ADMINISTRATION - Rebecca Haug, Water Resources Manager
Title
AWARD THE CONTRACT TO MAINTAIN BLAINE’S BIO RETENTION BMP’S AND WETLAND MITIGATION SITES (2021-2025)
Background
The City of Blaine has twelve (12) bio retention best management practices (BMPs) and four (4) wetland mitigation areas. The bio retention BMPs are a combination of rain gardens and infiltration basins designed to treat stormwater. The sites have native vegetation and in some cases have rain guardians, which trap sediment. The wetland mitigation areas are sites on city property where the city restored or created wetlands to replace wetland impacts for city structures. These sites also have native vegetation.
In order to keep the bio retention BMPs functioning and the wetland mitigation areas in compliance, routine maintenance is required. The maintenance required involves removing invasive and or non-native vegetation, weeding of the sites, removing trash and sediment from the sites and in some cases, reseeding and burning.
The City of Blaine has contracted for the maintenance of these Bio Retention Best Management Practices and wetland mitigation sites since 2009. In the past the contracts have been based on 3 year increments. The current contract was awarded in 2018 and expired at the turn of the year. Staff is proposing to extend the contract to a five year period. The reason for the extension of the contract is based on the time it takes to get the vegetation in a site to perform at its best. A 5 year contract, allows the contractor to take the time to ensure that any reseeding of the sites and invasive species removals are successful.
The contract requires the contractor to conduct 2-3 site visits throughout the growing season (April-October). The first site visit involves removing dead vegetation, removing trash and sediment, and mowing the area. Then the contractor comes out one to two more times to remove weeds and invasive species and conduct general clean up. As these sites age, some require more intensive maintenance. The contractor will work with staff to determine if a prescribed burn or reseeding is the best option to restore several of the sites.
The wetland mitigation areas involve the same amount of visits and similar maintenance. Since these areas do not receive stormwater, there isn’t the need to remove sediment.
Staff requested proposals and received responses from three (3) companies, Minnesota Native Landscaping, LLC (MNL), Prairie Restorations Inc. (PRI) and Landbridge Ecological.
Prices for services from each company are as follows:
MNL
|
2021 |
2022* |
2023 |
2024 |
2025 |
Total |
|
$27,240.00 |
$27,485.00 |
$23,140.00 |
$30,650.00 |
$26,755.00 |
$135,270 |
Not including enhancements (ie prescribed burns and reseeding)
*2022 Water Treatment Plant 4 comes on-line for maintenance
PRI
|
2021 |
2022* |
2023 |
2024 |
2025 |
Total |
|
$12,820.00 |
$15,820.00 |
$15,820.00 |
$15,320.00 |
$15,320.00 |
$75,100.00 |
Not including enhancements (ie prescribed burns and reseeding)
*2022 Water Treatment Plant 4 comes on-line for maintenance
Landbridge Ecological
|
2021 |
2022* |
2023 |
2024 |
2025 |
Total |
|
$15,000 |
$16,500 |
$15,000 |
$15,000 |
$15,000 |
$75,000 |
Not including enhancements (ie prescribed burns and reseeding)
*2022 Water Treatment Plant 4 comes on-line for maintenance
Recommendation
Staff recommends the City Council award the contract to Landbridge Ecological for 2021-2025 and authorize the Mayor and City Manager to sign contract in the amount of $75,000 for maintenance of the city’s Bio retention BMP’s and wetland mitigation sites.