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CC - (1) Appointment of General Plan Advisory Committee (GPAC) Members; (2) Provide Direction on the Proposals to Segregate the Economic Development Scope of Services in the General Plan Update (GPU) Request for Proposals (RFP); (3) Discussion of Revisions and a Suggested Cover Letter for the GPU RFP Recommended by the GPU Subcommittee; (4) Discussion of GPU Subcommittee Retention, Modification, or Dissolution; (5) Approval of Revisions to the GPU Advisory Bodies Framework and Details; (6) Approval of Revisions to the GPAC Operational Guidelines; (7) Direction on GPAC Facilitator; and (8) Direction to the City Manager as Deemed Appropriate.
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Meeting Date: March 12, 2018
Contact Person/Dept: Ashley Hefner/CDD
Phone Number: (310) 253-5744
Fiscal Impact: Yes [] No [X] General Fund: Yes [] No [X]
Public Hearing: [] Action Item: [X] Attachments: [X]
Commission Action Required: Yes [] No [X] Date:
Public Notification: (E-Mail) Meetings and Agendas - City Council (03/06/18)
Department Approval: Sol Blumenfeld, Community Development Director (03/01/18)
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RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends the City Council (1) appoint General Plan Advisory Committee (GPAC) Members; (2) provide direction on the proposals to segregate the Economic Development Scope of Services in the General Plan Update (GPU) Request for Proposals (RFP); (3) discuss revisions and a suggested cover letter for the GPU RFP recommended by the GPU Subcommittee; (4) discuss GPU Subcommittee retention, modification, or dissolution; (5) approve revisions to the GPU Advisory Bodies Framework and Details; (6) approve revisions to the GPAC Operational Guidelines; (7) provide direction on GPAC facilitator; and (8) direct the City Manager as deemed appropriate.
BACKGROUND
At the February 26, 2018, City Council meeting, the Council determined that the GPAC will have 15 members, with each current Council Member appointing three members; that the GPAC will liaise directly between the City Council and other GPU committees; and that staff research how the economic development scope can be segregated from the GPU RFP so that it can be prepared in advance of the GPU project. The City Council also directed staff to provide more information about how GPU City Council Subcommittees have operated in other cities in order to determine whether to retain, modify, or dissolve the GPU Subcommittee and further directed staff to provide additional information about the GPAC facilitator.
DISCUSSION
1. Appoint GPAC members
Each Council Member will appoint three members to the GPAC at this meeting.
2. Provide direction on the proposal to segregate the Economic Development Scope of Services in the GPU RFP
Council directed staff to research how the Economic Development portion of services can be segregated from remainder of the GPU RFP in order to advance an Economic Development Work Plan now. There are three options to consider:
A. Segregate all economic components from the GPU RFP
• Section III. Scope of Services, Gb. “Economy Element” (page 14):
• Section III. Scope of Services, E. “Market and Fiscal Technical Analyses” (page 8):
Staff recommends against this option, as the GPU project would be negatively impacted without the GPU consultant team providing these services and coordinating the interdependent land use, mobility, and housing elements, with economic analyses and related policy recommendations.
B. Segregate the market analysis and economic development planning services only from the GPU RFP
• Section III. Scope of Services, E. “Market and Fiscal Technical Analyses” (page 8), first bullet in RFP section only:
o “Document existing conditions in order to analyze: socio-economic data, existing land uses and fiscal implications, and existing regulations and infrastructure (especially mobility) that supports business growth and expansion. The analysis would relate these conditions to local, regional, and national economic growth sectors, trends, and opportunities, identifying opportunities for sustainable job growth.”
This scope of work could be expanded to include conducting an in depth analysis of the City’s economic base, identifying business clusters, describing where the City is leaking sales tax, identifying business attraction targets, and preparing an economic development work plan with goals, strategies, tasks, and timelines. The scope of services may include:
• Develop work plan and contract
• Conduct economic base analysis
• Conduct strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threat analysis
• Conduct leakage study
• Conduct market analysis report
• Develop economic development work plan
This option will permit an economic development plan to progress now. Staff also suggests both RFPs include language to ensure effective coordination between consultant teams, that the segregated deliverable be folded into the GPU, and that both projects are planned to avoid redundancies.
C. Issue the GPU RFP Now
Although it will delay the production an economic development plan now, staff believes that this option will likely result in the most comprehensive GPU product with less prospect for redundancy.
3. Discuss GPU Subcommittee’s draft cover letter (Attachment 1) and proposed RFP revisions (Attachment 2)
The GPU Subcommittee drafted a suggested cover letter to be issued with the GPU RFP. The GPU Subcommittee also provided suggested revisions to the approved GPU RFP and a cover letter. Substantive additions are summarized below in italics:
• Section III. Scope of Services, D. Existing Conditions Analysis (page 8):
“This analysis should include a thorough understanding of the urban history of Culver City and the region, the natural and constructed history of the city and its process of urbanization. The approach must be interdisciplinary, encompassing the city’s social, political and architectural history, urban sociology, its topography and urban geography, business history and environmental ecology.”
• Section III. Scope of Services, G. GPU, Recreation (page 10):
The update should identify funding strategies, such as development incentives, for future parks acquisition, operation, and maintenance, “including innovative strategies such as P3 and Environmental Impact Bonds. This element must be carefully integrated with the Ballona Creek Revitalization Project (BCRP).”
• Section III. Scope of Services, G. GPU, Conservation (page 10):
“This element must be carefully integrated with the BCRP.”
• Section III. Scope of Services, G. GPU, Noise (page 11):
“This element provides policy for minimizing community exposure to excessive noise, including noise related to airports.”
• Section III. Scope of Services, G. GPU, Sustainability (page 13):
“-analyzing the sustainability of municipal infrastructure systems and identifying potential sustainable infrastructure projects and improvements, including strategies to help the city meet the MS4 water permit requirements. Such analysis should emphasize multi-benefit projects that offer improvements that touch on multiple elements of the Plan, such as Recreation, Conservation, Health and Economy as well as Sustainability. Potential funding sources for such projects should include innovative approaches such as P3 and Environmental Impact Bonds.”
• Section III. Scope of Services, G. GPU, Ballona Creek (page 15):
“Some of the most vital and important business stakeholders in the region are located on the banks of the creek or nearby, including Apple, Amazon and Nantworks.”
4. Discuss GPU Subcommittee retention, modification, or dissolution
Council directed staff to provide information on the role of the GPU Subcommittee. Staff researched several surrounding cities about similar practices as noted below:
• Santa Monica did not respond as of the time of publication but staff will try to get this information prior to the City Council meeting
• West Hollywood didn’t use a City Council Subcommittee
• Pasadena had an informal subset of City Council for a short time which was disbanded early in the process. Staff found it extremely helpful to get feedback and inform the City Council of their progress. Status reports were provided to the full City Council by the City Council Members and staff as needed.
• Burbank staff held multiple study sessions with the entire City Council during the “policy-formation” phase of the GPU in an effort to flesh out feedback on proposed changes. Prior to the kick-off of the Environmental Impact Report (EIR), staff additionally met with the entire City Council to seek clarity on policy language where the City Council had not yet reached a consensus, to ensure the EIR accuracy. An informal subset of City Council members provided additional feedback throughout the process on the GPU, both on substantive issues and the update process itself. Feedback on substantive issues was typically relayed back to the entire City Council, either by staff or the City Council Member.
The following is a proposed schedule for the remainder of the work to issue and review the RFPs:
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Issue RFP: |
Thursday, March 15, 2018 |
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Deadline for questions: |
Thursday, April 5, 2018, 3 p.m. PST |
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Non-mandatory pre-proposal conference: |
Thursday, April 12, 2018, 11 a.m. PST |
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Response to questions: |
Thursday, April 19, 2018, 3 p.m. PST |
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Proposals due: |
Thursday, May 3, 2018, 3 p.m. PST |
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Interview list selection: |
Week of June 4, 2018 |
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Interviews: |
June 25 - July 13, 2018 |
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Selection: |
August 2018 |
5. Approve revisions to GPU Advisory Bodies Framework and Details (Attachment 3)
The following revisions have been provided in the GPU Advisory Bodies Framework and Details:
• GPAC will liaise directly with City Council and other GPU advisory bodies
• GPAC will have no approval authority
• Citizens Advisory Committee renamed Engagement Advisory Committee, to avoid confusion with the Cultural Arts Commission acronym
6. Approve revisions to GPAC Operational Guidelines (Attachment 4)
The following revisions have been provided in the GPAC Operational Guidelines:
• The facilitator must be certified by the International Association of Public Participation (IAP2) or equivalent
• Examples of modifications City Council can make to the committee details are included: appointments, frequency, location, dates, and times
City Council directed staff to provide further details on the GPAC’s organization and reporting to City Council throughout the project. Staff will provide this information on best practices during the City Council meeting.
7. Provide feedback on GPAC facilitator (Attachment 5)
Staff recommends hiring an external facilitator for GPAC meetings, which is standard planning practice for large-scale projects like the GPU. The facilitator should be trained and certified by the International Association of Public Participation (IAP2), an industry facilitation standard, or should demonstrate equivalent training. Attachment 5 provides critical benefits gained by using a trained and experienced professional facilitator.
Many cities rely on expertise within the consulting team to facilitate committee meetings. If this approach is taken, the GPU RFP should be revised to make this requirement explicit as it may have cost, scheduling, and other implications for the project. Facilitation by staff or an independent contractor could suffice to establish and train committee members until the work of the selected consultant commences, as any discussions would likely be non-substantive.
NEXT STEPS
• If GPU RFP economic development scope is retained, then GPU RFP issuance can proceed imminently.
• If GPU RFP economic development scope is separated, then staff will prepare new RFP and modify GPU RFP and return to Council for review and approval for issuance.
• If City Council feedback on suggested GPU Subcommittee revisions and cover letter and/or GPAC facilitator requires updates to the GPU RFP, the staff will finalize necessary revisions prior to issuance.
• If GPU Subcommittee is retained, regardless of whether modifications are approved, a working session will be scheduled to plan for RFP review and evaluation criteria preparation.
• If GPU Subcommittee is dissolved, City Council should agendize an item to receive staff recommendations to plan for RFP review and evaluation criteria preparation for the City Council at large.
FISCAL ANALYSIS
There is no fiscal impact associated with these discussion items.
ATTACHMENTS
1. GPU Subcommittee draft GPU RFP cover letter
2. GPU Subcommittee proposed GPU RFP revisions
3. GPU Advisory Bodies Framework and Details
4. GPAC Operational Guidelines
5. Handout on the Benefits of using a Facilitator
MOTION
That the City Council:
1. Appoint GPAC Members;
2. Provide direction on the proposals to segregate the Economic Development Analysis Scope of Services in the GPU RFP;
3. Discuss revisions and a suggested cover letter for the GPU RFP recommended by the GPU Subcommittee;
4. Discuss GPU Subcommittee retention, modification, or dissolution;
5. Approve revisions to the GPU Advisory Bodies Framework and Details;
6. Approve revisions to the GPAC Operational Guidelines;
7. Provide direction on GPAC facilitator; and
8. Direct the City Manager as deemed appropriate.