Vendor_Reference_Form.pdf

This is a Vendor Reference Form issued by the City of St. Petersburg, Florida, as part of Request for Quote (RFQ) No. 26-165 for a Faith Community Housing Assistance Consultant. The consultant will provide targeted workshops and individualized technical assistance to houses of worship exploring affordable housing development on properties they own or control, aligned with the City's Yes In God's Back Yard (YIGBY) legislation initiative in Pinellas County. Deliverables include a minimum of two City-approved workshops (in-person, virtual, or hybrid format) covering affordable housing basics, development models, financing pathways, organizational readiness, and regulatory navigation; direct technical assistance to participating congregations; comprehensive workshop curricula; participant evaluations; technical assistance logs; and a final engagement report not exceeding 25 pages. The RFQ was issued on March 10, 2026, with the deadline for questions on March 16, 2026, and responses due March 19, 2026, at 3:00 PM, submitted electronically through the OpenGov Procurement portal as a single PDF file not exceeding 50 pages. The contract term is one year with one optional one-year renewal available upon satisfactory performance, and the consultant must demonstrate capacity to launch the program within 30 days of contract execution.

Vendors are required to submit three project references from similar engagements completed within the past five years, with at least one being Florida-based, supported by letters from community partners, houses of worship, and affordable housing developers documenting observable outcomes. The consultant must have a minimum of three years' experience providing community engagement, training, and technical assistance to nonprofit or faith-based organizations, with key personnel requiring five to ten years of applicable experience completed within the past five years and preferably holding a bachelor's degree in public administration, community development, finance, or social work. Evaluation criteria weighted across 100 points prioritize experience with community-based training on affordable housing development and work with faith communities (29 points), qualification and technical competence of the agency and staff (29 points), capacity to accomplish work and program design (19 points), past performance on similar contracts (9 points), and detailed budget (8 points). The solicitation encourages participation from Small Business Enterprises, Women Business Enterprises, Veteran-Owned Businesses, and Minority Business Enterprises through a voluntary Subcontractor Utilization Plan, offering set-aside incentives of 2 points each for City of St. Petersburg-certified Small Business Enterprises, Minority-Owned Business Enterprises, and Women-Owned Business Enterprises. The consultant must obtain comprehensive insurance coverage including commercial general liability insurance of at least $1,000,000 per occurrence and $2,000,000 aggregate, with compensation structured according to services pricing to be established in the contract agreement.