TRANSMITTAL LETTER FOR BOARD MEETING OF APRIL 7, 2016
COMMITTEE ON PROCUREMENT
Mr. David St. Pierre, Executive Director
Title
Authority to increase purchase order and amend agreement with Deutsch, Levy & Engel, LLC, for legal services in representing the District with respect to environmental remediation of vacant property located north of the Main Channel and west of Pulaski Road in Chicago, Illinois; Main Channel Parcels 40.02, 40.04 and 40.07 and vacant property located north of the Cal-Sag Channel on the southwest corner of Ann and James Streets in Blue Island, Illinois; Cal Sag Channel Atlas Parcel 14.05, in an amount of $50,000.00, from an amount of $90,500.00, to an amount not to exceed $140,500.00, Account 101-30000-612430, Purchase Order 3011853
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Dear Sir:
On January 24, 2002, the Board of Commissioners authorized the Director of Procurement & Materials Management to issue a purchase order and enter into an agreement with Deutsch, Levy and Engel, LLC, for legal services in representing the District in pursuing the environmental remediation of District Main Channel Parcels 40.02, 40.04, 40.07 and Cal-Sag Channel Parcel 14.05 against Peoples Gas and ComEd in an amount not to exceed $40,000.00. The matter involves the District’s efforts to have the prior owner or occupants (Peoples Gas and ComEd) remediate the environmental contamination at the sites resulting from their prior operation of manufactured gas plants (“MGP”) at the two subject locations.
By way of background, Peoples Gas is currently undertaking a program to investigate several of its former MGP sites under a consent decree with the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency (“USEPA”) which includes Main Channel Parcels 40.02, 40.04, and 40.07. Peoples Gas currently leases Parcels 40.02 and 40.07 under a lease that commenced in 1917 and expires October 31, 2016. This site is south of the former Crawford Station MGP site that operated from 1920 through 1963. During this early part of its lease term, Parcels 40.02 and 40.07 were used by Peoples Gas for operations ancillary to its adjacent MGP plant operations. Currently, Peoples Gas is operating a natural gas pipeline on Parcels 40.02 and 40.07. Peoples Gas has been conducting environmental testing on its leasehold site since 2005 and Deutsch, Levy & Engel, LLC has been negotiating additional acceptable site investigation plans and an acceptable remediation plan. The work under this purchase order has been sporadic as Peoples Gas has been working under approved investigations by the USEPA and conducting such tests pursuant to the USEPA’s schedule, which has been intermittent. As Peoples Gas’ lease is soon expiring, efforts to negotiate an acceptable site remediation plan with Peoples Gas are impending.
With respect to Parcel 14.05 in Blue Island, ComEd performed a series of environmental testing on Parcel 14.05 from 2002 through 2009. In 2011, ComEd, under a permit issued by the District, performed a Comprehensive Environmental Clean-Up Action on the site and is now finalizing its Corrective Action Completion report for submittal to the IEPA. The District has been monitoring ComEd’s clean-up actions and as the project is now in its final stages of bringing the site to TACO Tier I Residential levels, staff and outside counsel are working with ComEd to ensure a “No Further Remediation” letter is issued by the IEPA.
As of March 11, 2016, the attached list of change orders has been approved. The effect of these change orders results in an increase in an amount of $50,500.00 from the original amount awarded of $40,000.00. The current contract value is $90,500.00.
Whereby, additional funds in the amount of $50,000.00 are required for continued legal representation in the subject matters.
This change order is in compliance with the Illinois Criminal Code since the change is due to circumstances not reasonably foreseen at the time the contract was signed and is in the best interest of the District.
It is hereby recommended that the Board of Commissioners authorize the Director of Procurement and Materials Management to execute a change order to increase the purchase order and amend the agreement with Deutsch, Levy & Engel, LLC, in an amount of $50,000.00 (55.2% of the current contract value), from an amount of $90,500.00, to an amount not to exceed $140,500.00.
Funds are available in account 101-30000-612430.
Requested, Ronald M. Hill, General Counsel, RMH:STM:TN:vp
Recommended, Darlene A. LoCascio, Director of Procurement and Materials Management
Respectfully Submitted, Barbara J. McGowan, Chairman Committee on Procurement
Disposition of this agenda item will be documented in the official Regular board Meeting Minutes of the Board of Commissioners for April 7, 2016
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