Item 32 - Agreements for On-Call Environmental and Planning Services

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Agreements for On-Call Environmental and Planning Services November 7, 2023 Page 2 3 7 8 7 Helix Environmental Planning GOVERNMENT CODE §84308 APPLIES: Yes DISCUSSION In 2020, the City Council approved the prior list of firms to be on the City's list of preapproved consultants to provide environmental and planning services for development projects. The City Council approval provided for a three-year agreement period that will be ending on November 30, 2023. With the current list expiring, a new preapproved list of consultants needs to be established. On August 17, 2023, the Planning Division released a Request for Qualifications (RFQual No. 23-142) for consultant services on work efforts related to the California Environmental Quality Act, the National Environmental Policy Act, the preparation or review of technical studies, and planning services. The intent is to establish an updated list of qualified consulting firms for a period of five years, to be retained on an as-needed basis. The Planning Division received a Statement of Qualifications from 37 firms in response to the RFQual. The proposals were reviewed for adequacy, evaluated based on the criteria in the RFQual, and compiled into a list of qualified firms. Two firms were disqualified as non-responsive, with 35 firms qualified to provide services identified in the RFQual. Consultants on the pre-qualified list will provide environmental services and/or related technical studies, planning services for current and advance planning, historic preservation, and general planning efforts. If a development project requires an environmental analysis, technical study, and/or general planning-related services, the developer is given the option to select a firm from the pre-qualified list or obtain proposals from multiple firms from the pre-qualified list. The developer is required to provide payment to the City for the full cost of the contracted service, plus an administrative services fee established by the Miscellaneous Fee Schedule at 15 percent (15%) of full contract price to be retained by the City. Upon receipt of payment from the developer, the City as the lead agency, will execute a side letter agreement to provide on-call services. When the work is completed, the City will pay the consultant for work completed out of the pass-through account. Selecting a consultant from a preapproved list eliminates the need to circulate a Request for Proposal (RFP), significantly reducing the time it takes to hire a consultant, streamlining the entitlement process, and allowing the Planning Division to retain specialized assistance rapidly when needed. Consultant services under this work scope could include environmental analysis conducted for City projects, such as an ordinance amendment, that requires preparation of required technical studies, peer review of technical studies prepared by others, preparation of Initial Studies, Negative Declarations, Mitigated Negative Declarations, Environmental Impact Reports, Subsequent or Supplemental Environmental Impact