REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS
FOR THE
SIXTH CYCLE HOUSING ELEMENT UPDATE
Planning Period 2023-2031
City of Gonzales
P.O. Box 647
147 Fourth Street
Gonzales, California 93926
Distribution /Advertisement
July 1, 2022
Deadline for Submittals
July 25, 2022
4:00pm
Deliver to:
Taven M. Kinison Brown
Community Development Director
[email protected]
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NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that proposals for the 6th Cycle Housing Element Update will be received from qualified firms to provide planning services related to the City’s Housing Element Update. Responses to this Request for Proposal (RFP) will be received at the City of Gonzales, Community Development Department, 147 Fourth Street, Gonzales, California 93926 until 4:00 pm on Monday July 25, 2022. Electronic submittal to [email protected] by the same date and time will be sufficient, followed quickly by hard copy as described herein.
The City will receive questions concerning the Request for Proposal via email to Taven M.
Kinison Brown, Community Development Director, [email protected] until Friday July 15, 2022, at 5:00 pm. The City will respond to questions by the end of business, Tuesday, July 19, 2022.
Sole responsibility rests with the bidder to ensure that their proposal is received on time at the stated location or email address. Proposals received after the specified date and time will not be considered.
Proposals shall conform to the specifications of the Request for Proposals for the 6 th Cycle
Housing Element Update. The City reserves the right to accept or reject any or all proposals or any combination thereof, to waive any informality or irregularity in the proposal and evaluation process and make award in the best interest of the City.
Proposal Forms: Proposals shall include the total cost and be signed by an authorized company representative. The proposals shall be submitted by the deadline electronically and in one sealed envelope entitled: 6
th Cycle Housing Element Update.
Project Award: Complete proposals with qualification statements will be evaluated by the City of Gonzales and may include calls and an interview. Staff will make a recommendation on a consultant to the City of Gonzales City Council for approval and authorization to negotiate and execute a consulting services agreement to provide the requested services.
The City reserves the right to reject all proposals and to negotiate final contract terms with any selected consultant. The contract will be awarded based on lowest price from a responsive and responsible bidder.
CITY OF GONZALES, Dated July 1, 2022
Published by: Taven M. Kinison Brown, Community Development Director Published on: July 1, 2022
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I. Introduction
The City of Gonzales (City) invites proposals from consultant firms or consultant teams to complete a housing element update, related rezoning and all necessary environmental review as required under State law, in a manner consistent with the Regional Housing Needs Allocation 6th Cycle (RHNA 6) planning period (2023-2031).
II. Setting
Located in the heart of the Salinas Valley, the City of Gonzales is a vibrant, rural agricultural community of 8,647 residents nestled between the rolling Gabilan Mountains and the picturesque Santa Lucia Range. Centrally located on scenic Highway 101 in Monterey County, Gonzales is 16 miles south of Salinas, 35 miles southeast of the Monterey Peninsula and 62 miles southeast of San Jose. Gonzales enjoys a beautiful natural setting and is a safe, friendly, family-oriented community with a relaxed pace of life. Yet, endemic, and pervasive housing issues affect the community:
1. The City has a severe shortage of housing of all types and for all income ranges.
2. There has not been a multi-family housing project built since 2008 and no single-family housing projects since 2006.
3. The City currently has one 20-unit senior complex, on C Street.
4. As identified in the 2015-2023 (5th Cycle) Housing Element, the City:
a. Has a much lower percentage of multifamily housing (19% of the total housing stock) when compared to the County of Monterey County (26% of total housing stock). This disparity widens even more when compared to the State. (Page IV-9) b. Maintains the lowest vacancy rate in Monterey County ranging from 1.7% to 4.2% over a period of 14 years (2000 – 2014), which is an indication of a tight housing market with few choices and high rents. (Page IV-14)
c. Has a significant overcrowding issue. 20% of occupied dwelling units in Gonzales are estimated to be overcrowded, which is significantly higher than Monterey County and the State (12% and 8% respectively). This overcrowding is more pronounced in renter-occupied households at 30% when compared to owneroccupied households at 13%. (Page IV-15) d. Residents living in multi-family housing, characterized as low-income or extremely low-income suffer from a housing cost burden. In fact, nearly all (95%) spent more than 50% of their income toward housing cost (defined as a severe housing cost burden). (Pages IV 21-22)
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e. The elderly, who comprise 6% of the City’s population when compared to the County’s 11%, are a special needs population that requires close access to public services such as the post office, banks, city offices, etc. Unfortunately, while the older portion of town (west of US 101) does present these resources, this part of town is fully developed and opportunities for additional housing are severely limited at best, or non-existent. In addition, a portion of seniors are low income further restricting their ability to acquire housing in the few instances that it become available. (Pages IV 23-24)
f. Has reached full buildout within the existing City except for a few parcels, An exception to the fully developed status is a 138-acre parcel that is presently being farmed within the City limits, that is being considered for a sizeable housing development of 700- 1,000 units. A formal Specific Plan proposal is expected in the short term. (See Figure 1 Location Map)
While the City has not seen new housing construction in many years, there are several annexation projects also under consideration within the City’s Sphere of Influence that, if approved, will directly affect housing with the provision of affordable and market rate units. • The Vista Lucia and Puente del Monte Specific Plan proposals combined will result in the development of approximately 6,200 residential units (apartments, SFDs on various sized lots, duplexes, triplexes, etc.) as well as providing the appurtenant public infrastructure which would include roads, drainage, schools, and parks on the combined land area of 1,318 acres. Such developments would occur in multiple phases and construction development may be for a period of 20 to 30 years. • The Vista Lucia project will result in 3,500 residential units, and the Puente del Monte project will result in approximately 2,600 units.
• The LAFCo consideration of the Vista Lucia annexation application is anticipated in the first quarter of 2023.
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III. Background
The City of Gonzales expects a 6
th Cycle Regional Housing Needs Assessment assignment
(RHNA) from the Association of Monterey Bay Area Governments (AMBAG) of approximately 1,266 units compared to 293 units in the last 8-year RHNA Cycle (5), representing more than a four-fold increase from the last planning cycle.
The City of Gonzales’s older 5th cycle housing element was certified by the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) and is available on the City of Gonzales Community Development Department website. The City has also completed Annual Progress Reports and implemented other housing priorities, including adoption of an ADU Ordinance.
To ensure an adequate inventory of viable sites, City staff anticipates the 6th Cycle Housing Element Update may necessitate rezoning in targeted areas, while also taking some existing opportunity sites through the re-use criteria and process.
While a number of important housing issues will need to be considered and addressed through the update process, the most significant work effort is expected to be identifying how the City of Gonzales can meet the assigned RHNA based on an updated housing opportunity site inventory.
To achieve this, City staff anticipates pursuing the following approaches:
• Conducting background research and drafting the City’s Housing Needs Assessment and to ensure this Housing Element Update is affirmatively furthering fair housing, as required by the State and requirements under AB 686.
• Assessing the City of Gonzales’s existing housing opportunity sites to determine their appropriateness under the mandates and restrictions required for the next housing element cycle, including identifying certain desirable properties for potential to comply with the State’s requirements for “re-use” of these sites.
Total RHNA – 6
th Cycle (2023-2031). 1,266 (under Appeal)
Very-Low Income (< 50% of AMI) 173
Low Income (50-80% of AMI) 115
Moderate Income (80-120% of AMI) 321
Above Moderate Income (>120% of AMI) 657
Total RHNA – Older 5
th Cycle (2014-2023) 293
Very-Low Income (< 50% of AMI) 71
Low Income (50-80% of AMI) 46
Moderate Income (80-120% of AMI) 53
Above Moderate Income (>120% of AMI) 123
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• Identifying potential new housing opportunity sites and whether it is necessary to re-zone individual properties to meet the 6th cycle mandates and the City’s RHNA. • Conducting public outreach and engagement on the potential land use changes for these parcels to identify and discuss the community concerns regarding the implications of rezoning these potential properties.
• Drafting of the housing element and CEQA documents themselves and presenting these to decision making bodies in keeping with the pre-determined schedule.
The selected consultant will partner with city staff to explore, analyze, and implement these approaches while also facilitating community engagement, working with elected and appointed officials to present recommendations and coordinating with HCD throughout the process to ensure certification of the updated element.
III. Scope of Services
The City of Gonzales is seeking professional consulting services to update the City’s adopted housing element in a manner consistent with current State law, ensuring certification of the final element by HCD by January 2023.
Proposals must address the following tasks, providing a description and timeline of how they would be accomplished. Additional or optional tasks may be included and creative approaches are welcome. The final scope of work will be subject to refinement and mutual agreement following the project’s launch and further discussion.
TASK 1: PROJECT KICKOFF
The consulting team will schedule a kickoff meeting with City staff to discuss and refine the scope of services and schedule. The schedule will address all major stages of the project, including:
• Identification of milestones, meetings and workshops, and deliverables. • Public outreach approach, including timing of workshops, meetings, and hearings. • Delivery of findings and analysis during development of the housing needs data. • City staff review periods for each deliverable.
• Opportunities to facilitate HCD review.
• Response to HCD review; and
• Planning Commission and City Council hearings.
Deliverable: Project Schedule.
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TASK 2: PROJECT MANAGEMENT
This task covers communication and coordination between the consultant and jurisdiction staff, including meetings, phone conferences, email exchanges, and other communications to ensure timely delivery and adoption of the City’s updated housing element. Proposals should identify how the consultant team will facilitate regular communication with City staff; methods to ensure the project remains on schedule and within budget; and strategies for quickly resolving issues that arise. Practices to ensure clear and timely communication and effective project coordination should be described. Experience with ensuring successful coordination with HCD over the course of the project should also be included, as appropriate.
Deliverable: Monthly email updates listing accomplishments, pending action items and needs from City staff.
TASK 3: COMMUNITY OUTREACH AND ENGAGEMENT
Consultants shall develop a program to effectively reach, educate and engage the community and key stakeholders throughout each phase of the Housing Element update process, considering the unique challenges of COVID-19 and a Spanish speaking population. The City of Gonzales already has a well-established network of community contacts and outreach that should be drawn upon. • https://gonzalesca.gov/engaged-community
• https://gonzalesca.gov/sites/default/files/2021-
08/Gonzales%20Chartbook%20Health%20Well-being%207.1.21.pdf This program should include strategies to ensure inclusion of hard to reach and special needs populations, with special attention given to communicating information so it is accessible and easy to understand. This program should also include strategies for engaging key stakeholder groups (e.g., real estate interests, housing providers, developers). Outreach is expected to begin early in the process and continue throughout, to gain feedback on draft policy ideas, housing opportunity site options and the draft Housing Element and environmental review documents themselves.
Consultant should anticipate leading the engagement effort as well as drafting summaries of the input.
At a minimum, outreach should consist of:
• Initial presentation to the City Council.
• Two community meetings.
• Two stakeholder focus groups.
• Online/virtual participation opportunities.
• Planning Commission Study Session.
• City Council Study Session; and
• Public Hearings with the Planning Commission and City Council for review and adoption. 9 | P a g e
Deliverable: Community Outreach and Engagement Plan including:
• Draft and final presentations for each meeting.
• Electronic summaries of all input and feedback received; and • Draft and Final Reports presenting the Housing Element and CEQA analysis.
TASK 4 HOUSING ELEMENT
Task 4.1 Administrative Draft Housing Element
Preparation of the Administrative Draft Housing Element will include the following sections.
Introduction
The Housing Element will include an introductory chapter that provides an overview of the Housing Element update process; housing issues facing the City; the City’s housing needs; available sites and Resources; and the goals of the Housing Element.
Effectiveness of Current Housing Element
This section will include review and evaluation of the current Housing Element, General Plan, annual progress reports, and other supporting materials and will review the City's implementation of the current Housing Element, including progress made on the goals, policies, and programs in the current Housing Element, and the City's progress toward the 5th cycle RHNA.
The consultant will formulate 6th Cycle Housing Element policies based on the effectiveness of the existing policies, input from public, communication with City staff and officials as well as changes in State law. This section will include a narrative that discusses: (1) actual results of the current Element compared to its goals, policies, and implementation measures; (2) significant differences between objectives and actual achievements; and (3) recommended revisions to the current Housing Element goals, policies, and programs to achieve success.
Assessment of Housing Needs
This section will assess the housing needs of the City’s population based on its demographic characteristics and its existing housing inventory. The needs assessment will meet the requirements of GC Section 65583(a)(1,2,7) and will be based on recent available data, including the Association of Monterey Bay Area Governments Housing Element tools and data, US Census (2020 data if available, and 2019/2020 American Community Survey data), California Department of Finance estimates, Employment Development Department data, Department of Developmental Services data, and Point in Time reports.
This work effort will address the following:
• Population, household, and employment characteristics and trends. • Income characteristics.
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• Special needs groups.
• Housing stock characteristics and housing conditions. • Comparison of affordability of housing to City income levels. • Affordable housing projects at-risk of conversion to market-rate; and • Quantified housing needs, including the City's regional housing needs allocation and existing and projected needs for each special needs group.
Fair Housing Assessment
This is a new requirement since the City's adoption of the 5th Cycle element. The Fair Housing Assessment will meet the mandated requirements and standards set by the HUD Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing (AFFH) Rule and AB 686 including:
• A summary of fair housing issues in the City of Gonzales and an assessment of the City's fair housing enforcement and fair housing outreach capacity; and • An analysis of available federal, state, and local data and knowledge to identify integration and segregation patterns and trends, racially or ethnically concentrated areas of poverty, disparities in access to opportunity, and disproportionate housing needs within the City of Gonzales, including displacement risk, and discussion of factors that contribute to these fair housing issues.
Inventory of Housing Sites and Resources
The Housing Element will identify available resources, including land, funding, and housing programs, available to assist in addressing the City’s housing needs. The consultant will review the City's existing inventory under updated requirements of State law to include specific requirements for lower income sites, addressing underutilized sites, use of mixed-use sites, demonstrating realistic capacity and meeting new requirements for the re-use of existing housing opportunity sites deemed beneficial by the City. If a shortfall of adequate sites is projected, the Housing Plan will include a program to ensure that adequate sites are rezoned in a timely manner to accommodate the City's needs in compliance with State law. This section will include the following required topics:
• Inventory of sites suitable for residential development. • City's capacity to accommodate its Regional Housing Needs Allocation • Process to re-use existing desirable housing opportunity sites • Financial and other resources available to support residential development; and • Opportunities to enhance for residential energy conservation and reduce green-house gas impacts associated with residential land uses.
Housing Constraints
Constraints to the maintenance, improvement, or development of housing to meet the City's housing needs will be identified. This chapter will address governmental constraints (land use controls, parking standards, etc.) and non-governmental constraints (environmental; market demand; availability of land, labor, and materials; availability of financing, etc.). 11 | P a g e
The consultant will carefully review the City's General Plan policies and standards, zoning requirements, and processes to identify potential constraints to housing development, including housing for lower income households and special needs groups. The consultant will review the City's processes to identify if modifications need to be made to address recent changes to State law, including recent laws related to accessory dwelling unit standards, low barrier navigation centers, supportive housing by right, and SB 35 streamlining requirements. The consultant will develop programs to reduce constraints, where appropriate and feasible.
An exploration of flexible or non-traditional financing and construction models which may provide options to help spur residential development will be welcomed in a consultant response to this RFP.
Housing Element Policy/Implementation Plan
The consultant will present goals, objectives, policies, and implementation measures to address identified housing needs and constraints, consistent with the requirements of GC Section 65583(b, c). This will carry forward successful goals, policies, and measures identified in the adopted 5th Cycle Housing Element and will provide focused updates where necessary to address the requirements of State law. The implementation plan will identify housing policies and programs, based on public and stakeholder input, City guidance, and the needs identified in the ‘needs and constraints’ analysis. The consultant will meet with City staff to discuss the proposed revisions to the City’s existing goals, policies, and programs, and will also present for discussion additional policies and strategies that fit the unique needs and character of the City of Gonzales.
Implementation measures will address both short-term and long-range strategies and may include development controls, regulatory incentives, constraint-removal programs, fair housing programs, and sources of affordable housing funding. The implementation measures will identify parties responsible for implementation, a timeframe for implementation, and funding sources. Where appropriate, phasing and financing options should be identified. Implementation measures must reflect recent legislation and will address the following issues at a minimum:
• Conserve and Improve Existing Housing Stock.
• Promote Housing Opportunities for All Persons in the City, including provision of adequate sites to accommodate the Regional Housing Needs Allocation, development of housing to meet the needs of lower- and moderate-income households. • Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing.
• Address Housing Needs of Special Needs Populations.
• Preserve Affordable Housing.
• Regional Housing Needs Determination and Quantified Objectives • General Plan and Zoning Consistency; and
• Removal of Constraints (where appropriate and feasible.) The Housing Plan will identify any necessary amendments to the General Plan; Zoning Code; design guidelines; and other adopted local documents to achieve compliance with State law. The consultant will review proposed policies and implementation measures for internal consistency 12 | P a g e
with all elements of the City’s General Plan and, if necessary, identify amendments to other General Plan elements to create consistency with the updated Housing Element.
Task 4.2 Rezoning
Based on the site analyses, work with City staff to identify potential areas for rezoning, if necessary. This must include consideration of the State requirements for maintaining an adequate housing sites inventory throughout the eight-year planning period.
Task 4.3 Draft Housing Element
Following the City's review of the Administrative Draft, the consultant will incorporate the City's comments on the Administrative Draft Housing Element and create a Draft Housing Element for public review and the statutory 60-day HCD review period. Prior to release of the Draft Housing Element, City staff will be provided a screen check draft for review to ensure all comments have been addressed. The consultant will then submit the Draft Housing Element to HCD for the 60- day State review period.
Task 4.4 Adoption Draft Housing Element
During the 60-day State review period, the consultant shall coordinate with HCD for the State's review of the Preliminary Housing Element. While no other State agencies are required to review the Housing Element Update, the consultant will coordinate with additional State agencies if necessary. The consultant will coordinate closely with HCD to receive a letter indicating that the updated Housing Element complies with State law. Upon receipt of HCD’s comments, if there are any remaining issues identified by the State, the consultant shall prepare proposed revisions and provide them to City staff for review. Throughout this task, the consultant shall be available for (in-person or zoom) meetings with HCD staff and with City staff, as necessary and appropriate in keeping with current COVID-19 protocols.
Following the close of the public and HCD review period, the consultant will revise the Draft Housing Element to address HCD's comments as well as any feedback provided by the community and decision-makers as part of the Community Open House and the workshop with decisionmakers. Prior to release of the Adoption Draft Housing Element, City staff will be provided a screen check draft for review to ensure all comments have been addressed.
Task 4.5 Final Housing Element (Adopted)
Following City Council adoption, the consultant will revise the Housing Element to include any revisions directed by the Council. The consultant will update the cover page of the City's General Plan to reflect the adoption date of the Housing Element. This task includes the preparation of a transmittal memo for submission of the Final Housing Element and adopting resolution to HCD for review for certification. The consultant will provide any supporting information requested by HCD during its review.
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Deliverables:
• One (1) electronic copy in Word and PDF of the Administrative Draft Housing Element, Screen check Draft Housing Element, Screen check Adoption Draft Housing Element for City staff review.
• One (1) reproducible copy and one (1) electronic copy of the Draft Housing Element for the City and one (1) bound copy and one (1) electronic copy for HCD of the Draft Housing Element.
• Ten (10) bound copies, one (1) reproducible copy and one (1) electronic copy of the Adoption Draft Housing Element for review by the public, Planning Commission (5), and City Council(5); and
• One (1) electronic copy of the Final Housing Element and one (1) bound copy and one electronic copy for submission to HCD.
TASK 5 CEQA COMPLIANCE STRATEGY
The consultant will prepare documentation to satisfy the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). This task also includes consultation with Native American tribes through the SB 18 and AB 52 notification and consultation processes. The City will lead the consultation process with the assistance of consultant.
IV. Other Requirements
Minimum Qualifications of Personnel - The Consultant shall meet the appropriate minimum qualifications as required by applicable City and State statues to perform the duties and tasks listed herein.
Materials to be provided by the Agency - The Consultant shall provide all materials to complete the required work in accordance with the delivery schedule proposed by the Consultant and the cost estimate outlined in the contract. Materials (if deemed applicable, necessary, and when available from the City) that may be furnished or made available by the City and where listed in the contract, are for the Consultant’s use only, shall be returned at the end of the contract.
Conflict of Interest Requirements - The Consultant shall identify any potential conflicts of interest and provide mitigation efforts, if any, to eliminate or avoid any actual or perceived conflicts of interest.
If a Consultant discovers a conflict during the execution of the contract, the Consultant must immediately notify the City of Gonzales regarding the conflicts of interest. The City may terminate the contract involving the conflict of interest, and failure by the Consultant to notify the City may also be grounds for termination of the contract.
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General Information
• All information in the proposal should be organized and presented in a clear and concise format. Accuracy and completeness are essential. The successful response may be incorporated into a contract as an exhibit.
• The City reserves the right to reject any and/or all proposals, to waive any informality or minor defects in the proposals received, and to request or negotiate modifications to a proposal, if it is in the City’s interest to do so.
• Proposals that offer no response or a response “to be determined” to any item may be deemed “non-responsive” and rejected.
• The City is not liable for any costs incurred by Consultant in preparing proposals in response to this RFP.
• All deliverables will become the property of the City of Gonzales. • The successful Consultant must be an Equal Opportunity Employer.
Proposal Content and Format Requirements
Proposals shall be provided on 8.5” x 11” paper format and should be considerate of the document size being submitted as not being overly thick. (No hard page limit given here, but concise packages are appreciated.) Packages must include, but are not limited to, the following:
1. Statement of Qualifications:
a. Provide a clear and concise response as to why the City of Gonzales should select your firm for this work.
b. Provide a brief description of similar housing element update projects successfully completed by the Consultant in the past three to five years and the results of that work. Include the name and telephone number of a contact person for each client who can verify the information provided.
c. Describe your firm’s experience with designing and utilizing a public participation process to conduct a housing element update.
2. Consultant and Sub-Consultant Personnel Experience:
a. Name and contact information of project manager. Provide resume and experience record of project manager. Identify the housing element update projects from the Statement of Qualifications that the project manager has worked on and describe their role with the project(s).
b. Flow chart of team personnel who will be assigned to perform substantial amounts of work on this project, and the role of each.
c. Provide a resume and experience record for each person, including years of experience, education, and anticipated amount of time each will work on this project, and the location of each person.
d. Names and addresses of any outside consultants or associates proposed to be involved with this project.
e. Include each proposed sub-consultant’s experience and qualifications as described above for the Consultant’s personnel experience.
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3. Budget Proposal:
a. Itemized costs for the elements listed in Scope of Services. b. Hourly rates of team members.
c. Costs for travel, meals, and lodging (for consultants traveling from outside the San Francisco Bay Area).
d. If additional items beyond those outlined in this RFP are incorporated in the proposal, the estimated budget shall list those items separately with a full explanation of why the items are necessary.
e. Provide a fee schedule for supplemental charges that may be charged for additional unforeseen or optional work tasks, if such services should be required through a future contract addendum, such as: fees for conducting additional public meetings, additional meetings with City staff, additional stakeholder/community meetings, and additional iterations of design samples, etc.
Key Dates
Activity Date
RFP Issued July 1, 2022
A Preproposal Meeting July 12, 2022 @ 10:30 am (Via Zoom) Deadline for submitting questions July 15, 2022
Deadline for submitting proposals July 25, 2022 by 5 p.m.
Interviews (City option to convene, or not) August 8, 2022 Anticipated award date August 15, 2022 (City Council 6:00 pm) Proposed start date / Kick-off Meeting August 24, 2022
V. Evaluations and Selection Process
Evaluation
Initial Evaluation
Proposals received will undergo an initial review to determine compliance with the proposal submittal deadline and proposal contents.
Evaluation Criteria
Proposals that satisfy the initial evaluation will be further evaluated based on the following criteria:
A. Project Management
a. Demonstrable success delivering similar projects within scope, according to schedule, and within budget
b. Firm and personnel qualifications
c. References of project manager, lead designer, and other key team members d. Location as it relates to provision of services
B. Experience
a. Experience conducting housing element updates
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b. Strong understanding of the requirements to obtain HCD housing element certification
c. Experience receiving community input at public meetings and incorporating the input into housing element update and other policy documents C. Execution of Scope of Work
a. Understanding of the scope of work to be performed
b. Response to project goals and scope of work
c. Deliverables, methods, and procedures
d. Budget and completion schedule
Selection Process
A committee comprised of City staff will review all submitted proposals. The City reserves the right to award the contract solely upon the Consultant’s submitted proposal and reserves the right to request oral interviews with selected firms to allow for clarification and expansion upon the written responses. If interviews are conducted, a maximum of three (3) firms will be selected for interviews. Selected firms will be notified by the City of the date, time, and place for their interviews and any other pertinent information. The project manager and key staff must present at the interview. Virtual meetings by computer may be called for.
Shortly after the last interview, the committee will rank the firms based on the Evaluation Criteria, fee, and performance at the interview. City staff will then attempt to negotiate an agreement with the top-ranked firm. If no agreement can be reached with the top-ranked firm, that firm will be dismissed, and staff will proceed with discussions with the second-ranked firm. This process may be repeated until an agreement can be negotiated that is satisfactory to both parties.
Price
In the event two or more responses are technically equivalent, the award may be made to the lowerpriced proposal. The award may also be made to a higher-priced proposal if the City determines the higher price is justified due to technical merit.
Contract Implementation
Upon award notification and prior to final contract approval, the successful Consultant will be required to submit:
• Proof of insurance, as specified in the attached Consultant Services Agreement • A completed W9 form and, if applicable, non-resident withholding exemption form, if not already on file with the City; and
• Proof of a current City of Gonzales business license.
Period of Performance
At the next available meeting date following contract negotiations, the agreement will be presented to the City Council for approval. (August 15, 2022, target). If approved, performance will begin immediately following execution of contract agreement and will run through the completion of contract scope.
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VI. Submission Instructions
A digital copy of the proposal must be received by the City of Gonzales no later than 5:00 p.m.
PST on Monday, July 25, 2022. The digital submittal shall be emailed to Taven M. Kinison Brown [email protected] with the RFP name and Consultant name clearly shown in the email title. Late proposals will not be considered. Respondents take full responsibility for the City’s receipt of the proposal. The City is not responsible for emails not received. All proposals and attached documents become the property of the City of Gonzales.
Proposals should be submitted to:
The City of Gonzales Community Development Department
Attn: Taven M. Kinison Brown [email protected] Questions or concerns regarding any aspect of this RFP shall be forwarded via e-mail to Taven M.
Kinison Brown [email protected] so that they can be addressed in writing prior to the deadline for proposals. Questions and answers will be shared by the Community Development director in an email that will include all interested parties. E-mail notifications and City responses are provided as a convenience only. It is the responsibility of the Consultant to complete a full and informed response to this RFP.
BACKGROUND DOCUMENTS
City of Gonzales:
The following documents provide both general and site-specific information that should be reviewed when preparing proposals:
• City of Gonzales 2010 General Plan (Revised June 2018) o https://gonzalesca.gov/government/information-center/general-plan • Zoning Map
Chromeextension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://gonzalesca.gov/sites/default/files/2 019-03/Gonzales%20Zoning%20Map%20Diagram_1.pdf
• Zoning Code
o https://www.codepublishing.com/CA/Gonzales/#!/Gonzales12/Gonzales12.html
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment A – Consultant Services Agreement Template