Wolk fights to give cities option to enter into design-build contracts

Benicia City Manager touts bill as best method of building new office on budget

Assembly Bill 1329 would provide cities the option of entering into design-build contracts for the design and construction of public buildings, meaning that cities could hire a general contractor to be responsible for both the design and construction work. The benefits of a design-build process include accelerated project completion, cost containment, reduction of construction complexity, and reduced exposure to risk for the city. Of the 13 counties and cities that have been given the design-build option, six—including Davis, West Sacramento, and Woodland—have used the option to construct one or more capital outlay projects. In Yolo County, the Woodland police facility was built using design-build contracts.

“A recent example from my district occurred when Solano County opened the doors to its $100 million plus government center,” said Assemblywoman Wolk. “The facility, constructed using the design-build concept, was built on time and on budget. It should serves as a model of how government, private industry, and labor can work together efficiently to build projects. Why argue with success?”

A recent report by the Legislative Analysts Office titled Design Build: An Alternative Construction System noted that almost all cities and counties which were allowed to use the design-build method through special legislation were pleased with the outcome. Nearly everyone reported that compared to the traditional design-bid-build process, it took less staff time to construct a project and resulted in fewer claims and less litigation. The report found that this was because the local agency was removed from disputes between the architect/engineer and the construction contractor for the most part.

Among those testifying in favor of the bill was Benicia City Manager Jim Erickson and Chief of Police Jim Trimble.

“This bill increases predictability of the projects and reduces risk,” said Erickson. “We have a deteriorating police building in desperate need of replacement. I think this bill would help convince the voters that we’re doing everything we can to keep costs down.”

AB 1329, which will next be heard on the Assembly Floor, is being sponsored by the City of Benicia. The bill is supported by the Mayor of Fairfield, California Association of Councils of Governments, and Associated General Contractors of California.