Request for Proposals — Planning Consulting Services

Mullan Area Master Plan and Implementation
Missoula County, Montana

Missoula County Community and Planning Services

Submittal Deadline: October 21, 2019

SEE THE FULL RFP HERE

Introduction

Missoula County and the City of Missoula are seeking proposals from qualified consultants to develop a master plan and implementation elements for a roughly 2,000 acre area on the western edge of the City of Missoula.

Background

Missoula, Montana is a community of 100,000 residents situated at a hub of a series of mountain valleys in Western Montana. It is a regional center for retail, distribution and transportation, medical facilities, education, and culture. Of the 100,000 residents, roughly 74,000 live in the City of Missoula and 24,000 live in unincorporated neighborhoods on the city's edge. The community is growing by 1-2% annually.

The city and county maintain separate planning jurisdictions, but they work to align goals, share resources, and work together to plan for changes to the community in the Missoula Valley where the jurisdictions meet. Missoula is also a federally designated Metropolitan Planning Area (MPO), requiring the close coordination of planning for growth and impacts to the transportation system. The proposed master plan is a joint project between the City of Missoula and Missoula County, in collaboration with the MPO.

In 2015, the City adopted a new growth policy called "Our Missoula," that includes an "inward focused" directive promoting compact development in areas where infrastructure already exists, and mixed-use and dense development along major transportation/transit corridors. Shortly after adoption of the City's Growth Policy, The MPO adopted a Long Range Transportation Plan, "Activate Missoula", that established very ambitious mode split goals in order to cut drive-alone trips in half. The plan notes that achieving these goals will require ambitious policies and commitment from the City and County.

This spring, the County updated a land use plan for the unincorporated areas of the Missoula Valley, called the Missoula Area Land Use Element. The Missoula Area Land Use Element calls for a "one community" directive that supports the city's inward focused directive and identifies ways the county can better facilitate growth and development in the unincorporated areas of the Missoula Valley. One of the implementation actions in Missoula Area Land Use Element was joint master planning between the city and county on the city's western edge.

The Mullan Area Master Plan is an opportunity for the City and County to further evaluate and align land use planning and regulations, transportation elements, and plans for amenities in an area of the community currently receiving significant development pressure. The area of focus is located on the western edge of the city limits, between Mullan Road and West Broadway, west of Reserve Street and east of the Missoula International Airport (Attachment A). The area has long been planned for growth, but current land use policy and zoning does not assure development outcomes consistent with the community's goals. In addition, there are potential challenges in the area that need to be evaluated, including Grant Creek floodplain, high quality agricultural soils, limited street and road access, proximity to Missoula International Airport, and high groundwater.

Issues and Opportunities

Missoula is currently enjoying a run of strong economic and population growth. With a high quality of life derived from the unique sense of place and proximity to top-shelf natural amenities, the economy is diversifying, and the community is attracting new residents. The success of Missoula has been deliberate, but the success also presents challenges that need to be addressed. What gives Missoula such a strong connection to natural amenities: the rivers, mountains, and surrounding public lands, are also constraints that limit the developable area within the valley floor. Home prices in the Missoula market are steadily increasing, outpacing wage growth and creating challenges for many Missoulians to find affordable housing. Locations for business expansion and continued diversification are limited. Development pressures on agricultural land, in wildlife habitat, and in areas of elevated wildland fire risk are increasing.

The recently adopted growth policy amendments completed by the city and county describe the values important to the community and a vision for growth that is consistent with those values. Many of the values are shared between city and county residents. Access to public lands, healthy ecosystems, walkable neighborhoods, mix of uses, attainable housing, economic diversification, access to locally grown food, concern about our climate, reduced dependency upon automobiles are among these values. In the focus area, continued development of single use, low density, auto centric land use patterns common in American towns over the last few decades are generally inconsistent with these values. Current zoning and regulatory standards for the area, both within and outside city limits, reinforce this sprawling development pattern. The master plan is an opportunity to align our land use planning to our values and recognize our constraints.

Objectives

Current development patterns in the Mullan Road area are more along the lines of the development trends of the past few decades. These development trends are likely to continue without changes to the planning structure and local government approach to infrastructure. As Missoula continues to grow in this area, new tools and new approaches to community development designed for the context of the location will be necessary. The master plan is a chance to set the land use patterns and put into place regulations that are in alignment with the community's values. The objectives of the master planning process are:

• Reduce pressure on market rate housing by increasing housing supply and developing a mix of housing types serving a mix of incomes.
• Create development intensities and community design that supports a mix of uses and a variety of urban services within the area.
• Facilitate land use patterns and community design that creates a framework for transportation alternatives, maximizing access, connectivity, and mobility throughout the planning area, while reducing dependency on the automobile.
• Foster a built urban environment that focuses on quality of life, character of place, sustainability and green infrastructure, public health and the relationship between the public and private realm.
• Create a tax base that supports the cost of infrastructure and services necessary to serve the development.
• Incorporate natural amenities, parks, and local agriculture into the fabric of the neighborhood, including a fully restored Grant Creek, that provides amenities and connections to our natural environment and healthy ecosystems.

Scope of Services

Missoula County and the City of Missoula are seeking a multidisciplinary team to complete a multi-part planning and design process for roughly 2,000 acres. With oversight from city and county staff, the selected consultant(s) will lead the planning process and develop project deliverables as outlined within this RFP.

The intent of the scope of services is to serve as a framework, which consultants can use to develop a more detailed proposed scope of work based on their professional expertise and knowledge. The final scope of work will be negotiated with the selected consultants in conjunction with city and county staff prior to contract approval. The consultant is expected to provide interpretation and identification of deliverables or milestones it believes are integral to the project in the submitted proposal, as outlined within the submittal requirements section of this RFP.

The following elements are provided as a general framework of the consultant's response:

• Project Management — The selected consultant will manage their time, staff, resource, budget, sub-consultants and related activities to assure project objectives and timeframes are met. Staff will provide oversight of the consultant, assist with outreach and stakeholder meetings, and provide local expertise and skills to the consultant team, as time and resources allow.
• Coordination with City and County — The approach suggested by the consultant should include considerations to ensure that the final products will be developed in close coordination with city and county staff and will include opportunities for interactive feedback from staff as the work proceeds. The consultant should be available to meet with staff to ensure successful coordination and completion of the project.
• Public Participation — The consultant shall be responsible for developing and proposing a comprehensive public & stakeholder participation strategy that is best suited to meet project objectives and unique characteristics of the area. Staff can assist the consultant with outreach, including assisting the consultant during outreach events and the arranging, scheduling, and locating facility space for meetings.
• Existing Conditions and Trends Analysis - The consultant will work to gain a firm understanding of the context, trends, and related information applicable to the area in relation to the larger community. This information and data will be used to inform and ground the study in objectivity.
• Identification of Study Areas for Land Use and Circulation — The consultant will work with the city and county staff during the planning process to finalize areas of focus for land use and circulation based on existing conditions, data analysis, stakeholder input, project budget, and overall vision and goals.
• Analysis of circulation and transportation network — The consultant will review the current and planned transportation network, including sidewalks, bicycle facilities, shared-use paths, and transit opportunities. The review will include an evaluation of the current network's ability to support existing and future land use patterns, modeling, and recommendations for improvements. MPO staff maintain a travel demand model that may be available for modeling future growth and transportation network improvements, however the consultants should be prepared to develop model inputs such as growth allocations (housing and employment), future street grid network, and facility types. Consideration should be given to existing plans and policies such as the Bicycle Facilities Master Plan, Pedestrian Facilities Master Plan, and Complete Streets Policy.
• Fiscal Analysis — The analysis should project the cost and effect of planned growth on the city's infrastructure, level of service, facilities and revenues.
• Plan Development — The consultant shall be responsible for developing a concise, attractive and readable master plan that can be adopted as an amendment to the city and county growth policies and provide data for the Long Range Transportation Plan as appropriate. The plan should at minimum contain a clear vision for land use and community design, descriptions of parks and amenities, the existing conditions report, the circulation plan, the fiscal analysis, and road transects appropriate to the proposed land use designations.
• Zoning Code Development — The consultant shall prepare draft zoning designations designed to implement the land use plan in undeveloped and underutilized lands within the study area, including graphics and illustrations, that can be adopted into the city and county's development/zoning codes.
• Stormwater Management Plan — The plan should include some conceptual level stormwater management solutions that utilize green infrastructure.
• Presentations and Communications — The consultant will present the final plan and draft zoning regulations to the Missoula County Consolidated Planning Board, the Missoula City Council, the Missoula Board of County Commissioners, other applicable committees as defined in the final scope of work.

Submission Deadline and Contact Information

Proposal information may be either electronically or via mail. The deadline for submission of qualifications is 11:59 PM., Mountain Standard Time, October 21, 2019. Faxed submittals and late submittals will not be accepted.

Mailing address:

Missoula County Community and Planning Services
200 West Broadway
Missoula, Montana 59802

Email Proposals to:

caps@missoulacounty.us

406-258-4657

Direct questions to:

Karen Hughes
khughes@missoulacounty.us
406-258-4657