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AGENDA RECOMMENDATION |
Consent Calendar 6.L.
City Council Regular Meeting
- Meeting Date:
- 08/12/2024
Agenda Item:
Resolution authorizing the City Manager to enter into a Master Partnership Agreement for professional aviation architectural/engineering design and construction services for an Air Traffic Control Tower at the Mankato Regional Airport with EXP.
Recommendation/Action(s):
Adoption of the attached resolution.
Summary:
Any airport sponsor having received federal funding for their airport must adhere to FAA regulations. To comply with FAA regulations, staff solicited professional aviation services through a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) process. The qualification-based selection process staff utilized conforms to Change 1 of FAA Advisory Circular 150/5100-14E, Subject: Architectural, Engineering, and Planning Consultant Services for Airport Grant Projects, which was utilized to select the most qualified firm.
The RFQ for the ATCT design and construction services was released and published at the following places on the corresponding dates:
On May 21, 2024, a virtual/in-person pre-submittal conference was held at the Mankato Regional Airport conference room and via Microsoft Teams, where 21 people attended via Microsoft Teams and six signed the in-person attendance roster. At the meeting, staff gave a pre-submittal presentation giving an overview of the Mankato Regional Airport; the roadmap to an operational ATCT; current project status; ATCT selected sites and preferred site; Scope of Services; Statement of Qualifications (SOQ); Submission Guidelines; Timeline of RFQ Events; Scoring Criteria; Selection and Negotiation; Mandatory Disclosures; Mandatory Contract Provisions; and answered questions from participants.
On June 5, 2024, Addendum 1 was released in accordance with the RFQ timeline containing answers to 19 questions submitted by firms following the virtual/in-person pre-submittal conference.
SOQ’s were due on June 14, 2024, and the City received SOQ’s from the following firms:
On July 1, 2024, Addendum 2 was released extending the review period to July 10, 2024, and modifying the remaining RFQ schedule due to flooding in the Mankato area. To review the SOQ's submitted, staff assembled a review panel consisting of the Director of Public Works, the Associate Director of Transportation Planning Services, Assistant City Engineer, Facilities Manager, and the Vice President of North Star Aviation. The SOQ’s were to be scored in the following categories and weighting:
On July 10, 2024, at 1:00 PM, the review team met and discussed the merits of the five proposals before concluding that EXP and PAU would be placed on a short list of firms to be interviewed.
On July 12, 2024, notices were sent to PAU and EXP notifying them they were on the short list for selection and that staff would follow up the following week to schedule the interviews and NV5, Perkins&Will, and H?weler + Yoon were sent notices of non-selection.
On July 24, 2024, interviews were conducted with PAU and EXP in the airport conference room via Microsoft Teams with the same staff members who reviewed the SOQ’s and the group came to a consensus that EXP responded best to the RFQ and is most qualified to provide the needed professional services to design and oversee the construction of the ATCT.
There is no monetary commitment with this agreement yet, as staff and EXP will need to work with the FAA Regional Airports Division and District Office (ADO), Central Service Center, Terminal Engineering Center, and Contracting Office along with MnDOT Aeronautics to develop a scope of work that will need an Independent Fee Estimate (IFE) from a second consultant to compare with the fee from EXP in accordance with FAA Advisory Circular 150/5100-14E. If the fee is determined to be reasonable, staff will return to the Council with a professional services agreement to approve.
The RFQ for the ATCT design and construction services was released and published at the following places on the corresponding dates:
- City of Mankato website on April 29, 2024
- https://aaae.org on April 30, 2024
- https://airportscouncil on April 30, 2024
- Mankato Free Press on May 2, 2024
- Emailed to 22 consulting firms on May 2, 2024
On May 21, 2024, a virtual/in-person pre-submittal conference was held at the Mankato Regional Airport conference room and via Microsoft Teams, where 21 people attended via Microsoft Teams and six signed the in-person attendance roster. At the meeting, staff gave a pre-submittal presentation giving an overview of the Mankato Regional Airport; the roadmap to an operational ATCT; current project status; ATCT selected sites and preferred site; Scope of Services; Statement of Qualifications (SOQ); Submission Guidelines; Timeline of RFQ Events; Scoring Criteria; Selection and Negotiation; Mandatory Disclosures; Mandatory Contract Provisions; and answered questions from participants.
On June 5, 2024, Addendum 1 was released in accordance with the RFQ timeline containing answers to 19 questions submitted by firms following the virtual/in-person pre-submittal conference.
SOQ’s were due on June 14, 2024, and the City received SOQ’s from the following firms:
- Practice for Architecture and Urbanism (PAU)
- EXP
- NV5
- Perkins&Will
- Höweler + Yoon
On July 1, 2024, Addendum 2 was released extending the review period to July 10, 2024, and modifying the remaining RFQ schedule due to flooding in the Mankato area. To review the SOQ's submitted, staff assembled a review panel consisting of the Director of Public Works, the Associate Director of Transportation Planning Services, Assistant City Engineer, Facilities Manager, and the Vice President of North Star Aviation. The SOQ’s were to be scored in the following categories and weighting:
- Qualifications of the firm and key personnel (30%)
- Approach to Projects (20%)
- Experience on comparable projects (20%)
- Favorable references of similar size and scope airports (15%)
- Experience with state and federal grant programs (10%)
- Knowledge of airports (5%)
On July 10, 2024, at 1:00 PM, the review team met and discussed the merits of the five proposals before concluding that EXP and PAU would be placed on a short list of firms to be interviewed.
On July 12, 2024, notices were sent to PAU and EXP notifying them they were on the short list for selection and that staff would follow up the following week to schedule the interviews and NV5, Perkins&Will, and H?weler + Yoon were sent notices of non-selection.
On July 24, 2024, interviews were conducted with PAU and EXP in the airport conference room via Microsoft Teams with the same staff members who reviewed the SOQ’s and the group came to a consensus that EXP responded best to the RFQ and is most qualified to provide the needed professional services to design and oversee the construction of the ATCT.
There is no monetary commitment with this agreement yet, as staff and EXP will need to work with the FAA Regional Airports Division and District Office (ADO), Central Service Center, Terminal Engineering Center, and Contracting Office along with MnDOT Aeronautics to develop a scope of work that will need an Independent Fee Estimate (IFE) from a second consultant to compare with the fee from EXP in accordance with FAA Advisory Circular 150/5100-14E. If the fee is determined to be reasonable, staff will return to the Council with a professional services agreement to approve.