Recommend approval of a contract amendment with AECOM/Hunt in the amount of $13,296,250 to construct a parking deck connected to the north facade of the new arena. 

Contract Background 

On September 18, 2018, City Council approved a contract with AECOM/Hunt Inc. to serve as construction manager at risk (CMAR) for the new arena, responsible for construction of this voter-approved public asset. As CMAR, AECOM/Hunt was brought in during the design phase of the project to work with the architect, the project manager, and the operator to design, value engineer, and price the arena construction. 

Since approval of this contract in 2018, City Council has approved three modifications to the City's contract with AECOM/Hunt: Modifications 1 and 2 authorized certain early-release packages to expedite construction, and Modification 3 on August 13, 2020, adopted a Guaranteed Maximum Price (GMP) of $147,583,181. AECOM/Hunt is now contractually obligated to not exceed this GMP amount to construct the project according to the original scope. This scope includes construction of the arena and surrounding site work, widening of Stiles Avenue from Gwinnett Street to the railroad tracks, construction of the canal wall adjacent to the arena, and construction of a force main line to service the area. The original scope does not include construction of parking facilities. 

Construction of Parking Deck

A key component of the arena parking plan is construction of a 400-space parking deck attached to the north facade of the arena, with ingress and egress on Stiles Avenue. The garage will serve patrons with disabilities, suite customers, special event customers, and will provide covered loading and unloading onto the arena floor. 

The City analyzed issuing a competitive bidding opportunity for construction of the garage, and determined it was in the City's best interest to issue a contract amendment with AECOM/Hunt to construct the garage at a Guaranteed Maximum Price of $13,296,250. This method is being recommended for the following reasons:

1. Arena & parking deck are same structure, just funded separately: The garage and arena are physically connected and function as the same structure. There are a number of building systems which connect the parking deck to the arena and are required to be constructed at the same time and under the same warranty provided by AECOM/Hunt as the construction manager and all subcontractors. For example, both structures share:
   • elevators and all building systems contained therein
   • entrances at multiple levels
   • the loading dock
   • waterproofing provisions
   • electrical systems
   • annunciator control panel
   • fire alarm & security system
   • the overall fire protection system​​​​
   •  
2. Cost savings: Because both the arena and parking deck require a number of the same trades, there are many savings afforded to the project by utilizing AECOM/Hunt. It is estimated that utilizing a separate construction manager would increase hard costs of the garage by 10% to 15%. Savings will be realized through economies of scale in precast concrete scope of work, general conditions, and insurance premiums, in addition to reduced mobilization costs.  

3. Previously released scope: AECOM/Hunt has already completed site work, deep foundations and elevator pits on both the garage and arena to take advantage of subcontractors and specialized equipment on site. Coordination of these scopes with a new construction manager will result in significant delays and risk of increased cost for the project.

4. Schedule: Construction of the garage must begin in January 2021 in order for it to be completed in time for the arena’s substantial completion, scheduled for December 2021. Issuing a separate RFP, evaluating results, making the award, and then coordinating with a separate construction manager on construction site operations and scheduling would place the garage out of sync with arena construction, and make it extremely unlikely that the garage could be operational in time for arena opening.   

5. On site coordination of construction activities: There will be significant safety, schedule, and cost risks for separate construction managers to construct both the arena and parking deck simultaneously. The arena construction site has very limited space, and little extra room for the construction trailers, equipment storage and laydown yards that a whole separate construction manager would require.

6. Permitting: As currently designed and reviewed for building permit, both structures will have to be constructed simultaneously in order to properly complete and close out the current permits. Engaging another construction manager will likely delay the completion of the arena.

AECOM/Hunt's arena DBE goal of 25% will be extended to the parking deck scope. It is anticipated that at least 22% of the total contract value will be awarded to 32 Chatham County subcontractors, with 11% of the total being awarded to 22 local DBEs. This compares favorably with the City's overall DBE goal of 20%, and local DBE goal of 10%. 

Funding for the parking deck will come from proceeds from a bond issuance secured by the Parking Reserve Fund, in addition to SPLOST revenue. 

In conclusion, the City Manager recommends City Council award Contract Amendment No. 4 with AECOM/Hunt as the Construction Manager at Risk for the arena parking deck.

Approval