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APPROVE MOTION TO AUTHORIZE THE ON-CALL LIST OF CONSULTING FIRMS FOR GRANT WRITING AND TECHNICAL STUDY ASSISTANCE
recommended action
RECOMMENDATION
It is recommended that the City Council approve a motion to:
1. Approve the On-Call List of Consulting Firms for Grant Writing and Technical Study Assistance through December 31, 2022, Project No. SEB-20-002.
2. Approve findings pursuant to Stockton Municipal Code section 3.68.070 in support of an exception to the competitive bidding process.
It is also recommended that the City Manager be authorized to take appropriate and necessary actions to carry out the purpose and intent of this motion.
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Summary
The Public Works Department applies for a variety of federal, state, and other grant funding opportunities each year. Public Works continues to be successful in acquiring large amounts of leveraged funding for pedestrian, bicycle, facility, infrastructure, and other types of projects that benefit Stockton citizens. Staff researches and prepares grant applications in addition to their primary roles and responsibilities to deliver projects as Engineers and Project Managers. Sustaining current grant writing efforts is not feasible without administrative improvements.
Public Works has developed a pre-qualified list of consulting firms, or consultant pool, for grant and technical report writing services. The consultant pool will be used to assist staff in responding to calls for project funding availability. The consultant pool will also be used for technical studies, planning studies, fee related studies, and nexus-type analyses as needed.
On March 20, 2020, the City advertised a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) for Grant Writing and Technical Study Assistance, Project No. SEB-20-002, to establish a list of pre-qualified consultants. Fifteen firms submitted Statements of Qualifications (SOQ). Ten firms were deemed best qualified to perform the necessary grant writing and technical study assistance. Upon approval of the on-call list of firms, Public Works will request services and issue purchase orders and/or professional services contracts with the selected firm(s) as demand occurs. In accordance with the Stockton Municipal Code (SMC) Chapter 3.68 Bidding, Contracting and Purchasing Procedures, contracts with vendors $75,000 or more will require approval by City Council.
It is recommended that Council approve a motion authorizing the On-Call List of Consulting Firms for Grant Writing and Technical Study Assistance and approve staff to use the list through December 31, 2022.
DISCUSSION
Background
The Public Works Department applies for a variety of federal, State, and other grant funding opportunities each year. Public Works uses these funding programs to deliver a portion of the City’s Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) projects and/or to address concerns received by citizens. Public Works continues to be successful in acquiring large amounts of leveraged funding for pedestrian, bicycle, facility, infrastructure, and other types of projects that benefit Stockton citizens. Staff is presently managing the delivery of approximately 75 active CIP projects. In addition to their primary roles and responsibilities to deliver projects, Engineers and Project Managers research and prepare multiple grant funding applications. Sustaining current grant writing efforts is not feasible without administrative improvements.
Public Works has been individually soliciting proposals from firms for grant writing services to assist in responding to program notices of funding availability. The process of requesting proposals has become repetitive and time consuming for staff. To increase staff capacity, Public Works has prepared the framework to establish a list of pre-qualified consulting firms, or consultant pool, for grant and technical report writing services.
Establishing a consultant pool will provide Public Works more efficiencies by eliminating the repetitive process of preparing individual solicitations each time a grant program calls for applications. Having multiple firms available also allows flexibility if a firm has difficulty with adequate resources to meet Public Works’ timeline. The consultant pool firms will be established for multiple years and be used to assist staff in responding to a mixture of grant funding programs which includes, but is not limited to, the following:
• Active Transportation Program (ATP)
• Congestion Mitigation Air Quality (CMAQ)
• Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP)
• Safe Routes to School (SRTS)
• Measure K Bicycle, Pedestrian, Safe Routes to School, Smart Growth
• Urban Greening
• Affordable Housing Sustainable Communities (AHSC)
• Trade Corridor Improvement Fund (TCIF)
• Highway-Railroad Crossing Safety Account (HRCSA)
In addition, to grant writing services, the pool of consultants will be used to augment staff with technical studies, planning studies, fee related studies, and nexus-type analyses.
Present Situation
On March 20, 2020, the City advertised an RFQ for Grant Writing and Technical Study Assistance, Project No. SEB-20-002, to establish a list of pre-qualified consultants to be utilized on an on-call basis. The RFQ specified that the list would be used for the calendar years of 2020, 2021, and 2022.
On April 9, 2020, 15 firms submitted SOQs. A Selection Committee evaluated the SOQs and determined that the following 10 firms are most qualified to perform the necessary grant and technical report writing services.
On-Call List of Consulting Firms
• Alta Planning + Design, Inc. (Oakland, CA)
• California Consulting (El Segundo, CA)
• Evan Brooks Associates (Pasadena, CA)
• Fehr and Peers (Sacramento, CA)
• Mark Thomas and Company (Sacramento, CA)
• MIG (Sacramento, CA)
• MNS Engineers, Inc. (Ontario, CA)
• Nelson\Nygaard Consulting Associates, Inc. (San Francisco, CA)
• Siegfried Engineering, Inc. (Stockton, CA)
• TJKM Transportation Consultants (Pleasanton, CA)
The list of pre-qualified consulting firms, or consultant pool, is intended to be used for grant and technical report writing services through December 31, 2022. Staff will solicit proposals from the pre-qualified list each time grant or technical report services are required. Staff will evaluate the proposals received and select and negotiate with one or more consultants to prepare grant applications or technical reports. Purchase orders and/or professional services contracts will be issued to one or more selected firm(s) depending on the range of assistance required. In accordance with the SMC Chapter 3.68 Bidding, Contracting and Purchasing Procedures, contracts with vendors $75,000 or more will require approval by City Council. Staff anticipates that every consultant on the pre-qualified list will be given numerous opportunities to provide services for grant or technical report writing.
Public Works regularly applies for a handful of state and federal grant programs. The availability of funding opportunities from the programs are predictable. Funding for grant and report writing services will be identified at the time of each call for projects and/or programmed in the City’s CIP when feasible.
Findings
Pursuant to Stockton Municipal Code (SMC) section 3.68.070, Council may approve findings which support an exception to the competitive bidding process. These findings include:
1. The City does not have sufficient staff available to provide necessary grant and technical report writing services.
2. The scope of the grant and technical report writing services requires specialized expertise that certain consultants can provide.
3. Use of the RFQ process to establish a pre-qualified list of consultants is appropriate for this type of work because it relies on the evaluation of professional qualifications and performance as the basis for selection of a vendor. Use of the criteria helps ensure selection of a vendor that will provide the highest quality professional service, which is in the public interest.
4. The City will negotiate contracts following solicitation of competitive proposals in accordance with SMC section 3.68.070.A.3.
The recommended motion will approve the On-Call List of Consulting Firms for Grant and Technical Report Writing Services and approve staff to use the pre-qualified list of consultants for grant and technical report writing through December 31, 2022.
FINANCIAL SUMMARY
Funds will be identified from Public Works’ operations budget at the time of each call for projects and/or programmed in the City’s CIP when feasible. No work will be assigned to consultants unless there is sufficient operating budget to incur the costs.