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CONTRACT K-1920-92: A CONTRACT BY AND BETWEEN THE CITY OF NORMAN AND MAINSTREET ARCHITECTS INC., IN THE AMOUNT OF $49,500 TO PROVIDE PROFESSIONAL SERVICES TO RELATED TO THE UPDATE OF THE HISTORIC PRESERVATION GUIDELINES.
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BACKGROUND: On April 14, 1998, Council approved Contract K-9798-108 with the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO), thereby making Norman a member city in the Certified Local Governments (CLG) Program. The Certified Local Governments Program is part of the US Department of the Interior national program for the development and support of local historic preservation programs. The CLG Program allows member cities to apply for grant funds to be used for preservation projects within their community.
On July 9, 2019 Council accepted the $16,767 grant funds through a contract with the State Historic Preservation Office. As part of that grant acceptance, the City appropriated $35,000 in matching funds for the professional services of a consultant to update the City of Norman Historic Preservation Guidelines. A Request for Proposals for Updating the Historic Preservation Guidelines was issued September 24, 2019 with a submittal deadline of October 8, 2019. One proposal was received, from Mainstreet Architects, Incorporated out of San Antonio, Texas for $49,500.
DISCUSSION: Due to the lack of consultants within the state to provide such services it was expected that the prospective consultant would be traveling from out-of-state and given the limited budget of the project, the submittal of only one proposal was likely. Last year’s RFP for this same project, with a smaller budget, resulted in the same consultant being the only submittal, but with a cost estimate much larger than the established budget. In speaking with prospective consultants last year, at least two consultants stated it would be difficult to accept a project out-of-state for $50,000, due to travel expenses and the additional hours associated with travel.
Given the limited number of consultants available for this specific type of professional services, staff finds this applicant a good fit for the City’s need of updating its Historic Preservation Guidelines. Mainstreet Architects, Inc., has developed historic design guidelines for several communities in Texas and has a diverse background in architecture as well as history. In addition to their architectural and historic knowledge, they are able to provide graphic services to help make the updated historic preservation guidelines more user friendly through the use of illustrations and graphics.
Funds are available in Professional Services - Consultants (Account Org 2244009, Object 44009) $14,517 and (Account Org 10440380, Object 44003) $37,012.
RECOMMENDATION: Staff reviewed the attached contract with the Mainstreet Architects Inc, and recommends that Council approve Contract K-1920-92.