Workshop Item - Lori Johnson, City Planner
Title
Title
Northtown Request For Proposals Discussion
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Background
In February and March 2021, the City Council took part in a visioning session and subsequent follow up session to determine which areas of the City are priority areas in terms of potential future development or redevelopment plans.
The City Council identified four priority areas to focus on, and one of those areas was the area of and surrounding, Northtown Mall. Staff has started preparations for a planning process to take place using a consultant to provide an overall redevelopment/revitalization plan for the study area.
The first step in this process is to develop an RFP to send to consultants who are qualified to do the work. Attached you will find staff’s proposed RFP for this process, which includes a map of the area to be studied. Staff proposes sending the RFP to the following companies:
• Damon Farber
• Asakura Robinson
• Cunningham Group
• Confluence
• Perkins and Will
• Stantec
• Kimley Horn
• LHB
• Biko and Associates
• HKGI
The RFP will also be posted on the Minnesota chapter of the American Planning Association’s website.
The cities of Burnsville and Maplewood have gone through similar planning processes for the malls in those cities and these plans are attached for your review. These plans provide a general idea of what a plan for Northtown could look like.
Staff Recommendation
Please review the attached RFP and provide comments to staff. Specific questions to be answered include the following:
1. Anticipated cost of the study. Based on comparable studies in other cities, staff anticipates the study could cost approximately $100,000. This would be funded from the EDA. Is this acceptable?
2. What is the proposed timeline for the process?
3. Do you agree with the objectives of the process as laid out in the RFP?
Staff will provide a PowerPoint presentation at the meeting that should aid in answering these questions.
Attachment List
RFP
Burnsville Plan for the Burnsville Mall
Maplewood Plan for the Maplewood Mall