Home » Concord to Consider Master Developer Selection Process For Naval Weapons Station

Concord to Consider Master Developer Selection Process For Naval Weapons Station

by CC News
Concord Base Reuse Project

On May 9, the Concord City Council is set to discuss the proposed selection process and the draft RFQ for the Concord Naval Weapons Station which is dubbed the Concord Reuse Project Area Plan implementation.

The staff report explaining the proposed selection process and the draft RFQ are found on the City’s website – www.cityofconcord.org or in the Reuse Project’s website document library – Master Developer Selection 2023.

The City Council will be asked to review the documents, take public comment, provide direction to staff, and authorize the release of the RFQ as outlined in the proposed selection timeline.

Selection Process & Timeline

  • May 15 – Issuance of the RFQ
  • June 1 – Mandatory Pre-Conference with LRA staff
  • June 9 – Deadline for questions on RFQ submitted in writing to LRA Staff
  • June 23 – LRA staff responses to questions posted
  • July 14 – SOQ due to LRA via electronic upload
  • Aug 4 – LRA team reviews SOQ for responsiveness to Selection Criteria and prepares evaluation Summary Table
  • Aug 15 – City Council reviews Summary Table, Redacted SOQs (with Confidential Information removed), and selects Respondents to interview. If three or fewer SOQs are received – all Respondents will be interviewed and this meeting will not be necessary.
  • Aug 26 – Interviews with City Council & Selection (public meeting)
  • Sept. 19 – Finalize Exclusive Negotiating Agreement (ENA) (public meeting

Information from Staff Report

The proposed RFQ is a hybrid that includes specific questions for respondents to answer in addition to providing their qualifications to implement the project. The selection process is written to select a master developer for the entire Development Area (approximately 2,300 acres) assuming performance milestones to be negotiated following selection are met.

According to the Staff Report,the selection process is different from the steps used in the 2014-16 effort (Lennar), but similar to the steps used in the 2021-22 effort (Concord First Partners). Lessons learned from these past attempts to select and collaborate with master developers have been incorporated into this RFQ. The goal is to expedite the selection process allowing the LRA to choose a master developer before the end of 2023.

This will allow the LRA and chosen master developer the ability to start the Specific Plan and Environmental Impact Report in early 2024 leading to land-use entitlements, a Disposition & Development Agreement, and an Economic Development Conveyance Agreement with the U.S. Navy in 2026

On March 14, 2023, the City Council/LRA met to discuss next steps after the expiration of the Exclusive Agreement to Negotiate with Concord First Partners, LLC (CFP) on January 31, 2023. The LRA discussed issues identified in the consideration of the CFP Term Sheet and directed staff to analyze and address them in drafting a proposed Hybrid RFQ for a future master developer selection. Clarifying these Term Sheet considerations in the Hybrid RFQ will ensure that respondents understand the LRA’s expectations regarding the project’s community benefits and financial feasibility.

A Term Sheet is a preliminary document not a final agreement and subject to change as the Specific Plan is written, adopted and eventually tested against the marketplace. The Term Sheet is an agreed upon vision of what the project will try to achieve.

Staff and LRA consultants interviewed or discussed the project generally with the following developers/builders: Brookfield, City Ventures, Lennar, Lewis, Shea, Signature, and Summerhill.

Stakeholders that were interviewed or provided comments on the questions or selection process included: Contra Costa Building & Construction Trades Council, East Bay Leadership Council, United Food & Commercial Workers Union, the constituent groups of the Community Coalition for a Sustainable Concord – Central Labor Council, East Bay Housing Organizations, Greenbelt Alliance, Monument Impact, and Save Mount Diablo.

Several interested residents also provided comments at the March 14 City Council meeting and in emails. Written communications, as received, have been attached as correspondence to this staff report.

The various answers, comments and ideas provided by developers, stakeholders, and residents are addressed in the following Analysis section of this report.

Analysis
The City needs to complete a Specific Plan and Environmental Impact Report to create entitlements for the approximately 2,300 acres it expects to receive from the Navy in an Economic Development Conveyance (EDC). To complete the negotiations of the EDC agreement the Navy has requested the City select a master developer to help prepare a
financial analysis of the approved project

The LRA desires to identify an experienced master developer who can incorporate lessons learned from the previous efforts and prepare a responsive and financially feasible strategy for development of the CNWS Reuse Project. The new master
developer would need to propose a Term Sheet, and, upon LRA/Council approval, finance and work with staff to guide the drafting of a Specific Plan, prepare an Environmental Impact Report (EIR), help negotiate the EDC agreement with the U.S.
Navy, and invest significant resources to bring required infrastructure (roads, water, sewer, electricity) to the CNWS site. The master developer will be required to spend tens of millions of dollars on project and land use planning and hundreds of millions of dollars on critical infrastructure and related improvements over the course of the 30-40 year project.

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