OVERVIEW

The City of Carbondale is seeking proposals from qualified real estate broker/firms to sell real property owned by the City of Carbondale at 800 East Main Street & 150 N. Oakland Street in Carbondale, Illinois. The City of Carbondale desires to sell certain real property for commercial development purposes. Any future development must create jobs, increase the City tax base, and must be fully taxable in nature.

It is the intent of this Request for Proposals (RFP) to have the successful broker/firm enter into a Professional Services Contract with the City of Carbondale (City) to supply real estate services as outlined herein.

PROPERTY

Site #1 is located at 800 East Main Street, Carbondale, Illinois. A former hotel site, this property is located on a primary commercial corridor, surrounded by commercial development, zoned SB- Secondary Business, and composed of two separate parcels (Parcel ID Numbers 15-22-104-002 and 15-22-104-005) containing a total of 7.71 +/- acres. The topography is somewhat level, located at street grade and drainage is adequate. The site is adjacent to city sewer and water and is located in the Jackson County Enterprise Zone.

Site #2 is located at 150 N. Oakland Street, Carbondale, Illinois and is the former Bleyer Field property of Carbondale Community High School. This property is zoned R-1-8- Low Density Residential and is a single parcel (Parcel ID Number 15-20-232-059) containing a total of 10.4 +/- acres. The topography is somewhat level, located at street grade and drainage is adequate. The site is adjacent to city sewer and water and is located in the Jackson County Enterprise Zone.

PROPOSAL

The following information MUST accompany your proposal:

The Broker shall abide by all State of Illinois standards and practices required of a professional real estate broker at all times. Broker shall perform activities expected from a qualified broker in the industry to sell, develop or lease properties. Please provide a cover letter indicating your interest in serving as the City’s real estate agent/firm to sell land described above. Back up information should be provided to include the following:

1. List number of years in business with a description of your firm including size of firm in annual sales volume, location, number and nature of the professional staff to be assigned to this project, with a brief resume for each key person listed.
2. Describe experience (minimum five years previous experience with proven effectiveness) your firm or organization has in pertinent real estate practice.
3. Describe the methods of identifying target user groups and a description of the marketing materials and the strategy for presenting the site to a national and/or global marketplace.
4. Describe any additional services offered through your firm.
5. Fee schedule:
   1. State your commission rate for listing and selling of properties.
   2. State any other costs the City may anticipate relating to the real estate services to be provided.
   3. The quoted fees shall be valid for a minimum of 90 days.
6. References: Provide a list of three applicable references. Include name, title and contact information for each reference as well as a brief description of the specific services provided.

GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS

1. The proposal may be submitted electronically to Steven Mitchell at steven.mitchell@explorecarbondale.com with "Real Estate Broker Services" in the subject line. Hardcopies of the proposal may be submitted in a sealed envelope clearly marked "Real Estate Broker Services" and delivered to the City of Carbondale Economic Development Office, 200 South Illinois Avenue, Carbondale, Illinois 62901. All proposals must be received on or before 4:00 PM, Friday, January 19, 2018.
2. To be considered, firms must submit a complete response to the RFP in the form requested
3. The City of Carbondale reserves the right to reject any and all proposals, or any parts thereof, or to waive any formality or defect in any bid if it is in the best interest of the City. All proposals, plans, and other documents submitted shall become the property of the City of Carbondale. Responses to this RFP are considered public information and are subject to discovery under the Freedom of Information Act.
4. All questions may be directed to Steven Mitchell, Economic Development Director (618) 457-3286.

SCOPE OF SERVICES

The successful firm shall agree to provide the City with the following, as part of the commission fee:

• Perform market analysis;
• Develop strategies for sale of designated City-owned property (such as conducting a study of comparable properties);
• Develop marketing materials (electronic and/or hard copy) to advertise the sites for sale;
• Coordinate real estate appraisals if necessary;
• Distribute the materials to potential buyers via the appropriate form(s) of media and report results to the City on an agreed upon frequency;
• Participate in site tours of City-owned property that is for sale for potential buyers;
• Analyze offers from potential buyers and advise the City and its chosen representatives with respect to negotiations;
• Represent the City in negotiations with a prospective buyer from the time of offer until closing;
• Coordinate real estate transaction closings; and
• Handle all other customary activities and services associated with real estate transactions.
• Presentations at public meetings may be required.

REQUIREMENTS

Respondents to the RFP shall have the following qualifications:

1. Must be licensed and in good standing with the State of Illinois to sell real estate.
2. Must have an excellent reputation in the real estate community.
3. Must be knowledgeable in the regional real estate market and should have experience with similar development properties.
4. Must have established real estate development industry contacts and proven record of firm's ability to recruit qualified developers to plan, develop, and close real estate projects.

TERM OF CONTRACT

The contract period for the successful broker/firm will be twelve months from date of award. The contract may be renewed for additional terms upon satisfactory performance by the broker/firm and at a negotiated rate agreed to in writing by both the broker/firm and the City of Carbondale. Alternate contract periods may be considered.

EVALUATION AND AWARD PROCESS

Issuance of this RFP and receipt of proposals does not commit the City to award a contract. The City reserves the right to postpone receipt date, accept or reject any or all proposals received in response to this RFP, or to negotiate with any of the brokers/firms submitting an RFP, or to cancel all or part of this RFP.

SELECTION CRITERIA

Selection of the broker/firm will be made based on the following criteria:

1. Ability of the respondent(s) to meet or exceed the requirements defined in the RFP;
2. Experience, qualifications, and references;
3. Knowledge of regional real estate market and ability to market to prospects on a national level;
4. Regional reputation;
5. Fee schedule; and
6. Willingness to think "outside of the box" and present innovative ideas for marketing the specific City-owned property designated for sale to a national audience.
7. Any other matter that City staff deems to be in the best interest of the City.

FOLLOW-UP COMMUNICATIONS AND/OR INTERVIEW

Any oral communication between the City and the proposer is not binding, nor will it modify the RFP in any way.

Questions may arise as responses to the RFP are prepared. To handle these questions most effectively and to ensure that everyone has the same information, we request that you promptly send a contact e-mail address to steven.mitchell@explorecarbondale.com if you intend to submit a proposal. Answers to questions submitted to the City regarding the RFP will be provided via e-mail and copied to each firm that has submitted a contact e-mail address. Questions must be received no later than 5:00 PM, Wednesday, January 10, 2018.

Additional technical and/or cost information may be requested for clarification purposes, but will in no way change the original proposal submitted.

Firms submitting a proposal in response to this RFP may be required to give an oral presentation of their proposal.

Interviews are optional and may or may not be conducted. If an interview is conducted, it is essential that the consultant's personnel to be assigned to this contract, as well as key representatives, be present at and participate in the interview.

The selected consultant and City staff will negotiate a mutually acceptable contract. The negotiated contract shall be approved by the required City of Carbondale personnel and the Carbondale City Council.