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• Technical expertise and experience of the firm to be able to provide the full array of services typically involved in preparation of CEQA documents; • Familiarity with all aspects of CEQA, relevant regulatory frameworks of responsible federal, state, and local agencies, and with the City of Pleasanton's General Plan, Municipal Code and other relevant planning documents; • Quality, thoroughness, and defensibility of the environmental review documents that are subject to a high degree of review and scrutiny by an active and engaged local community; • Ability to conduct supporting studies or technical analyses, or to peer review applicant-provided studies. An interview panel consisting of staff from the Planning Division, Traffic Engineering Division, and Engineering Department interviewed five of the nine firms who responded to the City's RFQ. Staff recommends three firms that are most qualified to perform on- call duties: FirstCarbon Solutions, PlaceWorks, and Rincon Consulting. DISCUSSION The recommended roster of on-call consultants is based on the quality of each firm's responses in areas of project management, communication with staff, breadth of technical experience, availability for urgent requests, cost, and timeframe to meet City's expectations. Additionally, staff had reference calls with other Bay Area cities who have worked with these firms. Further, the recommendation is based on the firms' understanding of the City of Pleasanton, its leadership, dynamics, and community expectations. Each of the three firms selected is highly qualified to provide CEQA consulting services; two of the firms, FirstCarbon Solutions and Rincon have prepared CEQA documents for the City of Pleasanton in recent years. All three have provided similar services to municipalities in the Bay Area, including in the East Bay and the Tri- Valley. On-call services will be solicited and performed on an as-needed basis. When there is a need for CEQA professional services, the Director of Community Development will select one of the established on-call consultants based on experience on similar projects,or may request a scope of work from two or more of the consultants. Staff will then review the scope of work and select the most appropriate firm. Funding for private development would be provided by the project applicant(s). For City-sponsored projects, staff will review and negotiate final scope of work and cost prior to authorization of any work. Projects that may require CEQA review are, for the most part, current planning, private development projects. However, from time-to-time, the City requires CEQA review of City-sponsored capital and other projects; the on-call list could be used to efficiently recruit consultant services for this work. Note that creation of the on-call list does not obligate the City to offer any or all of the consultants a minimum amount of work during the contract period; nor does it preclude Page 3 of 4