Consider Tinklenberg Group Proposal for Professional Services Contract Extension

Purpose:
Consider a proposal from The Tinklenberg Group for an extension to an existing professional services contract.  The purpose of this contract is to advance and promote the construction of improvements within the Trunk Highway 10 corridor within the City, more specifically, to seek funding for the upgrading of BNSF impacted interchanges that occur along Highway 10.

Background:
The City has worked with the Tinklenberg Group for most of the past decade, with the most recent contract with the Tinklenberg Group was from August through December 2015.  This contract is attached as the "Previous" contract and work plan.  While the contractor has fulfilled the basic obligations of the contract, the Highway 10 Summit work is carried-over, and the regular check-ins to the Council have been made more specific (i.e., date specific) in the current language.

The City's past efforts in working with Mr. Tinklenberg have yielded a successful conclusion to the $35M Armstrong Project, which has been awarded several grant awards, including a $10M federal (TIGER) grant, a $10M state (CIMS) grant, a $8M bonding allocation from the state, and a $10.2M award from the Counties Transit Investment Board (CTIB), which fully funded the project.  Previously, the North Star Rail Station in Ramsey was also a successful effort.

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Attached is a proposal from The Tinklenberg Group entitled Proposed Extension of the Ramsey US Trunk Highway 10 Improvement Development Plan, dated January, 2016.  The proposal is intended to capitalize on the work begun under the 2015 phase of the City's US Trunk Highway 10 Improvement Development Plan and implement the strategies adopted in that plan.  It will continue the pursuit of federal, state and MnDOT funding opportunities necessary to construct additional improvements on US TH 10 within the City of Ramsey and will operate under the performance and reporting requirements established in the 2015 plan.  

The Tinklenberg proposal outlines a number of work plan elements to be performed over the next six months of the legislative session.  


 

The proposed fee is $5,400 per month, the total for the six-month contract being $32,400.  Funds would come from the City's Public Improvement Revolving Fund.

Staff recommends consideration of the proposed contract extension with the Tinklenberg Group for January through June 2016.   
The alternative direction the Council may take is NOT to approve the proposed contract, and to utilize staff and Council Members, or seek another consultant,  to perform the work.  Either alternative will result in a loss of momentum toward the accomplishment of the stated goals.  Consequently, continuation of the contract is recommended.
 

Discuss the consulting services proposal  with the The Tinklenberg Group for an additional six-month contract through the 2016 legislative session.  This item is currently scheduled for the Council consent agenda and should be removed from the consent agenda if the Council arrives at an alternate solution.