To: Mayor and Members of the Pensacola City Council
From: Lacey A. Collier, Chairman //LAC
Community Maritime Park Associates, Inc. Board of Trustees
Date: March 5, 2007
Re: Community Maritime Park Update to City Council
The Board of trustees of the Community Maritime Park Associates (CMPA) has been working diligently to implement the Maritime Park Project since the Board was seated in October, 2006. The Board has requested and been offered an opportunity by the City Manager to provide an update to the Council on our activities.
I will present the update at the March 5, 2007 Committee of the Whole Meeting. The information below represents the current status of the project to date.
1.Environmental: The CMPA recognized early on that the environmental aspect of this project was critical to the overall success of the project. The Board appointed Mr. Miller Caldwell, Principal, Caldwell and Associates, Inc., to lead this critical effort on behalf of the Board. Mr. Caldwell has brought together a team of professionals to coordinate this effort.
Major activities include updating and revising the petroleum and soil contamination Remedial Action Plan developed for the original Festival Park; engineering and permitting the eastern and western edges of the property, engineering and permitting the stormwater system for the project; and developing a mitigation plan for the wetland impacts. Preliminary meetings with Florida Department of Environmental Protection and Florida Department of Health regarding the project have been very productive.
By working with the regulatory and permitting authorities early in the process, we can ensure that everyone involved has a good understanding of the goals and objectives of the project and we can work to prevent wasting time, effort and resources. Our consultants are working on the necessary testing, engineering, design and permitting that are necessary to move this aspect forward.
2.Project Delivery: One of the first tasks undertaken by the Board was to select a project delivery model. That is, the methodology that will be utilized to bring this project to completion. After being briefed on multiple models, the board selected the “Master Developer†Model, in which one development company would be engaged to develop the entire project, both public and private aspects. Board of Trustee Member Collier Merrill was charged with developing the timeline and necessary action steps to meeting that end.
To date, two critical aspects have been identified and acted upon. The first, a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) for Architectural Design Guidelines, is seeking firms to create architectural design guidelines, facility programming and budgeting, and schematic site design, programming and budgeting for the Community Maritime Park Project.
The selected firm(s) will meet with the CMPA Board, staff and other stakeholders, particularly end-users to gain understanding of the background and purpose of the project and its various component parts, and further develop the Conceptual Design created by Ray Gindroz into detailed and site-specific guidelines for the project. This RFQ was issued on February 21, 2007 and is due by March 30. Once selected and under contract, it is anticipated this aspect will take some 90 days to complete.
The second aspect is a Request for Qualifications for a Master Developer. This RFQ, also issued on February 21 and due April 6, will identify the development firm that will construct the improvements.
The Master Developer is expected to utilize their creativity, experience and understanding of existing and future tourist, entertainment, retail, housing, commercial and other economic markets to create a unique, world-class, mixed-use development. The Master Developer will bring additional expertise and access to capital to implement the vision for the Community Maritime Park within the general timeframe and budget envisioned by CMPA.
The Master Developer will provide services such as: architecture, engineering, site planning, landscape architecture, scheduling, budgeting, financing, permitting, construction management, quality control, bonding, insurance, accounting, reporting, legal, public relations, marketing, leasing, tenant coordination and ongoing property management and operations.
It is expected that the Master Developer will become a critical member of the team to deliver to CMPA and the community of Pensacola the vision as affirmed by the voters of the City of Pensacola in the referendum, within the framework of the Conceptual Design, Master Lease, Master Development Agreement and Design Criteria Package.
Both the Design Guidelines and Master Developer firm will be selected in accordance with Florida Statue 287.055 or the “Consultants’ Competitive Negotiation Act†(CCNA).
3.CMPA Organization: With the assistance of Mr. Bob Hart, Legal Counsel to the Board of Trustees, CMPA has completed revisions to its Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws to reflect the organizational structure required by the Master Lease, to include the appointment of 12 Trustees, with 4 appointed by the City. Currently the Trustees are:
CMPA APPOINTEES
Dick Baker, Vice-Chairman
Hon. Lacey Collier, Chairman
Rodney Jackson, Treasurer
Rev. Hugh King
Collier Merrill
Susan Story
Eddie Todd
Kathlyn White
CITY APPOINTEES
Mayor John Fogg
John Merting
Dr. Jimmy Jones
Juanita Scott, Secretary
For the Board, a highly skilled administrator is imperative to carrying out the charge given to the CMPA. We have been fortunate to have the assistance of Mr. Edward Spears, the Loan Executive from the City. However, it was made clear that Mr. Spears’ services were temporary until such time as the Board hired an executive to head the organization.
Led by Trustee John Merting, the Board has developed and adopted an Executive Director Job Description and salary range. We are also in the process of hiring an executive search firm to carry out a nation-wide search for this important position. It is expected that we will have a selection within 90-120 days.
The Board also realizes that administrative costs are being incurred by the City. To that end, the Board of Trustees is requesting that City Council approve operational funds in advance of the issuance of the bond for the public improvements at the Maritime Park. The attached budget was presented to and approved by the Board of Trustees at their meeting of February 9, 2007.
Funds will be utilized to pay for an executive director for the non-profit corporation, pay professional fees associated with the project development and provide for operational expenses. Professional expenses will include all fees associated with required environmental work on-site, design fees, executive search firm and other pre-development fees. These expenses were planned for in the Master Budget presented to Council during the project development.
The Board is requesting an advance of 10% of the total budget to serve as operating capital. The Board will then invoice monthly for actual expenses incurred. The budget and payment procedure have been reviewed by the City’s Finance Department.
It is expressly understood that all pre-development funds expended will be subtracted from the $40 million bond proceeds and reimbursed to the City. We do not take this request lightly as the Board has an understanding of the scope and cost of this project. We have charged Mr. Mort O’Sullivan of O’Sullivan Creel, CPA’s to seek out additional revenue sources for the Board to pursue. The CMPA intends to secure additional funds to bring a unique, world-class development to Pensacola.
4.Covenant with the Community: At the first meeting of the CMPA Board, the members present adopted the Covenant with the Community, which was promised during the referendum.
The Covenant expresses the CMPA’s commitment to diversity on the Board of Trustees; the commitment to establishing a Contractor Academy to assist local minority contractors with meeting the legal and administrative requirements to bid on government contracts, including the Maritime Park Project; awarding contracts in a manner reflective of the diversity of the community; and ensuring access to programs at the completed Community Maritime Park for all city youth.
Rev. Hugh King as been charged with chairing a committee to develop the Contractor Academy aspect of the Covenant. Trustees Susan Story and Eddie Todd also serve on that committee. The committee is expected to present a plan to implement the Contractor Academy in the near future.
5.Maritime Museum: The Admiral John H. Fetterman State of Florida Maritime Museum and Research Center is proceeding with the capital campaign necessary to fund the construction of the museum. The University of West Florida has hired a prominent consultant to assist with programming the museum.
I would like to thank the Mayor, City Council, City Manager, City Attorney and other City Staff for their assistance to date. The Trustees have a daunting task before us and we not only want to deliver on the promises made, we want to over-deliver. I would also like to thank the other Board of Trustee members, who have all recognized the importance of this project to the future of Pensacola.
