Please visit the City of Carson website to review the complete RFP: http://ci.carson.ca.us/department/finance/bidding.asp.

The City of Carson (“City”) Planning Division is requesting professional on-call planning service proposals from a qualified firm or team of consultants to augment professional city planning services for the Community Development Department, Planning Division. The City requests written responses to a Request for Proposal (RFP) for selection of on-call or as-needed planning services associated with one or more proposed projects, including but not limited to, general planning-related development and land use project review, site visits, public counter services, technical plan check for planning documents and plans, map review, conformance with Federal, State and local regulations, particularly the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and general compliance with City Standards, Ordinances, and Regulations.

To control costs and provide a high level of professional services to all City departments and the community, the City believes the interests of the community can be best served by using a private firm for additional City Planning services. It is expected that such a firm would be able to contract available resources in response to work flow demands. Work space will be provided at City Hall for the Contract Planner.

The selected consultant is expected to be contracted for one year with an option of an automatic one-year extension based on workload needs.

2. PURPOSE

The City is seeking a Planning Consultant (“Consultant”) that will work on-site at City Hall according to the division’s staffing needs. Under the direction of the City’s Planning Manager, the Consultant will provide the range of expertise necessary to carry out the normal functions of a professional planner. All services provided by the Consultant shall be performed by individuals who meet the qualifications, education, and certifications/licensing requirements for the professional Planning levels of Assistant to Senior Planner.

The City will, based on qualifications presented in the response to this RFP, select the firm(s) best able to provide planning services for upcoming private and City initiated projects. The successful firm shall also have the resources to provide cost effective and timely services to the City. Additionally, the City has an option to interview the selected firm’s candidate who will provide On-Call Planning services.

3. SCOPE OF SERVICES

In general, the successful individual or firm will be expected to provide on-call planning services for all types of projects requesting entitlements, including but not limited to new residential, commercial, and industrial buildings.

The on-call planning services that a successful applicant would provide include, but are not limited to the ability to perform the following:

A. When required, be present at City Hall and hold regular office hours as agreed upon by staff and Consultant.

B. Develops and maintains good working relationships with other city departments, other jurisdictions, and the public.

C. Analyze projects for compliance with the City’s General Plan, zoning ordinance, Subdivision Map Act, Design Guidelines, applicable specific plans and other policies.

D. Review and process ministerial applications and discretionary entitlements, such as: Plan Checks, Zoning Clearances, Sign Permits, Use permits, Variances, Design Review, Tentative Maps, and General Plan and Zoning amendments.

E. Compiles and analyzes data on economic, social, environmental, and physical factors affecting land use.

F. Meets with developers, engineers, property owners, contractors and other individuals to discuss, advice, explain processes and suggest improvements regarding potential projects, pre-applications, development applications, feasibility analysis, conceptual development plans and code interpretation;

G. Ability to write Planning Commission and City Council staff reports, resolutions, ordinances, conditions of approval, and give oral presentations.

H. Attend public hearings and community meetings as necessary.

I. Analyze projects for CEQA compliance.

J. Ability to review projects and provide comments within timelines specified by the Permit Streamlining Act and the City (shorter timelines may be required for certain projects).

K. Provide strong emphasis on the management of multiple projects and competing priorities while maintaining quality, meeting schedules and staying within budget.

L. Answer public inquiries by telephone, mail or in person at a public counter regarding property zoning and/or General Plan land uses, application submittal requirements, etc.

M. Facilitation of special projects.

4. PROPOSAL REQUIREMENTS

The proposal shall clearly address all of the information requested herein. To achieve a uniform review process and obtain the maximum degree of comparability, proposals must be organized and contain all information as specified below:

A. Cover Letter: Maximum of two pages serving as an executive summary which shall include an understanding of the scope of services.

B. Brief Company Profile. General company information including number of employees, location of company headquarters and branch offices, number of years in business and organization, disciplines, and staffing. Describe the general qualification of the firm as they relate to the work proposed with this RFP.

C. Organization and Staffing. Provide a list of the Consultant’s employees and agents which the consultant anticipates assigning to this project. This list shall include a summary of the qualifications, licenses, and experience of each individual; and the professional Planning level of work to be performed by each individual. The City will retain under its agreement with the successful Consultant the right of approval of all person performing under the agreement.

D. Description and Approach. The proposal should demonstrate the Consultant’s knowledge of the needs and objectives of the work proposed under this RFP.

E. Cost Proposal. The cost proposal shall include the hourly rate for services. Include any sub-consultant’s fee schedule, if applicable. This should include hourly billable costs of each team member; Senior Planner, Associate Planner, etc.

F. Résumé, Relevant Projects/Services with References. Provide résumés of the individual(s) from the Proposer's firm or entity that will be directly responsible for carrying out the contract, three references to include name, address, contact person and phone number of the municipality/company, length of time services were provided, and a description of the services provided.

5. SUBMITTAL

Six (6) color copies and one (1) digital pdf copy of the proposal must be submitted no later than 12:00 noon, Monday, September 26, 2016 to the Office of the City Clerk. Proposals must be titled “RFP On-Call Planning Services Attn: Richard Rojas, Senior Planner, Community Development Department.” All questions regarding this RFP shall be directed in writing to McKina Alexander, Associate Planner, at malexand@carson.ca.us or 310-952-1700 x1326. No postmarks will be accepted.

6. AMENDMENTS TO REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

The City reserves the right to amend the RFP by addendum prior to the final proposal submittal date.

7.  ADDITIONAL CONSULTANT RESPONSIBILITIES

The Consultant shall be responsible for completing the specified services in accordance with the City’s Contract Services Agreement (see attachment).

8. PROPOSAL EVALUATION/SELECTION

The City intends to engage the most qualified consultant available that demonstrates a thorough understanding of the City’s needs. City staff will use the following criteria to evaluate proposals:

• Understanding of Work to be Performed (the Scope of Services): 15 points
• Demonstrated Quality Firm and Professional Staff Technical Skill, Experience, Performance and Approach: 25 points
• Familiarity with City, County, and State Procedures: 20 points
• Firm’s and Professional Staff References/Satisfaction of Clients: 15 points
• Completeness and Quality of Proposal: 15 points
• Cost Approach to performing this type of service: 10 points
• Total: 100 points

The City may request a qualification interview with the highest raked consultant(s) prior to determining the final ranking. This selection will be conducted according to the City’s adopted procedures. The City reserves the right to reject any and all proposals.