TITLE: Title
Request to Authorize the Town Manager to Approve a Contract Amendment Related to Professional Planning Services for the Implementation of a Town-wide Comprehensive Planning Process.
PURPOSE: The purpose of this item is for the Town Council to authorize the Town Manager to approve a contract amendment to extend the contract term and to increase the contracted amount for this project.
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DEPARTMENT: Town Manager, Planning, Finance
CONTACT INFORMATION: Patricia McGuire, Planning Director - 919-918-7327, pmcguire@townofcarrboro.org <mailto:pmcguire@townofcarrboro.org>; Richard White, Town Manager - 919-918-7315, rwhite@townofcarrboro.org <mailto:rwhite@townofcarrboro.org>; Arche McAdoo, Finance Director - 919-918-7439, amcadoo@townofcarrboro.org <mailto:amcadoo@townofcarrboro.org>
INFORMATION: On March 10, 2020, the Town Council authorized the Town Manager to negotiate a contract for professional planning services related to undertaking a Town-wide comprehensive Plan. The proposal submitted by Teska Associates, Inc., with the assistance of The Center for Neighborhood Technology and Lockamy Consulting Services, included a cost estimate of $180,451; the Town Manager was authorized to negotiate and award a contract up to $200,000. The contract was executed in early June 2020, for the originally estimated amount, with a completion date of January 31, 2022.
Proceeding with the process during the global pandemic required rethinking, reinventing, and adjusting nearly every aspect of the project’s engagement and additional costs have accrued to reach the desired level of engagement. These costs are associated with the extensive communications strategy developed to overcome challenges of conducting the plan during a global pandemic. Among other actions, the number of interviews was significantly increased (from 15 to over 60). Multiple, targeted group sessions with were held, issues and opportunities reports were completed for a number of plan topics, the affordable housing analysis was expanded to calculate the local demand, three versions of the draft plan were compiled for advisory board review, and much more. There is ample evidence of the success of these efforts, as the project has connected with over 1,300 individuals in over 3,500 touch points in the process to date. More information on engagement may be found in the public hearing draft of the plan, especially Chapter 2, Community Engagement, found at Full Plan no page numbers (teskaassociates.com) <https://www.teskaassociates.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/2-Engagement.pdf>. These efforts have also resulted in expending the original budget. Teska staff have estimated that up to approximately $40,000 will be needed to complete the project, allowing their continued participation in project meetings and the completion of the plan edits and its production.
The attached resolution includes an increase in the contract compensation not to exceed $230,000, in the event that some additional analyses or services are identified as the project wraps up. Some extension of the project schedule has been necessary as well. Extension of the contract term to January 31, 2023 will allow time for actions prior to and following adoption to complete the plan document.
FISCAL & STAFF IMPACT: Funds are available within the project budget to accommodate approval of this change.
RECOMMENDATION:r Staff recommends that the Board adopt the resolution (Attachment A) authorizing the Town Manager to approve a contract amendment with Teska that extends the contract term and increases the contracted amount for professional services.