10-24-07 Council Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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MINUTES CITY COUNCIL OCTOBER 24, 2007 The foregoing resolution was duly seconded by McGraw. Ayes (4). Nays (1) Montour. Resolution declared adopted. REQUESTS The City Administrator noted the Council's recent adoption of fiscal FOR policies, and noted that part of those policies is to take Requests For PROPOSALS Proposals for professional services on a periodic basis. The Administrator reviewed the Finance Director's report dated October 18, 2007 recommending that RFP's be sought for legal and auditing services provided for 2008. The Director is proposing that RFP's for planning services be sought for 2009 and for engineering services in 2010. The Administrator felt it important to periodically take RFP's for professional services from an accountability standpoint. He noted that the City has a good relationship with each of its consultants and they provide great service. However, given the expenditure of public funds for these services, the City has to be accountable for those dollars. Keis suggested that the Council review the selection criteria. He noted that cost cannot be the only criteria when considering these types of services. The City Administrator agreed that with professional consulting services, the selection is not based on low bid. He did suggest, however, that one of the criteria may be a longer term contract in order to ensure that a consultant does not initially undercut the cost and raise prices substantially in subsequent years. The Administrator also indicated the City will want to know the specific principals that any consulting firm will assign to LitCle Canada to ensure that there is comfort level with the individuals working with the City. Blesener noted that the City's current consultant costs are a matter of public record and would be available to firms responding to the RFP. However, if these firms represent other cities, those costs will be a part of the public record so that Little Canada can compare those costs to the RFP. Blesener agreed that it was a good idea to do an RFP on a periodic basis to ensure the responsible expenditure of public funds. Blesener noted that conducting RFP's is in no way tied to consultant performance. McGraw agreed while this is not an easy thing to do, it is important to ensure fiscal responsibility. Blesener suggested that the timeframe was somewhat tight given the upcoming holidays. The City Administrator felt that the timeframe was workable. He indicated that he would prepare the RFP's and submit them to the Council for review and comment. The Administrator indicated that, 31