RFP20096_On-Call Planning Staffing Services_FINAL.pdf

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS (RFP) 20096

ON-CALL PLANNING STAFFING SERVICES

CITY OF LIVINGSTON

220 E. Park Street Livingston, MT 59047

(406) 823-6000

Key RFP Dates

Issue Date: September 16, 2025

Question Submittal Date: September 23, 2025

Proposal Submittal Date: September 30, 2025

TABLE OF CONTENTS

SECTION I: INSTRUCTIONS TO PROPOSERS

SECTION II: PROPOSAL CONTENT

SECTION III: EVALUATION AND AWARD

EXHIBIT A: SCOPE OF WORK

EXHIBIT B: TASK AND COST STATEMENT

RFP 20096

SECTION I: INSTRUCTIONS TO PROPOSERS

SECTION I. INSTRUCTIONS TO PROPOSERS

A. PRE-PROPOSAL CONFERENCE

A pre-proposal conference will not be held for this procurement. Proposers may submit questions or clarifications as noted in Section E., below.

B. EXAMINATION OF PROPOSAL DOCUMENTS

By submitting a proposal, Proposer represents that it has thoroughly examined and become familiar with the work required under this RFP and that it is capable of performing quality work to achieve the City’s objectives.

C. ADDENDA

The City reserves the right to revise the RFP documents. Any City changes to the requirements will be made by written addendum to this RFP. Any written addenda issued pertaining to this RFP shall be incorporated into the terms and conditions of any resulting Agreement. The City will not be bound to any modifications to or deviations from the requirements set forth in this RFP as the result of oral instructions. Proposers shall acknowledge receipt of addenda in their proposals.

Failure to acknowledge receipt of Addenda may cause the proposal to be deemed non-responsive to this RFP and be rejected.

D. CITY CONTACT

All communication and/or contacts with City staff regarding this RFP are to be directed to the following:

Jennifer Severson

220 E. Park Street Livingston, MT 59047 Phone: (406) 222-4903 Email: JSeverson@LivingstonMontana.org

*Email Preferred

Commencing on the date of the issuance of this RFP and continuing until award of the contract or cancellation of this RFP, no proposer, subcontractor, lobbyist or agent hired by the proposer shall have any contact or communications regarding this RFP with any City’s staff; member of the evaluation committee for this RFP; or any contractor or consultant involved with the procurement, other than the point of contact named above or unless expressly permitted by this RFP. Contact includes face-to-face, telephone, electronic mail (e-mail) or formal written communication.

Any proposer, subcontractor, lobbyist or agent hired by the proposer that engages in such prohibited communications may result in disqualification of the proposer at the sole discretion of the City.

E. CLARIFICATIONS

1. Examination of Documents

Should a Proposer require clarifications of this RFP, the Proposer shall notify the City in writing in accordance with Section E.2. below. Should it be found that the point in question is not clearly and fully set forth, the City will issue a written addendum clarifying the matter posted on the City website.

2. Submitting Requests

a. All questions must be submitted via email no later than 2:00 p.m., prevailing Mountain Time, on September 23, 2025.

b. Requests for clarifications, questions and comments must be clearly labeled in the subject line of the email, "RFP 20096 Questions". The City is not responsible for failure to respond to a request that has not been labeled as such.

c. Emailed requests for clarifications, questions and comments must be directed to JSeverson@LivingstonMontana.org.

3. City Responses

Responses from the City will be posted on the website no later than September 24, 2025 at 5:00pm. Inquiries received after 2:00 p.m. on September 23, 2025, will not be responded to.

F. SUBMISSION OF PROPOSALS

1. Date and Time

Proposals must be received in the City’s office at or before 2:00 p.m. on September 30, 2025.

Proposals received after the above-specified date and time will be returned to Proposers unopened.

2. Email Address

Proposals must be submitted by email and addressed as follows:

JSeverson@LivingstonMontana.org

3. Identification of Proposals

In the submittal email, the subject line must be clearly labeled “RFP 20096 Proposal Submittal” and also include the name of the Proposer (the consulting firm). The email must include one (1) electronic copy of their entire RFP submittal package in “PDF” format.

4. Acceptance of Proposals

a. The City reserves the right to accept or reject any and all proposals, or any item or part thereof, or to waive any informalities or irregularities in proposals.

b. The City reserves the right to withdraw or cancel this RFP at any time without prior notice and the City makes no representations that any contract will be awarded to any Proposer responding to this RFP.

c. The City reserves the right to issue a new RFP for the project.

d. The City reserves the right to postpone proposal openings for its own convenience.

e. Each proposal will be received with the understanding that acceptance by the City of the proposal to provide the services described herein shall constitute a contract between the Proposer and City which shall bind the Proposer on its part to furnish and deliver at the prices given and in accordance with conditions of said accepted proposal and specifications.

f. The City reserves the right to investigate the qualifications of any Proposer, and/or require additional evidence of qualifications to perform the work.

g. Submitted proposals are not to be copyrighted.

G. PRE-CONTRACTUAL EXPENSES

The City shall not, in any event, be liable for any pre-contractual expenses incurred by Proposer in the preparation of its proposal. Proposer shall not include any such expenses as part of its proposal.

Pre-contractual expenses are defined as expenses incurred by Proposer in:

1. Preparing its proposal in response to this RFP;

2. Submitting that proposal to the City;

3. Negotiating with the City any matter related to this proposal; or

4. Any other expenses incurred by Proposer prior to date of award, if any, of the

Agreement.

H. JOINT OFFERS

Where two or more firms desire to submit a single proposal in response to this RFP, they should do so on a prime-subcontractor basis rather than as a joint venture. The City intends to contract with a single firm and not with multiple firms doing business as a joint venture.

I. TAXES

The City is a tax-exempt political subdivision of the State of Montana.

J. PROTEST PROCEDURES

The City has on file a set of written protest procedures applicable to this solicitation that may be obtained by contacting the City point of contact responsible for this procurement. Any protests filed by a Proposer in connection with this RFP must be submitted in accordance with the City’s written procedures.

K. CONTRACT TYPE

It is anticipated that the Agreement resulting from this solicitation, if awarded, will be an on-call, task order contract utilizing hourly rates for individual team members specified in a task Scope of Work. The hourly rate for each team member position/ job title identified in the contract must not exceed the hourly rate listed in the Agreement. The awarded contract will run through the City’s Fiscal Year 2026, which ends June 30, 2026.

L. CONFLICT OF INTEREST

All Proposers responding to this RFP must avoid organizational conflicts of interest which would restrict full and open competition in this procurement. An organizational conflict of interest means that due to other activities, relationships or contracts, a Proposer is unable, or potentially unable to render impartial assistance or advice to the City; a Proposer’s objectivity in performing the work identified in the Scope of Work is or might be otherwise impaired; or a Proposer has an unfair competitive advantage. Conflict of Interest issues must be fully disclosed in the Proposer’s proposal.

All Proposers must disclose in their proposal and immediately throughout the course of the evaluation process if they have hired or retained an advocate to lobby City staff or the City Commission on their behalf.

Proposers hired to perform services for the City are prohibited from concurrently acting as an advocate for another firm who is competing for a contract with the City, either as a prime or subcontractor.

M. CODE OF CONDUCT

All Proposers agree to comply with the City’s Code of Conduct which is hereby referenced and by this reference is incorporated herein.

SECTION II: PROPOSAL CONTENT

SECTION II. PROPOSAL CONTENT

A. PROPOSAL FORMAT AND CONTENT

1. Format

Proposals should be typed with a standard 12-point font, double-spaced and using letter-size (8 ½ x 11”) pages, compiled into a single PDF document. Charts and schedules may be included in 11”x17” format.

Proposals should not include any unnecessarily elaborate or promotional materials. Proposals should not exceed fifteen (15) pages in length, excluding a Letter of Transmittal, Signed Task and Cost Statement (Exhibit B), and Appendices, if any.

2. Letter of Transmittal

A Letter of Transmittal shall be included with the proposal that is addressed to Jennifer Severson and must, at a minimum, contain the following:

a. Identification of Proposer that will have contractual responsibility with the City. Identification shall include legal name of company, corporate address, telephone number, and email address. Include name, title, address, email address, and telephone number of the contact person identified during period of proposal evaluation.

b. Identification of all proposed subcontractors including legal name of company, whether the firm is a Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE), contact person’s name and address, phone number and fax number, and email address; relationship between Proposer and subcontractors, if applicable.

c. Acknowledgement of receipt of all RFP 20096 addenda, if any.

d. A statement to the effect that the proposal shall remain valid for a period of not less than ninety (90) days from the date of submittal.

e. Signature of a person authorized to bind Proposer to the terms of the proposal.

f. Signed statement attesting that all information submitted with the proposal is true and correct.

3. Technical Proposal

a. Qualifications, Related Experience and References of Proposer

This section of the proposal should establish the ability of Proposer to satisfactorily perform the required work by reasons of: experience in performing work of a similar nature; demonstrated competence in the services to be provided; strength and stability of the firm; staffing capability; work load; record of meeting schedules on similar projects; and supportive client references.

Proposer to:

(1) Provide a brief profile of the firm, including the types of services offered; the year founded; form of the organization (corporation, partnership, sole proprietorship); number, size and location of offices; and number of employees.

(2) Describe the firm’s experience in performing work of a similar nature to that solicited in this RFP, and highlight the participation in such work by the key personnel proposed for assignment to this project.

(3) Identify subcontractors by company name, address, contact person, telephone number, email, and project function.

Describe Proposer’s experience working with each subcontractor.

(4) Provide a minimum of two (2) references for the projects cited as related experience, and furnish the name, title, address, telephone number, and email address of the person(s) at the client organization who is most knowledgeable about the work performed. Proposer may also supply references from other work not cited in this section as related experience.

b. Proposed Staffing and Project Organization

This section of the proposal should establish the method, which will be used by the Proposer to manage the project as well as identify key personnel assigned.

Proposer to:

(1) Identify key personnel proposed to perform the work in the specified tasks and include major areas of subcontract work.

Include the person’s name, current location, proposed position for this project, current assignment, level of commitment to that assignment, availability for this assignment and how long each person has been with the firm.

(2) Furnish brief resumes (not more than two [2] pages each) for the proposed Project Manager and other key personnel that includes education, experience, and verification of applicable professional credentials (AICP, CFM, PE, RLA, ASLA, AIA, etc.).

(3) Include a project organization chart, which clearly delineates communication/reporting relationships among the project staff.

(4) Include a statement that key personnel will be available to the extent proposed for the duration of the project acknowledging that no person designated as "key" to the project shall be removed or replaced without the prior written concurrence of the City.

(5) Include a brief description of how staffing redundancy will be utilized to ensure work tasks are completed in a timely manner and all deadlines are met.

c. Work Plan

Proposer should provide a narrative, which addresses the Scope of Work, and shows Proposer’s understanding of City's needs and requirements.

Proposer to:

(1) Describe the approach to completing tasks as specified in the Scope of Work. The approach to the work plan shall be of such detail to demonstrate the Proposer’s ability to accomplish the project objectives in a timely manner.

(2) Identify methods that Proposer will use to ensure quality control as well as budget and schedule control for the project.

(3) Identify any special issues or problems that are likely to be encountered in this project and how the Proposer would propose to address them.

d. Exceptions/Deviations

State any technical and/or contractual exceptions and/or deviations from the requirements of this RFP. If no technical or contractual exceptions and/or deviations are submitted as part of the original proposal, Proposers are deemed to have accepted the City’s technical requirements set forth in the Scope of Work (Exhibit A).

4. Cost and Price Proposal

Hourly Rate Schedule - An Hourly Rate Schedule must be submitted with the proposal. Proposals received without the Hourly Rate Schedule will be determined non-responsive and will not be considered.

Rates proposed shall be guaranteed for the initial contract period. Should the City elect to extend the contract for elective one (1) year renewal periods, any adjustment to the originally proposed rates shall be subject to review and approval by the City.

The Proposer shall complete, sign and submit the Task and Cost Statement (Exhibit B) with the proposal.

5. Appendices

Information considered by Proposer to be pertinent to this project and which has not been specifically solicited in any of the aforementioned sections may be placed in a separate appendix section. Appendices should be relevant and brief.

SECTION III: EVALUATION AND AWARD

SECTION III. EVALUATION AND AWARD

A. EVALUATION CRITERIA

The City will evaluate the offers received based on the following criteria:

1. Qualifications of the Firm 40 %

Technical experience in performing work of a closely similar nature for municipalities in Montana; strength and stability of the firm; strength, stability, experience and technical competence of subcontractors;

assessment by client references.

2. Staffing and Project Organization 30 %

Qualifications of project staff, particularly key personnel and especially the Project Manager; key personnel’s level of involvement in performing related work cited in "Qualifications of the Firm" section; logic of project organization; adequacy of labor commitment; concurrence in the restrictions on changes in key personnel.

3. Work Plan 30 %

Depth of Proposer's understanding of City's expectations for this type of on-call service work in general, and overall quality of work plan; logic, clarity and specificity of work plan; appropriateness of resource allocation among the tasks; reasonableness of proposed schedule; utility of suggested technical or procedural innovations.

B. EVALUATION PROCEDURE

City Staff will review all proposals received for this RFP. Staff will evaluate the written proposals using criteria identified in Section III-A. A list of top-ranked proposals, firms within a competitive range, will be developed based upon the total score for each proposal.

During the evaluation period, the City may interview some or all of the proposing firms. The interview may consist of a short presentation by the Proposer after which the evaluation committee will ask questions related to the firm’s proposal and qualifications.

At the conclusion of the proposal evaluations, Proposers remaining within the competitive range may be asked to submit a Best and Final Offer (BAFO). In the BAFO request, the firms may be asked to provide additional information, confirm or clarify issues and submit a final cost/price offer. A deadline for submission will be stipulated.

At the conclusion of the evaluation process, the evaluation committee will recommend to City’s management the Proposer whose proposal is most advantageous to the City.

C. AWARD

The City may negotiate contract terms with the selected Proposer prior to award, and expressly reserves the right to negotiate with several Proposers simultaneously and, thereafter, to award a contract to the Proposer offering the most favorable terms to the City.

Negotiations may or may not be conducted with Proposers; therefore, the proposal submitted should contain Proposer's most favorable terms and conditions, since the selection and award may be made without discussion with any Proposer.

The selected Proposer will be required to submit to the City’s Finance department a current IRS W-9 form prior to commencing work.

D. NOTIFICATION OF AWARD AND DEBRIEFING

Proposers who submit a proposal in response to this RFP shall be notified via email of the contract award. Such notification shall be made within three (3) business days of the date the contract is awarded.

Proposers who were not awarded the contract may obtain a debriefing concerning the strengths and weaknesses of their proposal. Unsuccessful Proposers, who wish to be debriefed, must request the debriefing in writing or electronic mail and the City must receive it within three (3) business days of notification of the contract award.

EXHIBIT A: SCOPE OF WORK

INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND

Livingston, Montana is a Class 2 city located in Park County; it has a current estimated population of roughly 9,000 residents, and is anticipated to approach 10,000 by 2030.

Because the population of Park County is less than 70,000 people, Livingston is not required to comply with the Montana Land Use and Planning Act (SB 382). The City is in the final stages of completing a comprehensive update to the Zoning Ordinance and will embark on an update to the City’s Growth Policy, adopted in 2021. The City’s Planning Department consists of a Planning Director and no support staff. Work performed under this contract will be done to support the Planning Department.

SCOPE OF WORK

“Perform general planning tasks related to development review, long-range planning, , subdivision review, subdivision exemption review, historic preservation design review, zoning reviews and permits, floodplain permits, and answering public inquiries related to the above tasks and other land use-related topics as assigned by the City.”

PROJECT APPROACH

The Selected Proposer is expected to have professional and technical expertise in development regulations and land use policy and law in the State of Montana, as regulated by Montana Code Annotated and the Montana Subdivision and Platting Act, and will have applied experience in the State of Montana. The City of Livingston anticipates that the Selected Proposer will include team members who are experts in small town planning and who have experience interpreting and applying Zoning Codes, Growth Policies, Subdivision Regulations and Floodplain Regulations for municipalities in Montana.

DELIVERABLES

General Planning Support. The City will direct the Service Provider (Selected Proposer) to provide assistance in the form of general planning services and support. The Service Provider will provide assistance by performing general planning tasks related to the Scope of Work described above. The work will be assigned by the City on an as-needed basis unless other arrangements or agreements are made as dictated by the executed contract.

Supervision. The Planning Director will primarily be responsible for exercising supervision over the Selected Proposer and their activities related to this contract. The City Manager may occasionally also provide direction to the Selected Proposer.

Reporting. The Selected Proposer shall furnish a complete accounting report monthly to the Planning Director. At a minimum, this accounting report shall list individual services performed by task order, the team member(s) that performed each service with their title, amount of time spent on each part of the task, type of work performed, cost of service and whether the task or project is on cost and on time. Accounting reports must show the amount expended to-date and amount remaining on the awarded contract. The Selected Proposer must furnish the complete accounting report monthly to the Planning Director with the corresponding request for payment (invoice).

Invoicing. The project invoice shall be in a format approved by the City and shall include any detail determined necessary by the City. Invoices needing substantial adjustments will be returned to the Service Provider for re-submittal.

EXHIBIT B: TASK AND COST STATEMENT

TASK AND COST SUMMARY SHEET

Below is a list of the types of planning support work tasks described in the Scope of Work in Exhibit A. This list is not exhaustive but it is intended to provide a general idea of the type of work to be assigned by the City. The City’s intention is to award a firm-fixed price contract in an amount not-to-exceed $20,000.

General Tasks Associated with Anticipated Scope of Work

TASK 1: Development Review TASK 2: Long-Range Planning TASK 3: Subdivision/ Subdivision Exemption Review TASK 4: Historic Preservation Design Review TASK 5: Zoning Reviews and Permits TASK 6: Floodplain Permits TASK 7: Public Inquiry Response

TOTAL NOT TO EXCEED AMOUNT FOR ALL TASKS: _$20,000___

1. I acknowledge receipt of RFP 20096 and Addenda No.(s) _____

2. This offer shall remain firm for ____________ days from the date of proposal (Minimum 90)

COMPANY NAME _______________________________

ADDRESS _______________________________

TELEPHONE _______________________________

EMAIL ADDRESS _______________________________

SIGNATURE OF PERSON

AUTHORIZED TO BIND PROPOSER _______________________________

NAME AND TITLE OF PERSON

AUTHORIZED TO BIND PROPOSER _______________________________

DATE SIGNED _______________________________

3. City Responses

d. Exceptions/Deviations