Camarillo City Council
AGENDA REPORT
Date: September 11, 2024
To: Honorable Mayor and City Councilmembers
From: Greg Ramirez, City Manager
Submitted by: Carmen Nichols, Assistant City Manager
Subject: Professional Services Agreement with LeSar Development Consultants for Development of Homeless Strategic Plan
BACKGROUND
October 12, 2022, the City Council approved the update of the 2021-2029 Housing Element, reaffirming its commitment to developing solutions to address the increase in homelessness in the City of Camarillo. Through Program 17 of the Housing Element entitled “Homeless Strategic Plan” the City committed to generate solutions for providing Emergency and Transitional Housing to accommodate vulnerable populations and the homeless community in Camarillo, based on the Ventura County point-in-time count.
It was determined that a professional consultant was needed to help the City of Camarillo develop a homeless strategic plan to ensure a comprehensive, expert-driven approach that addresses the complexities of homelessness and aligns with best practices. On March 18, 2024, the City issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) for consulting services to qualified firms for the development of a plan. After reviewing the submitted proposals, City staff recommend approval of a professional services agreement with LeSar Development Consultants for preparation of the Homeless Strategic Plan.
DISCUSSION
The City of Camarillo aims to conduct a comprehensive analysis of homelessness within the City and work collaboratively with staff, community partners, community members, and the City Council to prepare a Homeless Strategic Plan reflecting evidenced-based best practices. This plan will be in the form of a final written report and will:
•Be data driven.
•Include a vision for how the City of Camarillo can best address the challenges faced by Camarillo’s homeless population and the impacts created within the community.
•Engage and empower the community to be part of the plan development and part of the solution.
•Develop measurable goals and incorporate proven, achievable, implementation strategies with clear timelines.
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•Include funding analysis and recommendations to coordinate efforts to maximize and leverage existing resources and assess new opportunities.
The development of a Homeless Strategic Plan directly supports the City Council goal of Community Enrichment by addressing the needs of vulnerable populations and fostering a more inclusive and compassionate community. By creating a targeted, well-structured approach to reducing homelessness, the plan will help to improve public safety, enhance the quality of life for all residents, and promote the overall well-being of the City. This strategic effort ensures that resources are allocated effectively, resulting in a stronger, more resilient community.
Proposals Received
On March 18, 2024, City staff posted the RFP on PlanetBids, the City's online procurement platform, which automatically emailed the RFP to numerous consulting firms that matched the scope of the project. City staff also emailed eight additional consulting firms found through an online search of homeless strategic plans in California. At the conclusion of the submittal period, the City received five proposals for development of the Homeless Strategic Plan.
A breakdown of the proposals and costs are provided in the following table:
Name of Firm Total Proposed Cost
GFN Hippy LLC $120,000
Health Management Associates $114,755
LeSar Development Consultants $119,748
RDA Consulting $132,550
Thurmond Consulting $170,000
After an initial evaluation of the proposals received using the scoring criteria outlined in the RFP, a review team consisting of staff from the City Manager’s Office, Community Development, Public Works, Community Relations, and the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office moved forward with interviewing the firms with the top three scores. This list included LeSar Development Consultants, RDA Consulting, and Thurmond Consulting.
At the conclusion of the interviews, LeSar Development Consultants received the highest score and was selected by the evaluation team to move forward in the process.
Following the interviews, staff contacted five references for LeSar Development Consultants, all of whom expressed high satisfaction with the firm’s work, their responsiveness to clients, and ability to drive positive results. Notably, the City of Palm Springs highlighted LeSar's successful authorship of a Homekey grant application, which CC 2024-175 LeSar Development Consultants
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secured $19 million for the construction of their homeless navigation center.
The evaluation team reviewed LeSar’s qualifications, approach, and team structure.
Based on their extensive experience and proven expertise in addressing complex homelessness issues, track record of successfully crafting and implementing strategic plans for other municipalities, including their work on the County of Ventura's strategic plan, and their demonstrated ability to deliver tailored, effective solutions, staff recommends LeSar Development Consultants to prepare the Homeless Strategic Plan.
The evaluation team valued LeSar’s comprehensive approach, combining data-driven analysis with stakeholder engagement to create actionable strategies. Their commitment to collaboration and community-focused outcomes made them a strong fit for Camarillo's goal of enhancing local support systems and improving the overall quality of life for residents.
Staff negotiated the scope of work and fee schedule with LeSar and updated the scope to increase the number of interviews with homeless individuals and to conduct them in- person, in partnership with sociology students from California State University Channel Islands. The updated scope also includes the development of marketing materials for the community engagement activities of the Plan in order to leverage LeSar’s expertise in this area and ensure a cohesive and effective outreach effort. With these additions, the revised not-to-exceed cost of the agreement is $130,150. City staff recommends approving a standard professional services agreement with LeSar for preparation of the Homeless Strategic Plan and authorizing a 10 percent contingency in the amount of $13,015 for unanticipated work such as additional stakeholder engagement, for a total agreement authorization of $143,165.
FISCAL IMPACT
Funds for description of expenditure are included in the General Fund Community and Human Services Professional Services/Administrative budget, Account No. 101-4340- 446.32-01.
CEQA DETERMINATIONS
City staff determined, in accordance with Section 15061 (b)(3) of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines, that these services are not subject to CEQA review because it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that these services may have a significant effect on the environment.
RECOMMENDATION
Authorize the City Manager to execute Professional Services Agreement No. 2024-175 with LeSar Development Consultants.
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ATTACHMENTS
1. Agreement No. 2024-175
2. Homeless Strategic Plan RFP
3. Proposal – LeSar Development Consultants
REFERENCE MATERIALS – AVAILABLE FOR REVIEW AT CITY HALL None