Memorandum

City of Lawrence

Planning & Development Services

TO:	David L. Corliss, City Manager
FROM:	Planning & Development Services Staff
CC:	Charles Soules, P.E., Director of Public Works; Mark Thiel, Assistant Director of Public Works; David Cronin, P.E., City Engineer; Mark Bradford, Fire Chief; Ernie Shaw, Interim Director of Parks & Recreation; Mark Hecker, Assistant Director of Parks & Recreation
Date:	April 3, 2014
RE:	Request for approval of items related to Rock Chalk Park Project and Kansas Relays event

Please place on the April 8, 2014 Regular City Commission Agenda the following:

Consider the following items related to the Rock Chalk Park/City Recreation Center project:

a. A Temporary Certificate of Occupancy (TCO) for the track and soccer building, and for the track and field stadium, in accordance with the TCO Diagram, to accommodate the Kansas Relays event (which begins April 16, 2014);

b. The lighting plan for exterior lights associated with Rock Chalk Park and the City Recreation Center; Staff Memo & Attachments

c. A temporary use of public right-of-way event permit for use of no parking signs, as identified on the attached map, for various City streets from Wednesday, April 16, 2014 to Saturday, April 19, 2014 for the Kansas Relays;  Staff Memo & Attachments

d. A Signs of Community Interest Request for approval of two directional signs at the intersection of West 6^th Street and George Williams Way for the Kansas Relays event; and

e. The trail master plan for multi-use trails to be located on Rock Chalk Park, City Recreation Center and adjacent Park properties.  Staff Memo & Attachments

Background

In mid-January 2014, City staff was informed that KU Athletics, through its general contractor Gene Fritzel Construction Co., would be requesting a Temporary Certificate of Occupancy (TCO) to open a portion of the Rock Chalk Park (RCP) facilities for the Kansas Relays event, which begins April 16, 2014, and ends April 19, 2014.  On January 29, 2014, City staff met onsite with representatives of Gene Fritzel Construction Co., the RCP project design team and KU Athletics officials to review the TCO request.  Critical construction milestones and project approvals were identified during the January 29^th meeting and in a follow-up February 7, 2014 letter from the City, which included a “Kansas Relays TCO Punch List”.  Prior City Commission approval of any TCO or final Certificate of Occupancy (CO) was emphasized.

The intent of a TCO is to allow reasonable use and public occupancy of buildings or portions of buildings for which construction is substantially complete, and for which all appropriate building code, fire code, public improvements (sewer, water, streets, storm sewer) and other related project site elements (ADA access, adequate parking facilities, resolution of exterior lighting plans, installation of SUP-required fence on east side of RCP project and multi-use trail designs/cost estimates) have been completed, inspected and/or approved.  Buildings or portions of buildings that have not been inspected and have not received a TCO or CO are considered to be under construction and are not to be used or occupied for non-construction purposes.  A TCO issued for the Kansas Relays event would be issued for the period April 15, 2014 through April 20, 2014 (the day after completion of the Kansas Relays).

Staff Analysis

In addition to required and on-going inspections of work in progress or completed, staff from multiple Departments (City Manager, Public Works, Planning & Development Services, Fire, Utilities and Parks & Recreation) has been meeting weekly to bi-weekly with the general contractor and members of the design team to review project status and evolving issues and/or concerns related to the proposed Kansas Relays TCO.  

Using the February 5^th Kansas Relays TCO Punch List and TCO Diagrams as guides, as of April 2, 2014, the status of TCO Punch List items for partial public occupancy of the track/soccer building and track stadium, and possibly a portion of the westernmost softball building, for the Kansas Relays event is as follows:

• Building Codes – Building construction and site work is ongoing, but Development Services staff expects that all building code requirements for safe occupancy of the buildings and stadium noted on the TCO Diagrams, will be completed, inspected and approved prior to the Kansas Relays event.

• Fire Codes – Except for fire suppression and alarm systems, all fire code items are expected to be completed as required for a TCO.  If required fire suppression and alarm systems are not completed, tested, approved and operational, the Fire Chief has authorized the use of a “fire watch”, utilizing Fire & Medical personnel.  For the Relays event fire watch, the Fire Chief requires that two fully staffed fire apparatus (four fire personnel on each) and one medical truck (2 personnel) be onsite for the duration of the event and TCO.  The eight fire apparatus personnel will continually patrol and monitor the event site.  KU Athletics has agreed to reimburse the City all costs of fire watch personnel and equipment.   

• Site elements – The project has been constructed generally according to the approved plan; however, staff has and continues to process minor amendments as field changes occur.  Notably, the northwest parking lot has been redesigned and is under review at this time.  Items such as completing accessible routes from parking lots and signing and striping the parking lots are expected to be completed by the time staff issues the TCO.  Certain items will remain in need of inspection after the Relays, such as parking lot lights, landscaping, final site plan approval of amendments, etc.  For the purpose of temporarily occupying the property for the Relays, the site elements are or will be satisfactory.

• ADA accessibility (building, stadium, sidewalk/paved access/egress paths of travel, ADA parking) – All required accessible elements will be completed, inspected and approved prior to issuance of a TCO, except for the following:

• ADA seating for the west stadium bleachers – ADA seating will be provided for the Relays, but the track level seating serving the west bleachers will need to be redesigned and reconstructed after the Relays to be integrated into the surrounding bleacher seating.

• Public infrastructure improvements (streets, sanitary sewers, water utilities, storm sewers, detention ponds) – Infrastructure improvements required by Public Works to be completed prior to issuance of a TCO have been completed, or will be completed by April 11, 2014. Details are provided in the attached TCO Infrastructure Requirements Memorandum from City Engineer David Cronin.

• Adequate parking facilities to serve Kansas Relays – 962 paved and striped on-site parking spaces, including 23 ADA spaces, will be available for the Kansas Relays event (as shown in the attached TCO Diagrams). In addition, several hundred off-site parking spaces will be available on nearby public streets should the City Commission approve the temporary use of public right-of-way event permit for use of no parking signs, as outlined in the attached Kansas Relays Event Permit – No Parking Memorandum from Mark Thiel.

• Exterior lighting plan approval for Rock Chalk Park and City Recreation Center per SUP-12-00225 – Exterior Lighting Plan Memorandum from Scott McCullough

• East property line security fence installation, as required by SUP-12-00225 – On March 24, 2014, representatives of Gene Fritzel Construction Co., the fence contractor and City staff met with the abutting property owner and his attorney to walk the property line and discuss the proposed fence installation (approximately 1,300 linear ft.).  Prior to initiating fence construction, the fence contractor marked trees that would need to be trimmed or removed for review by the adjacent property owner.  As of April 2, 2014, the fence was over 50% complete, with completion anticipated during the week of April 7, 2014.

• Multi-use master trail plan approval for Rock Chalk Park and City Recreation Center – See attached Rock Chalk Park – Trail Master Plan Memorandum and attachments from Mark Hecker.

Staff recommendation

The project remains a work in progress, but portions of the site and buildings are complete enough to occupy on a temporary basis with the barriers noted on the TCO Diagrams intended to protect the public from accessing areas that remain under construction.  The temporary certificate of occupancy will be issued for a specified timeframe, the end of which time the public will not be authorized to be at the site due to the ongoing construction.  A full certificate of occupancy will not be issued until the unresolved items noted above are resolved.

Staff recommends directing staff to issue the TCO to accommodate the Kansas Relays between and including the dates of April 15 through April 20, 2014.

Requested Actions

Approve the following items related to the Rock Chalk Park/City Recreation Center project, if appropriate:

a. A temporary certificate of occupancy for the track and soccer building and the track stadium to accommodate the Kansas Relays;

b. The lighting plan for exterior lights associated with Rock Chalk Park and the City Recreation Center;

c. A temporary use of public right-of-way event permit for use of no parking signs, as identified on the attached map, for various city streets on Wednesday, April 16, 2014 to Saturday, April 19, 2014 for the Kansas Relays;

d. A Signs of Community Interest request for approval of two directional signs at the intersection of West 6^th Street and George Williams Way for the Kansas Relays event provided a TCO for the track/soccer building and stadium has been issued; and

e. The trail master plan for multi-use trails to be located on Rock Chalk Park, the City Recreation Center site and adjacent Park properties.