On January 23, 2012, City Council approved the MET Transit Bus/Bench Advertising Concession Agreement with concessionaire, Blair Unlimited, for a five year term expiring on February 5, 2017.  Staff has been working on a Request for Proposal (RFP) package to advertise for this Concession Agreement for the next five year term.  Instead of trying to bid the contract during the end of year holidays, staff would like to extend the existing MET Transit Bus/Bench Advertising Concession Agreement for approximately two additional months to the end of March, 2017.  This will enhance the opportunities for interested parties to respond to the RFP for this concession opportunity after the New Year.  A copy of Amendment One is available for review at the City Clerks office.

City Council may:

• Approve, Amendment One to the MET Transit Bus/Bench Advertising Concession Agreement with the current concessionaire, Blair Unlimited, Inc., extending the term expiration date of February 5, 2017 to March 31, 2017; or
• Disapprove Amendment One to the MET Transit Bus/Bench Advertising Concession, possibly limiting the number of potential proposals that might look at this concession opportunity.

Staff estimates that this Amendment One to continue the existing Concession Agreement with Blair Unlimited to March 31, 2017 will generate an additional $20,000 to $22,000 of advertising revenue for MET Transit.  The annual revenue amounts have typically ranged from $130,000 to $140,000.

Staff recommends that City Council approve Amendment One to the MET Transit Bus/Bench Advertising Concession Agreement, extending the existing term approximately two (2) months to allow staff to properly complete the RFP process for the next five (5) year term.