Unified Development Ordinance Request For Proposal
The Evansville-Vanderburgh County Area Plan Commission (APC) seeks proposals for a consultant (or team of consultants) to assist in the development and adoption of a Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) for the City of Evansville and Vanderburgh County. The UDO will be the primary source of land use regulations for both the City and the County, including both zoning and subdivision control ordinances. The UDO must be consistent with and complimentary to the 2015-2035 Evansville-Vanderburgh County Comprehensive Plan. The new UDO will express a progressive vision that promotes thoughtful growth and protects the health, safety, and welfare of the community along with the property rights and values of its citizens. In addition to the ordinances themselves, procedural rules must be developed and organized for codification and adoption by the APC and Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA). Interested parties must submit proposals electronically by Monday, June 8, 2018 at 4:00 PM Central Daylight Time (CDT)
The last major updates of the current zoning codes occurred in 1962; the subdivision control ordinances have not been substantially updated since 1984. Numerous amendments have been made to those ordinances on an ad hoc basis since the respective updates. The UDO will represent the first major overhaul of these ordinances and will correlate to and further the goals of the recently adopted 2015-2035 Comprehensive Plan. The City Council, County Commissioners, the Area Plan Commission and its staff, the development community and our citizens continually express concerns with the current ordinances. Many of the requirements in the current ordinances are unclear or obsolete and must be analyzed and rewritten with the inclusion of smart growth practices. The City and County wish to modernize its development regulations and address major issues such as:
- Awkward and confusing ordinance format and structure
- Separate codes for the City and the County with unnecessarily inconsistent provisions
- Unclear and sometimes contradictory language
- Standards or requirements which are difficult to meet or that result in excessive variances
- Outdated standards that do not reflect the community’s priorities and values in land use and development, public infrastructure, and property rights; nor are they tailored to reflect urban vs. suburban/rural settings
- Unused zoning districts
- Lack of graphics and illustrations
- Lack of sufficient and clear definitions
- Lack of detailed design guidelines and aesthetic criteria to address the zoning districts
- Lack of cross-references within sections, section headings, and a comprehensive index;
- Insufficient incorporation and encouragement of smart growth practices for long term sustainability
- Risk of inconsistent interpretation, application, and enforcement; codes must be re-written to minimize or eliminate any mistaken interpretations by any agency or governing body within the City and County governments, to ensure consistent understanding and enforcement by staff, and to prevent political bias
Existing Zoning Ordinances
City Zoning Ordinance | County Zoning Ordinance
Existing Subdivision Ordinances
City Subdivision Ordinance | County Subdivision Ordinance
2015-2035 Comprehensive Plan
Comprehensive Plan
All communications from interested parties during the response submittal process must be made to Ronald S. London, rlondon@evansvilleapc.com. Any questions regarding the RFP will need to be sent via email and shall be posted on the APC website with a response from APC staff.
If necessary, interpretation of or changes to this RFP may be made by written addendum. A copy of any addendum will be posted on the APC’s website at www.evansvilleapc.com no later than May 21, 2018. Interested parties are responsible for checking the APC’s website for addenda, though the APC may choose to contact all known interested parties with notification of posted addenda. The APC will not be responsible for any incorrect assumptions or misinterpretations of this RFP. If significant changes to this RFP are required, then the APC may postpone the final date for submission through an addendum.
Interested parties may notify the APC via email of their intent to submit a proposal but are not required to do so. Failure to notify the APC of intent to submit a response may result in omission from future communications including possible notification of any addenda.
Proposals must be submitted in .pdf format no later than June 8, 2018. Responses which in the judgment of the APC are in any way incomplete, inaccurate, or otherwise not in compliance with the requirements described in this RFP will be rejected.
Any costs incurred while responding to this RFP in anticipation of receiving a contract award are the responsibility of the entity submitting the response. The APC will not reimburse any respondent for any such expenses.
| May 7, 2018 | RFP Advertisement |
| May 21, 2018 | Last Day for Addenda Posted by the APC |
| June 8, 2018 (4:00 CST) | Proposal Deadline |
| June 11 – June 27, 2018* | Response Evaluation |
| June 28, 2018* | Request for Respondents Interviews |
| July 11, 2018* | Interviews with Selected Respondents |
| Aug 3, 2018* | Notify Respondents of Results, Begin Contract Negotiations with Selected Respondent |
| October 5, 2018* | Issue Notice to Proceed (NTP) to Selected Respondent |
*Dates indicated are tentative and subject to change as needed
Overview
The purpose of this project is to develop, draft, and adopt a new Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) combining land use regulation into one combined code of ordinances for the City of Evansville and Vanderburgh County, with accompanying codes of procedural rules to be adopted and used by the APC and BZA. It is envisioned that the UDO will seamlessly combine conventional zoning districts in most areas of the City and County with specialized districts for the downtown, historic, and overlay areas that will incorporate form based concepts. The subdivision ordinances will also be updated.
ObjectivesThe following objectives should be considered in developing the new UDO:
- Ensure that the new UDO implements the recommendations and goals of the adopted 2015-2035 Evansville-Vanderburgh County Comprehensive Plan
- Recommend updates to all existing zoning districts, defined and permitted uses, special uses, development standards including parking requirements, public infrastructure, etc.
- Recommend subdivision code updates for all design and platting requirements including alternative designs
- Include innovative and user-friendly interactive graphics that illustrate design and other requirements and make the codes easy to use
- Develop provisions that will facilitate mixed use development along with high-quality infill and redevelopment projects consistent with the context of existing development in the area
- Generally incorporate form-based concepts throughout the code and target them to specific areas offering greater opportunities for redevelopment, primarily in the downtown, historic, and overlay districts
- Improve the technical review process (i.e., site review, subdivision plat review)
- Promote and support multi-modal transportation options including complete streets with bicycle and pedestrian facilities
- Update sign regulations to meet current legal precedent (e.g. Reed vs. Town of Gilbert) and improve sign regulations such as structuring the amount of signage allowed to be based on ratio of sign to building facade
- Preserve the character of neighborhoods and special districts
- Provide for and promote incorporation of public spaces and art
- Update, clarify, and add definitions to the zoning and subdivision codes
- Update and codify procedural rules and documents for the APC and Board of Zoning Appeals for all actions, including all applications and approvals for permits, rezoning, variances, special uses, appeals, subdivisions and parcelizations, and lot line adjustments
The project will be managed by the Evansville-Vanderburgh County Area Plan Commission staff, and a Steering Committee will be created to meet with the consultant regularly.
Process and UDO Completion- Process
- Overall Project Schedule. Develop and propose an overall project schedule estimating the timeline for the following project elements including required analysis, recommended code rewrite, adoption procedures, etc.
- Initial Targeted Updates. Identify and develop several targeted, high priority updates to existing requirements that can be implemented soon after the project begins, then complete a more comprehensive revision of the remaining provisions to complete a final UDO. Initial priorities will be identified, developed and implemented in coordination with the APC and City and County agencies and governing bodies.
- Progress Reports. Quarterly progress reports must be provided by the consultant to the APC, City Council, and Board of County Commissioners at their regularly scheduled public meetings.
- Steering Committee. The consultant must convene at a minimum bi-monthly progress meetings with the Steering Committee.
- Public Input. A public participation and outreach program must be outlined by the consultant detailing the communication with and participation by the public and specific stakeholders.
- Compliance. Work performed and maps, graphics, and ordinances produced must comply with all federal, state and local laws and should complement other local regulations where possible
- UDO Completion:
- The overall UDO process will be complete when it is adopted by the APC, City Council, and Board of County Commissioners.
- Assume approximately 3 months for the adoption process of the final UDO.
- Expectations:
- The consultant will present and lead the code development process through adoption, and is expected to provide presentation materials, incorporate feedback, etc.
- The Unified Development Ordinance is to be presented in a format and language that is user-friendly and accessible to the general public and that has black and white code references eliminating grey interpretations. The extensive use of graphics and other devices that will enhance the readability and ease-of-use of the ordinances is required. Also required is an internet-ready version of the UDO with “clickable” links that are extremely user-friendly and creative in digital content/management. For an example, please see Raleigh, NC UDO at Raleighnc.gov
- Immediately following adoption of the UDO, the Evansville-Vanderburgh County Area Plan Commission shall receive 25 hard copies, one digital copy, and an internet-ready copy of all elements of the final document, including graphics/illustrations. In addition, all sections of the ordinance, including any graphic files, are to be provided in the appropriate digital format. The City of Evansville and Vanderburgh County shall retain ownership of all data generated.
This RFP is open to any individual or firm wishing to submit a response.
Consultant selection for this project will be based on an evaluation of the responses along with
the consultant interviews. The APC reserves the right to request additional information or to
reject all responses and not select a consultant. It is anticipated that the scope of services,
fees, and contract details will not be finalized until a consultant is selected, at which time the
APC will work with the selected consultant and team members to finalize those matters.
General Requirements
Submissions must be prepared electronically using 8.5” x 11” paper format and must be submitted as a single pdf file. File size may not exceed 10MB. Submissions are strictly limited to a maximum of 10 total pages (total includes the submittal form). Additional pages such as cover pages, tables of contents, appendices, etc., are not permitted. The following table displays the order in which respondents must arrange content and a suggested number of pages per category. Responses that do not follow all of these directions will not be considered.
Submissions must be prepared electronically using 8.5” x 11” paper format and must be submitted as a single pdf file. File size may not exceed 10MB. Submissions are strictly limited to a maximum of 10 total pages (total includes the submittal form). Additional pages such as cover pages, tables of contents, appendices, etc., are not permitted. The following table displays the order in which respondents must arrange content and a suggested number of pages per category. Responses that do not follow all of these directions will not be considered.
| Order | Proposal Content | Suggested Number of Pages |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Submittal Form | 1 |
| 2 | Introductory Letter | 1 |
| 3 | Project Team and Structure | 2 |
| 4 | Relevant Project Experience | 2 |
| 5 | Project Approach | 3 |
| 6 | Public Participation Plan | 2 |
| 7 | Cost Estimate | 2 |
| Maximum Total | 13 pages |
Submissions must be emailed to Ronald S. London, rlondon@evansvilleapc.com, (812) 435-5226. Submissions received after 4:00 PM Central Daylight Time on June 8, 2018 will not be considered.
Content DetailsProposals should include all of the information required below.
- Submittal Form
- Complete and sign the Submittal Form attached to this document.
- The content of this form must not be modified other than to fill in the required information.
- Introductory Letter
- Name of the individual or firm.
- Contact information for the person authorized to serve as point of contact during the RFP evaluation process and to negotiate on behalf of the firm or team if selected for the project.
- General statement of interest and availability for the project described in this RFP.
- Project Team and Structure
- Identification, qualifications, expertise, and availability of the project manager and key staff proposed to be assigned to the project
- Identification of proposed sub-consultants for any tasks not to be completed by the prime consultant and the type and percentage of work each sub consultant will complete
- Relevant information regarding team organization or leadership in place to ensure efficiency and accountability during the course of the project as well as quality control and schedule control
- Location of all project team members and their applicable licensure and certifications. Knowledge of and experience with pertinent federal, state, and local laws, regulations, and policies
- Knowledge of and experience with Smart Growth, CNU, LEED, NACTO, AASHTO, PROWAG, and other relevant design guidance
- Other relevant certifications
- Relevant Project Experience
- Specific examples of projects that are relevant and similar to this project (provide a link to the project, a reference name and contact information for the clients associated with these projects)
- Identification of which key personnel were responsible for the relevant tasks
- Experience with context sensitive design and public processes
- Experience with ordinance development, comprehensive and land use planning, and multimodal transportation planning including pedestrian, bicycle, and transit
- Experience with high-quality, interactive, and dynamic graphics, maps, etc.
- Project Approach:
- Description of project approach and deliverables
- Timeline with milestones:
- Provide phases for the project: outline what information comes in when, what information you will need from the APC, etc.
- Use assumed NTP of October 5, 2018
- Assume a 3-month adoption process for the final UDO
- The APC’s targeted total project implementation date is June 1, 2020
- Specific examples of potential challenges and strategies for successfully dealing with those challenges
- Description of innovative ideas or strategies for project prioritization and project implementation
- Discussion of budget and any anticipated expenses above that budget
- Other relevant information related to project approach
- Public Participation Plan:
- Briefly describe the public participation aspect in the plan’s development.
- Outline a public participation proposal for this process. Ideally, a plan will include
- Identify any tasks which the APC would be responsible for completing during the public participation process.
- Cost Estimate:
- Final Service fees will be negotiated upon selection. However, in an effort to assure the full anticipated costs are understood by the City and County and to assure an accurate comparison between submissions, all proposing consultants must submit an estimated project cost. The total fee should be all inclusive and includes all personnel, meetings, presentations, public hearings, and public outreach. The internet-ready version of the UDO with “clickable” links shall be separated out as a separate line item within the cost estimate. All submissions shall provide a separate statement specifically summarizing the basis for any subsequent fees not estimated in the cost estimate. Please note this cost estimate can be used in the evaluation of proposals, but is mainly intended to help in budgeting for this project.
Questions & Answers
Questions and answers regarding the RFP will be displayed in this section as they are received.
1. Does the City have in-house or support from County Staff to do GIS analytics? Would GIS staff have time to work on maps for this project, or should we budget for that at our end?
- Currently the Area Plan Commission office has a GIS Administrator/Web Developer on staff. The main duties of the position are to keep up with the day to day operations of the office. Any additional time would be allowed to work on this project, but no set time or amount will be guaranteed and should be budgeted accordingly. Access to our GIS data is readily available and can be provided.
2. Does the City have an account with a company to do mass mailing to residents and businesses in the City? Could this project take advantage of that account?
- No. The Area Plan Commission has a limited budget for postage that is used for our day to day operations
3. How many City Staff will be working on this project, beyond the City’s Project Manager?
- The Area Plan Commission has 12 staff members, including the Executive Director, which can be used as a resource for this project. As mentioned above, staff participation will depend on meeting day to day responsibilities.
4. Do you have a sense of how many residents have access to computers?
- Every resident of the City of Evansville and Vanderburgh County have access to a computer through our public library system. Data from the American Community Survey shows that almost 78% of Vanderburgh County households have an internet subscription.
5. Public Hearing – Would you like the consultant to attend all Public hearings?
- Per the RFP, the consultant or team of consultants will be required to provide quarterly progress reports to the APC, City Council, and Board of County Commissioners at their regularly scheduled public meetings along with bi-monthly progress meetings with the Steering Committee. The consultant selected will be responsible for presenting and leading the code development process through adoption.
6. Are any City Staff members available to help with this project? If so, what tasks could they take on, for instance, can they help find and reserve spaces for meetings, or should we budget for that?
- Staff could help in reserving meeting locations, etc. As mentioned above, staff participation will depend on meeting day to day responsibilities.
7. Could you please share the budget set aside for this project?
- The consultant or team of consultants selected will be based on the proposals provided along with the in-house interviews in front of the Selection Committee. Once selected, contract negotiations will take place and the amount agreed upon will be requested in the APC’s 2019 joint budget for approval and adoption. The joint budget process will begin in August and formal adoption will take place in early October. It is the intent of the Area Plan Commission to also request funding for this project in the last quarter of 2018 to allow the selected consultant to begin work. Although there are several funding sources that could be used to fund this project, funding is not currently budgeted.
8. Does the APC have a budget range that they would like respondents to keep in mind as put together a teaming strategy/approach?
- The consultant or team of consultants selected will be based on the proposals provided along with the in-house interviews in front of the Selection Committee. Once selected, contract negotiations will take place and the amount agreed upon will be requested in the APC’s 2019 joint budget for approval and adoption. The joint budget process will begin in August and formal adoption will take place in early October. It is the intent of the Area Plan Commission to also request funding for this project in the last quarter of 2018 to allow the selected consultant to begin work. Although there are several funding sources that could be used to fund this project, funding is not currently budgeted. Also see Addendum #1 dated May 21, 2018.
9. Does the APC have a targeted date of adoption? Often working back from that date can help use appropriately adjust scope and fee.
- Yes. The Area Plan Commissions targeted project implementation date is June 1, 2020 as stated in Addendum #1 dated May 21, 2018.
10. Does the APC want the selected consultant to provide legal review as part of the team, or would the APC prefer to use its own legal department to conduct this task in coordination with the consultant?
- The Area Plan Commission has an attorney on retainer with a limited amount of budgeted time. The attorney will be available for questions and review of the final UDO documents.
11. Within the City and County, does the APC have identified areas of focus for public meetings? If so, approximately how many neighborhoods, rural villages etc. might be targeted?
- No. Public outreach and communication are a key component of this process. The RFP requires a public participation plan (page 7 of 8).
12. Does the APC have any particular wishes/desires for urbanized vs. rural areas within the code? For instance, is there a desire to explore form based code, character based zoning etc. within urbanized areas, or rural preservation/appropriate farming overlays within rural? Any detail would be helpful so we can make sure we include the appropriate expertise in our proposal.
- The Area Plan Commission is relying on the consultant to recommend the best practices which could be very different in our urban vs. suburban/rural areas. We want to insure that the new UDO is easy to understand, user friendly, eliminates the large amount of variances currently requested, and makes the permitting process as straight forward as possible.
13. Are the codes of procedural rules that are to be developed to accompany the ordinances separate from the development review procedures that one would normally find in a UDO?
- The “Rules of Procedure” for the Area Plan Commission (APC) and Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA) would be adopted with the UDO. Examples of items to be included would be, General Statement of Authority, Composition of the APC, APC Officers, Conduct of APC Members, Responsibilities of the APC, APC Staff, Scheduling Meetings, Conduct of Meetings, etc. all would need to reference and follow Indiana Statutes. The same would apply to the BZA.
14. So that we can propose a comprehensive and effective solution for Evansville-Vanderburgh County, can you please provide an estimate of the budget that the APC anticipates for this effort?
- The consultant or team of consultants selected will be based on the proposals provided along with the in-house interviews in front of the Selection Committee. Once selected, contract negotiations will take place and the amount agreed upon will be requested in the APC’s 2019 joint budget for approval and adoption. The joint budget process will begin in August and formal adoption will take place in early October. It is the intent of the Area Plan Commission to also request funding for this project in the last quarter of 2018 to allow the selected consultant to begin work. Although there are several funding sources that could be used to fund this project, funding is not currently budgeted. Also see Addendum #1 dated May 21, 2018.
15. How involved will City staff be in the process for an update to the UDO? Will staff only have a role reviewing draft sections of the UDO, or will staff actively assist with writing any chapters? Also, aside from publishing meeting notices etc. will City staff be actively involved with the consultant in scheduled public meetings and workshops? Finally, we assume it is expected that the consultant will present the Public Review Draft in at least one meeting of the Planning Commission, and County Board of Supervisors and City Council and thereafter, that staff will will guide the document through the approval process. Please provide clarification if this understanding is incorrect.
- The Area Plan Commission has 12 staff members, including the Executive Director, which can be used as a resource for this project. As mentioned above, staff participation will depend on meeting day to day responsibilities. The APC staff will be actively involved in all public meetings and workshops to help answer any questions, but the consultant will actively lead the discussion, provide presentation materials, etc. Per the RFP, The UDO process will be complete when it is adopted by the APC, City Council, and Board of Commissioners. Assume approximately 3 months for the adoption process of the final UDO. The consultant will present and lead the code development process through adoption and is expected to provide presentation materials, incorporate feedback, etc.
16. Has a budget been established for this UDO update project, and if so, would you please share it with us?
- The consultant or team of consultants selected will be based on the proposals provided along with the in-house interviews in front of the Selection Committee. Once selected, contract negotiations will take place and the amount agreed upon will be requested in the APC’s 2019 joint budget for approval and adoption. The joint budget process will begin in August and formal adoption will take place in early October. It is the intent of the Area Plan Commission to also request funding for this project in the last quarter of 2018 to allow the selected consultant to begin work. Although there are several funding sources that could be used to fund this project, funding is not currently budgeted. Also see Addendum #1 dated May 21, 2018.