RFP MCR planning grant
CITY OF KALISPELL
REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS
Montana Community Reinvestment Plan Act Grant
Public Outreach to Implement the Montana Land Use Planning Act
1. INTRODUCTION
The City of Kalispell (“the City”) was awarded a Montana Department of Commerce (“MDOC”) Montana
Community Reinvestment Plan Act Planning Grant (“MCR grant”) in the amount of $30,000. The City of
Kalispell, led by Mayor Johnson, is committed to furthering public involvement in the development of a new
land use plan for the City of Kalispell and the grant is intended to contribute to that outreach. Responses to
this Request for Proposal (“RFP”) will be used to identify qualified consultants to support the City’s efforts.
2. BACKGROUND
In the 2023 legislative session, the Montana legislature adopted the Montana Land Use Planning Act
(“MLUPA”) which requires certain cities in the state to adopt a new land use plan as part of a restructured
statutory scheme relating to land use decisions. The establishment of the plan would include extensive public
input pursuant to a public participation plan which the City has adopted. The MCR grant provides funding
to the City for assistance in obtaining a public relations contractor in order to help facilitate public
involvement. The contractor would help ensure that stakeholders and residents are kept abreast of important
details and updates throughout the land use plan development over the course of eight months or more.
3. GENERAL INFORMATION
Pursuant to the authority granted to it under MCA 7-5-4301(2)(a)., the City of Kalispell seeks to procure a
qualified professional public relations firm (“professional service provider”) to provide assistance in public
outreach efforts relating to MLUPA and the City’s land use plan.
The Proposal must be received by the City Clerk at 201 First Avenue East, Kalispell, Montana, by 3:00
p.m. local time, November 19, 2024.
Questions pertaining to the selection process should be directed to PJ Sorensen, Assistant Director of
Development Services, at (406) 758-7732 or psorensen@kalispell.com.
The City of Kalispell shall not be held responsible for any oral instructions. Any changes to this Request
for Proposals (RFP) will be in the form of an addendum, which will be furnished to all registered RFP
holders.
The City of Kalispell reserves the right to reject any or all Proposals, to waive any informality or irregularity
in any Proposal received, and to be the sole judge of the merits of the Proposals received.
A pre‐submittal conference for the RFP will be held at 201 First Avenue East, Kalispell, MT on November
12, 2024, at 3:30 p.m. City staff will discuss the scope of work, general contract issues, and respond to
questions from the attendees. Staff will not be available to respond to individual inquiries regarding the
project scope outside of this pre‐submittal conference, attendance at this pre‐submittal conference is highly
recommended. A summary of Q & A from the pre-submittal conference will be posted on the City of
Kalispell, Development Services website.
The Service Provider will be selected on the basis of demonstrated competence and qualification for the
type of services required, and thereafter the City will negotiate the services agreement with what it deems
to be the most qualified company.
4. GENERAL RFP REQUIREMENTS
Ability to Communicate with the Public. The primary role for the Service Provider will be to effectively
and efficiently assist the City with public outreach relating to the development of a proposed new land use
plan required under MLUPA, including creating product branding. Outreach will include both educating
the public and providing a vehicle for receiving public input. Specific methods of outreach should reflect
the City’s public participation plan, but may include other approaches as well.
5. SERVICES REQUIRED
After being selected, the Professional Service Provider will execute a services agreement with the City to
provide the scope of work set forth below. The Professional Service Provider and the City shall negotiate
the exact scope of work after the selection.
6. ACTION PLAN SCHEDULE
Milestone Schedule Date
Selection of Professional Service Provider November 26, 2024
Contract Award December 2, 2024
Project Closeout May 31, 2026
6. BUDGET
The City of Kalispell applied for and received the MCR grant from the Montana State Department of
Commerce in the amount of $30,000, with the City matching 20% with in-kind services.
7. PROPOSAL SELECTION CRITERIA
The Professional Service Provider will be selected through a qualification‐based selection process. Firms
interested in providing requested scope of services to the City of Kalispell must submit a Proposal that
addresses the following evaluation criteria. Applicants are encouraged to organize their submissions in such
a way as to follow the general evaluation criteria listed below. Information included within the Proposal
may be used to evaluate your firm as part of any criteria regardless of where that information is found
within the Proposal. Information obtained from the Proposal and from any other relevant source may be
used in the evaluation and selection process. The proposal shall at a minimum include the following:
(1) Cover Letter (1‐page) containing at a minimum: Company name, contact name, physical and email
address.
(2) General Information
1. Description of company
2. Lead firm’s primary and secondary contact information
3. Legal company organization; organization chart with names
4. List of applicable Montana licenses
(3) Relevant Company Experience (15 points)
Describe the firm’s experience with similar projects. For each project, provide the following
information:
1. Key project staff members and their project role as it relates to transportation/corridor plan
updates.
2. Statement of experience relating to public relations and outreach, particularly as it related to
government-related projects.
(4) Public Participation (15 points)
1. Provide an outline of a public participation program detailing consultant’s plan for
supporting city staff in obtaining meaningful public input.
(5) Company Qualifications (10 points)
1. Describe the company’s history in the industry. Provide resumes of key personnel
and their availability to work on this project in Appendix A.
2. Briefly describe any certifications and licenses held by the company in the state of
Montana.
3. List and briefly describe the professional services the company provides to 3-5
other jurisdictions and the length of time the services have been provided.
4. Three to five referrals and references from the last six other municipalities or
local governments for which work was performed.
(6) Contract Understanding and Approach (10 points)
1. Describe your understanding of the current needs of the City of Kalispell for the
professional services being requested.
2. Identify and discuss any potential difficult issues your company may face in
providing services for the City of Kalispell and how you would mitigate these
difficulties.
3. Present a brief description of how the firm intends to organize and conduct the project.
4. Describe a proposed time schedule of work with key milestones and product deliveries.
The Proposal shall include a one‐page cover letter plus a maximum of ten (10) pages to address criteria
outlined above (excluding resumes). Covers, table of Contents and section divider pages do not count
toward the total page count.
Six copies of the Statement of Qualifications must be submitted to the City Clerk at 201 First Avenue
East, Kalispell, Montana, by 3:00 p.m. local time, November 19, 2024.
Failure to comply with the following criteria may be grounds for disqualification:
1. Receipt of submittal past the specified cut‐off date and time.
2. The number of originals and/or copies of the submittal specified.
3. Adherence to the maximum page criteria is critical; each page side (maximum 8 1/2” x 11”) with
criteria information will be counted. Pages that have photos, charts and graphs will be counted
towards the maximum number of pages.
8. SELECTION PROCESS AND SCHEDULE
A Project Evaluation Committee will evaluate each Proposal according to the above criteria, as well as
past performance evaluations, and select up to three finalists that will be Short Listed for the contract.
The Evaluation Committee will evaluate the Short List and select the top qualified firm. If more
information is required to select the top qualified firm, the Short List firms will meet with the Project
Evaluation Committee for interviews. The purpose of the interview will be to expand on the information
provided in the Proposal, not to repeat information already provided. Those firms selected for the Short
List will be provided additional instructions by the City. Those firms not selected for further
consideration will be notified.
The following tentative schedule has been prepared for this project. Firms interested in this project must be
available on the interview meeting date.
Pre‐submittal conference: November 12, 2024, at 3:30 p.m.
First Floor Conference Room-Kalispell City Hall
Proposal due: November 19, 2024, at 3:00 p.m.
Firms notified for interview: November 20, 2024
Interviews: November 21-26, 2024
Following the evaluation and interviews (if needed), the Project Evaluation Committee will determine a
ranking for each Short List firm based on the published criteria of this RFP. Consideration will be given to
both the written Statement of Qualifications and any oral presentations or interviews. No other factors or
criteria will be used in the qualification ranking.
The highest ranked firm will be recommended to the City Manager and City Council for contract award.
Requests for debriefings or selection decisions shall be made in writing to the City. All information
submitted by firms and related Project Evaluation Committee evaluations and rankings shall be considered
confidential until after contract execution and award by the City Council.
The City will enter into negotiations with the selected firm and execute a contract upon completion of
negotiations for the professional services for City Council approval. Contract negotiations will include, but
not necessarily be limited to the following elements: scope of work, project timetable, products of work,
and fees. If the City is unsuccessful in negotiating a contract with the highest ranked team, the City may
then negotiate with the second or third highest ranked team until a contract is executed. If the list of
preferred design firms is exhausted without a contract being awarded, the City may decide to terminate the
selection process or re-advertise.
The city will not reimburse any cost associated with the preparation, submittal, or presentation of any
Proposal. Consultant design firms are advised that in accordance with Montana law, any information
submitted may be subject to public inspection. Firms are further advised that, while the City is constrained
by budget for this work, the City does not consider cost proposals or estimates of fees in its evaluation of
qualifications.
Publication Dates: November 3, 2024
November 10, 2024
MCR Grant
Relevant Documents List
Public Participation Plan - Land-Use-Public-Participation-Plan –
(https://kalispell.com/DocumentCenter/View/7279/Land-Use-Public-Participation-Plan)