[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town of Greenfield as indicated
in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Finances — See Ch. 27.
[Adopted 6-16-2010 by Order No. FY 10-098 (Ch. 59 of the 2002 Code)]
This article governs the selection of designers for any municipal
or local public agency building project subject to the state designer
selection law, MGL c. 7, §§ 38A 1/2 through 38O.[1] Any other local law governing the procurement of services
will be inapplicable to these procurements.
[1]
Editor's Note: These sections regarding design services were
repealed by St. 2012, c. 165, § 66, effective 1-1-2013.
The Mayor has the authority to conduct the designer selection
process for the Town of Greenfield. The Mayor may delegate any duties
described herein to the extent such delegation is permissible by law.
A.
The Mayor, with the approval of the Town Council, shall designate
the group of individuals (hereinafter referred to as "the Committee)
who will conduct the designer selection process. Appointees to the
Designer Selection Committee shall serve for two years and may be
considered for reappointment for one additional term. The Committee
shall consist of five members: two Mayoral appointees, one Council
appointee, and two members of the Planning and Construction Committee.
The Chief Procurement Officer shall serve as an ex-officio member
of the Committee.
B.
No member of the Committee shall participate in the selection of
a designer for any project if the member, or any of the member's
immediate family:
(1)
Has a direct or indirect financial interest in the award of the design
contract to any applicant;
(2)
Is currently employed by, or is a consultant to or under contract
to, any applicant;
(3)
Is negotiating or has an arrangement concerning future employment
or contracting with any applicant; or
(4)
Has an ownership interest in, or is an officer or director of, any
applicant.
A.
A request for qualifications (RFQ) for each contract subject to this
article shall be advertised in a newspaper of general circulation
in the locality of the building project, in the Central Register published
by the Secretary of the commonwealth, and in any other place required,
at least two weeks before the deadline for filing applications.
B.
The advertisement shall contain the following information:
(1)
A description of the project, including the specific designer services
sought, the time period within which the project is to be completed,
and, if available, the estimated construction cost.
(2)
If there is a program for the building project, a statement of when
and where the program will be available for inspection by applicants.
(3)
When and where a briefing session (if any) will be held.
(4)
The qualifications required of applicants.
(5)
The categories of designers' consultants, if any, for which
applicants must list names of consultants they may use.
(6)
Whether the fee has been set or will be negotiated; if the fee has
been set, the amount of the fee must be listed in the advertisement.
(7)
When and where the RFQ can be obtained and the applications must
be delivered.
The RFQ shall include the current "Standard Designer Application
Form for Municipalities and Public Agencies not within DSB Jurisdiction,"
which is available for download from the Massachusetts Designer Selection
Board website at Designer Selection Board (DSB) Procedures for Municipalities.
The application form may be amended to include additional information
on a project-specific basis.
A.
The Committee shall evaluate applicants based on the following criteria:
B.
The Committee shall select at least three finalists, if possible.
Finalists may be required to appear for an interview or provide additional
information to the Committee, provided that all finalists are afforded
an equal opportunity to do so.
C.
List of finalists.
(1)
The
Committee shall rank the finalists in order of qualification, select
the designer, negotiate the fee, and transmit its recommendation to
the Mayor. No person or firm, including applicants' listed consultants,
debarred pursuant to MGL c. 149, § 44C shall be included
as a finalist on the list.
(2)
The list must be accompanied by a written explanation of the reasons
for selection, including the recorded vote, if any. The written explanation
and recorded vote, if any, shall be public records and shall be maintained
in the contract file.
D.
If the fee was set prior to the selection process, the Mayor shall
select a designer from the list of finalists. If the Mayor selects
a designer other than the one ranked first by the Committee, the Mayor
shall file a written justification for the selection with the Committee
and maintain a copy in the contract file.
E.
If the fee is to be negotiated, the Mayor shall review the list of
finalists and may exclude any designer from the list if a written
explanation of the exclusion is filed with the Committee and maintained
in the contract file. The Committee shall request a fee proposal from
the first ranked designer remaining on the list and begin contract
negotiations. If the Committee is unable to negotiate a satisfactory
fee with the first ranked designer, negotiations shall be terminated
and undertaken with the remaining designers, one at a time, in the
order in which they were ranked by the Committee until agreement is
reached. In no event may a fee be negotiated which is higher than
the maximum fee set prior to selection of finalists.
F.
If the Committee is unable to negotiate a satisfactory fee with any
of the finalists, the Committee shall recommend that the Committee
select additional finalists.
G.
The Mayor may allow a designer who conducted a feasibility study
to continue with the design of a project. However, the Mayor may commission,
at his discretion, an independent review, by a knowledgeable and competent
individual or business doing such work, of the feasibility of the
designer's work to ensure its reasonableness and its adequacy
before allowing the designer to continue on the project, provided
the Mayor otherwise complies with the statutory requirements for selecting
a designer under Chapter 7 of the General Laws, including those set
forth in MGL c. 7, § 38K(a)(1).[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: MGL c. 7, § 38K, regarding contracts
exceeding $100,000, was repealed by St. 2012, c. 165, § 66,
effective 1-1-2013.
A.
Design services. Every contract for design services shall include
the following:
(1)
Certification that the designer or construction manager has not given,
offered, or agreed to give any person, corporation, or other entity
any gift, contribution, or offer of employment as an inducement for,
or in connection with, the award of the contract for design services;
(2)
Certification that no consultant to, or subcontractor for, the designer
or construction manager has given, offered, or agreed to give any
gift, contribution, or offer of employment to the designer or construction
manager, or to any other person, corporation, or entity as an inducement
for, or in connection with, the award to the consultant or subcontractor
of a contract by the designer or construction manager;
(3)
Certification that no person, corporation, or other entity, other
than a bona fide full-time employee of the designer or construction
manager, has been retained or hired by the designer or construction
manager to solicit for or in any way assist the designer or construction
manager in obtaining the contract for design services upon an agreement
or understanding that such person, corporation, or other entity be
paid a fee or other consideration contingent upon the award of the
contract to the designer; and
(4)
Certification that the designer has internal accounting controls
as required by MGL c. 30, § 39R, Subsection (c), and that
the designer has filed and will continue to file an audited financial
statement as required by MGL c. 30, § 39R, Subsection (d).
B.
Fees. All fees shall be stated in design contracts, and in any subsequent
amendments thereto, as a total dollar amount. Contracts may provide
for equitable adjustments in the event of changes in scope or services.
C.
Liability insurance requirements for designer. The Town of Greenfield
shall not enter into a contract for design services unless the designer
has obtained professional liability insurance covering negligent errors,
omissions, and acts of the designer or of any person or business entity
for whose performance the designer is legally liable arising out of
the performance of the contract. The total amount of such insurance
shall at a minimum equal the lesser of one million dollars or 10%
of the project's estimated cost of construction, or such larger
amounts as the Town of Greenfield may require, for the applicable
period of limitations. A designer required by the Town of Greenfield
to obtain all or a portion of such insurance coverage at its own expense
shall furnish a certificate or certificates of insurance coverage
to the Town of Greenfield prior to the award of the contract.
D.
Contract provisions for designer. Every contract for design services
shall include a provision that the designer or its consultants shall
not be compensated for any services involved in preparing changes
that are required for additional work that should have been anticipated
by the designer in the preparation of the bid documents, as reasonably
determined by the individual responsible for administering the design
contract.
A.
In the event of an emergency that precludes the normal use of these
designer selection procedures, the Committee, with the approval of
the Mayor, may elect to authorize expedited procedures to address
the emergency. The Committee shall document in writing the reasons
for the emergency declaration, the proposed scope of work, the estimated
cost of construction, the established fee for the needed design services,
and any other relevant information.
B.
The Committee may select three finalists from any standing list of
designers who have applied for projects of a similar nature, or may
otherwise select three designers to be considered as finalists for
the project. The Committee shall rank the finalists in order of qualification
and select the designer for the emergency work.
The Town of Greenfield shall publish the name of any designer
awarded a contract in the Central Register.
The Town of Greenfield shall evaluate designers' performance
on contracts using the Designer Selection Board evaluation form(s)
in accordance with MGL c. 7, § 38E(g),[1] and file completed evaluations with the Board and any
other agency named in MGL c. 7, § 38E(g).
[1]
Editor's Note: MGL c. 7, § 38E, regarding project
applications and written statements, was repealed by St. 2012, c.
165, § 66, effective 1-1-2013.
Nothing in this article shall be interpreted to require the
establishment of a board or waive or reduce the requirements of any
other applicable law or regulation.
For any municipal design or construction project that includes
funding provided by the commonwealth, in whole or in part (such as
reimbursements, grants and the like), cities and towns must incorporate
minority-owned business enterprise and women-owned business enterprise
participation goals. If applicable, the Town of Greenfield shall take
steps to assure that it complies with all State Office of Minority
and Women Business Assistance requirements.
