PURPOSE

The City of Lakewood is seeking qualified planning and zoning consultants, multi-disciplinary consultants, or teams to lead the preparation and adoption of an update to the City's Planning and Zoning Code.

Lakewood, Ohio is an inner ring streetcar suburb of Cleveland with over 50,000 people residing within 5.53 square miles that makes it the state's most densely populated city.

The City hosts two main commercial corridors (Detroit, Madison Avenues), a small industrial area (Berea Road), a distribution of neighborhood-based schools and parks, and a diverse housing stock that varies from single-family homes to a variety of multi-story, multi-family apartment and condominium structures.

The current zoning code was last comprehensively updated and adopted in 1996 with a variety of piecemeal additions and revisions made since that time. In 2012, the City released the Community Vision — which serves in place of a traditional Master Plan — providing an update last in 2019. The Community Vision centers upon six focus areas (commercial development, housing, community wellness, safety, mobility, and education and culture) with supporting objective statements for each.

The City's overarching intent with this request is to identify a qualified consultant able to craft a comprehensive update to our zoning code that:

• Aligns with Vision, integrates contemporary best practices for a dense, historic, urban community, including a zoning and development framework that promotes sustainability and resiliency to climate change, and reflects the input and perspective gained through engagement with Lakewood residents, property owners, businesses, and other key stakeholders.
• Incorporates processes that are proportional and transparent with clear requirements and decision criteria.
• Is easy to read/navigate, understandable by the public, and enforceable by the City.

SCOPE OF WORK

While adhering to the above intent, the selected consultant will initially analyze and determine the strengths and weaknesses of the existing zoning code, and the extent to which it acts as a barrier to efficient development. The selected consultant will be responsible for completing a comprehensive and independent review to determine what changes are necessary.

The selected consultant will then craft the necessary comprehensive update to the zoning code and development process – leveraging public/stakeholder engagement and incorporating best practices appropriate to support predictable, high-quality development and economic growth for a first-ring suburb while respecting the density, mix of land uses, and historic character that makes Lakewood unique. The selected consultant will recommend the most effective public-facing organization and format for the updated code – including consideration of a form-based, hybrid zoning, or unified development ordinance.

Public engagement and the production of meeting materials and supporting visual presentations is expected throughout the project – including individual or small-group interviews, public open houses with community stakeholders, interaction with an advisory committee, as well as review meetings with the Planning Commission and City Council.

PROJECT TIMING AND BUDGET

It is critical that this project be as efficient as possible while being appropriately inclusive and thorough. A requirement of this effort is to have the code update completed nine to twelve (9 to 12) months from contract execution, and the code adopted no later than fifteen (15) months from contact execution. City Staff will be responsive and partner with the Consultant throughout the drafting process and interaction with the City's boards, committees, and Council. The City has budgeted up to $200,000 for consultant services and project expenses.

STATEMENT OF QUALIFICATIONS (SOQ)

As part of each response, it is up to the prospective consultant to fully describe their qualifications in meeting the scope outlined in this request. The SOQ should be organized and provide, at a minimum, the information in the following order:

Section 1: Introduction/Overview

Please include an introductory single page letter of interest/executive summary that states how the consultant views and understands the project and provides an overview of their approach. Also include a brief description of the consultant's experience, past performance, and capacity to deliver the update within the desired timeframe.

Section 2: Operator Information and Qualifications.

At a minimum, please include the following in this section:

• Consultant Background. Provide a brief description of the consultant including the range of professional services, office locations, and staff size. This shall apply to all subcontractors.
• Consultant Experience and Qualifications. Outline the experience of the consultant and other credentials that illustrate qualifications to undertake this project. Provide at least three examples of zoning code updates that your consultant has completed within the past five years. Codes may be referenced electronically. Example codes should be based on comparable communities to Lakewood. Also, list recent projects on which principal staff have worked and describe their responsibilities.
• Project Team Composition. Provide a description of the team that will be assigned to the project including resumes for all team members. Focus on experiences related to the delivery of this project. Identify the capacity in which team members will be used and identify the Project Manager, who will be the main point of contact during the code update process. Any work intended to be subcontracted must be disclosed, including the name of the subcontractor and specific tasks that will be subcontracted. The City expects that the principal staff person(s) listed will not change and will continue through the entirety of the project.
• References. Provide a minimum of three references for services comparable to this project. Include a contact person, title, address, telephone number, and email address.

SOQ EVALUATION CRITERIA AND SELECTION PROCESS

The City of Lakewood will select a consultant based upon a review of the merits of the responses received according to the following evaluation and section process.

Evaluation of Responses/Short List

The City may appoint an Advisory Team to review responses received and evaluate each for the purpose of ranking them in relative position based on how fully each response meets the below evaluation criteria. The City shall be the sole judge of its best interests and in the evaluation of responses. The City's decision shall be final, and the ranking of the responses shall be at the sole discretion of the City and/or Advisory Team.

In ranking/scoring each response, the following criteria and points shall be used:

Criteria - Points

Relevant Experience of the Consultant — 30

Relevant Experience of the Project Team — 30

Quality of Work Samples — 20

Capacity to Deliver Project — 15

References — 5

TOTAL — 100

Short List/Interview

Once review of the submitted responses is complete, the City will then determine a short list of qualified operators to invite for an interview. The interview will be an opportunity for the consultant to discuss their qualifications and experience and for the City and/or select members of the Advisory Team to ask questions of qualified consultants.

Selection of Consultant

Following the interview, the City will select the best qualified consultants to submit a project proposal. Following review of the project proposals, a single consultant will be selected and a contract awarded.

SELECTION SCHEDULE

February 23 — RFQ Issued

March 11 (4pm) — Questions Submitted by Email

March 14 (5pm) — City Responses Posted

March 22 (4pm) — RFQ Submittal Deadline

March 25-29 — Short List Determination and Interviews (Estimated)

April 5 — Selection of Best Qualified Consultants (Estimated)

INSTRUCTIONS FOR SUBMISSION

SOQ Format Requirements

• Provide in a searchable .pdf format.
• 15 page maximum (content, not including cover page or table of contents).
• Pages shall be 8.5 x 11 inches, except for relevant illustrative/supporting pages, which may be presented in 11x17 inch format if limited to only graphics, images, and/or designs and may not be used for narratives.
• Font shall be no smaller than 10 point.

Questions must be submitted via email to planning@lakewoodoh.gov. Please use "Lakewood Zoning Code RFQ" followed by the company name as the subject heading. Questions received by email shall be answered by March 14 at 5pm and posted on the following website: www.lakewoodoh.gov/zoning-update2024

Submit (1) .pdf copy of the Statement of Qualifications by 4:00pm on March 22, 2024.

Send responses electronically to:

David Baas (david.baas@lakewoodoh.gov)
(Subject: Lakewood Zoning Code RFQ)
Assistant Director, Planning & Development
City of Lakewood
12650 Detroit Avenue
Lakewood, OH 44107

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Expenses

The City accepts no liability for the costs and expenses incurred by consultants submitting an SOQ.

City's Rights

• The City reserves the right to cancel the RFQ process and reject all SOQs. The City shall have no liability to any consultant arising out of such cancellation or rejection.
• The City reserves the right to waive minor variations in the selection process.
• The City reserves without limitation the right to approve or disapprove of the use of Sub-consultants, Sub-contractors, or Key Team Members, and/or substitutions and or changes from those identified in the SOQ. Such approval or disapproval shall not be unreasonably exercised.
• The City reserves the right to contact references who are not listed in the consultant's SOQs and investigate statements on the SOQs and/or qualification of the consultants or individuals identified in the SOQ.

Public Disclosure

All documentation and submittals provided to the City may be considered public documents under applicable laws and may be subject to disclosure. Consultants recognize and agree that the City will not be responsible or liable in any way for any loss consultants may suffer from the lawful disclosure of information or materials to third parties.