RFP - Thurston County Periodic Comprehensive Plan Update

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Thurston County, Washington Consultant for Thurston 2045 - Thurston County's Periodic Comprehensive Plan Update Thurston County, Washington Community Planning and Economic Development 3000 Pacific Ave SE Olympia, WA 9850 1-2043 REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS (RFP) Thurston County's Periodic Comprehensive Plan Update, "Thurston 2045" - Environmental Impact Statement, Comprehensive Plan Amendments, and Associated Implementing Development Regulations Professional Services Contract Thurston County reserves the right to reject any and all submittals , cancel this solicitation, and to waive any informalities or irregularities in procedure. Pre-Submittal Conference There will be no pre -submittal conference for this RFP. Solicitation Documents RFP Issuance Date: November 3 , 202 3 All solicitation documents, including any addenda, are published on the Thurston County website at: https://www.thurstoncountywa.gov/RFP -RFQ-RFS-Opportunities Submittal Due Date Submittals are due by not later than: 3:00 p.m. PDT December 1 , 2023 Submittal Acceptance Location Mailing and Physical s ealed submittals will only be received by: Attn: Ashley Arai, Community Planning Manager Thurston County Community Planning and Economic Development Dept 3000 Pacific Ave SE Olympia, WA 9850 1 | Thurston County, Washington Consultant for Thurston 2045 - Thurston County's Periodic Comprehensive Plan Update REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS Thurston County's Periodic Comprehensive Plan Update, "Thurston 2045" - Environmental Impact Statement, Comprehensive Plan Amendments, and Associated Implementing Development Professional Services Contract Table of Contents SECTION 1 - OVERVIEW OF SOLICITATION AND SCHEDULE ................................ ................................ ..4 1.1 PURPOSE AND OBJECTIVES ................................ ................................ ......................... 4 1.2 RFP SCHEDULE ................................ ................................ ................................ ............ 5 1.3 PROCUREMENT NOTIFICATION ................................ ................................ .................. 5 1.4 BUDGET AND CONTRACT PERIOD ................................ ................................ .............. 5 1.5 MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS ................................ ................................ ...................... 5 SECTION 2 - OVERVIEW OF SERVICES REQUESTED ................................ ................................ ............... 7 2.1 DESCRIPTION ................................ ................................ ................................ .............. 7 2.2 SCOPE OF WORK ......................................................................................................... 7 SECTION 3 - INFORMATION FOR PROPOSERS ................................ ................................ .................... 11 3.1 SOLICITATION DOCUMENTS ................................ ................................ ..................... 11 3.2 COUNTY CONTACT ................................ ................................ ................................ .... 11 3.3 CONTRACT FOR M ................................ ................................ ................................ ..... 11 3.4 EXPENSES INCURRED ................................ ................................ ................................ 11 3.5 OFFEROR INVESTIGATIONS ................................ ................................ ....................... 11 3.6 CHANGES AFTER SUBMISSION ................................ ................................ ................. 12 3.7 SUBMISSION CONFLICTS ................................ ................................ ........................... 12 3.8 CANCELLATION ................................ ................................ ................................ ......... 12 3.9 REJECTION ................................ ................................ ................................ ................ 12 3.10 ONLY ONE RESPONSE RECEIVED ................................ ................................ ............... 12 3.11 NO RESPONSE RECEIVED ................................ ................................ .......................... 12 3.12 ETHICS AND CONFLICT OF INTEREST STATEMENT ................................ ................... 12 3.13 QUALIFICATION OF PROPOSERS ................................ ................................ ............... 13 3.14 BUSINESS LICENSE ................................ ................................ ................................ .... 13 3.15 INSURANCE REQUIREMENTS ................................ ................................ .................... 13 3.16 CONTRACT AWARD IS IN THE BEST INTEREST ................................ .......................... 13 | Thurston County, Washington Consultant for Thurston 2045 - Thurston County's Periodic Comprehensive Plan Update 3.17 NONDISCRIMINATION ................................ ................................ .............................. 13 SECTION 4 - SUBMITTAL INFORMATION AND CONTENT ................................ ................................ .... 14 4.1 GENERAL SUBMITTAL STANDARDS ................................ ................................ .......... 14 4.2 SUBMITTAL PROCEDURES ................................ ................................ .......................... 14 4.3 SUBMITTAL CONTENT ................................ ................................ ............................... 15 SECTION 5 - EVALUATION AND SELECTION ................................ ................................ ....................... 19 5.1 INITIAL SCREENING OF SUBMITTALS ................................ ................................ ........ 19 5.2 EVALUATION CRITERA ................................ ................................ .............................. 19 5.3 EVALUATION PROCESS ................................ ................................ ............................. 20 5.4 SELECT ION AND NEGOTIATION ................................ ................................ ................ 20 5.5 BOARD APPROVAL AND CONTRACT EXECUTION ................................ ..................... 20 SECTION 6 - CONTRACT TERMS AND CONDITIONS ................................ ................................ ............ 22 SECTION 7 - FORMS ................................ ................................ ................................ ......................... 35 | Thurston County, Washington Consultant for Thurston 2045 - Thurston County's Periodic Comprehensive Plan Update REQUEST FOR PROPOSALSThurston County's Periodic Comprehensive Plan Update, "Thurston 2045" - Environmental Impact Statement, Comprehensive Plan Amendments, and Associated Implementing Development Professional Services Contract SECTION 1 - OVERVIEW OF SOLICITATION AND SCHEDU LE 1.1 PURPOSE AND OBJECTIVES Thurston County , Washington (hereafter "County") is located in the south end of Puget Sound in Washington State. The County is roughly 745 square miles, excluding water bodies, and has a population of more than 300,000 residents. The County is seeking a qualified consultant(s) interested in providing Professional Consulting S ervices to assist in the preparation of a mandated periodic update to its Comprehensive Plan. A State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) Draft and Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) is also a required part of this update and d esired part of the solicitation . Under Washington's Growth Management Act (RCW 36.70A), counties and cities are required to periodically conduct a review of their Comprehensive Plan and regulations to bring them in line with relevant changes to the GMA a nd to update goals and policies based on changes to land use and population growth. Thurston County is required under the Growth Management Act to conduct a periodic review of its Comprehensive Plan due by June 30, 2025. This update is being referred to as "Thurston 2045" and plans for growth in the County over the next 20 years while bringing the County's Comprehensive Plan up to date with new changes in state law. Professional consultant(s) assistance is being sought for the following related component s as part of the Comprehensive Plan Periodic Update: 1.A State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) Draft and Final Environmental Impact Statement .2.Draft Comprehensive Plan Amendments for the following sections:a. Update Housing Element in accordance with changes in state laws.b.Update Future Land Use Map and corresponding changes to Land Use E lement .c.Develop a new Climate Change Element in accordance with state guidance.3.Implementing Development Code Updates for Thurston County Code Titles:a.Titles 20, 21, 22, 2 3 - Update development regulations to implement changes asnecessary from Housing Element and changes in state law.b.Titles 20, 21, 22, 23 - Update development regulations to implement changes from FutureLand Use update and any procedural changes in quasi -judicial rezones.4.Technical Expert representative for public meetings .The County may, at its discretion, decide to hire directly from the list of qualified applicants generated by this RFP for all or portions of the tasks listed. Thurston County anticipat es this will be a multi -year project and contracting will be phased/executed in Spring of 2024, with contract amendments annually based on budget allocations through June 2025 . There may be an opportunity to extend a contract beyond | Thurston County, Washington Consultant for Thurston 2045 - Thurston County's Periodic Comprehensive Plan Update June 2025. 1.2 RFP SCHEDULE Following is the schedule for this RFP. The dates shown below that are preceded by an asterisk are tentative, provided for information only, and subject to change at the sole discretion of the County. November 3 , 202 3 Date RFP Issued December 1 , 2023 Submittals due no t later than 3:00 p.m. PDT December 1 , 202 3 Begin evaluation of submittals December 18 -22, 2023 Interviews, if deemed necessary* January 4 , 202 4 Consultant selected* January 23 , 202 4 Contract award* 1.3 PROCUREMENT NOTIFICATION This project is a formal competitive procurement and will be advertised in 'The Olympian' and is open to all qualified companies. All solicitation documents, including any addenda, are published on the County website at: https://www.thurstonco untywa.gov/RFP -RFQ-RFS-Opportunities . 1.4 BUDGET AND CONTRACT PERIOD The County anticipates the contract will be for a duration of approximately 2 years from late 2023 through mid -2025 . The County anticipates a ballpark budget of $910,000 for the services provided from 2023 to 2025 , allocated accordingly: *A minimum of $350,000 spent by June 30, 2024.*A minimum of $350,000 spent by June 30, 2025.*Additional $210,000 available over the contract period.Funding will be requested through the Cou nty's annual budget process to support this contract in addition to grant funding received from the Washington State Department of Commerce . The Washington State Department of Commerce grant funding for the Comprehensive Plan Periodic Update must be spent by state fiscal year (first half ending June 30, 2024 and second half ending June 30, 2025). Budget estimates should be broken down by half -year and tasks outlined in the scope of work and preliminary timeline. Final compensation will be negotiated betwe en the successful applicant(s) and Thurston County. There is no guarantee of work under this contract. In addition, the County reserves the right to solicit separate contracts with other consultants at its sole discretion. 1.5 MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS The follo wing are the minimum qualifications and licensing requirements that proposing firms must meet in order to submit a response to this RFP. Submittals must clearly show compliance to these minimum Proposals . Submittals that are not clearly responsive to these minimum qualifications shall be rejected by | Thurston County, Washington Consultant for Thurston 2045 - Thurston County's Periodic Comprehensive Plan Update the County without further consideration. 1. The proposing firm (s) must have a minimum of five (5) years' experience from the date of issuance of this RFP . 2. The proposing firm (s) must have a minimum of five (5) years' experience with government and/or municipal planning projects , and/or environmental review . (For proposing firms only submitting for a portion of work under this RFP, only project experience listed below that is relevant to the specific tasks the firm is responding to complete is necessary). A. The proposing firm must have experience and expertise completing municipal government comprehensive plan amendments. Experience in periodic comprehensive plan updates, land use planning, housing, and climate change matters are preferrable . B. The proposing fi rm must have experience and expertise in completing Washington State Environmental Policy Act work and environmental impact statements. 3. The designated project lead shall be a permanent, full -time employee of the proposing firm and have a minimum of five (5 ) years of experience either with the proposing firm or other firm or employment managing and providing similar services to those requested under this solicitation. Outstanding work may substitute. 4. The individuals of the proposing firm(s) assigned to the p roject must have relevant education and training in land use planning and/or environmental review . | Thurston County, Washington Consultant for Thurston 2045 - Thurston County's Periodic Comprehensive Plan Update SECTION 2 - OVERVIEW OF SERVICES REQUESTED 2.1 DESCRIPTION Under Washington's Growth Management Act (RCW 36.70A), counties and cities are required to periodically conduct a review of their Comprehensive Plan and regulations to bring them in line with relevant changes to the GMA and to update goals and policies bas ed on changes to land use and population growth. Thurston County is required under the Growth Management Act to conduct a periodic review of its Comprehensive Plan due by June 30, 2025. The scope of services is to provide Professional Consulting Services t o assist in the preparation of a mandated periodic update to its Comprehensive Plan. A State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) Draft and Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) is also part of this update. 2.2 SCOPE OF WORK The Scope of Work (SOW) includes tasks and activities staff have assumed are necessary to meet the objectives outlined above in section 1.1. There may be additional tasks that are identified as part of the scope/contract negotiations upon selection of a consultant team. For this RFP, the following key focus areas are assumed for the consultant(s) and are as follows: KEY TASK AREAS 1.A State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) Draft and Final Environmental Impact Statement.a.Audit all updates underway as part of the periodic update, including updates beingprepared by Thurston County staff that are not included in this scope of work.b.Prepare a draft State Environmental Policy Act EIS and include identification of three (3)alternatives, one of which is no action.c.Prepare a final State Environmental Policy Act EIS and include identification of three (3)alternatives, one of which is no action.2.Update Housing Element and development regulations in accordance with changes in statelaws.a.Note: Regional Housing Allocations are being c onducted through a separate process incoordination with the cities and Thurston Regional Planning Council.b.Audit of current Comprehensive Plan , Joint Plans and Subarea Plans (Grand Mound andNisqually) housing element s.c.Per RCW 36.70A.070(2) update, where appropriate, the County's housing elements forunincorporated areas to plan for and accommodate housing affordable to all economicsegments of the population of the state, consistent with new state guidance (HB 1220).d.Examine current Comprehensive Plan , Joint Plans, and Subarea Plans for housing policieswith racially disparate impacts, displacement, and exclusion, and recommend policies toaddress them.e.Audit current County development regulations for Thurston County Code Titles 20, 21,22, 23 related to recent changes in state law for the housing element.f.Develop implementing development regulations for Thurston County Code Titles 20, 21, | Thurston County, Washington Consultant for Thurston 2045 - Thurston County's Periodic Comprehensive Plan Update 22, 23 to implement changes as necessary from updated Housing Element and changes in state law. 3.Update Future Land Use Map and corresponding changes to Land Use Element anddevelopment regulations .a.Update Thurston County's future land use designations and map to serve as broad,general categories that multiple zoning districts may fit intob.Revise to background informa tion, goals, and policies to reflect new future land usedesignations in the Thurston County Comprehensive Plan , Joint Plans and Subarea Plans(Grand Mound and Nisqually).c.Audit current County development regulations for Thurston County Code Titles 20, 21,22, 23 for any changes needed to implement a revised Future Land Use map and processfor quasi -judicial rezones.d.Develop implementing development regulations for Thurston County Code Titles 20, 21,22, 23 to implement changes from Future Land Use updat e and any procedural changesin quasi -judicial rezones , including criteria for how and what quasi -judicial rezones will bereviewed by .e.Note: A new permit application and fee may need to be adopted as part of this update butreview and recommendations related to this is not part of the scope of work.4.Develop a new Climate Change Element in accordance with state guidance.a.Audit current Comprehensive Plan to review existing components related to climate.b.Develop a new climate e lement (either single new chapter with tie -ins to existingchapters, or across several existing chapters) with resilience and greenhouse gasemissions sub -element consistent with changes in state law (HB 1181) and draft stateguidance. This element will bu ild off of existing work in the Comprehensive Plan and theThurston Climate Mitigation Plan.c.Develop goals and policies for the element and sub -elements, and include policies thatmaximize economic, environmental, and social co -benefits and prioritize envi ronmentaljustice in order to avoid worsening environmental health disparities. Integrate goals andpolicies across other sections of Comprehensive Plan, as necessary.d.Climate studies related to the resiliency sub -element, which may include as determinednecessary:i.Identification and prioritization of climate hazards and impacts;ii.Identification of community assetsiii. Exposure and sensitivity analyses;iv. Climate Risk and Vulnerability Assessment for rural unincorporated county .e.Augment greenhouse gas inventory for rural unincorporated county, if necessary, toinclude Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) Modeling and Analysis and other metrics specific torural unincorporated county .5.Technical expert representative for public meetings.a.Consultant representative available at Planning Commission meetings on specific topic(s) | Thurston County, Washington Consultant for Thurston 2045 - Thurston County's Periodic Comprehensive Plan Update as outlined above ( mid to late 2024 ), Board of County Commissioner meetings (late 2024 -2025), and open houses as determined necessary to provide technical expertise, as needed, on specific topic(s) as outlined in the scope of work . i.Estimated between 20-30 hours.b.Consultant(s) to work with county staff on responses to elected official and advisoryboard questions requiring technical expertise .c.County staff will facilitate public outreach meetings, open houses, presentations ,Planning Commission meetings, Board of County Commissioner meetings, and relatedefforts.Project Deliverables *Draft State Environmental Policy Act EIS and include identification of three (3) alternatives, oneof which is no action (Sept. 2024)*Final State Environmental Policy Act EIS and include identification of three (3) alternativ es, one ofwhich is no action (Jan. 2025)*Draft comprehensive plan and development regulation amendments for Planning Commissionreview (January - June 2024 timeframe on a rolling basis by tasks )*Final draft comprehensive plan and development regulation amendments revised based onPlanning Commission and Board review (estimated Jan. - April 2025)*Participation in general open houses and public meetings with Planning Commission and Board ,as necessi tated by topic .Thurston County anticipates the following delegation of tasks and timeline for major deliverables associated with the periodic update. Below is a draft and subject to change. | Thurston County, Washington Consultant for Thurston 2045 - Thurston County's Periodic Comprehensive Plan Update TASKS RESPONSIBLE DEADLINE Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2Grant Application to State County Q3 2023 X XDevelop Scope of Work, PublicParticipation Plan, and Review Draft Checklists to Submit to StateCounty Q3 2023X XRFP Issued County Q4 2023 XContract(s) in Effect County Q1 2024 XDraft Amendments County/Consultant Q2 2024 XLand Use Element County Apr-24 X Incorporate Findings from Countywide Industrial Lands Study County Apr-24 X Future Land Use Change (sub task in Land Use Element) Consultant Apr-24 XNatural Resources Element County Apr-24 XHousing Element Consultant May-24 XCapital Facilities Element County Apr-24 XUtilities Element County Apr-24 XRural Element County Apr-24 XTransportation Element County/Consultant May-24 XPark & Recreation Element County Apr-24 XHistoric Element County Mar-24 XLand Use & Zoning Corrections (unrelated to Industrial or Housing) County Mar-24 XJoint Plan Updates for Rainier, Tenino County Apr-24 XDevelopment Regulation Changes County/Consultant May-24 XClimate Element Consultant May-24 XEconomic Element County Apr-24 XHealth Element County Apr-24 XAppendices County Apr-24 XNew Appendix - Implementation Plan County Apr-24 XDraft Maps County Q2 2024 XIncorporate Amendments into Plan County/Consultant Q2 2024 XPublic Outreach on Draft Changes County/Consultant Q2 2024 X XPublic Release of Draft Comprehensive Plan and Development Regulation Amendments County Q2 2024 X XPlanning Commission Review County/Consultant Q2 2024 X X XPlanning Commission Hearing County Q3 2024 XSEPA County/ConsultantDevelop Preliminary Alternatives for Draft EIS County Q4 2023 XEIS Scoping and Comment Period Consultant Q1 2024 XPublic Open Houses on Preliminary Alternatives County Q1 2024 XPlanning Commission Review on Preliminary Alternatives County/Consultant Q1 2024 XDraft EIS Consultant Q3 2024 XPublic Release of Draft EIS County Q3 2024 XFinal EIS Consultant Q1 2025 XPublic Release of Final EIS County Q1 2025 XCommerce Notice County Q1 2025 XBoCC Review County/Consultant Q3 2024 X X XBoCC Hearing County Q1 2025 XCommerce Notice County Q1 2025 XFinal Action by Resolution & Ordinance County Q2 2025 XFinal Noticing & Appeal Period County Q2 2025 X2023 2024 2025 | Thurston County, Washington Consultant for Thurston 2045 - Thurston County's Periodic Comprehensive Plan Update SECTION 3 - INFORMATION FOR PROPOSERS This section provides information and instructions for proposers responding to this solicitation. The County reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to reject the submittal of any proposer that fails to compl y with the instructions outlined herein. 3.1 SOLICITATION DOCUMENTS All solicitation documents, including any addenda, are published on the Thurston County website at: https://www.thurstoncountywa.gov/RFP -RFQ-RFS-Opportunities . 3.2 COUNTY CONTACT For submittal, please send to the county representative on page 1 and section 4.2 of this RFP. For questions about this RFP, please contact: Maya Teeple , Senior Planner Thurston County Community Planning and Economic Development Department 3000 Pacific Av e SE Olympia, WA 9850 1 Email: Maya.Teeple@co.thurston.wa.us 3.3 CONTRACT FORM This solicitation includes the County's standard Professional Consulting Services Contract in Section 6 in order to allow propos ers an opportunity to review the terms and conditions. A submittal in response to this solicitation shall constitute acknowledgement that the proposer has thoroughly examined and is familiar with this standard contract. Proposers must include and clearly d etail any exceptions, revisions, or additions to these contract terms and conditions in their submittal. The County shall negotiate with the successful proposer only those exceptions, revisions, or additions to the standard contract terms and conditions that were identified in the proposer's original submittal; however, the County does not guarantee its acce ptance of any such exceptions, revisions, or additions noted by a proposer. 3.4 EXPENSES INCURRED The County will not be responsible for any costs associated with participation in this RFP including, but not limited to, preparation, submission, or presentatio n; interviews, if held; negotiation process; and contract execution. All expenses related to the submittal are the sole responsibility of the proposer. 3.5 OFFEROR INVESTIGATIONS Each proposer is responsible for having determined the accuracy and/or completeness of the solicitation documents upon which it relied in making its submittal, and has an affirmative obligation to notify the County's contact person for this solicitation im mediately upon discovery of an apparent or suspected inaccuracy, error in, or omission of any pages, drawings, sections, or addenda whose omission from the documents was apparent from a reference or page numbering or other indication in the solicitation documents. | Thurston County, Washington Consultant for Thurston 2045 - Thurston County's Periodic Comprehensive Plan Update Prior to responding to this solicitation, each proposer shall make all investigations and examinations necessary to ascertain all conditions and requirements affecting the full performance of the contract and to verify any representations made b y the County that the proposer will rely upon. 3.6 CHANGES AFTER SUBMISSION Prior to the closing date and time, a proposer may make changes to its submittal through a written request to the County contact person for this solicitation, who shall allow the proposer to withdraw its sealed submittal for purposes of revising and resubm itting in accordance with the submission instructions outlined herein. No changes or resubmissions shall be made or allowed after the solicitation closes. 3.7 SUBMISSION CONFLICTS Each proposer is responsible for ensuring the accuracy and completeness of it s submission. In the event of any conflicts in content between the original, copies, and the electronic versions of the submittal, the original submittal shall prevail. 3.8 CANCELLATION This RFP may be cancelled at any time and all proposal s may be rejected in whole or in part if the County determined such action to be in the best interest of Thurston County. 3.9 REJECTION The County retains the right to reject any or all submittals for good cause and in particular, to reject a submittal not accompanied by any d ata required by the Request for Proposals or a submittal in any way that is materially incomplete or irregular. 3.10 ONLY ONE RESPONSE RECEIVED In the event only a single responsive proposal is received, the County reserves the right to conduct an analysis of all evaluation criteria submitted in such proposal . The sole proposer shall provide such information, data, and other documentation as deemed necessary for analysis. The County reserves the right to reject the submission. 3.11 NO RESPONSE RECEIVED In the event no responsive proposer is received by the due date and time, the County reserves the right to publish, in the same place and manner of the original RFP, an extension of the due date for receipt of proposals . 3.12 ETHICS AND CONFLICT OF INTEREST STATEMENT Proposers shall not directly or indirectly offer anything of value, including promotional items, to any County employee or official involved in this solicitation and subsequent procurement process. In addition, a proposer shall not have any business intere sts or a close family or domestic relationship with any County employee or official who is, or will be, involved in this solicitation process and subsequent contract award, including but not limited to: receiving or evaluating submittals; selecting or nego tiating with proposers; or drafting, signing, or administering the contract(s). | Thurston County, Washington Consultant for Thurston 2045 - Thurston County's Periodic Comprehensive Plan Update 3.13 QUALIFICATION OF PROPOSERS Each proposer may be required, before the award of any contract, to show to the complete satisfaction of the County that it has the necessary facilities, ability, insurance, and financial resources to comply with the contract and furnish the services, mate rials, or goods specified herein in a satisfactory manner. Each proposer may also be required to provide history and references that will enable the County to be satisfied as to the proposer's Proposals . Failure to meet the afore mentioned requirements may cause the County, at its sole discretion, to reject a proposer's submittal. 3.14 BUSINESS LICENSE Evidence of current license to do business in the State of Washington is not required at the time of submittal but shall be required of any firm engaged with t he County in negotiations and prior to contract execution. If the State of Washington has exempted the firm from state licensing (e.

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