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RESOLUTION APPROVING CONTRACT AWARD OF PROFESSIONAL SERVICES AGREEMENT BETWEEN MIAMI-DADE COUNTY AND STEARNS, CONRAD & SCHMIDT CONSULTING ENGINEERS, INC. FOR PROFESSIONAL SERVICES AGREEMENT FOR PROFESSIONAL SERVICES FOR THE NORTH DADE LANDFILL VERTICAL EXPANSION, ISD PROJECT NO. E19-DSWM-01, IN AN AMOUNT OF $550,000.00 INCLUSIVE OF A CONTINGENCY ALLOWANCE OF $50,000.00 FOR A THREE-YEAR TERM; AND AUTHORIZING THE COUNTY MAYOR OR COUNTY MAYOR�S DESIGNEE TO EXECUTE THE AGREEMENT, AND EXERCISE ALL PROVISIONS CONTAINED THEREIN INCLUDING CANCELLATION, RENEWAL, AND EXTENSION PROVISIONS

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WHEREAS, this Board desires to accomplish the purposes outlined in the accompanying memorandum, a copy of which is incorporated herein by reference,

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, FLORIDA, that this Board:

Section 1. Approves the award of a Professional Services Agreement (�PSA�) between the County and Stearns, Conrad & Schmidt Consulting Engineers, Inc. for Professional Services Agreement for Professional Services for the North Dade Landfill Vertical Expansion, ISD Project No. E19-DSWM-01 in an amount of $550,000.00 inclusive of a 10 percent contingency allowance of $50,000.00, for a three-year term.

Section 2. Authorizes the County Mayor or County Mayor�s designee to execute the PSA, in substantially the form attached to the accompanying memorandum and made a part hereof, and to exercise all provisions contained therein, including any cancellation, renewal, and extension provisions.

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Date:

To: Honorable Chairman Oliver G. Gilbert, III
and Members, Board of County Commissioners

From: Daniella Levine Cava
Mayor

Subject: Contract Award Recommendation for a Professional Services Agreement for Professional Services for the North Dade Landfill Vertical Expansion � ISD Project No: E19-DSWM-01; to Stearns, Conrad & Schmidt Consulting Engineers, Inc.

STAFF RECOMMENDATION
SUMMARY
This item is recommending the County enters into a Professional Services Agreement (PSA or Agreement), for architectural and engineering services with Stearns, Conrad & Schmidt Consulting Engineers, Inc. for the North Dade Landfill (NDL) Vertical Expansion project. This PSA will provide architectural and engineering services which are essential to the County (Attachment A).
A review of the County�s Capital Improvement Information System showed the recommended consultant has an average evaluation score of 3.8 out of a possible maximum score of 4.0 (Attachment B).
According to the Firm History Report, as provided by the Small Business Development Division of the Internal Services Department, including the last three (3) years, Stearns, Conrad & Schmidt Consulting Engineers, Inc., has a total of twenty-one (21) open contracts and one as a sub-consultant, with a total paid to date value of $8,924,707 (Attachment C).
As a result of a fire on February 12, 2023, at the Resources Recovery Facility (RRF), the Department of Solid Waste Management (DSWM or Department) has had to divert the waste tons normally managed by the RRF to County and contracted landfills. At the rate of current waste generation, the NDL is projected to reach capacity by 2026. The NDL expansion was identified as a critical strategy in my July 17, 2023, memo to the Board in order to expand disposal capacity and keep the Couty in compliance with Comprehensive Development Master Plan (CDMP) requirements.

The NDL is a revenue generator for DSWM providing $17 million in annual revenues; closing it would cost an estimated $46 million in closure expenditures and post-closure long-term maintenance, negatively impacting the Department�s financial health and require layoffs. Therefore, approval of this item is crucial.

RECOMMENDATION
It is recommended that the Board of County Commissioners approve a competitive award of a PSA to Stearns, Conrad & Schmidt Consulting Engineers, Inc. under ISD Project No. E19-DSWM-01 for the Department of Solid Waste Management in the combined amount of $550,000, inclusive of a contingency in the amount of $50,0000.
This contract is project specific.

SCOPE
The project includes a vertical expansion of the NDL. NDL is an approximately 180-acre Class Ill Sanitary Landfill located in the northwest portion of Miami Dade County consisting of two (2) cells. The East Cell is approximately 100 acres, lined, currently active and permitted to 135 feet National Geodetic Vertical Datum (NGVD) with an estimated capacity of four (4) years based on the July 2022 Landfill Capacity Analysis report. The West Cell is approximately 80 acres, unlined, closed and permitted to 95 feet NGVD.

This expansion envisions maximizing the long-term capacity of NDL by increasing the elevation of both East & West Cells to approximately 250 feet NGVD. The scope of work will require engineering design services for the permitting of the vertical expansion.

The design and permitting services are intended to be used as part of the permitting process in order to secure a vertical expansion at the NDL. This will include, but is not limited to, providing an engineering report in order to meet the requirements of Chapter 62-701, Florida Administrative Code (FAC). This engineering report will include, at a minimum, the following:

� Landfill Permit Requirements
� General Criteria for Landfills
� Landfill Cell Construction Design & Engineering Calculations
� Hydrogeological Investigations
� Geotechnical Investigations
� Vertical Expansion Design
� Landfill Operation Requirements
� Water Quality and Leachate Monitoring Requirements
� Special Waste Handling Requirements
� Gas Management System Design and Engineering Calculations
� Landfill Closure Design and Engineering Calculations
� Closure Procedures
� Long Term Care Requirements
� Financial Responsibility Requirements
� Facility Operations Plan
� Construction Quality Assurance Plan
� Stormwater Monitoring Plan
� Water Quality Monitoring Plan

The Engineering Report will also contain engineering drawings as they relate to:

� Base Grade Plan
� Fill Sequence Plan
� Leachate Collection System Piping Plan
� Leachate Collection System Piping Plan Details
� Final Grade Plan
� Surface Water Management System Plan
� Landfill Cross Sections
� Liner & Final Cover Details
� Leachate Management System Details
� Surface Water Management Details
� Conceptual Gas System Management Plans
� Conceptual Gas System Management System Plan Details
� Environmental Monitoring Plan.

Pursuant to Florida Statutes section 287.055, the prime consultant and its sub-consultants selected for ISD Project No. E19-DSWM-01, who are tasked with preparing design criteria specifications, are not eligible to render services under the construction contract executed pursuant to said specifications.

DELEGATED AUTHORITY
The County Mayor or County Mayor�s designee is authorized to execute the PSA and to exercise all provisions contained therein, including any cancellation, renewal, and extension provisions.

BACKGROUND
A Notice to Professional Consultants was advertised on December 9, 2019. Three (3) proposals were received by the submittal deadline of January 10, 2020. All respondents were found in compliance with the technical certification requirements and Small Business Enterprise � Architecture and Engineering goals established for this solicitation. The Competitive Selection Committee (CSC) appointed by the County Mayor conducted a First-Tier Meeting on March 11, 2020, to evaluate the proposals received. The firms were evaluated in accordance with Section 2-10.4 of the Code of Miami-Dade County, Fla. (Code), Implementing Order No. 3-34, and Administrative Order No. 3-39.
The Total and Adjusted Qualitative Scores for the firms were as follows: Firm No. 1, Kimley-Horn & Associates, Inc. received 254; Firm No. 2, Stearns Conrad & Schmidt Consulting Engineers, Inc. received 268; and Firm No. 3, Tetra Tech. Inc. received 272. All ties were broken using standard tie-breaking procedures, as described in the Notice to Professional Consultants.
Based on the CSC�s professional judgement, a Second Tier was recommended, and the three (3) proposers were invited to advance to the Second-Tier phase. The CSC conducted the Second-Tier meeting on May 22, 2020. Second Tier results for Qualitative Points were as follows: Firm No. 1, Kimley-Horn & Associates, Inc. received 461; Firm No. 2, Stearns Conrad & Schmidt Consulting Engineers, Inc. received 473; Firm No. 3, Tetra Tech. Inc. received 471. The highest ranked firm, Stearns Conrad & Schmidt Consulting Engineers, Inc., was recommended for negotiations by the CSC. The County Mayor�s Designee, Director of the Internal Services Department (ISD), concurred with the CSC and on August 28, 2020, the first negotiation meeting was held (Attachment D).
The NDL expansion coupled with the construction of a replacement WTE is part of a master plan for the Department. Due to circumstances beyond the control of the Department including a continuing focus on COVID emergency through 2021, the fire at RRF which forced the diversion of waste to County and contracted landfills, and a change in the administration, a second negotiation was held on June 30, 2023. The Negotiation Committee arrived at the Maximum Flat Rates that was fair and reasonable to complete all tasks associated with delivery of a complete design package for the design and permitting phases. Based on the above, it is recommended that this Agreement be awarded for the amount of $550,000 (inclusive of the 10.00% contingency allowance amount of $50,000.00), to Stearns, Conrad & Schmidt Consulting Engineers, Inc.
The County�s Resource Recovery Facility had a devastating fire on February 12, 2023. This incident reduced DSWM�s waste disposal capacity by approximately 50 percent. The County must implement a strategy to increase its waste disposal capacities systemwide in order to meet Comprehensive Development Master Plan concurrency requirements of at least 5 years of solid waste disposal capacity required by Florida law, as well as the needs of Miami-Dade County residents. Expansion of the North Dade Landfill is part of that strategy. As such, the approval of this item is vital.

FISCAL IMPACT/FUNDING SOURCE
This PSA is valued at $550,000 for a term of 1,095 Calendar Days plus a Contingency Period of 110 Calendar Days.

Base Contract Amount Contingency Amount
(Code Section 2-8.1)
$500,000 $50,000

The project is in the Adopted Budget and Multi-Year Capital Plan. See table below for further details.


Funding Source(s) Chart Fields Amount Project No. & Description Site No.
Waste Disposal Operating Fund SWCP010105 $550,000 #P2000001052 3002610

TRACK RECORD/MONITOR
The designated staff contacts to track and monitor this contract is Karina Careaga and Felix Cepero.

VENDOR(S) RECOMMENDED FOR AWARD
The table below depicts a summary of the recommended firm(s).

Vendor Name Principal Address Local Address Principal
Stearns, Conrad & Schmidt Consulting Engineers, Inc. 9500 South Dadeland Blvd., Suite 610 9500 South Dadeland Blvd., Suite 610 Ali Khatami, Ph.D., P.E.

DUE DILIGENCE
Pursuant to Resolution No. R-187-12, due diligence was conducted in accordance with SPD�s Procurement Guidelines to determine consultant�s responsibility including verifying corporate status and that no performance or compliance issues exist. The lists referenced include: Capital Improvements Information System, Small Business Development Division database, Sunbiz, Tax Collector�s Office, convicted vendors, debarred vendors, delinquent contractors, suspended vendors, and federal excluded parties list. There were no adverse findings relating to vendor responsibility.

APPLICABLE ORDINANCES AND MEASURES
The table below depicts various legislative policies, and whether they are applicable to this item.
Title Legislation Applicable
(Yes or No) Notations
In-house Capabilities Resolution R-1204-05 No
Consultants� Competitive
Negotiation Act Florida Statute 287.055 Yes
Local Preference Code Section 2-8.5 Yes
Local Certified Veteran Business Enterprise
Preference Code Section 2-8.5.1 Yes
Small Business Enterprise -
Architecture and Engineering Code Section 2-10.4.01 and Implementing Order No. 3-32 Yes 20% Goal (Attachment E)
Small Business Enterprise -
Services Code Section 2-8.1.1.1.1 and
Implementing Order No. 3-41 N/A
Small Business Enterprise -
Goods Code Section 2-8.1.1.1.2 and
Implementing Order No. 3-41 N/A
Sea Level Rise Ordinance 14-79 N/A
Sustainable Buildings
Program Implementing Order No. 8-8 N/A
Art in Public Places Code Section 2-11.15 N/A
Office of Inspector General Fee Code Section 2-1076 Yes



_________________________________
Jimmy Morales
Chief Operations Officer