Authorize Interim City Engineer Contract

With the recent resignation of the City Engineer position, and the Public Works reorganization, there will be a void in coverage of some of the engineering duties while the City Engineer position is filled.  The job has been advertised, and is scheduled to close in mid July.  It is estimated that it will take approximately 3 months to fill this position, and in the interim staff has solicited proposals from three consulting firms that are currently in the City's engineering pool.  Attached are the proposals received from Bolton & Menk, Hakanson Anderson, and WSB & Associates.

The request was to provide up to forty hours of coverage at City Hall during the work week, including attendance at City Council/Planning Commission meetings (as necessary), to cover daily oversight of the engineering department and respond to citizen questions/concerns and developer requests.  The proposals received referenced four to five days of office time at City Hall, with some flexibility on the fifth day to perform other consulting duties outside of City of Ramsey business.  The intent being that the City Administrator would have to manage the time of the consultant such that adequate time would be available to cover the required evening meetings.

The City Engineer has reviewed these proposals with the City Administrator, with the goal of making the transition on the front and back end as smooth as possible.  With that said, we are proposing to fill the interim City Engineer position with Hakanson Anderson.  There proposal was slightly more expensive with the monthly stipend, but due to their knowledge of the City and regular interaction with City staff it was felt that they would provide the smoothest transition.  They were also covering all regular duties for the City under this stipend, whereas some of the other proposals called for direct billable time on development review projects.

Should additional services be required, beyond the scope of the interim City Engineer proposal, they would be providing an updated scope and costs for those services and the City Council would determine whether they would like to authorize the work.  Those additional services could also be scoped through the existing consulting pool to receive additional proposals.

Staff recommends accepting the Hakanson Anderson proposal for the interim City Engineer position.

Funding for this interim position would be from the City Engineer salary that is being vacated.

Motion to accept the Hakanson Anderson proposal and appoint them as the interim City Engineer.