City Council Memorandum
TO: HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL DATE: MAY 13, 2025 FROM: HUMAN RESOURCES DEPARTMENT WARDS: ALL
SUBJECT: APPROVAL OF A PROFESSIONAL CONSULTANT SERVICES AGREEMENT WITH ROCK GATE CAPITAL LLC., OF CHICAGO. ILLINOIS, TO PROVIDE COMMERCIAL DRIVER’S ENTRY-LEVEL DRIVER TRAINING SERVICES FOR AN ANNUAL AMOUNT OF $100,000 PER YEAR FOR A THREE (3) YEAR PERIOD ENDING JUNE 30, 2028 TOTALING $300,000, WITH AN OPTION TO EXTEND FOR TWO ADDITIONAL ONE (1) YEAR TERMS THROUGH JUNE 30, 2030, FOR AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED $100,000 ANNUALLY AND A TOTAL CONTRACT AMOUNT OF $500,000 IF OPTIONS ARE EXERCISED ISSUE:
Approve a Professional Consultant Services Agreement with Rock Gate Capital LLC, of Chicago, Illinois, to provide City employee’s Commercial Driver’s Entry-Level Driver Training Services in the amount of $100,000 annually for a three year period ending June 30, 2028 totaling $300,000, with an option to extend for two additional one (1) year Terms through June 30, 2030 annually, for an amount not to exceed $100,000 annually and a total contract amount of $500,000 if the options are exercised.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
That the City Council:
Approve a Professional Consultant Services Agreement with Rock Gate Capital LLC., of Chicago, Illinois, to provide Employee Commercial Driver’s Entry-Level Driver Training Services for a three-year term through June 30, 2028 totaling $300,000, with the option for two one-year extensions, in an amount not-to-exceed $100,000 annually, for a total contract amount of $500,000 if options are exercised; and
2. Authorize the City Manager, or his designee, to execute the Professional Consultant Services Agreement with Rock Gate Capital LLC., including making minor and non- substantive changes and also execute future contract extensions as provided for in the Agreement.
BACKGROUND:
The Human Resources Department coordinates the City’s compliance with U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) requirements for supervisors and employees affected by Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and Federal Transit Administration (FTA) guidelines. The City has approximately 400 employees who are in designated “safety sensitive” classifications. There are also positions that require an employee to obtain a Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) in order to advance in their respective field. Federal regulations require these employees to enroll in a Commercial Driver’s License Training Program. Entry-Level Driver Training is part of regulatory requirements issued by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and must be completed before being permitted to take Commercial Driver’s License skills or knowledge tests. The City will be utilizing a third-party Driving Academy to provide these Services. This program may be audited by the Department of Transportation and the California Highway Patrol to ensure compliance.
DISCUSSION:
The City’s Purchasing Division released RFP 2428 on the City’s online bidding system, Planet Bids on November 18, 2024, seeking prospective companies to provide As-Needed Entry-Level Driver Training to City employees applying to obtain a Class A or Class B CDL for the first time; upgrading an existing Class B CDL to a Class A; or obtaining a school bus (s), passenger (p), or hazardous materials (h) endorsement for the first time. The RFP received attention from 9 prospective bidders. Please see the Notification Summary Table below:
RFP 2428 Solicitation Notification Summary Table
Action
No. of Vendors
Vendors Notified
441
Vendors Who Downloaded the RFP (includes manufactures and sub-contractors) 9 Questions and Answers Received
0 Addenda Submitted
0 Proposals Received
1 On December 18, 2024, RFP 2428 closed with a total of one (1) proposal. The screening and selection committee was comprised of representatives from Human Resources, Public Works, and Public Utilities Departments. The proposal was evaluated by a total of 4 City Employees and scored based on qualifications, experience, approach and methodology, and pricing. After careful evaluation of the proposals and evaluators scores, the Purchasing Staff recommended awarding Rock Gate Capital LLC as the best suited company to provide Commercial Driver Training Services to the City of Riverside based on qualifications and best value. The Evaluation Results are summarized below:
Evaluation Results Table
Selection Criteria
Max Score
Rock Gate Capital LLC
Qualifications
200
175
Approach and Methodology
150
138.75
Professional References
150
131.25
Experience
200
170
Cost
300
300
Total Score
1,000
915
Rank
1 Purchasing Resolution 24101, Section 508 states, “Contract procured through Formal Procurement shall be awarded by the Awarding Entity to the Lowest Responsive and Responsible Bidder, except that…(c) Contracts procured through Formal Procurement for Services or Professional Services, where a Request for Proposals or Request for Qualifications was used to solicit Bids, shall be awarded by the Awarding Entity in accordance with the evaluation criteria set forth in the Request for Proposals or Request for Qualifications…” The Purchasing Manager concurs that the recommended actions are in compliance with Purchasing Resolution No. 24101, Section 508.
STRATEGIC PLAN ALIGNMENT:
This item contributes to Strategic Priority No. 5 High Performing Government and Goal No. 5.5, Foster a culture of safety, well-being, resilience, sustainability, diversity, and inclusion across the City organization.
This item aligns with EACH of the five Cross-Cutting Threads as follows:
1. Community Trust – Ensuring City employees are provided services with extensive commercial driver’s training, which will reduce accidents on the road. This is important in continuing to build the community’s trust.
2. Equity – The commercial driver’s training program reflects the City’s vision in fostering a culture of safety, well-being, and sustainability for all employees in the workplace.
3. Fiscal Responsibility – Organizations with employees advancing into commercial driver positions are required by law to implement an authorized commercial driver’s training program. A detailed RFP process was conducted to select the most efficient vendor to provide services at a reasonable cost.
4. Innovation – The selected commercial driver academy vendor provides an innovative approach to provide training support for the City’s current and changing needs while ensuring compliance with Department of Transportation regulations.
5. Sustainability & Resiliency – To ensure well-being, safety, resiliency and sustainability in the workforce, it is important to have an effective commercial driver’s training program, to ensure employees are trained properly and in accordance with DOT regulations.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The fiscal impact of this action is $100,000 per year for a total of $300,000 over the three-year term of the agreement. The cost of the program will be billed to each respective department’s budget, based on usage of the program on an as-needed basis, per their available budget.
Appropriations for future fiscal years will be included in the Human Resources Department’s Budget submissions for those fiscal years to be presented to City Council for approval.
Prepared by: Rene Goldman, Human Resources Director
Certified as to
availability of funds: Kristie Thomas, Finance Director/Assistant Chief Financial Officer Approved by: Edward Enriques, Assistant City Manager/Chief Financial Officer Approved as to: Rebecca McKee-Reimbold, Interim City Attorney Attachment: Professional Consultant Services Agreement with Rock Gate Capital LLC.
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