AGENDA #11

MEMORANDUM

TO:                  Mayor and Town Council

FROM:            Mayor’s Committee to Review Consultant Proposals:

                        Council Member Evans

                        Council Member Strom

                        Council Member Ward

                        Council Member Wiggins

SUBJECT:            Review and Recommendation of Proposals

DATE:             July 5, 2000

This memorandum reports on discussions regarding selecting a consultant to work with the Council, Planning Board and Staff to revise the Development Ordinance.  This Committee recommends that the Council select Lane Kendig, inc., as the consultant to work on this project.

BACKGROUND

On May 8, 2000, the Council adopted a new Comprehensive Plan for Chapel Hill.  An important component of the implementation of that plan is revising Chapel Hill’s Development Ordinance.

On May 22, the Council adopted an ordinance allocating $100,000 to hire a consultant to work on a new draft Development Ordinance.  The Council also directed the Town Manager to issue a Request for Proposals, and asked Mayor Waldorf to appoint a committee of Council members to work with the Town Manager in bringing forward a recommendation for consultant selection. 

On May 30, a Request for Proposals was mailed to a list of planning consultants.  Approximately 150 requests were mailed.  The deadline for receipt of proposals was June 16, and we received six proposals. 

The six proposals came from the following firms:

1)      Duncan Associates, Austin, Texas

2)      HNTB, Scott Depot, West Virginia

3)      Lane Kendig, inc, Mundelein Illinois

4)      Freilich, Leitner, & Carlisle, Kansas City, Missouri

5)      Clarion Associates, Denver, Colorado

6)      Cox Company, Charlottesville, Virginia

Several of these firms proposed to team up with a second firm as well as part of their proposals.  A table is attached summarizing information about each proposal:  The firms that would be involved, the names of individuals who would be involved, along with staff comments summarizing the experience of each firm, the familiarity of each firm with Chapel Hill, and each firms approach to technology.  Also attached are excerpts from each of the proposals

DISCUSSION AND EVALUATION OF PROPOSALS

Following an initial discussion of each of the proposals, our Committee agreed that the strongest proposals were those offered by Clarion;  by Freilich, Leitner, Carlisle;  and by Lane Kendig.  These three firms were invited to come to Chapel Hill for interviews with the committee.

After review of the proposals, interviews, and discussions, the Committee arrived at the conclusion that the proposals offered by Freilich, Leitner, and Carlisle, and by Lane Kendig, inc., were best suited to the specific task of revising Chapel Hill’s Development Ordinance.  The Committee believes that both of these consultant teams could do an excellent job on this project.  Both teams are made up of top-echelon experts in the fields of land use planning, land use law, and growth management.  The proposals have different points of emphasis and strength.  Excerpts from each of these two proposals are attached.  We offer the following summary of what we believe to be the strengths of each:

Freilich, Leitner, & Carlisle:  This Kansas City firm has followed or been involved in key growth management initiatives nationally for years.  Their firm has prepared plans and ordinances for over 200 communities.  Mark White, a UNC alumnus who would take the lead for this project, is an attorney with a planning degree, has written extensively about growth management issues for the American Planning Association and other organizations, and has personally consulted with and written ordinances for numerous communities across the country.  References from previous clients are excellent.  The firm offers the possibility of proposing innovative regulatory approaches to the issues raised in Chapel Hill’s new Comprehensive Plan, with an emphasis on drafting regulations that would be legal, defensible, and reasonable under North Carolina law.  Mr. White is a member of the North Carolina Bar.  An example of an ordinance that was recently drafted by this firm can be viewed at the website of Suffolk, Virginia:  www.suffolk.va.us. Lane Kendig, inc.:  This Illinois firm proposes to team with Robinson & Cole from Hartford, Connecticut.  The two principals involved in the project would be Lane Kendig and Dwight Merriam, two nationally recognized experts in the fields of development regulation and land use law.  Mr. Kendig is a planner and was the author of Performance Zoning, a key planning text in 1980 upon which many communities’ development regulations (including Chapel Hill’s) were based.  Mr. Merriam is an attorney and has also written extensively (most recent publications include a book on the “takings” issue, and another on inclusionary zoning).  Mr. Merriam has consulted extensively with both local governments and developers on a variety of regulatory and growth management topics.  A key feature of this proposal is a product developed by Mr. Kendig called “Computerized Zoning Ordinance.”  This tool has offered local governments the opportunity to write zoning regulations that are fully interactive and web-based, with topic areas linked, user-oriented search features, and links to the community’s zoning maps.  An example of an ordinance that was recently drafted by this firm can be found at the website of New Castle County, Delaware:  www.co.new-castle.de.us/CZO.

In addition, we note that David Owens of the UNC Institute of Government has offered to review drafts of documents that our consultant prepares, to be able to double-check for consistency with North Carolina law.  Mr. Owens has offered to perform this service for Chapel Hill regardless of which consultant is selected.  We are grateful for this offer, and believe it would be wise to ask for such review at key points in our process.

RECOMMENDATION

We believe that either of these firms would produce an excellent, innovative, customized Development Ordinance for Chapel Hill that would address the goals of the Comprehensive Plan and be legally defensible.  On balance, we believe that the combination offered by Lane Kendig, inc., of exceptional background on land use law nationally, and a proven product that will blend ideas with technology to yield a state-of-the-art computerized Development Ordinance, argue for selection of this firm.

We agree to recommend that the Council adopt the attached resolution, selecting the firm of Lane Kendig, inc. for preparation of Chapel Hill’s new Development Ordinance.  The resolution selects this firm, and directs the Town Manager to negotiate a specific scope of work and contract for the Council’s consideration in August.

ATTACHMENTS

1.            Excerpts from Proposals

A RESOLUTION SELECTING A CONSULTANT FOR REVISION OF CHAPEL HILL’S COMPREHENSIVE PLAN (2000-07-05/R-11)

WHEREAS, the Chapel Hill Town Council adopted a new Comprehensive Plan on May 8, 2000;  and

WHEREAS, a key step in implementing that Comprehensive Plan is revision of Chapel Hill’s Development Ordinance;  and

WHEREAS, the Town has sought proposals for consultant services to assist in this revision, and has reviewed and evaluated those proposals;  and

WHEREAS, the Council concludes that the proposal offered by Lane Kendig, inc., would best match the Council’s objectives in revising the Development Ordinance;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Council selects the firm of Lane Kendig, inc. for purposes of contracting for services related to revising Chapel Hill’s Development Ordinance.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Council directs the Town Manager to negotiate a specific scope of work and contract with Lane Kendig, inc., and to bring a scope of work and contract to the Council for consideration in August, 2000.

This the 5^th day of July, 2000.