City of Portland Green Investment Fund Request for Proposals OSD 10-05 November 16, 2005 Pre-Application Conference: Tuesday, December 13, 2005 Applications due: Thursday, February 2, 2006 Dan Saltzman, Commissioner Susan Anderson, Director City of Portland Office of Sustainable Development G/Rated Green Building Program 721 NW 9th Ave, Suite 350 Portland OR 97209 503-823-7725 www.sustainableportland.org
The City of Portland requests proposals for innovative, high performance green building projects. Funded through the City of Portland s Green Investment Fund (GIF), this grant program is designed to help project teams evaluate and realize highly innovative and comprehensive green building concepts in commercial, residential, industrial and mixeduse building projects. The GIF is a partnership between the City of Portland's Office of Sustainable Development, Bureaus of Water and Environmental Services and the Energy Trust of Oregon. In the current round of funding, a total of $450,000 is available. The maximum grant amount for any project is $225,000. GIF grants are primarily intended to support project elements that examine the potential and identify the means to realize an exemplary, comprehensive green building project. GIF grants are secondarily intended to help offset the incremental hard costs of the green building measures or strategies that most strongly contribute to the building s ability to meet the GIF goals and priorities. Projects in conceptual or early pre-design phase are strongly encouraged to apply. Projects in more advanced phases, including existing buildings, that seek to significantly augment the building and site to meet the GIF goals and priorities are also welcome to apply. The following is the schedule for the RFP (subject to modification by OSD): Request for Proposals: November 16, 2005. Non-mandatory pre-application conference December 13, 2005. Applications due: 4:00 PM, February 2, 2006. GIF grant recipients notified: February 28, 2006. Eight (8) hard copies and one (1) digital version of the completed proposal must be submitted. Hard copy proposals shall plainly identify the subject of the proposal, the RFP number, and the name and address of the submitting person or organizations on the outside of the proposal. Seven (7) of the hard copies shall be bound or stapled and one (1) shall be unbound. Readily recyclable applications printed on recycled content paper are strongly encouraged. In the event of a discrepancy between the hard copy and electronic submissions, the hard copy will be considered the official proposal. Digital proposals must be in portable document format (.pdf) and may be sent on disc or via email to tmiller@ci.portland.or.us. Discs and hard copy applications may be sent to the Portland Office of Sustainable Development, 721 NW 9 th Avenue, Suite 350, Portland, OR 97209 c/o Terry Miller. 2
I. BACKGROUND In 1999, Portland City Council adopted the Green Building Initiative to promote resource-efficient, healthy building practices in Portland. Building on the City s history of balancing community development, growth management, and environmental stewardship, the Green Building Initiative articulated a strategy for improving the quality, cost effectiveness, and safety of the built environment while reducing stress on the natural environment. To accelerate the design and construction of resource efficient and healthy buildings throughout Portland, Commissioner Dan Saltzman and the Office of Sustainable Development developed the GIF in 2000 to support a wide range of green building projects and strategies. The GIF funded 74 projects between 2001 and 2004. In 2005, the GIF was recapitalized as a funding partnership between the City of Portland s Office of Sustainable Development, the Bureaus of Water and Environmental Services, and the Energy Trust of Oregon. The goal in creating the partnership was to increase the level of GIF grant funding available and to create a well-rounded grant source that more inherently encourages comprehensive approaches to green building and site development. The first round of the GIF as a partnership was launched in January 2005. Thirteen projects were awarded: 3 residential, 3 affordable housing, 4 commercial, 1 industrial, and 2 other. Brief descriptions can be found at: http://www.green-rated.org/gif.asp?pg=projects II. GIF GOALS & PRIORITIES The GIF seeks to support highly innovative and comprehensive projects that meet or exceed the performance conditions below, increase local green building competency, and are transferable to other projects in Portland and the region. Experience demonstrates that the extent to which a project can meet this end hinges largely on a well executed, comprehensive development process that includes purposeful predesign/design activities to inform design decisions that shape ultimate build out. The GIF s intent is to support early building and site-related project activities and partially offset the hard costs of the green building and site measures identified through these activities. The GIF seeks projects that will meet or exceed all of the conditions below (hereafter referred to as the GIF conditions ): Energy 50% or better performance beyond the Oregon Energy Code for any building type (i.e. new or existing, residential, commercial or industrial). Residential - Supply at least 60% of building's total energy use through onsite renewable energy systems. Commercial/Industrial - Supply at least 20% of building's total energy use through onsite renewable energy systems. 3
Materials Efficiency 100% construction & demolition waste recycling 30% materials-use reduction Design and construction practices that enable deconstructability and reuse of 80% of building materials Use of materials with recycled content such that the sum of post-consumer recycled content plus one-half of the post-industrial content constitutes at least 10% of total value of project materials. Use salvaged, refurbished or reused materials, products or furnishings for at least 5% of building materials (by cost). Design for easy and accessible garbage and recycling collection for building residents and tenants. Water Efficiency Zero potable water use for irrigation. Use 30% less water than the water use baseline calculated for the building (not including irrigation) after meeting the Energy Policy Act of 1992 fixture performance requirements. Stormwater Employ strategies that infiltrate, evaporate and/or transpire precipitation and stormwater runoff. The goal is to mimic the pre-lewis and Clark hydrologic site conditions (precipitation and stormwater harvested and reused on-site could be considered to meet the predevelopment condition). III. SCORING SYSTEM The GIF partners and review committee will score the proposals according to the following system. Quality of Proposal Clarity and completeness Concept Fit How well concept fits with GIF goals and priorities Process and Adequacy of Resources Capability of process and resources (or plan to acquire) to turn concept into built project Team Qualifications Capabilities and experience of project team Impact Potential Technical transferability to other projects and potential for market acceptance TOTAL 5 pts. 20 pts. 30 pts. 15 pts. 30 pts. 100 pts. IV. ELIGIBILITY The following eligibility requirements are intended to help potential applicants determine if their project is eligible for GIF funding. They need not be addressed explicitly in the 4
proposal, but the proposal as a whole should clearly indicate how the project addresses the GIF s priorities. Eligibility Requirements: The project concept achieves all of the GIF conditions. The project seeks to include building and site innovations previously not demonstrated in Portland. For projects in conceptual or pre-design phases: In addition to the requested GIF grant amount, the project currently has sufficient resources to support each phase s requisite activities to bring the project concept to fruition. If not, the project owner has experience demonstrating that it has the capacity, and an explicit plan, to acquire additional requisite resources. For projects beyond the pre-design phase: If awarded the full GIF grant amount requested, the project owner can demonstrate that it has sufficient resources to support each phase s requisite activities to bring the project concept to fruition. The project must be located within the city limits of Portland. The project site must be secured. Project teams with submitted plans to the Bureau of Development Services must remove their plans from the review process to augment the project according to their proposal if awarded a GIF grant. Applicants can be individuals, non-profit organizations, corporations, LLCs, or partnerships. Public agencies, including the City of Portland, are eligible. Joint applications and partnerships are encouraged. The proposal must include evidence that the project has resources and will be built. Projects must include funds and/or resources dedicated to innovation, technology or practice from a source other than the City of Portland or the Energy Trust of Oregon. GIF funded projects are not necessarily eligible for additional funding from the Energy Trust of Oregon and will be considered on a case by case basis by the Energy Trust of Oregon. V. PROPOSAL Intent The intent of the proposal is to: Articulate the project concept; Describe the specific pre-design and design activities for which a GIF grant is sought. Outline the development process by which the concept will be brought to fruition; and, Demonstrate how the GIF grant and other resources will be used at each phase of the development process to maximize their effectiveness. The project concept should demonstrate how it achieves, or strives to achieve, the GIF conditions. 5
Structure and Content Proposals shall follow the following structure and length. Maximum length of response and most relevant scoring categories are indicated. Requested drawings and plans must be on the same size paper (8½ x 11 ) as typed responses. Proposals shall not exceed ten (10) pages- eight (8) for typed responses and two (2) for drawings and plans as indicated below. Applicant Information Maximum pages: ½ page Name Organization Mailing address Email address Phone number Requested GIF amount Project Information Indicate projected when relevant Maximum pages: ½ page Scoring categories: Impact potential, Concept fit Current project stage (e.g., concept, pre-design, etc.) Site location and address Building type (e.g., commercial, residential, mixed-use, industrial) Project size (total, footprint, and site) Project cost (hard and soft costs) Timeline and projected completion date Project Concept Maximum pages: 2 pages (1 page typed and 1 page of drawings/plans to facilitate GIF understanding of your project) Scoring categories: Concept fit, Impact potential Please describe your project concept and goals. In doing so, demonstrate how your project is innovative, comprehensive and addresses all of the GIF conditions. Resources Maximum pages: 1 page Scoring category: Process and adequacy of resources List your secured and anticipated funding sources, including the requested GIF grant amount. For anticipated funding sources, please provide a clear acquisition plan. Project Process, Activities, and Costs Maximum pages: 4 pages (3 pages typed and 1 page of drawings/plans to facilitate GIF understanding of your project) Scoring category: Process and adequacy of resources Describe the process that you will implement to turn the Project Concept into built form. Please include: 6
A detailed description of the concept, pre-design, and design activities for which GIF funding is sought. Explain their intended products and how these products will facilitate realization of your concept and the GIF conditions. Include itemized projected or actual costs. Any measures (e.g., materials, systems, etc.) currently projected to be included in the project or anticipated to be identified through early project activities towards which you may apply remaining GIF funding. Include itemized projected or actual costs. The non-gif project activities that will help achieve your concept and the GIF conditions. Explain the intended products of these activities and itemize the projected or actual and costs. How the Resources listed above will be leveraged to implement these activities and measures and execute the overall process. Transferability and Market Acceptance Maximum pages: 1 page Scoring category: Impact potential Describe how your project will advance the proposed approach and resultant green building measures. Project Team Maximum pages: 1 page Scoring category: Team qualifications List all project team members to include: Contact Information Role in this project Previous project experience that benefits this project VI. GIF PROCESS & REQUIREMENTS Pre-Application Conference A non-mandatory, informational pre-application conference will be held Tuesday, December 13, 2005 at 6:00pm in the Jean Vollum Natural Capital Center 2 nd Floor Conference Room, 721 NW 9 th Avenue. The intent of the pre-application conference is to provide a brief overview of this round of the GIF and answer questions regarding this RFP and the application process. The conference is not a venue for asking questions about what specific projects and/or measures may be eligible for a GIF grant. Attendees are expected to have read the RFP prior to the conference. Application Review Process One representative from each of the GIF partner organizations and a technical advisory committee (TAC) made up of local private-sector design and building industry representatives will review the proposals. Proposals will be evaluated based on their ability to meet the GIF goals and priorities and scored using the system described in Section III Scoring System. A short list of applicants may be asked for follow-up interviews and/or phone calls for further clarification of their proposal. 7
Grant Award Strategy The maximum potential grant amount is $225,000 per project. The TAC and partners have final discretion of the grant amounts and successful applicants are not guaranteed the full amount requested. The GIF grant will be awarded in three separate stages of the development process. The first payment amount is unrestricted and must apply to concept, pre-design, and design activities whose intent is to identify actual green building and site measures that facilitate realization of the proposed concept and all GIF conditions. The second and third payment will be a split of the remaining grant amount and apply to the incremental costs of the green building and site measures identified through pre-design and design activities. Total hard cost will be used when there is not a clear alternative measure. GIF hard cost-related measures require a minimum 50% cost share by the project owner. Contract Requirements & Deliverables The first payment is available upon the selected applicant s signature of a Letter of Agreement. The Letter of Agreement will outline the GIF requirements and explain the product to be delivered by the grantee at completion of the GIF-supported pre-design and/or design activities ( GIF Product 1 ). In general, the intent of GIF Product 1 is to explain the results of the GIF-supported pre-design and/or design activities and how those results will inform and be integrated into the project. The second payment will be remitted upon delivery of GIF Product 1 to the Office of Sustainable Development AND signature of Exhibit A, GIF Measures. Exhibit A GIF Measures will list the GIFeligible measures identified through early project activities that the applicant will integrate into the project. The third payment will be remitted upon verification of installation of the measures in Exhibit A. Summary Payment Amount Deliverables 1 Unrestricted Signed Letter of Agreement 2 Half of remaining grant amount GIF Product 1 & signed Exhibit A 3 Remaining grant amount Exhibit A measures verified as installed Monitoring and Verification The selected applicant agrees to allow at least one year of post-occupancy monitoring and verification ( M&V ) of the GIF-supported measures. The purpose of M&V is to facilitate and verify successful integration of the GIF-supported measures into the project and gather actual performance data. The Office of Sustainable Development will hire an M&V contractor who will develop an M&V methodology with input from the project owner and the GIF partners that will be contained in Exhibit B M&V Plan. The M&V contractor will maintain the requisite level of involvement with the project team throughout the development process to help ensure successful implementation of the M&V Plan. The M&V contractor will verify installation of the GIF measures in Exhibit A before OSD remits the third and final portion of the GIF grant. The Office of Sustainable Development will hire, manage, and compensate the M&V contractor. 8
Case Study The selected applicant will work with OSD to develop a case study at the completion of the project. The case study will draw from the original proposal, GIF Product 1, the project M&V report, interviews, and a final report form to be completed by the grantee. The case study will be featured on the G/Rated website (www.green-rated.org) and potentially other GIF partner websites. Other Considerations 1. Acceptance or Rejection of RFP Proposals The Office of Sustainable Development reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to reject any or all proposals when it is determined to be in the public interest to do so; to waive minor formalities to comply with the grant proposal requirements; or to modify, revise or otherwise cancel this RFP. The City of Portland will review each proposal received by the submission deadline. The purpose of the initial review will be to complete an overview of the various proposals. Based on the initial review, the City may determine that clarifications are needed in order to fully evaluate a proposal, as in the case where there are ambiguities or inconsistencies within a proposal. The City reserves the right, at any time during the evaluation process, to request clarification of any item in a Proposer s proposal or to request additional information necessary to properly evaluate a particular proposal Receipt and evaluation of proposals do not obligate the City to award a grant. This Request for Proposals does not obligate OSD to pay any costs incurred by any respondent in the submission of a proposal or in making necessary studies or designs for the preparation thereof, or for procuring or contracting for the services to be furnished under this request for proposal. 2. RFP Clarification/Interpretation Any clarification or interpretation of the RFP documents shall be issued in writing by OSD and distributed to firms and organizations OSD is aware have received the RFP. Oral instructions or information concerning the request for proposal given out by OSD managers, employees, or agents to prospective respondents shall not bind OSD. VII. CONTACT INFORMATION Please direct any questions or comments on this RFP to: Terry Miller Tel: 503-823-7418 G/Rated Green Building Program Coordinator Fax: 503-823-5311 Office of Sustainable Development E-mail: tmiller@ci.portland.or.us 721 NW 9th Ave, Suite 350 Portland, OR 97209 9