Technical Assistance for Development Projects

Technical Assistance for Development Projects

The Urban Redevelopment Authority of Pittsburgh (URA) requests qualifications from individuals or consulting firms (Consultant) to provide real estate developers with technical assistance while their development project goes through the standard URA land disposition process. The URA would like the Consultant to assist developers with real estate acquisition, budget and pro forma development, feasibility analysis, site analysis, community engagement, pre-development planning, construction contracting, loan and grant application preparation, fundraising, and general project support to ensure that the vision for the parcel is feasible and fits within the community plan.

The URA intends to select one (1) or more respondents to be part of an approved list of Consultants to provide technical assistance to developers working with the URA to acquire and develop publicly owned land. Each approved Consultant will remain on the list from the date approved by the URA Board of Directors during 2022 through December 31, 2024.

RFQ Issue Date: January 26, 2022, at 8 a.m. ET

Proposal Due Date: February 25, 2022, at 5 p.m. ET

The URA is the City of Pittsburgh’s (City) economic development agency, committed to creating jobs, expanding the City’s tax base and improving the vitality of businesses and neighborhoods. Incorporated in 1946 as one of the first redevelopment authorities in the United States, the URA achieves this mission by assembling, preparing and conveying sites for major mixed-use developments; and by providing a portfolio of programs that include financing products, relocation and expansion, housing construction and rehabilitation and home purchases and improvements. The URA conducts these activities using unique powers granted by the Commonwealth’s Urban Redevelopment Law to deploy and attach conditions to the use of public subsidy and the disposition of publicly-owned land.

The URA seeks to provide technical assistance to developers that are going through the process to acquire and develop publicly owned land. Consultants will provide direct support to developers through the preparation of response materials and providing general support and assistance with proposal and budget development, grant and loan application preparation, pre-development planning, community outreach, and construction contracting.

To effectively accomplish its objectives, the URA is soliciting information from qualified parties with experience in real estate development, pro forma and budget development, community engagement, pre-development planning, construction contracting, and project feasibility analysis.

Experience, training and expertise are required in the following areas: development proposal preparation, fundraising, budget and pro forma development, feasibility analysis, pre-development planning, construction contracting, community engagement, grant and loan application preparation, and legal expertise. The work required will be on an as-needed basis.

Experience is not required in all these areas but can be any combination of the areas of expertise listed above.

Compensation will be $100/hr.

Applicants should include relevant information about the following areas of expertise, as applicable, in their submission:

1. Development Proposal Preparation
2. Fundraising
3. Budget and Pro forma development
4. Grant and loan application preparation
5. Community Engagement
6. Site analysis
7. Feasibility analysis
8. Pre-development Planning
9. Construction Contracting
10. Legal Development Expertise

1. One (1) electronic copy of respondent’s qualifications
2. Please limit total submission to ten (10) pages or less
3. Title Page – include the Consultant’s name, contact person and contact information
4. Qualifications – Please respond to the following sections, clearly marking them accordingly. If you are unable to provide a response to a particular question, leave the section blank. Please do not provide any information other than what is specifically requested.
   1. Experience
      1. Briefly describe similar development project consulting work you or your firm has completed.
   2. Organization Profile
      1. Provide a brief profile of your firm using the format below:
         1. Total number of employees
         2. Hourly rate charged for technical assistance services
         3. Firm’s MWBE status
   3. Respondent shall submit with its proposal:
      1. Resumes of Consultant(s) to provide the service
      2. References – Provide three (3) references from other entities or business clients that have worked with you or your firm on development projects. Include the reference’s name, title, address, direct telephone number, and email address.
      3. Primary Qualification – Provide a brief narrative that explains why you or your firm are qualified to provide the scope of services discussed above.
5. Other Information – Please provide any other information you believe is pertinent to the URA’s consideration of your firm. Please limit your response to this question to no more than two (2) pages.

DEADLINE: Friday, February 25, 2022 at 5:00 p.m. ET.

Respondents should submit their proposal package using IonWave Technologies, the URA’s RFP response program. The proposal should be combined into one file in PDF format. Do not send hard copies.

Link to IonWave Technologies: https://ura.ionwave.net/Login.aspx

The proposal submissions and questions concerning the content of this RFQ should be addressed to:

Attention: Shantalaya Mathews, smathews@ura.org  

ALL RESPONSES MUST BE RECEIVED BY THE RESPONSE DUE DATE AND TIME AS STATED IN THE RFQ TIMELINE FOR CONSIDERATION. Any late responses or responses received outside of IonWave Technologies will not be reviewed.

ALL RESPONDENT QUESTIONS WILL ONLY BE ACCEPTED AND ANSWERED THROUGH IONWAVE SUBMISSION, WHERE THE RESPONSE WILL BE MADE PUBLIC.

If you have any questions or issues with using IonWave, please contact:

Attention: Ivy Coleman, icoleman@ura.org

1. The qualifications review committee will consist of relevant staff from the URA’s Development Services department and relevant URA senior leadership.
2. The qualifications review committee will check responses against mandatory criteria.
3. Formal interviews with respondents may be scheduled at the discretion of the qualifications review committee.
4. During the evaluation process, the URA reserves the right to request additional information or clarifications from the respondents or to allow or waive corrections, errors or omissions.
5. A qualification review committee will review each response submitted and shall recommend to the URA Board of Directors a list of respondents based upon their response to this RFQ.

1. Experience:
   1. The respondent’s experience in providing services similar to those within the Scope of Services described herein
   2. The quality of the respondent’s management, reputation and references
   3. Respondent should have at least 3-5 years of experience providing the services specified in its response
2. Quality of Submission:
   1. The quality of the submission and the degree to which it demonstrates a full understanding of the ability to perform the services to be rendered
   2. The content of the response should demonstrate the respondent’s full understanding of the Objectives, along with the samples and other materials.

1. The respondent, including any and all team members, must have no conflict of interest with regard to any other work performed by the respondent for the URA or any related entity.
2. The respondent must adhere to the instructions contained in this RFQ in preparing the submitted proposal.

The URA intends to select one (1) or more respondents based upon information in the response to the RFQ submitted by the respondents, performance in previous undertakings, and other pertinent factors. The selected respondent(s) will be chosen on the basis of the selection criteria listed above. The URA reserves the right to verify the accuracy of all information submitted.

The URA shall be the sole judge as to which respondent(s) meet the selection criteria. The URA reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to reject any or all responses received, to waive any submission requirements contained within this RFQ, and to waive any irregularities in any submitted response.