Agenda - Council - 05/31/2011 - Laserfiche WebLink

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CC Regular Session 7. 4. Meeting Date: 05/31/2011 By: Tim Gladhill, Community Development Title: Consider Selection of Planning Firm for Consultant Planning Services Background: On February 8, 2011, the City Council approved a reorganization of the City's Community Development Department and authorized the utilization of consulting/contracted services for planning and zoning services. The selected consultant is proposed to work on an as -needed basis to provide on -going services and provide a cost -savings measure that allows the City to utilize this service only when needed. The City received nine (9) responses to the proposal and Staff interviewed five (5) of these firms. Three (3) firms were invited to present to the City Council on May 10, 2011 at a City Council Work Session. Consensus at the Work Session was to direct Staff to recommend a planning firm to fulfill these obligations. Various scoring sheets are attached for review. Within the RFP, the City identified the purpose of the project as the following: . The selected consultant will assist the Planning Division in administering the City's Zoning and Subdivision ordinance by providing the following: • Review of selected land use applications for compliance with the City's Zoning and Subdivision Ordinances as directed by the Senior Planner. • Process amendments to the City's Zoning Code including, but not limited to: • Compliance with the 2030 Comprehensive Plan (required) • Residential Architectural Standards (required) • Addition of Office Park Zoning District (required) • Revisions to existing zoning districts (as needed) • Form -based codes or other flexible zoning techniques (potential) • Sign ordinance (potential) Notification: None required. Observations: Based on submitted responses and subsequent interviews and presentations, Staff is recommending the selection of Bonestroo for on -going planning services. The City recently worked with Bonestroo to complete the required 2030 Comprehensive Plan with the Metropolitan Council. Selecting Bonestroo for on -going planning services enables the City to maximize and leverage an on -going relationship with the firm from completion of the 2030 Comprehensive Plan. Bonestroo is able to provide the necessary assistance at a competitive rate. Furthermore, Bonestroo provided examples of how they have used illustrations in the past to visualize zoning regulations, an important component if the City will be exploring form -based codes. Ms. Goodroad has stated that Bonestroo could capitalize on graphics that have already been developed, tailored to Ramsey's needs. Illustrations are able to be created at Ms. Goodroad's rate. All three (3) of the firms would be able to provide similar product. The selection of this firm will allow the City to capitalize on a set of resources to complement existing City Staff and contracted services. There appears to be some synergy in utilizing Bonestroo for consistency in completing this process (implementing the Comprehensive Plan). Tina Goodroad would serve as the primary staff member from Bonestroo at a rate of $93/hour. Throughout the interview process, Ms. Goodroad was able to demonstrate not only the ability to work with developers, but presented a great framework of working with existing residents on smaller projects as well. Finally, Bonestroo provided an example of management of the review process they have created that may assist in streamlining the administrative portions of development review.