City of Pickerington, Ohio – Request for Proposals Economic Development Strategic Plan

CITY OF PICKERINGTON, OHIO
REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIC PLAN

ISSUED: December 4, 2019
PROPOSAL DEADLINE DATE: January 10, 2020

Contact Information:
Dave Gulden, AICP
Economic Development Director
614-837-3974
dgulden@pickerington.net

I. Purpose & Background
The City of Pickerington, a growing city located within northwestern Fairfield County with a population of approximately 21,000, is soliciting Request for Proposals (RFPs) from a qualified consultant or team (herein referred to as “consultant”) to lead the City in the preparation and adoption of an economic development strategic plan. The City seeks a consultant to perform an assessment and analysis leading to an understanding of what needs to be accomplished to support a healthy business climate, and drive economic development efforts in the City of Pickerington. The plan should provide guidance and serve as a framework for an economic development strategy for several years into the future.

The City of Pickerington has doubled in population in less than 20 years, and there has been significant annexation and subdivision activity along with new road and infrastructure construction. Local and regional central Ohio growth pressure continues to affect the City of Pickerington.

• Concurrently with this economic development strategic planning effort, the City is also undertaking a comprehensive plan update. It is desired that the economic development strategic plan be a stand-alone, action-oriented document that coordinates with the comprehensive plan update.

II. Scope of Work
The bullet points below outline desired components which should be included in the scope of work. The City is open to suggestions other than those items listed. City staff will finalize the scope of work with the selected consultant prior to contract authorization

• Baseline Economic Indicators
  Include data on population, labor force and unemployment, income levels, distribution of employment, retail sales and sales tax figures compared to other areas, construction activity, assessed values, municipal revenues and quality of life benchmarks.
• Business Climate Interviews
  Interview local employers to evaluate the assets and liabilities of running a business in Pickerington. Solicit location consultants for their perceptions of Pickerington. Compile the results for actionable tactics and strategies.
• Stakeholder Survey
  Coordinate a group of local stakeholders to survey in order to gain their insights and desires for changes in Pickerington that lead to positive economic sustainability.
• Corporate Location Assessment
  Asses how Pickerington would fare based on a typical site search conducted by a site location consultant and develop a SWOT analysis.
• Target Industry Study
  Determine Pickerington’s strengths identified in the items above to develop a list of recommended industries to target with actionable tactics and strategies.
• Summarize the City’s Economic Development Framework
  Create a matrix illustrating how the City will achieve goals in core economic development functions; such as, business retention and expansion, business attraction, entrepreneurship, workforce development, and infrastructure improvements.

Project Timing:
It is critical that this project be as efficient as possible while being appropriately inclusive and thorough.  An overriding requirement of this effort is to have the plan completed three to five (3 to 5) months from contract execution, and the plan adopted no later than eight (8) months from contract execution.

III. Qualifications
All statements of qualifications should include the following information:

• 1. Project Team Composition. Provide a description of the team that will be assigned to the project including resumes for all team members. Identify the capacity in which team members will be used and identify the Project Manager, who will be the main point of contact during the comprehensive plan process. Any work intending to be subcontracted must be disclosed, including the name of the subcontractor and specific tasks that will be subcontracted.  The City expects the principal staff person(s) listed will not change and will follow through the entirety of the project.
• 2. Firm Background. Provide a brief description of the firm including the range of professional services, office locations and staff size. This shall apply to all sub-consultants.
• 3. Firm Experience. Outline the experience of the firm and other credentials that illustrate qualifications to undertake this project. Provide at least three examples of similar economic development plans or strategies that your firm has completed within the last five years. Plans may be referenced electronically. Plans should be based on similar sized communities. Also, list recent projects on which the principal staff have worked and describe their responsibilities.
• 4. References. Provide a minimum of three references for services comparable to this project.  Include a contact person, title, address, telephone number and email address.

IV. Submission Criteria
For evaluation purposes, each proposal submission shall include the following items in the order listed below.

• 1. Letter of Interest. This single page letter will summarize, in a brief and concise manner, the consultant’s understanding of the scope of work.
• 2. Qualifications as stated in Section III.
• 3. Approach to the Project. Provide a narrative describing the firm’s approach to accomplishing the project.
• 4. Cost and Compensation. Provide a detailed outline of cost for completing the scope of work.  This should include material costs and a not to exceed figure as well as all other costs that may be incurred for the delivery of services requested. The City has budgeted up to $25,000 for consultant services and project expenses.
• 5. Please submit three (3) hard copies of the proposal and one electronic copy.

V. Selection Process
The City of Pickerington will select a consultant based upon a review of the merits of the proposals received. After evaluating the proposals, the City may contact consultants for follow-up interviews.

Upon selection, the consultant will be contacted to finalize a contract, which will include fee structure, project time frame and any additional scope of services that may result from an interview.

VI. Miscellaneous
Questions regarding the RFP must be submitted by email to Dave Gulden, Economic Development Director, at dgulden@pickerington.net, no later than January 3, 2020. All questions and answers will be posted on the City’s website within 3 business days of receiving the question.
NOTE: Questions should be limited to procedural issues related to the application. The purpose of this RFP is to field multiple proposals from multiple vendors with varied ideas and plans.

The City reserves the right to reject any and all proposals.

Consultants will not be reimbursed for any cost associated with the preparation of the RFP.

All material submitted regarding this RFP is public property and is subject to Ohio Public Record
laws. All RFPs submitted will become the property of the City of Pickerington.