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City Council

Agenda Request

Agenda Of:

10-27-09

Agenda Request No:

ii-e

Initiated By:

SuEllen Staggs

Responsible Department:

Utilities

Presented By:

SuEllen Staggs

Department Head:

SuEllen Staggs, Director of Utilities SMS initial

 

 

Additional Department. Head (s):

N/A

Subject / Proceeding:

Utility Contract Renewal Process

Review and Discuss

Exhibits:

N/A

Clearances

Approval

Legal:

N/A

Executive Director:

N/A

Purchasing:

N/A

Asst. City Manager:

Karen Daly  KD_initials

Budget:

N/A

City Manager:

Allen BogardINITIAL/for AB

Budget

Expenditure Required:  $

N/A

Current Budget:  $

N/A

Additional Funding:  $

N/A

Recommended Action

Review and discuss the renewal process for the two Utility Operations Contracts.

Executive Summary

The City currently has two utility operations contracts.  One is with the Brazos River Authority (BRA) for operations and maintenance of the two wastewater treatment plants.  The other is with Southwest Water Company (SWWC) for operations and maintenance of portions of the distribution and collection systems. Both five-year contracts will expire on September 30, 2010.  The FY10 budget for the BRA contract is $1,984,936 and for SWWC is $1,668,430.

 

To ensure a competitive process for the new contract timeframe, the Utilities Department is recommending following the same process used in 2005.  Procurement for utility services is considered under the health and safety exemption for competitive bidding which allows the City to modify the standard procurement process. 

 

Therefore, the following two-step process is proposed:

 

The first step will be to advertise and solicit a request for qualifications. This step will allow the City to pre-qualify firms based on specific criteria. Utilities staff will develop a detailed proposal with very specific defined services and service level standards and objectives.

 

The second step will be to solicit proposals from the pre-qualified firms. The proposals received are then judged solely on price. Although the firms are judged and the successful firm is chosen solely on the base price, the successful firm is allowed to submit alternative service options which can be used in the final negotiations of the contract. 

 

By following this two-step process, the City is assured of having a company capable of meeting the service level objectives at a competitive price.

 

Scope of services revisions are being recommended to improve performance and accountability on the wastewater treatment specifications; however, impact is rather minimal. The scope of services for water distribution and wastewater collection proposal will be modified. The revisions will result in less of a geographic split and more of a service based division. Additional revisions in language and scope of services will improve efficiencies and potentially reduce costs. 

 

The Utilities staff reviewed the recommended renewal process with the Council Audit & Finance Committee in September. The Utilities Department will review the upcoming contract process and contracting philosophy and receive feedback from the City Council. 

Exhibits

 

N/A