HomeMy WebLinkAbout15 Contrract with Uptown Services for Broadband ScopingTRUCKEE DONNER
Public Utility District
MEETING DATE: August 3, 2022
TO: Board of Directors
AGENDA ITEM #15
FROM: Steven Poncelet, Public Information and Strategic Affairs
Director
SUBJECT: Consideration of a contract with Uptown Services for the
District's Community -Wide Broadband Initial Scoping Study
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APPROVED BY
Brian C. Wright, General Manager
RECOMMENDATION:
Authorize the General Manager to execute a professional services contract with Uptown
Services for the District's Community -Wide Broadband initial Scoping Study in the amount
of $79,000, with a 10% change order authorization of $7,900, for a total contract amount
not to exceed $86,900.
BACKGROUND:
On May 19, 2021, following significant community outreach and participation, the District
adopted an updated Strategic Plan for 2021-2024. The Strategic Plan 2021-2024
established robust goals and Board initiatives identified by the Board, staff and the
community. The District established General Manger Task Force committees comprised
of local stakeholders, to explore the four initiatives in detail, establishing preliminary goals
and purpose. The initiatives are listed below:
• 100% Clean Renewable Energy Initiative;
• Community Broadband Initiative;
• Undergrounding Electric Initiative; and
• Local Clean Renewable Generation Initiative.
On June 16, 2021 the Board took action to establish Standing Committees for the
Community Broadband Initiative and the 100% Clean Renewable Energy Initiative. The
Community Broadband Committee (Committee) received solid community response with
10 qualified community members applying. The District selected all ten applicants to fill
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the committee. The ten members comprising the Committee during the kick-off meeting
were: Dan Dickerman; Mark Simon Featherstone; Tim Chase; Bjorn Book-Larsson;
Serita K Cox; Penelope "Penny" Morris; John Paul; Judy Price; Michael J. Wolf; and Chris
Fajkos. The District's Public Information and Strategic Affairs Director, Steven Poncelet,
and Contracts Administrator, Regina Cooley have teamed up to facilitate the Committee
meetings.
The Committee held a kick-off meeting on September 23, 2021 and reviewed and
adopted the initial project scope prepared by the original General Manager Community
Broadband Task Force which was: Identify the level of broadband internet services the
community requires to meet local needs from the perspective of public safety, economic
health and community access; and based upon these needs, establish collaborative
partnerships to facilitate the larger community benefit.
The Committee also reviewed and adopted the proposed goals prepared by the General
Manager Community Broadband Task Force:
■ Identify key stakeholders, potential partners, and local resources;
■ Develop a scope of work for a feasibility study;
■ Identify options for a potential organizational structure; and
■ Identify funding opportunities.
The Committee presented their formal recommendations to the Board at the March 2,
2022 regularly scheduled District Board meeting. The Committee's recommendations
included a suggested next step to "Engage consultants in developing a strategic
broadband plan for the entire Truckee community. Consultant must have PUD, rural
community, funding, and broadband business model experience. Based on Board
feedback, District staff immediately started working on a Request for Proposals (RFP) for
a Community -Wide Broadband Initial Scoping Study.
The goal of this initial scoping study was to evaluate the District's goal of community -wide
broadband against the current state of broadband in Truckee, an analysis of the demand
for new services, the potential business models presented by the Committee, and the
ability to finance a project. The desired outcome from the RFP is a recommendation to
the Board of potential model(s)/project(s) that the District could pursue to enable
community -wide broadband and potential funding to pursue a comprehensive feasibility
study/business plan on the potential project(s). The Truckee Donner Public Utility District
Community -Wide Broadband Initial Scoping Stud RFP is Attachment 1.
The District's Board also indicated a desire for the Committee to continue to play a role
going forward despite the formal end of the Committee's initial scope which was the
presentation of a recommendation to the Board. In response, the General Manager
created a second Community -Wide Broadband Task Force to help draft the initial scoping
RFP and participate in the selection a consultant for consideration by the District's Board.
Six former members of the Committee volunteered to participate in the RFP process: Dan
Dickerman; Bjorn Book-Larsson; Serita K Cox; John Paul; Judy Price; and Mark
Featherstone
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The District issued the RFP on June 10, 2022 and advertised in the Sierra Sun as
required. The deadline for questions was June 27, 2022 and the proposals were due on
July 12, 2022. The District received five proposals from:
■ Uptown Services;
■ Magellan;
■ NEO Connect;
■ CCG Consulting; and
■ Entry Point Networks.
ANALYSIS/BODY:
The District created a RFP scoring committee consisting of three District staff and two
GM Task Force members. The Proposals were reviewed and initially scored for technical
merit during the week of July 18, 2022 based on the following criteria:
• Broadband Scoping and Implementation Experience 30%;
• Results, Efficiency, and Capacity 15%;
• Work Samples/Quality of Proposal 15%;
• Understanding and Access to Funding 10%;
• Understanding and alignment with the District's Mission and Strategic Plan
10%; and
• References and presentation 20%
After completion of the technical review of the proposals, the proposals were rated as
follows:
Technical Scorina:
Firm
Overall Rank
Magellan
1
Uptown Services
2
NEO Connect
3
CCG Consulting
4
Entry Point Networks
5
The proposed costs were then reviewed. The cost proposals varied significantly from a low
of approximately $32,000 to a high of over $230,000. The results of the cost rating were as
follows:
Cost Scorina:
Firm
Overall Rank
E ntry Point Networks
1
Uptown Services
2
CCG Consulting
3
NEO Connect
4
Magellan
5
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The RFP scoring committee did conduct 1-hour interviews of the top three technical scoring
proposals. Based on the technical reviews, interviews, and cost proposals, the scoring
committee unanimously arrived at the following overall scoring:
Overall Scorina:
Firm
Overall Rank
Uptown Services
1
Magellan
2
NEO Connect
3
CCG Consulting4
Entry Point Networks
5
Therefore, it is determined that the Uptown Services proposal (Attachment 2) is most -
advantageous to the District and that the Board consider award of a contract to Uptown
Services. The project schedule remains as per the RFP with a presentation of the study
and recommendation(s) to the District's Board anticipated at the regularly scheduled
Board meeting on December 7, 2022.
Goals and Objectives:
This item is in support of the following goals and objectives:
District Code1.05.020 Objectives:
1. Responsibly serve the public.
6. Manage the District in an effective, efficient and fiscally responsible
manner.
Strategic Goals:
3. Engage with our customers and communities in a welcoming and transparent way
to identify opportunities.
4. Take the best of private sector thinking to modernize the utility and add value to
our Communities
FISCAL IMPACT:
The Uptown Services proposal is for an amount not to exceed $79,000. Staff is
recommending a 10% change order authorization of $7,900 for a total contact amount not
to exceed $86,900.
The District's FY22 and FY23 budgets include $160,000 total each year for the Board's
four strategic initiatives (GL account'/2.1.923.00.756) and none of these funds have been
spent to date and the broadband initiative is the first to request access to these budgeted
funds. Staff is recommending that a portion of these budgeted funds be used for this initial
scoping study.
ATTACHMENTS:
1. TDPUD Community -Wide Broadband Initial Scoping RFP
2. Uptown Services Proposal
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