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HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem 3l - Zoning and Subdivision Code UpdateGG LI_9 F mco�oo.aica A�6ust 5, 1903 � STAFF REPORT Development Services Department DATE: June 3, 2014 TO: Mayor and City Council FROM: Jason Kruckeberg, Assistant City Manager /Development Services Director Jim Kasama, Community Development Administrator By: Lisa Flores, Planning Services Manager SUBJECT: PROFESSIONAL SERVICES AGREEMENT WITH MIG, INC. FOR THE ZONING AND SUBDIVISION CODE UPDATE PROJECT IN THE AMOUNT OF $159,705 Recommendation: Approve SUMMARY In Fiscal Year 2013 -14, the City Council approved the first half of a budget to provide a comprehensive update of the Zoning and Subdivision sections of the Municipal Code (Zoning and Subdivision Code). The general purpose of the work is to eliminate antiquated development standards, create a more user - friendly format, group the development - related regulations together and align them with their applicable section, modernize parking standards, and conduct an overall "clean -up." Importantly, this update will greatly assist applicants, residents, and the Planning Division in providing clear and consistent development standards, and an efficient, workable land use process. A total of $80,000 was budgeted in Fiscal Year 2013 -14 for this project, and a second installment of $80,000 is included in the Fiscal Year 2014 -15 budget for City Council consideration. It is recommended that the City Council authorize and direct the City Manager to execute a Professional Services Agreement with MIG, Inc. for the Zoning and Subdivision Code Update Project, in the amount of $159,705. BACKGROUND Much of the language and regulation within the Zoning and Subdivision Codes dates back many decades. Over the years, the City has amended the Zoning Code in a piecemeal fashion to address changing land use needs. This piecemeal approach was implemented to address key hot - button issues as they arose over time, and also because of a lack of funding dedicated to more comprehensive "clean ups ". In addition, land use laws are constantly changing at the state and regional levels. As a result, the current Codes are increasingly confusing, full of inconsistencies and "gray" areas, and not entirely compliant with current land use law. Currently, users must search between Professional Services Agreement with MIG, Inc. June 3, 2014 Page 2 of 4 sections, which can be challenging even for City Staff that are knowledgeable of the various sections of the Zoning Code. Also, the Codes do not sufficiently address the evolving nature of development and land use in Arcadia. This project will greatly assist applicants, residents, and the Planning Division in providing clear and consistent development standards that will be much more effective and efficient for Staff and the public. In Fiscal Year 2013 -14, the City Council budgeted a total of $80,000 to begin this project. This is viewed as the first half of the funding needed to truly update the Zoning and Subdivision Code. The second half of the funding for the project is included in this year's budget. DISCUSSION Updating the antiquated Zoning and Subdivision Code is a time - consuming project, and based on current workload, if handled by Staff alone, it would greatly impact the processing times on development cases and design review. As a result, to help the City successfully and efficiently accomplish its objectives, a scope of work was developed with the intent of retaining the services of a professional planning firm to perform the necessary updates. The general scope of work for the project is as follows: • Reorganize the Code into a user - friendly format • Update the Zoning and Subdivision Codes to implement General Plan policy • Modernize the list of permitted uses and centralize them within the document • Incorporate graphics and tables to clearly articulate complex development standards • Rewrite significant portions of the Code to be clear, concise, and easy to understand • Incorporate design standards into Code language • Update the sign regulations • Update the parking requirements • Incorporate sustainability objectives into the Code where feasible • Meet legal requirements and incorporate all recent changes to state law • Establish a more streamlined administrative review process that will assist applicants, but continue to provide for thorough review by staff; provide certainty in the land use process for applicants and residents • Encourage business - friendly regulations • Update the Zoning Map to achieve consistency with the General Plan land use map Requests- for - Proposals (RFP's) were solicited from nine (9) qualified planning firms in April 2014. Five (5) proposals were received, reviewed, and evaluated according to their ability, qualification, experience, past success, proposed team, and responsiveness to the RFP. The five proposals are as follows: Professional Services Agreement with MIG, Inc. June 3, 2014 Page 3 of 4 FIRM LOCATION FEE PMC Rancho Cordova $ 121,310 Civic Solutions San Juan Capistrano $122,123 MIG, Inc. Pasadena $165,145 Dyett & Bhatia San Francisco $183,160 PlaceWorks Berkeley /Los Angeles $199,746 Four of the five firms were interviewed. Civic Solutions was not included in the interview process because their proposal was deemed vague, and did not exhibit the tasks or understanding of the project necessary. Following the interview process, MIG, Inc. was selected as the best qualified firm with the best and most comprehensive proposal. The consultant team has updated more than 100 development codes, zoning ordinances, and similar programs for cities and counties throughout California. Although all the other three firms are qualified to complete the update, MIG, Inc. is recommended for this project based upon its successful track record for preparing similar zoning code updates, its strong commitment towards engaging key stakeholders in the planning process, and its staffing resources, which include two highly qualified project managers, who together have been involved in more code update programs than any other team interviewed. The interview and evaluation team was especially impressed by MIG Inc.'s commitment to tailoring their scope of work and products to meet the City's unique needs and objectives, and not proposing "boilerplate" solutions. In addition, MIG, Inc. was the only firm that "diagnosed" our current Zoning and Subdivision Codes as a part of their proposal, and developed a preliminary outline that reorganizes both codes and identifies deficiencies, recommends revisions, and reviews other sections of the Municipal Code that may need to be updated as well. There was one responsive proposal (from PMC) that came in at a lower cost than MIG Inc. PMC's proposal was considered, but was ultimately rejected because their proposal did not fully address several important issues related to the scope of work and did not offer the same breadth of work program proposed by MIG Inc. Equally as important, the majority of work program hours included in the PMC proposal were attributed to staff with less experience in managing similar projects. While this may have kept the overall base bid lower, it was concluded that allocation of hours to senior level staff with greater experience in the unique issues anticipated is extremely valuable. The other two bidders ( Dyett & Bhatia and Placeworks) were higher in overall proposal cost, and several critical team members were not local (Bay Area), which led to higher reimbursable travel expenses. While both of these proposals were solid, they offered nothing unique beyond what MIG Inc. offered, and the evaluation team could not justify the higher expense. For these reasons, MIG, Inc. was determined to be the most responsive bidder. While the original bid from MIG, Inc. was $165,145, through a negotiation process the final bid was reduced to $159,705 with no tasks being eliminated from the project. To keep costs down, City staff will take the lead in the public workshops, provide extensive support to the consultant, prepare the Professional Services Agreement with MIG, Inc. June 3, 2014 Page 4 of 4 environmental documentation for the project, and update the datasets for the Zoning Map. MIG, Inc. has estimated that this update will be completed by August of 2015. It is recommended that the City Council authorize and direct the City Manager to execute a Professional Services Agreement with MIG, Inc. ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS The California Environmental Quality Act ( "CEQA ") considers the adoption of or amendments to the Zoning and Subdivision Codes and Zoning Map a "project," and environmental review will be required. Because the updated Codes will implement land use policy from the recent General Plan Final Environmental Impact Report ( "FEIR "), an Addendum to the FEIR will be prepared. As a cost saving measure, the City's planning staff will process these documents. FISCAL IMPACT A budget of $80,000 was adopted in Fiscal Year 2013 -14 for this project. An additional $80,000 is proposed in the Fiscal Year 2014 -15, for a total budget of $160,000. The proposed project cost of $159,705 is within the budgeted amount. RECOMMENDATION It is recommended that the City Council authorize and direct the City Manager to execute a Professional Services Agreement with MIG, Inc. for the Zoning and Subdivision Code Update Project in the amount of $159,705. Approved- Dominic Lazza City Manager