Municipal Operations Zero Emissions Strategy

proposals will be received by the Purchasing Office in Room 4200, Lorraine H. Morton Civic Center, 2100 Ridge Avenue, Evanston, Illinois 60201, until 2:00 P.M. local time on January 31, 2020. Proposals shall cover the following: Municipal Operations Zero Emissions Strategy RFP Number: RFP 19-67 The City of Evanston’s Office of Sustainability is seeking proposals from experienced firms for: The development of a municipal operations wide strategy to transition the City and its energy consuming assets to a zero emissions standard by 2035. There will be a mandatory pre-proposal meeting January 9, 2020, at 9:30 a.m. in Room 2402 of the Lorraine H. Morton Civic Center, 2100 Ridge Avenue, Evanston, Illinois 60201. All firms intending to submit a proposal for this project are encouraged to attend to discuss the proposed work and receive answers to questions related to the project. The above item shall conform to the RFP on file in the Purchasing Office. The document, including all necessary

plans and specifications, will be available in the Purchasing Office on December 19, 2019. Parties interested in submitting a bid should contact the Purchasing Office to receive a copy of the bid or see the City’s website at: www.cityofevanston.org/business/bids-proposals/ or Demandstar at: www.demandstar.com. The City (the City of Evanston) in accordance with the laws of the State of Illinois, hereby notifies all firms that it will affirmatively ensure that the contract(s) entered into pursuant to this notice will be awarded to the successful firm without discrimination on the grounds of race, color, religion, sex, age, sexual orientation marital status, disability, familial status or national origin. The City of Evanston reserves the right to reject any or all submittals or to accept the submittal(s) deemed most advantageous to the City. The Evanston City Council also reserves the right to award the contract to an Evanston firm if that firm’s bid is within 5% of the low bid. Each Proposer shall be required to submit with his/her proposal a Disclosure of Ownership Interest Statement Form in accordance with Section 1-18-1 et seq. of the City Code. Failure to submit such information may result in the disqualification of such proposal. Jillian Ostman Purchasing Specialist http://www.cityofevanston.org/business/bids-proposals/ http://www.demandstar.com/ 4 Revised 10-14 (09-17) CITY OF EVANSTON Request for Proposal 1.0 INTRODUCTION The City is seeking proposals for the development of a municipal operations wide strategy to transition the City and its energy consuming assets to a zero emissions standard by 2035. Firms interested in submitting proposals should have experience with portfolio-wide analysis of greenhouse gas emissions reduction strategies, knowledge of municipal financing and procurement processes, and expertise in public sector building and infrastructure energy operations and management. Evanston has a longstanding history of climate action and taking steps to reduce the community’s impact on climate change dating back to 2005. In December, 2018 the Evanston City Council unanimously approved the City’s third climate action plan, the Climate Action and Resilience Plan (CARP). This plan sets numerous ambitious goals including achieving community-wide carbon neutrality by 2050 and a 35% reduction in community energy consumption by 2035. On the municipal side the plan calls for 100% renewable electricity by 2020 (we are not going to achieve this goal) and carbon neutrality by 2035 for municipal operations. The contract term desired is for a period of 6 months, with the option for two 3 month extensions. Contact with City personnel in connection with this RFP shall not be made other than as specified in this RFP Unauthorized contact of any City personnel may be cause for rejection of a proposal. Prior to the submittal of a proposal, Proposers are advised to carefully examine  the contract documents  project scope and work tasks to be accomplished  specifications  submittal requirements  insurance requirements and required documentation Proposers are advised to become thoroughly familiar with all conditions, instructions and specifications governing this RFP. Proposals shall be made in accordance with these instructions. Proposals shall be submitted on the forms provided by the City The City will not be liable in any way for any costs incurred by respondents in replying to this Request for Proposal. 2.0 SCOPE OF SERVICES In order to achieve the ambitious goals of Carbon Neutrality for Municipal Operations the City needs a strategy. The City does not currently have robust energy management experience and is completing our first comprehensive municipal greenhouse gas emissions inventory. The City is seeking guidance from https://www.cityofevanston.org/home/showdocument?id=45170 5 Revised 10-14 (09-17) a Firm interested and willing to participate in this cutting edge strategy development. The City recognizes that because this is new territory for the City that exact definitions related to carbon neutrality, zero emissions, zero energy and zero carbon will need to reviewed and finalized by the Firm at the beginning of strategy development. The City is seeking a Firm that can help educate the City on the various different approaches to transitioning to a carbon neutral municipal operation. The City expects the selected Firm to serve as a thought partner and to be interested and willing in exploring this new territory jointly. The City also expects to release the strategy publicly once completed as well as many of the process notes so that other communities may benefit from this project. In order to effectively communicate the scope of the project the City has provided a summary and attachments that better describe the City’s current portfolio of energy consuming assets. The City owns and maintains a robust portfolio of facilities and equipment to meet the needs of the Evanston community. This portfolio includes:  A drinking water treatment facility serving almost 500,000 residents  A library system operating three (soon to be four) facilities  An entire Parks, Recreation and Community Service Department with 7 major community centers throughout the City and numerous other smaller facilities  A street lighting system containing almost 6,000 street lights  Three small onsite rooftop solar systems sized at under 50 kw in total  Five separate fire station locations throughout the community  A municipal vehicle and equipment fleet that includes snow moving equipment, a full recycling truck fleet (10 vehicles), police squad cars, earth moving vehicles, forestry equipment, sewer cleaning vehicles, lawn care vehicles, a few passenger buses, etc. Detailed information on the City’s energy consumption and emissions can be found in the attachments to this RFP. The attachments to this RFP are:  Attachment A – Municipal Infrastructure Inventory  Attachment B – Summary Municipal Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory  Attachment C – Case Study Facilities  Attachment D – Energy Procurement Breakdown for Municipal Facilities  Attachment E – Fleet Summary 2.01 DEFINITIONS The City has pulled together these definitions as references and expects that through the course of this project the below definitions will be revised and perhaps new ones will be added to best align with the strategy created by the Firm. Carbon Neutrality - Carbon neutrality, or having a net zero carbon footprint, refers to achieving net zero carbon dioxide emissions by balancing carbon emissions with 6 Revised 10-14 (09-17) carbon removal (often through carbon offsetting) or simply eliminating carbon emissions altogether (the transition to a "post-carbon economy"). In Evanston, we want to achieve this by, primarily, focusing on eliminating carbon emissions altogether through use of renewable energy and eliminating use of fossil fuels such as vehicle fuel and natural gas. Climate Action and Resilience Plan(CARP) – The City of Evanston’s plan for carbon neutrality officially adopted by City Council resolution in December, 2018 making Evanston the first Illinois City with a carbon neutral and 100% electricity commitment. Embodied Carbon – The greenhouse gas emissions associated with the manufacturing and transportation of building materials and the construction and deconstruction process of a building’s lifecycle. Net Zero Emissions – A building or property that generates or offsets all energy consumed. Net Zero Energy Building - A building with zero net energy consumption, meaning the total amount of energy used by the building on an annual basis is equal to the amount of renewable energy created on the site, or in other definitions by renewable energy sources offsite. In some cases these buildings consequently contribute less overall greenhouse gas to the atmosphere during operations than similar non-ZNE buildings. They do at times consume non-renewable energy and produce greenhouse gases, but at other times reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas production elsewhere by the same amount. Net-zero Energy Ready Building - shall mean a building designed and constructed to be highly energy efficient. These buildings will achieve building performance that complies with the “Pittsburgh net-zero energy ready standard,” which is defined by the department of public works and can only be updated with approval from the Department of Planning and City Council. These buildings will be designed and constructed with the necessary infrastructure to receive a solar photovoltaic system or other carbon neutral energy generation technologies in the future. Achieving net zero energy ready will not require any form of building certification, but it will require proof of the building’s energy performance over the first 12 months of operation and occupancy, adjusted for annual weather variations. Zero Energy Building (ZEB) - An energy-efficient building where, on a source energy basis, the actual annual delivered energy is less than or equal to the on-site renewable exported energy. Zero Net Carbon (ZNC) - A highly energy efficient building that produces on-site, or procures, enough carbon-free renewable energy to meet building operations energy consumption annually. A ZNC building may meet its energy demands or offset its carbon-based energy consumption by the following:  Production of on-site renewable energy  Procurement of off-site renewable energy from local providers 7 Revised 10-14 (09-17) Zero-over-time (ZOT) - A zero-over-time (ZOT) approach sets building portfolios on a financially viable path to achieve net zero energy. The ZOT approach helps portfolio owners and managers right-time deep energy efficiency, renewable energy, and energy storage projects with life-cycle event triggers for investment. This approach was developed by the Rocky Mountain Institute and is tailored for commercial buildings specifically. 2.02 SCOPE The City of Evanston desires to develop an aggressive strategy for achieving deep reductions in greenhouse gas emissions from municipal operations. The City has set a goal of achieving carbon neutrality for municipal operations by 2035. Proposals in response to this RFP should be focused on greenhouse gas emissions from the Municipal Infrastructure Inventory (Attachment A). The City has allocated funds in the range of $50,000 for FY2020 to develop this strategy. The City is interested in proposals that include multiple “pathways’ to achieving carbon neutrality by 2035 in comparison with the business as usual scenario based on the data provided in the City’s Municipal Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory. This inventory is currently under development and not complete at the time this RFP was issued. The City’s priority is to quickly and aggressively reduce emissions in the most cost effective manner based on the following hierarchy from most preferred to least preferred: A. Prevention of energy consumption (down-sizing, retiring or eliminating energy consuming assets) B. Prevention of new fossil fuel infrastructure (no more natural gas, heating oil, etc. infrastructure is designed into new buildings) C. Reduction in source and site energy use through building design, retrofit and management to a highly energy efficient standard. D. Onsite generation (and storage) of renewable energy E. Procurement of offsite renewable energy F. Continued consumption of onsite fossil fuels with planned transition to non- fossil fuel systems The City recognizes the complexity in achieving such an ambitious standard by 2035 but also the need for accelerating action on the climate crisis. The City expects that the successful Firm will provide 3 “pathways” for the City in addition to the comparison of the business as usual scenario. In addition, the City is most concerned with achieving the carbon neutral standard for the entire portfolio of operations, not just individual properties. Ideally, the City would have each and every facility independently achieving a zero emissions standard. In the event that a facility is able to generate more renewable energy than it consumes that difference may be applied to other facilities in the City’s portfolio. 8 Revised 10-14 (09-17) The strategy must address new construction, facility procurement, leasing, rentals, and retrofits and renovations of existing facilities. Proposals must address all areas of the strategy, as outlined in this RFP. Firms are invited to respond to any and all of the alternates included. The strategy must include the following components: 1. Review of the City’s Municipal Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory, summary attached (Attachment B) to ensure it is compliant with the GPC BASIC Reporting Protocol. a. The City will provide the Municipal Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory, all source data and authorization for the Firm to verify source data with the City’s energy utility providers upon award of the contract. b. The Firm must review all data provided by the City and determine if the provided inventory is compliant with the GPC Basic Reporting Protocol. If the inventory is deemed to be non-compliant the Firm must identify the area(s) that are out of compliance. Once identified the Firm must support City staff through technical assistance in bringing the inventory into full compliance with the GPC BASIC Reporting Protocol. Technical assistance will not exceed twenty (20) hours of time spent actively coaching City staff via phone calls and/or in person interactions. c. This task will be determined to be complete once the Firm is able to verify the entire inventory is compliant with the GPC BASIC Reporting Protocol. 2. Using the data included in the Municipal Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory and supplement information included in Attachments A and E develop a strategy for transitioning existing municipal energy consuming assets to zero emissions by 2035 and develop design guidelines for new and/or renovated municipal assets to achieve that standard. a. This analysis must include standards for new construction, facility procurement, leasing, rentals, and retrofits and renovations of existing facilities. The analysis must include energy generation, storage and procurement as tools in achieving the standard, but may include additional innovative approaches. The analysis will immediately be used in project identification and prioritization for the City’s 2021 Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) and its 5-year rolling CIP Project forecast. b. Analysis of the City’s energy using assets and prioritization of recommendations for projects and asset types. This analysis should include 3 “paths” including the “business as usual” for comparative purposes. The analysis must include lifetime project cost and potential cost savings. c. Identification of financing and funding sources for projects. i. The City recognizes that in order to achieve carbon neutrality by 2035 the changes required will demand substantial upfront capital costs. In order to align any future capital changes with what is determined to be financeable and fundable the analysis 9 Revised 10-14 (09-17) and case studies must include recommendations on how to fund individual projects in the case studies but also large groups of projects together. Funding and financing recommendations may include green bonds, environmental impact bonds, new fees, alternative franchise agreements with utility providers, grants, loans, etc. d. The strategy shall account for the anticipated shift to a majority electric vehicle fleet by 2035 and that increased energy demand. 3. Conduct case studies for three (3) existing City facilities that will “map” out steps for transitioning those facilities to net zero emissions. The City has already identified the three (3) facilities for the case studies. Details on those facilities can be found in Attachment C. Case studies must include the following: a. Identification of each facility’s existing energy and GHG emissions performance in comparison to other similar types of public facilities operated similarly and in comparative climate zones. b. Evaluation of the each facility’s equipment, mechanical and structural components that influence building energy and emissions. c. 2035 performance goal aligned with carbon neutral goal for all municipal operations d. Itemized list of facility upgrades required to meet 2035 performance standard including: Recommended date of upgrade completion, cost of each upgrade, projected energy and emissions impact of each project and any alternative approaches with comparable impact. e. List of anticipated changes in maintenance and management for upgraded facilities. f. Estimated change in utility and maintenance costs over the lifetime of the building improvement(s). 4. Five (5) 2-hour educational workshops to deepen local expertise on how to implement actions within the strategy. a. The City requires that the Firm either directly or through the hiring of subcontractors provides five (5) in person educational workshops for up to 20 attendees on topics related to the design, construction and management of zero emissions facilities. Workshop attendees will be determined by the City and may include private property owners or managers. 5. Forty (40) hours of technical assistance and coaching on project implementation within 12 months of the final strategy submission to the City. This technical assistance may include providing feedback on CIP RFP language for projects launched by the City after the strategy has been completed. 2.03 ALTERNATES The City recognizes that in order to truly achieve carbon neutrality the City must look beyond “just” emissions derived from building energy consumption. If the budget allows the City is interested in also receiving technical analysis and feedback on how to transition the City’s existing fleet to zero emissions by 2035. 10 Revised 10-14 (09-17) Another area not included in the base bid strategy is the carbon accounting for the material used in buildings or embodied carbon of building materials. 1) Zero Emissions Fleet Analysis a. The City has a significant municipal fleet to support the robust services offered by the City’s eight departments. The fleet includes snow removal equipment, police cruisers, earth movers, sewer and water machinery, mowing equipment, sedans, parking enforcement vehicles and much more. b. The analysis shall, using information from Attachment D Fleet Summary, and any additional data such as fuel consumption reports, AVL database information, etc., create an evaluation of the existing municipal fleet and identify key transition strategies for the primary vehicle class types including review of both the on-road and off-road vehicles. c. See Attachment D Fleet Summary for details on the size and characteristics of the fleet. 2) Embodied Carbon Procurement a. The City does not currently have any emissions related procurement requirements for materials used in new building construction or renovations of existing facilities. In order to reach carbon neutrality, the City needs an understanding of how to prioritize and incorporate lower- carbon building and construction materials and processes. b. The Firm must develop and provide to the City a methodology for accounting for the greenhouse gas emissions impact of building materials used in municipal infrastructure projects. The proposed methodology should be based on research of the preferred industry standard methodologies for quantifying the embodied carbon savings at each step. c. Once the methodology is defined and accepted by the City the Firm will develop Embodied Carbon Procurement Language Recommendations that the City can use in contracts to direct designers and contractors to identify the most significant cost-effective opportunities to reduce the embodied carbon impacts of the project, whether it is through selecting certain materials, designing out waste, or through better design. 2.04 MEETINGS The successful Firm should expect to be in communication with the City on a bi- weekly basis if not more frequently based on needs of the project. The Firm shall also be prepared to attend three (3) public meetings to communicate various components of the contracted services. These meetings may be City Council meetings, public advisory board meetings or general community information sessions. 2.05 DELIVERABLES Base Bid 11 Revised 10-14 (09-17) 1) Develop a strategy for transitioning existing municipal assets to zero emissions by 2035 and develop design guidelines for new and/or renovated municipal assets to achieve that standard. 2) Review and verify the City’s Municipal Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory (Attachment B) to ensure it is compliant with the GPC BASIC Reporting Protocol. 3) Conduct case studies for In consultation with City of Evanston staff select three (3) existing City facilities to conduct case studies that will on to “map” out steps for transitioning those facilities to net zero emissions . 4) Conduct five (5) educational workshops to deepen local expertise on how to implement actions within the strategy. 5) Provide twenty (20) hours of technical assistance and coaching on project implementation within 12 months of the final strategy submission to the City. Alternates 1) Zero Emissions Fleet Analysis 2) Embodied Carbon Procurement Language Recommendations 2.06 PAYMENTS The City will release three equal payment installments to the Successful Firm based on the successful completion of each phase of the project. The Strategy will be broken into three separate phases: A. Phase 1: Data collection and verification B. Phase 2: Analysis and strategy C. Phase 3: Coaching, Workshops and Implementation 3.0 INSURANCE Consultant shall carry and maintain at its own cost with such companies as are reasonably acceptable to City all necessary liability insurance (which shall include as a minimum the requirements set forth below) during the term of this Agreement, for damages caused or contributed to by Consultant, and insuring Consultant against claims which may arise out of or result from Consultant’s performance or failure to perform the Services hereunder. The consultant must provide an insurance certificate naming the City of Evanston as an additional insured and will provide a variety of insurances including:  comprehensive general liability - $3,000,000 combined single limit for each occurrence for bodily injury and property damage – designating the City as Additional Insured  Workers Compensation - Statutory Limits 12 Revised 10-14 (09-17)  Automobile Liability - $1,000,000 per occurrence for all claims arising out of bodily injuries or death and property damages.  errors and omissions or professional liability insurance - $1,000,000 The surety and the insurance company must have not less than an A+ rating from the Alfred M. Best Co., Inc. and be approved by the City of Evanston. Consultant’s certificate of insurance shall contain a provision that the coverage afforded under the policy(s) will not be canceled or reduced without thirty (30) days prior written notice (hand delivered or registered mail) to City. 4.0 SUBMITTAL REQUIREMENTS Responses to this Request shall be in one volume. Any firm brochures and/or information pertaining to the qualifications of the firm and/or team may be submitted, but must be included in a single volume. Applicant firms must submit their responses in one of two ways: 1. Paper copies-- six (6) hardcopies, one (1) unbound original and an electronic copy on a flash/USB drive; or 2. Electronic response only—submitted in a sealed envelope on a flash/USB drive (with any paper bid bonds as required) Cut out and tape label included in this proposal package as Exhibit K (BID/Proposal Submittal Label). All submittals are to be placed in a sealed opaque envelope addressed to: The City of Evanston Purchasing Office, Room 4200, Lorraine H. Morton Civic Center, 2100 Ridge Avenue, Evanston, Illinois 60201; clearly marked on the OUTSIDE with the following:  RFP name and number  Name and address of Firm  Date and time of RFP deadline ANY PROPOSALS RECEIVED AFTER THE SUBMITTAL DEADLINE, WILL BE RETURNED TO THE PROPOSER UNOPENED. It is the sole responsibility of the proposer to insure that his or her proposal is delivered by the stated time. Mailed proposals which are delivered after the specified time will not be accepted regardless of post marked time on the envelope. THE CITY IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR MISDIRECTED PACKAGES. A. Cover Letter The cover letter will include the following:  introduction of firm signed by an authorized Principal of the firm  name of firm  address of firm  phone number of the firm submitting the proposal  include the name and signature of an authorized binding official who is authorized to answer questions regarding the firm’s proposal B. Qualifications and Experience of Firm and/or Team 13 Revised 10-14 (09-17)  All respondents shall describe other contracts (at least 2, but no more than 5) similar in scope, size or discipline to the required services described herein, performed or undertaken within the past five years.  The respondent must provide references, including name, address and telephone number of a contact person for each project identified and described.  Indicate commencement dates, duration and type of operation.  Provide a list of all Municipal clients in Illinois. C. Area/Regional Manager(s) Clearly identify the professional staff person(s) who would be assigned as your Area/Regional Manager(s) and provide resumes. The proposal should indicate the abilities, qualifications and experience of these individuals. D. Fees Provide a copy of your fees/prices using the format provided on the attached price/costs sheet (see page 20). E. Contract The City has attached its standard contract in Exhibit J (see page 33– Professional Services Agreement). Identify all exceptions to the agreement that would prevent your Firm from executing it. The City shall not consider or negotiate regarding exceptions submitted at any time after the submission of the Proposer’s response. 5.0 ADDITIONAL SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS There are no additional submittal requirements. 6.0 M/W/EBE GOALS The City has a goal of 25% of the contract amount for the participation and utilization of Minority-Owned, Women-Owned, and Evanston-based businesses (M/W/EBEs) in completing a portion of the services required by the City. All respondents must submit a statement of the proposed involvement of M/W/EBEs in completing a portion of the required services. Provide a copy of the certification for M/W/EBEs that will assist in achieving the M/W/EBE goal with your submittal as well as the appropriate M/W/EBE forms or Request for Waiver. Any questions regarding M/W/EBE compliance should be submitted in writing to Sharon A. Johnson, Business Workforce Compliance Coordinator at shjohnson@cityofevanston.org or Tammi Nunez Purchasing Manager at tnunez@cityofevanston.org. 7.0 EVALUATION CRITERIA The City will select the successful firm through an evaluation process based on the firm meeting the specifications which are outlined in this RFP. A review committee will review in detail all proposals that are received. During the evaluation process, the City may require a Proposer’s representative to answer questions with regard to mailto:shjohnson@cityofevanston.org mailto:tnunez@cityofevanston.org 14 Revised 10-14 (09-17) the proposal and/or make a formal presentation to the review committee. The review committee will make a recommendation to award the contract based on the criteria set forth below. This contract will be forwarded to the City Council for final approval. The evaluation criteria listed below will be used in the selection of the successful Proposer. A. Qualifications and Expertise B. Price C. Organization and Completeness of Proposal D. Willingness to Execute the City of Evanston’s Professional Services Agreement E. Ability to meet the City’s goals for Municipal Operations as set forth in the Climate Action and Resilience Plan (CARP) (p.8) F. MWEBE compliance goal 8.0 SELECTION PROCESS The City will select a firm on the basis of the responsiveness of the proposal to the RFP submittal requirements, the evaluation criteria stated above and the demonstrated willingness to execute an acceptable written contract. The City reserves the right to reject any or all proposals, and to request written clarification of proposals and supporting materials from the Proposer. While it is the intent of the City to award a single firm, the City reserves the right to award in part or in whole and to select multiple firms and/or individuals, depending on whichever decision is deemed to be most advantageous to the City. Responses may be rejected if the firm fails to perform any of the following: A. Adhere to one or more of the provisions established in this Request for Proposal. B. Demonstrate competence, experience, and the ability to provide the services described in this Request for Proposal. C. Submit a response on or before the deadline and complete all required forms. D. To fulfill a request for an oral presentation. E. To respond to a written request for additional information. Discussions and/or interviews may be conducted with responsible firms that have submitted proposals in order to clarify certain elements. All proposals shall be afforded fair and equal treatment with respect to any opportunity for clarification. In conducting discussion, there shall be no disclosure of information derived from proposals submitted by competing firms. The selection shall be done by the City’s review committee and will be recommended to the City Council for final approval. If the City is unable to reach any sort of agreement with the selected firm, the City will discontinue negotiations with the selected firm and begin negotiations with the firm ranked second and so on until agreement is reached. https://www.cityofevanston.org/home/showdocument?id=45170 15 Revised 10-14 (09-17) The firm to be recommended to the City Council will be the one whose proposal is determined to be the most advantageous to the City in consideration of price and all other evaluation factors which are set forth in this Request for Proposal No other factors or criteria not listed in this RFP shall be used in the evaluation. 9.0 PROPOSED SCHEDULE The tentative schedule for this RFP and project process is as follows: 1. RFP issued ..................................................... December 19, 2019 2. Mandatory Pre-Proposal Conference January 9, 2020 3. Last Day to submit questions ......................... January 17, 2020 4. Final Addendum Issued.................................. January 24, 2020 5. RFP Submission Due Date ............................ January 31, 2020 6. City Council Award of Contract ...................... February 24, 2020 7. Contract Effective ........................................... February 24, 2020 10.0 QUESTIONS REGARDING RFP All questions related to this RFP should be submitted in writing to Jillian Ostman, Purchasing Specialist at jostman@cityofevanston.org with a copy to Kumar Jensen, Chief Sustainability and Resilience Officer, at kjensen@cityofevanston.org. 11.0 GENERAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS A. Confidentiality In connection with this Agreement, City may provide Consultant with information to enable Consultant to render the Services hereunder, or Consultant may develop confidential information for City. Consultant agrees (i) to treat, and to obligate Consultant’s employees to treat, as secret and confidential all such information whether or not identified by City as confidential, (ii) not to disclose any such information or make available any reports, recommendations and /or conclusions which Consultant may make for City to any person, firm or corporation or use the same in any manner whatsoever without first obtaining City’s written approval, and (iii) not to disclose to City any information obtained by Consultant on a confidential basis from any third party unless Consultant shall have first received written permission from such third party to disclose such information. Pursuant to the Illinois Freedom of Information Act, 5 ILCS 140/7(2), records in the possession of others whom the City has contracted with to perform a governmental function are covered by the Act and subject to disclosure within limited statutory timeframes (five (5) working days with a possible five (5) working day extension). Upon notification from the City that it has received a Freedom of Information Act request that calls for records within the Consultant’s control, the Consultant shall promptly provide all requested records to the City so that the City may comply with the request within the required timeframe. The City and the Consultant shall cooperate to determine what records are subject to such a request and whether or not any exemptions to the disclosure of such records, or part thereof, is applicable. mailto:jostman@cityofevanston.org mailto:kjensen@cityofevanston.org 16 Revised 10-14 (09-17) The Purchasing Specialist will endeavor to advise the firm of any request for the disclosure of the material so marked with “TRADE SECRET”, “CONFIDENTIAL”, or “PROPRIETARY”, and give the firm or other submitting party the opportunity to seek a court order to protect such materials from disclosure. If the requested material was submitted by a party other than the firm, then the firm shall be solely responsible for notifying the submitting party of the request. The City’s sole responsibility is to notify the firm of the request for disclosure, and the City shall not be liable for any damages resulting out of such disclosure, whether such disclosure is deemed required by law, by an order of court or administrative agency, or occurs through inadvertence, mistake, negligence on the part of the City or its officers, or employees. B. Withdrawal of Proposal Proposals may be withdrawn prior to the submittal deadline. Withdrawal may be attained by written request; however, no offer can be withdrawn within the ninety (90) day period which occurs after the time is set for closing. Proposers who withdraw their proposals prior to the designated date and time may still submit another proposal if done in accordance with the proper time frame. C. Exceptions to Specifications Exceptions to these specifications shall be listed and explained on a separate page titled “Exceptions to Specifications”, which shall be prepared by the Proposer. This page shall then be attached to these documents and submitted at the same time as the proposal. Each exception must refer to the page number and paragraph to which it is relevant. The nature and reasoning of each exception shall be explained in its entirety. Any exceptions to these specifications may be cause for rejection of the proposal. D. Hold Harmless The contractor agrees to hold harmless the City of Evanston and all of its agents, servants, and employees against any and all lawsuits, claims, demands, liabilities, losses, and/or expenses; including court costs and attorneys’ fees on account of injury to any person, or any death resulting from such injury, or any damage to property which may have arisen from work specifically related to the contract and/or project. E. Addenda Any and all changes to these documents are valid only if they are included via written addendum to all respondents. Each respondent should acknowledge receipt of any addenda by indicating same in their proposal submission. Each respondent acknowledging receipt of any addenda is responsible for the contents of the addenda and any changes to the proposal therein. Failure to acknowledge any addenda may cause the proposal to be rejected. Addenda information is available over the internet at City of Evanston Notices & Documents or www.demandstar.com, or by contacting the Purchasing Office, 847-866-2935. F. Term https://www.cityofevanston.org/business/bids-proposals https://www.cityofevanston.org/business/bids-proposals https://network.demandstar.com/ 17 Revised 10-14 (09-17) The contract is for 6 months. The City may terminate a contract for either cause or convenience. G. Non-Appropriation of Funds The City of Evanston reserves the right to terminate in whole or in part of the contract in the event that insufficient funds to complete the contract are appropriated by Evanston City Council. H. Property of the City All discoveries and documents produced as a result of any service or project undertaken on behalf of the City of Evanston shall become the property of the City. I. Payment Terms The consultant shall submit invoices detailing the services provided, project, professional staff, and hours. Payment shall be made in accordance with the Local Government Prompt Payment Act. Please note that failure to provide a detailed invoice could result in delay of payment and include termination of any agreement. J. Disclosures and Potential Conflicts of Interest The City of Evanston’s Code of Ethics prohibits public officials or employees from performing or participating in an official act or action with regard to a transaction in which he has or knows he will thereafter acquire an interest for profit, without full public disclosure of such interest. This disclosure requirement extends to the spouse, children and grandchildren, and their spouses, parents and the parents of a spouse, and brothers and sisters and their spouses. To ensure full and fair consideration of all proposals, the City of Evanston requires all Proposers including owners or employees to investigate whether a potential or actual conflict of interest exists between the Proposer and the City of Evanston, its officials, and/or employees. If the Proposer discovers a potential or actual conflict of interest, the Proposer must disclose the conflict of interest in its proposal, identifying the name of the City of Evanston official or employee with whom the conflict may exist, the nature of the conflict of interest, and any other relevant information. The existence of a potential or actual conflict of interest does NOT, on its own, disqualify the disclosing Proposer from consideration. Information provided by Proposers in this regard will allow the City of Evanston to take appropriate measures to ensure the fairness of the proposal process. The City requires all Proposers to submit a certification, enclosed with this RFP, that the Proposer has conducted the appropriate investigation and disclosed all potential or actual conflicts of interest. K. Protests Any actual or prospective Proposer, who is aggrieved in connection with the solicitation or award of a contract, may protest to the Purchasing Office. The 18 Revised 10-14 (09-17) protest shall be submitted in writing within ten (10) calendar days after such aggrieved person knows or should have known of the facts giving rise thereto.  The Proposer shall submit any protests or claims regarding this solicitation to the Purchasing Office.  A pre-bid protest must be filed five (5) days before the bid opening or proposal submittal.  A pre-award protest must be filed no later than ten (10) days after the bid opening date or proposal deadline.  A post-award protest must be filed no later than ten (10) days after the award of the Contract. All claims by a Proposer against the City relating to a contract shall be submitted in writing to the Purchasing Specialist. The City will only consider protests that are properly and timely submitted. All protests or claims must set forth the name and address of the protester, the contract number, the grounds for the protest or claim, and the course of action that the protesting party desires the Purchasing Specialist to take. Statements shall be sworn and submitted under penalty of perjury. L. Authority To Resolve Protests And Contract Claims Protests: The Purchasing Specialist shall have the authority to consider and resolve a protest of an aggrieved Proposer, actual or prospective, concerning the solicitation or award of a contract. The City shall issue a written decision and that decision is final. Contract Claims: The Purchasing Specialist, after consulting with Corporation Counsel, shall have the authority to resolve contract claims, subject to the approval of the City Manager or City Council, as applicable, regarding any settlement that will result in a change order or contract modification. Each Proposer, by submitting a response to this RFP, expressly recognizes the limitations on its rights to protest provided in this Section and expressly waives all other rights and remedies and agrees that the decision on the protest is final and conclusive. If a Proposer disregards, disputes or does not follow the exclusive protest remedies provided in this Section, it shall indemnify and hold the City and its officers, employees, agents and consultants harmless from and against all liabilities, fees and costs, including legal and consultant fees and costs, and damages incurred or suffered as a result of such Proposer’s actions. Each Proposer, by submitting a response to this RFP, shall be deemed to have irrevocably and unconditionally agreed to this indemnity obligation. M. Litigation For purposes of this Section, the following terms are defined as follows: “issue” means any prior or pending litigation or investigation, either civil or criminal, or any governmental agency action or proceeding (the “issue”), which may affect the performance of the services to be rendered herein. For purposes 19 Revised 10-14 (09-17) of this Section, an “issue” shall also include any criminal, civil, or administrative penalty or finding imposed against any covered individual. An issue occurring within seven (7) years of the date preceding the date of the Proposer’s response shall be disclosed by the Proposer. “covered individual” means any principal, president, managing partner, or vice- president, affiliated in anyway with the Firm, and the Firm’s employees or subcontractors. All proposers shall identify and describe with particularity any issue. The City, and not Proposer, has the sole discretion to determine whether an issue may affect the performance of the services. Failure of any Proposer to comply with this mandatory obligation shall, at the City’s sole discretion, result in the Proposer’s response being deemed non-responsive and not responsible. Failure of any Proposer to comply with the obligation specified herein may result in the voiding any subsequent contract award to Proposer if the City discovers upon the exercise of its customary due diligence that Proposer failed to comply with the mandatory obligation in this Section. The City reserves all rights to take any other actions in the case of a Proposer’s non-compliance with this Section. N. Subcontractors If any firm submitting a proposal intends on subcontracting out all or any portion of the engagement, that fact, and the name of the proposed subcontracting firm(s) must be clearly disclosed in the proposal. Following the award of the contract, no additional subcontracting will be allowed without the prior written consent of the City of Evanston. O. Contact with City Personnel All Proposers are prohibited from making any contact with the City Manager, City Council, or any other official or employee of the City with regard to the Project, other than in the manner and to the person(s) designated herein. The Purchasing Specialist reserves the right to disqualify any Proposer found to have contacted City Personnel in any manner with regard to the Project. Additionally, if it is determined that the contact with City Personnel was in violation of any provision of 720 ILCS 5/33EE, the matter may be referred to the Cook County State’s Attorney for review and prosecution. P. Costs Incurred The City of Evanston assumes no responsibility or liability for costs incurred by the Proposer prior to the execution of a contract. This includes costs incurred by the Proposer as a result of preparing a response to this RFP. 20 Revised 10-14 (09-17) PRICE/COSTS SHEET Pricing for proposals must follow the below format. If prices are not broken out as directed the proposal will be deemed incomplete and may be disqualified from the selection process. Prices shall be broken down as a lump sum for each of the following areas. The Base Bid must have 5 separate lump sum prices submitted. If the Firm is submitting prices for the alternates one lump sum price must be included for each alternate submitted. Base Bid 1) Develop a strategy for transitioning existing municipal assets to zero emissions by 2035 and design guidelines for new and/or renovated municipal assets to achieve that same standard. 2) Review and verification of the City’s Municipal Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory (Attachment B) to ensure it is compliant with the GPC BASIC Reporting Protocol. 3) In consultation with City of Evanston staff select three (3) existing City facilities to conduct case studies on to “map” out steps for transitioning those facilities to net zero emissions. 4) Five (5) educational workshops to deepen local expertise on how to implement actions within the strategy. 5) Twenty (20) hours of technical assistance and coaching on project implementation within 12 months of the final strategy submission to the City. Alternates 1) Zero Emissions Fleet Analysis 2) Embodied Carbon Procurement Language Recommendations 21 Revised 10-14 (09-17)