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above. The City has recently used a financial consultant for the sale and Lease of Revenue Bonds (Fire Station #2), Tax Increment Bonds (Water Tower #2), and Capital Equipment Certificates. In looking through the proposals by Springsted Public Finance Advisors and Juran and Moody, the services they offer are very comparable and either consultant could provide the services requested by the City. Although the scoring was close, Juran and Moody ranked higher than Springsted on a few issues which follow: 1) Proposed Fees for Debt Issuance - The cost of issuing General Obligation debt is fairly consistent between the firms, but Springsted is considerably higher in the issuance of Lease Revenue and Revenue Bonds. For example, Springsted charges $14,250 for the issuance of a $1,000,000 Lease Revenue Bonds, whereas, Juran and Moody's fee would be $11,250. Additionally, Springsted charges for all issuance costs involved such as printing of statement, travel, etc. Juran and Moody's fees for issuance costs are included in the initial fee. 2) Studies and Analysis - Juran and Moody perform debt management studies and financial planning analysis free of charge. Springsted charges a per hour rate for all services th~at are non-debt obligation related. 3) Personal Attention - The majority of Springsted's clients are large cities such as Maple Grove, Coon Rapids, and Woodbury. Juran and Moody focus more on the smaller cities, such as Andover, Chaska, and Osseo. This may seem like a minor detail, but in recent negotiations with Springsted (who the City has currently used on it bond sales) it was apparent that Springsted considered the City a minor player. By saying this, staff was referring to the lack of staff updates and communication between the City and Springsted. A smaller firm representative, with smaller cities would most likely devote more personal attention to the City's projects and possibly even expedite important projects. Finance Officer Lund noted that award of the contract for financial services does not eliminate Springsted Public Finance Advisors from negotiating with the City in future years. The City is, at this time, negotiating a one year agreement. At the end of the term, the City will examine the service offered from the financial consultant and a recommendation will be made at to whether to continue with the said financial institution for the following year. Councilmember Anderson stated that she was concerned with the request because she was not aware that the City was bidding for financial services and that the staff only requested bids from two financial services. City Administrator Norman replied that Juran and Moody offer the same services as Springsted and that staff takes the position that they are the people that have to work with the advisors and they feel comfortable with working with Juran and Moody. Councilmember Anderson replied that the City Council has to take the responsibility .and felt that the issue should be researched further. She stated that it is not proper to submit a request for proposals to one company that City staff is not in favor of and another company that staff is favoring. She wants to make sure that the City enters into an agreement with a company that has the appropriate amount of staff to help the City. Finance Committee/September 26, 2000 Page 2 of 3