DATE:
October 28, 2025
CATEGORY:
Consent
DEPT.:
Community Development
TITLE: Professional Services Agreement for
Outside Building Plan Checking and
Inspection Services
RECOMMENDATION
Authorize the City Manager or designee to execute an amendment to the professional services agreement with Shums Coda Associates, Inc., for building plan checking, inspection, and consultant/professional services to increase the compensation by $1,000,000 for a total not-to- exceed amount of $1,250,000.
BACKGROUND
The Building Division utilizes outside consultants to support building and fire permit plan check, inspection, and professional services for the Community Development Department. Contracting with professional firms enables the Building Division to manage development workload s effectively, maintain customer service response expectations , and meet the technical and regulatory requirements of state-mandated permit review timelines.
In March 2025, the Building Division released a Request for Qualifications for building and fire permit plan checking, inspection, and professional services. Fourteen (14) consultants responded and met the qualifications to be added to the Building Division’s list of prequalified consultants.
The list of prequalified consultants includes:
• 4Leaf, Inc.
• Bureau Veritas North America, Inc.
• BPR Consulting Group LLC
• CSG Consulting Inc.
• Fire & Risk Alliance, LLC
• Independent Code Consultants, Inc.
• Interwest Consulting Group Inc.
• Niemann Technology, Inc. d.b.a. RFSignalman
• Shums Coda Associates, Inc.
• Daryl D. Jones, Inc. d.b.a. Telecommunications Engineering Associates • TRB and Associates
Professional Services Agreement for Outside
Building Plan Checking and Inspection Services
October 28, 2025
• True North Compliance Services, Inc.
• Urban37 Inc
• West Coast Code Consultants, Inc.
For Fiscal Year 2025-26, the Building Division has entered into contracts with eight (8) consultant firms (see bolded names above) in an effort to increase available resources and improve service delivery. As service volumes fluctuate throughout the year and as the Building Division balances new consultant services, City staff may need to return to Council to adjust contract amounts, ensuring timely and compliant permit processing.
At the start of this fiscal year, City staff executed a contract with Shums Coda Associates, Inc. , due to their demonstrated expertise with commercial tenant improvements, mixed -use developments, and multi -family residential developments, which support the City’s current development activity , in an amount of $250,000. The requested amendment in this report reflects staff’s estimate of services anticipated for the remainder of this fiscal year based on current workload demands and compliance with state-mandated permit timelines. The term of the agreement is July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026. Because the contract amount is based on estimated service levels , actual expenditures may vary depending on the level of services required. If service needs are lower than projected, the full contract amount w ill not be expended.
FISCAL IMPACT
Building Division services are funded through the Development Services Fund and are fully cost- recovered through plan check and permit fees paid by permit applicants. The proposed contract amendment increases the total contract amount to $1,250,000.
As part of the Fiscal Year 2025 -26 Annual Budget, the City Council appropriated $ 1,340,000 in discretionary funding and $700,000 in limited -period funding within the Development Services Fund for plan check and inspection contract services. No additional appropriations are required at this time.
LEVINE ACT
California Government Code Section 84308 (also known as the Levine Act) prohibits city officials from participating in any proceeding involving a “license, permit, or other entitlement for use” if the official has received a campaign contribution exceeding $500 from a party, participant, or agent of a party or participant within the last 12 months. The Levine Act is intended to prevent financial influence on decisions that affect specific, identifiable persons or participants. For more information see the Fair Political Practices Commission website:
www.fppc.ca.gov/learn/pay-to-
play-limits-and-prohibitions.html
Professional Services Agreement for Outside
Building Plan Checking and Inspection Services
October 28, 2025
Please see below for information about whether the recommended action for this agenda item is subject to or exempt from the Levine Act.
SUBJECT TO THE LEVINE ACT
☒ Material contract modification or amendment
ALTERNATIVES
1. Reduce the contract amendment amount.
2. Provide additional direction to staff.
PUBLIC NOTICING—Agenda posting.
Prepared by:
Grace Montgomery
Analyst II
Reviewed by:
Christian Murdock
Community Development Director
Approved by:
Audrey Seymour Ramberg
Assistant City Manager