REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL NEW MARKET TAX CREDIT CONSULTANT SERVICES

Transcription

1 REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL NEW MARKET TAX CREDIT CONSULTANT SERVICES INTRODUCTION The City of South San Francisco seeks a consultant to provide professional services to assist with obtaining financing though the federal New Market Tax Credits (NMTC) program to fund developments in the City. The NMTC program, administered by the U.S. Department of the Treasury (Treasury), was created by the Community Renewal Tax Relief Act of 2000 to promote economic development in distressed areas. The program increases the amount of investment capital available to business and economic development programs through federal tax credits. Each year since 2002, tax credits from the Treasury s Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Fund have been competitively allocated for distribution to certain qualifying entities, known as Community Development Entities (CDEs). The CDE solicits private equity investments in exchange for a federal tax credit totaling 39% of the amount invested over seven years. These investments are then provided to a qualified active lowincome community business (QALICB), a corporation or partnership that sponsors projects within the economically disadvantaged areas. The City is seeking a qualified consultant to assist with the entire range of activities required to establish and fund NMTC financing including, but not limited to: advise the City whether to establish a Community Development Entity (CDE), advice on the process to establish a CDE, confirming a qualifying development project, establishing a QALICB, securing NMTC allocation from a CDE, marketing and placement of NMTC with investors, negotiating fees and terms of CDE and investors, preparing and reviewing NMTC financial arrangements, executing NMTC allocation agreements, and coordinating documentation of the transaction. SCOPE OF WORK The City of South San Francisco is seeking qualified consultants or firms to assist with a range of activities required to establish and fund New Market Tax Credits (NMTC) for developments in South San Francisco. The City is considering whether to establish a Community Development Entity (CDE), or partner with an existing CDE to pursue NMTC. Potentially both options may be pursued due to timing of projects. The consultant would be tasked with obtaining and securing NMTC financing for developments in South San Francisco. The consultant will perform the following functions and activities: 1. Conduct a Community Development Entity (CDE) study: advise the City whether to establish a CDE, and advise on the process to establish a CDE. 2. Identify Qualifying Low-Income Community Business(es): In order to be eligible for NMTC allocation, the City must identify businesses that can be designated QALICB for purposes of NMTC equity investment. The consultant shall assist with the preparation of documentation necessary to create this QALICB. The consultant shall also advise staff on how to mitigate

2 potential risks, liabilities, and responsibilities associated with the proposed QALICB, and confirm which development projects would qualify. 3. Obtain NMTC: The consultant must secure NMTC from a CDE that has sufficient NMTC remaining from a previous Treasury allocation cycle, to market and commit to investors. Responsibilities shall include structuring and reviewing the transaction, negotiating CDE fees and terms, as well as the investors pricing. 4. Coordinate overall documentation: All final documentation relating to the potential formation of a CDE and NMTC transaction will need to be coordinated between the consultant and the City. DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS The successful RFP submittal shall demonstrate that the consultant firm has the appropriate professional and technical background as well as access to adequate resources to fulfill the stated scope of services. Desirable experience, knowledge and skills may include, but is not limited to, the following: Demonstrated recent relevant and successful experience in NMTC transactions involving local government agencies and/or projects of comparable complexity. If subcontractors are proposed, the Proposer must have past experience working with the subcontractors in a similar capacity on projects of comparable complexity. Detail expertise related to NMTC regulations, eligibility requirements, application process, and financing transactions. Ability to secure NMTC from CDE and solicit private investors. Experience in successfully closing NMTC financing transactions for projects. PROPOSAL FORMAT Please limit proposal to 20 pages (not including staff resumes). Estimated price and terms for services should be provided separately. A breakdown listing each task under the scope of services should be placed in a sealed envelope marked Estimated Price & Terms for Services. Please address the following areas in your response: Description of the firm: structure, areas of expertise, time in business, number of employees and other data that helps to evaluate the firm, addresses of the main office and the office that will manage the project. Experience: Briefly describe five recent projects executed by the firm to demonstrate experience relevant to the proposal. List relevant public sector clients for whom you have performed similar work in the past five years. For each project listed, provide the name, address, and a contact name of the client s representative who can be contacted regarding your performance. Include the name of the lead firm in cases where you worked in partnership or in an auxiliary capacity. Please also include: o Project description and location o Description of project team, including subconsultants (if applicable), key personnel involved, including experience and qualifications. o Description of services provided o Total value of services provided

3 o Budget performance o Schedule performance, including time required to execute NMTC transaction Personnel: Provide professional resumes for the key people to be assigned. Include those of consultants and describe their relevant experience. Describe proposed responsibilities of key people. Identify the person who would be the primary contact point for the City. Provide an organizational chart of the project team. Provide a narrative description of how the firm proposes to execute the project. Descriptions of experience with similar projects that demonstrate effective work are welcome. Submit a statement on why you believe your firm is best qualified to carry out the project. o Describe how your firm would perform the function and activities in the scope of work and those listed below: CDE Study Identification of Qualifying Low-Income Community Business Obtain NMTC o Provide an estimated schedule, by month and task, of the planned progress of the project. o Describe how the firm would staff the project and provide an approach structured to ensure: Quality performance Cost control and ability to complete the project within scope, schedule and budget Responsiveness to City staff and project requirements Coordination between consultant and City staff An itemized cost of your services please provide an estimated price and terms for services, separately listing a breakdown of the scope of services. The City would prefer to engage a consultant on an hourly/accruing fee or a flat fee for all services leading to and including a NMTC submission, provided the fee is based on a reasonable estimation of the hourly requirements and reasonable hourly rates. All responses should address the following issues: 1. How long have you been in business and how many NMTC projects have you worked on? 2. Have you completed a NMTC project for a public agency and if so, which one(s)? 3. How familiar are you or your firm with the South San Francisco demographic? Describe any work you have done with an organization with similar demographics in the past. 4. What is the success rate of projects/organizations for which you have done NMTC proposals? 5. Please provide any vendor relationships you are proposing as part of this proposal. 6. Please discuss in your response how your CDE study would address the following: The City s real and perceived strengths and weaknesses Identification of potential projects and partnerships Identification of the amount of money that can be reasonably raised In addition to determining how much money can be raised, what other purposes does the study findings report serve? 7. What role would staff take in the CDE study and in a NMTC proposal(s)? How do you plan to communicate with the City? 8. Identification of any and all costs associated with managing the CDE and NMTC process.

4 TERM OF AGREEMENT The proposed contract for services shall have an original term of seven months to complete the CDE study and NMTC submission, until June 30, CONSULTANT SELECTION The following criteria will be used in evaluating responses: Professional Qualifications and demonstrated experience of individual(s) to be assigned Firm s experience and success working on similar projects Firm s or individual s understanding of socio-economic communities similar to South San Francisco Proposal s fit with South San Francisco s values and operations The City may or may not choose to conduct telephone, online or in person interviews. If in-person interviews are conducted, following proposal scoring, the top ranked firms or individuals, including the staff to be assigned to this campaign, will be expected to travel to South San Francisco at its/his/hers expense for an interview. The City will conduct a comprehensive evaluation of proposals received in response to this RFP. All proposals received will be reviewed and evaluated by a committee of qualified personnel. The firms will be evaluated based on professional qualifications necessary for the satisfactory performance of the services required and demonstrated competence that includes a proven track record of performing similar work. The skill and ability of the entity performing the services is a key component of the selection criteria. Cost will be only one factor in determining the selection, and as such, the contract might not be awarded to the lowest responsible firm. The City intends to enter into negotiations with the top-ranked firm. If successful negotiations cannot be achieved with the top-ranked firm, the City intends to negotiate with the second ranked firm. If successful negotiations cannot be achieved with the second ranked firm, the City intends to negotiate with the third ranked firm. Once a consultant is selected, staff will make a recommendation to the City Council. Final selection of a Consultant shall be at the sole discretion of the City Council. A copy of the City s Standard Consulting Agreement is attached. Consultants interested in proposing on this RFP should be prepared to enter into the agreement under the standard terms and should be able to provide the required insurance. RFP RESPONSES AND DUE DATE Proposals are due by 3:00 p.m. on Friday, November 3, 2017 to City Manager s Office, City of South San Francisco, 400 Grand Avenue, South San Francisco, CA Submissions received by the City of South San Francisco after the above stated time will not be considered. ed or faxed proposals will not be accepted. Five (5) copies of the proposal shall be submitted. The proposals regarding this RFP shall be addressed to: Deborah Gill, Special Projects Manager City Manager s Office

5 City of South San Francisco 400 Grand Avenue South San Francisco, CA Tentative dates for consultant interviews are the week of November 13, For questions regarding this RFP, please contact Deborah Gill at (650) , or at GENERAL REQUIREMENTS Consultants are advised to become familiar with all conditions, instructions, and specifications of this RFP. By submitting a proposal, Consultant represents and warrants that it has thoroughly examined and is familiar with work required under this RFP, that Consultant has conducted such additional investigation as it deems necessary and convenient, that Consultant is capable of providing the services requested by the City in a manner that meets the City s objectives and specifications as outlined in this RFP, and that Consultant has reviewed and inspected all materials submitted in response to this RFP. Once the consultant has been selected, a failure to have read the conditions, instructions, and specifications herein shall not be cause to alter the contract or for Consultant to request additional compensation. NON-DISCRIMINATION REQUIREMENT By submitting a proposal, the Consultant represents that it and its subsidiaries do not and will not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment on the basis of race, religion, sex, color, national origin, sexual orientation, ancestry, marital status, physical condition, pregnancy or pregnancy-related conditions, political affiliations or opinion, age, or medical condition. CONDITIONS OF PROPOSAL ACCEPTANCE This RFP does not commit the City to award a contract, to pay any costs incurred in the preparation of a proposal for this RFP, or to procure or contract for any services. The City reserves the right to: waive any minor irregularities or informalities contained within an RFP, request additional information from proposers, issue addenda to clarify or modify elements of this RFP, reject any or all proposals received as a result of this request, interview none, any or all proposers, negotiate with any qualified consultant, extend the due date for proposals, or to cancel the RFP in part or whole. All proposals and material submitted will become the property of the City of South San Francisco and will not be deemed confidential or proprietary. The City of South San Francisco reserves the right to award in whole or in part, by item or group of items, by section or geographic area, when such action serves the best interests of the City. The City and Consultant may agree to add additional areas to the contract by mutual agreement at a later date. The City may elect to stop work at any time in the contract and will pay for work completed to that point on a time and material basis.