February 15, 2022
Library and Community Services
DATE: February 15, 2022
TO: Mayor Butt and Members of the City Council
FROM:
LaShonda White, Interim Library and Community
Services Director
Subject:
Contract with HR&A Advisors, Inc. to support American
Rescue Plan Act Community Needs Assessment and
Strategic Investment Plan Development
FINANCIAL IMPACT: The City Council approved $250,000 for this work as part of the FY 2021-2022 ARPA allocation (13654051 400201
AR236). This project will carry into FY 2022-2023 and
therefore, staff plans to budget any unexpended funds
from FY 2021-2022 for this project to the FY 2022-2023
budget.
PREVIOUS COUNCIL
ACTION:
May 18, 2021, June 23, 3021, June 29, 2021
STATEMENT OF THE
ISSUE:
A community needs assessment and Strategic
Investment Plan will help City Council determine how to spend the City’s remaining American Rescue Plan Act
(ARPA) allocation on behalf of the Richmond community.
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
APPROVE a contract with HR&A Advisors, Inc. to
conduct a community needs assessment and develop
and implement a strategic investment plan to provide
guidance on spending the City’s remaining American
Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) allocation, for a total amount
not to exceed $250,000, with a term from February 16,
2022, to June 30, 2023 – Library and Community
Services (LaShonda White 510-620-6512).
AGENDA
REPORT
February 15, 2022
DISCUSSION:
As part of the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) relief package, the City of Richmond’s allocation is currently set at $27.7 million. As part of the Fiscal Year (FY) 2021-2022 budget, the Richmond City Council approved an allocation of $10.55 million in ARPA funds for various projects, including funding to conduct a Community Needs Assessment (CNA) and develop a Strategic Investment Plan (SIP) for informing City Council’s decision for how to allocate the remaining $17.15 million in ARPA funds. All funds must be obligated by the end of 2024 and spent by the end of 2026.
There are significant requirements, guidance, and limitations on uses of ARPA funds.
Richmond has discretion to use the award funds in ways that best suit the needs of our community, as long as each use fits into one of the following statutory categories and aligns with ARPA regulations:
To respond to the COVID-19 public health emergency or its negative economic impacts;
To respond to workers performing essential work during the COVID-19 public health emergency by providing premium pay to such eligible workers of the recipient, or by providing grants to eligible employers that have eligible workers who performed essential work;
For the provision of government services, to the extent of the reduction in revenue of such recipient due to the COVID–19 public health emergency, relative to revenues collected in the most recent full fiscal year of the recipient prior to the emergency; and
To make necessary investments in water, sewer, or broadband infrastructure.
Additional information regarding ARPA can be found at:
http://www.ci.richmond.ca.us/4095/American-Rescue-Plan-Act.
Request for Proposals (RFP) Process and Review
The RFP was released on October 22, 2021, with a submittal deadline of November 16, 2021 (Attachment 1). The RFP was posted on the City’s BidsOnline system for competitive bidding, in which 1,387 vendors were notified (Attachment 2). The City sought proposals from highly qualified firms to:
(1) Conduct comprehensive Community Engagement and develop a Community Needs Assessment (CNA) that will evaluate current assets and determine community needs/gaps in services or programs that can benefit the Richmond community through the use of ARPA funds. The CNA must incorporate a robust community engagement process and use effective engagement techniques that will reach Richmond’s diverse populations, and
(2) Develop a Strategic Investment Plan (Plan) that includes a proposed decision-making structure and metrics and is based on the results from the CNA
February 15, 2022
report, ARPA eligible uses, use of an equity framework, and ability to leverage internal and external funds. This Plan will include strategic funding recommendations that are in alignment with ARPA regulations.
Four (4) proposals were received by the deadline, with three (3) deemed as responsive.
The review committee, consisting of City staff from Internal Services, Community Services, Department of Children and Youth, and Community Development, reviewed and scored the responsive proposals utilizing the criteria outlined in the RFP (Attachment 3). Based on total scores, staff recommends entering into a contract with HR&A to conduct a community needs assessment and development of a strategic investment plan (Attachment 4). HR&A was selected because they have an experienced team, the proposal aligned with the RFP requirements, staff have performed similar work in similar communities, they have successfully worked with and have an understanding of the Richmond community, and the reviewers felt that their proposal best met the needs of the community. The proposed contract includes the scope of work, preliminary timeline, and budget.
Cost and Timeline
The contract is for $220,485, with a 10 percent project contingency ($22,000) and $3,000 for translation and graphic design expenses (billed at cost), for a total not to exceed amount of $245,485. The community engagement process will begin in March 2022, with plans for updates to City Council throughout the process.
DOCUMENTS ATTACHED:
Attachment 1 - ARPA CNA Request for Proposals
Attachment 2 - Bid Package
Attachment 3 - Scoring Matrix
Attachment 4 - HR&A Contract