To: MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
From: STEPHEN PROUD, WATERFRONT & ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR
TITLE
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DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION TO APPROVE THE AGREEMENT FOR CONSULTING SERVICES WITH SWA GROUP FOR THE PREPARATION OF A PUBLIC AMENITIES PLAN FOR KING HARBOR FOR A NOT-TO-EXCEED TOTAL OF $242,872 FOR THE TERM OF AUGUST 17, 2021 TO AUGUST 16, 2022
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
On January 12, 2021, the Redondo Beach City Council directed staff to initiate the process of drafting a Request for Proposals (“RFP”) for a qualified consultant, or consultant team, to prepare a public amenities plan for King Harbor. An RFP was prepared and reviewed by the City’s Harbor Commission and on March 16, 2021, the City Council authorized issuance of the RFP.
Responses to the RFP were due on May 24, 2021 and the City received five responses from teams well qualified to prepare the Public Amenities Plan. Based on a review of the written proposals by a selection committee comprised of the Waterfront and Economic Development Director, the Public Works Director, the Community Development Director, and the Chair of the Harbor Commission, three firms were invited to participate in an oral interview. The selection committee unanimously selected SWA as the preferred team to prepare the Public Amenities Plan for King Harbor. The Consultant Agreement sets forth the scope of work for the Plan, the term of the contract, and the not-to-exceed total of $242,872 for the preparation of the Plan. Funding for this contract was approved by the City Council as part of the FY 2021-2022 Budget.
BACKGROUND
On January 12, 2021, the Redondo Beach City Council directed staff to initiate the process of drafting a Request for Proposals (“RFP”) for a qualified consultant, or consultant team, to prepare a public amenities plan for King Harbor. At the February 8, 2021 and March 8, 2021 meetings, the Harbor Commission reviewed and provided comments on a draft RFP prepared by staff. On March 16, 2021, the draft RFP was presented to the Redondo Beach City Council and the Council authorized issuance of the RFP.
Staff conducted targeted research for a direct solicitation of the RFP and assembled background planning documents in a Dropbox account for review by prospective consultants. The RFP was issued in mid-April and sent to approximately eighteen (18) different consultants which included engineering firms, landscape architects, and multidisciplinary firms that have in-house planning and engineering services. In addition, the RFP was posted to LinkedIn, the American Planning Association RFQ/RFP Marketplace, and the City’s website. Based on those postings, the City received several additional inquiries regarding the RFP and distributed an additional eight (8) copies.
Responses to the RFP were due on May 24, 2021. The City received five responses from the following firms/teams:
• CMG Landscape Architecture/Moffat and Nichol
• Groundworks Office/Anchor QEA
• Hirsch & Associates/Anchor QEA
• Moore Ruble Yudell/PSOMAS
• SWA/Anchor QEA
A selection committee comprised of representatives from the Waterfront and Economic Development Department, Public Works, Community Development, and the Chair of the Harbor Commission reviewed the proposals and selected three teams to participate in oral interviews which were conducted on June 28th and June 29th. Following the interviews, the selection committee met to discuss the teams/proposals and unanimously selected the SWA team for recommendation to the City Council.
As the lead, SWA has demonstrated exceptional experience on projects of similar scope and scale and their design operation allows them to draw from a deep bench of professionals. In addition, SWA assembled an exceptional team that meet all of the various disciplines required to prepare the Public Amenities Plan. Finally, their proposed scope of work was comprehensive and outlined a clear approach to completing the Plan within the desired timeframe, including an expedited process for the planning of Moonstone Park. A copy of the SWA proposal is attached to this report as Exhibit A.
The Agreement for Consulting Services (attached as Exhibit B) sets forth the scope of work, the schedule for the work effort, the term of the contract, and the not-to-exceed contract amount of $242,872. Staff expects the scope of work to be completed within the nine-month window outlined in the proposed schedule.
COORDINATION
The Waterfront and Economic Development Department coordinated with the City Manager’s Office, the Public Works Department, the Community Development Department, and the Harbor Commission on the preparation of the RFP and the solicitation and selection of the recommended consultant team. The Agreement for Consulting Services was prepared in consultation with the City Attorney’s Office.
FISCAL IMPACT
The proposal from SWA for the scope of work to prepare the Public Amenities Plan totals $242,872. Funding for the contract was included as a Decision Package that was a part of the City’s 2021-2022 Fiscal Year Budget approved by the City Council on June 22, 2021. The cost for the contract will be split evenly between the Harbor Enterprise Uplands and Tidelands Accounts. Funding was made available by reallocating funds from two projects in the City’s Capital Improvement Plan - the replacement of the public sportfishing pier and improvements to the Basin 3 seawall - both of which had funding for predesign work that will be used to fund the Public Amenities Plan.
APPROVED BY:
Joe Hoefgen, City Manager
ATTACHMENTS
Exhibit A: SWA Proposal for Preparation of Public Amenities Plan for King Harbor
Exhibit B: Agreement for Consulting Services Between the City of Redondo Beach and SWA