the project when it was eight months behind schedule and in trouble. The project was brought in on time.
Mr. Mosley asked how the sustainable building program adopted by the Los Angeles Community College District will impact costs. Mr. Parker said that he did not know yet. URS is still in the process of analyzing the budget. Dr. Wieder said that it causes a slight increase in construction costs - - about 2%. The concept is, she explained, that the energy improvements will pay for themselves over time in energy and water cost savings.
Ms. James commented that an article in the Los Angeles Times had reported a 10% added cost for sustainable buildings. All committee members concurred that this sounded very high.
Co-Chairman Kenn Phillips, by now present, took over as chair of the meeting.
Ms. James inquired about meetings in addition to those set for the committee. Dr. Wieder said that the committee will be notified of all community meetings.
Co-Chairman Phillips proposed that the agenda for the next meeting, to be held on May 13th, include discussion of replacing committee members who are unable to attend the committee's meetings.
There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 7:15 PM.
By: _______________________________________
Jeanne C. Rubin
Acting as Recording Secretary
