Volume 10, Issue 48- Wednesday, December 12, 2018
Mary Scott Nabers, President/CEO, Strategic Partnerships, Inc.

2018 has been a year of devastation! Wildfires in California, hurricanes, flooding, earthquakes and gas line explosions were horrific. The carnage was great and public infrastructure assets 
were significantly impacted. 

One infrastructure category that may have been hardest hit was regional utilities. In most cases, water and power were sacrificed in the initial stages and in too many instances these critical components of recovery were not even reliable by the time recovery efforts began. 

In some cases, outdated utilities are said to have contributed to the devastation. The Camp Fire, which killed 88 people in northern California, is believed to have been fueled from sparks from faulty steel rings on a transmission tower when live wires dropped. Government officials are citing the immediate need for upgrading the country's utility infrastructure. 

According to a report concluded in 2015 by the U.S. Department of Energy, 70 percent of power transformers in the U.S. are more than 25 years old and many are older. At least 60 percent of circuit breakers are approximately 30 years old, with many older. And, 70 percent of transmission lines are at least 25 years old. Utility infrastructure is in dire need of attention and upgrading the nation's utilities is long overdue. 

Earlier this month, an official from the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced that the agency will invest $1.6 billion in 46 rural electric utility infrastructure projects. Government leaders are being urged to reach out to the federal government for collaboration with projects. Funding for urban areas is also available and state and local leaders are being encouraged to find alternative funding to augment public funding available to them. 

Because of recent flooding in Austin, Texas, the city of Austin approved a 100-year plan for the city's water resources. The city hopes to build a new reservoir, upgrade well systems and initiate projects designed to capture rain and storm water runoff for reuse. Many other cities, counties and regions have similar long-term plans, and timelines to begin much of the work are very short.

Check out the latest article from our Texas Government Insider Newsletter!
Washington, D.C.- The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is providing $1.2 billion in financing for 234 water and environmental infrastructure projects through the Water and Waste Disposal Loan and Grant program - funding that can be used for drinking water, stormwater drainage, and waste disposal systems for rural communities with 10,000 or fewer residents. 

In South Dakota, The WEB Water Development Association, Inc. will receive more than $35.5 million to finance improvements to WEB Water Development Association, Inc.'s water system. WEB Water will parallel a water line along their main trunk line, construct an additional storage tank along the main trunk line, parallel or add water lines and make booster station upgrades throughout various low-capacity locations within their current service area. These improvements will alleviate capacity issues currently plaguing the system. 

The Southern Iowa Rural Water Association will receive more than $22.2 million to develop a water treatment plant. Funds will be used to acquire property, make construction improvements and buy equipment. The association currently purchases its water from cities in the area. This project will allow the association to transition to owning its own water source and treatment facility. This will result in improved water service for rural customers in the association's 12-county service area. 

In South Carolina, the Saluda County Water and Sewer Authority will receive more than $21.4 million to increase capacity and reduce treatment cost by constructing a wastewater treatment plant, influent and effluent force main, submerged diffuser and booster pump station. The investment will also be used to modify the Town of Saluda/Saluda Commission of Public Works wastewater treatment plant. In New York, the town of Hastings will receive more than $11.4 million to construct a water distribution system for the areas in the town that are not already served by public water. This project will provide a safe, reliable and potable water supply to the 1,827 residents and eliminate the health risks associated with the quality and quantity of ground water. The total project cost is $17.1 million.
California- The California Transportation Commission (Caltrans) has allocated more than $600 million in funding for more than 200 transportation projects. The funding includes $80 million from Senate Bill 1, the Road Repair and Accountability Act of 2017, a 12-cents-per-gallon gas tax increase that was preserved by state voters in November. The city of San Diego is set to receive almost $100 million. The largest project to receive funding is the Siempre Viva Interchange at State Route 11 and the Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Facility in San Diego County. The $60.4 million will fund the construction of a new interchange and site preparation design for a California Highway Patrol Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Facility, which includes drainage and utilities. 

In Monterey County a South County Highway 101 asphalt and concrete pavement rehabilitation project will get $35 million for work from the Parris Valley Road overcrossing to the Rancho undercrossing near King City. Another $20 million will rehabilitate roadway, repair or replace culverts, construct pumping plants and remove or replace bridges on State Route 99 from El Dorado Street to Clinton Avenue in the city of Fresno. Most of the projects receiving funding allocations are part of the State Highway Operations and Protection Program (SHOPP), which is the state highway system's "fix-it-first" program that funds safety improvements, emergency repairs, highway preservation and some operational highway improvements. Press releases on the 10 districts receiving funding can be found here.
Massachusetts- The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) plans to hire a consulting team to help the agency decide on contracting options for commuter rail service. The existing contract expires in June 2022. Under the current contract, the T owns the rails, locomotives and coaches and the contractor maintains the fleet and provides the commuter rail service. The nearly $2.7 billion deal with the contractor began in July 2014. The MBTA, which operates heavy rail, light rail and bus transit services in the Boston metropolitan area, is collectively referred to as the Rapid Transit, Subway or T system.  The T is now considering a new type of contract with a future vendor by changing the nature of its commuter rail service. One option is whether the contractor should be just a vendor or should the company be more of a partner to the T? Also, how should the vendor be compensated? 

The T is doing a rail vision study that could recommend a variety of changes, including having commuter rail trains operate more frequently all day long and electrifying locomotives. The current plan is for the consulting team to be hired in early 2019, complete its contract study by the end of the year and put out a request for proposals in the summer of 2020.
Washington, D.C.- Washington D.C.'s next generation of streetlights have the potential to solve brightness issues. Residents have recently been commenting that the new light emitting diode (LED) units are too bright, shining into houses and keeping them up at night. The replacement for the older, less energy-efficient bulbs will certainly be LED, so the solution that is being pursued is remote dimming systems provided and managed by a private partner. Current plans would make streetlights in commercial areas and downtown the brightest, with residential neighborhoods seeing the dimmest of the settings. 

The modernization and maintenance of the 75,000 streetlights is a wonderful opportunity for a public-private partnership (P3) and using a P3 for upgrading and maintaining the lights would also get the new lights up quicker. The city would require the P3 to have new fixtures up in two years, compared to the more than eight years it would take the city to modernize the lights on its own.
Nebraska- State officials plan to release a request for proposals (RFP) for child welfare case management in Douglas and Sarpy counties. The current firm managing metro-area cases will receive a $35.8 million extension for six months that will expire on Dec. 31, 2019. The current provider was contracted in 2009. The Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services manages child welfare cases in all other parts of the state. 

The state has hired a consulting agency to help with publishing the RFP, evaluating bids and working on getting the contract launched. An RFP to bid for the case management contract is expected early next year.
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New York- The East Syracuse Minoa Central School District (ESM) is ready to begin the design phase after voters approved a $49.8 million bond. The district has been working on this plan, called "Our Elementary Objective," for more than two years. 

New safety, learning and integrity improvements will be implemented at Park Hill School, Woodland Elementary, Minoa Elementary, Fremont Elementary and, to a much lesser extent, East Syracuse Elementary (ESE), which is a relatively new building. School taxes will not increase. The district says in four of the five schools, it is likely that classrooms will need to be temporarily relocated either within the building or moved to a separate building. 
Colorado- Alamosa County has reissued a request for proposals to manage the lone fixed-base operator (FBO) at San Luis Valley Regional Airport. The county has been operating the facility since June after it failed to reach an agreement with a business that also provided maintenance at the airport. The airport underwent a $6 million resurfacing and lighting replacement project in 2017. The facility includes a 3,000-square-foot, two-story terminal and more than 17,000 square feet of heated hangar space. 

Airport officials want to bring in a private company to operate and manage airport operations, to attain more aircraft operations and provide more services to customers including maintenance. Proposals are due by Dec. 21, after which the airport will award an initial 10-year contract with a possible renewal option. It will continue to provide fueling services on an interim basis until the new operator gets up to speed in equipping and staffing the facility. Airport officials also expect to negotiate a fuel flowage fee with the next operator.
Idaho- The city of Sandpoint is playing the waiting game with their University of Idaho property on North Boyer Avenue. This approach is in order to prompt a proposal and timeline for the development of the property by University of Idaho officials. City officials have announced that they have secured a $500,000 grant from the LOR (Livability, Opportunity and Responsibility) foundation to purchase a portion of the property in order to build a community recreation center. 

While that amount will not finance the whole project, the money is tied to the construction of the center in order for it to change hands. Another potential option for development of the property is pursuing a private developer who will acquire the land and build a master-planned facility of undetermined function. A recent request for proposals along those lines attracted minimal attention, but the city is still open to building a fruitful public-private partnership.
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New York- A new Veterans Affairs (VA) clinic is expected to open in Oneonta in 2020 to replace the current location in nearby Bainbridge. The decision to move the clinic was made because Otsego County has a higher concentration of veterans with more seeking primary health care. Due to new safety and privacy requirements for VA clinics, a site for the Oneonta location has not been chosen yet. Among the safety and privacy changes in clinics are accessible bathrooms for women and areas dedicated to administering medication and tele-health conferencing. 

The new facility should make visits more efficient because doctors and staff will come to the veteran in one location, rather than having the patient move between different rooms. A VA spokesperson said that a request for proposals will be made available soon.
Alaska- Alaska has 15 agencies across the state and wants to consolidate its independently operated cyber operations. State officials are preparing to make an investment in cybersecurity tools from a variety of vendors. The state plans to issue a request for proposals (RFP) surrounding its cybersecurity initiatives. This action will be a shift away from a single-vendor solution the state has in place. The change will provide the state the option to seek multiple vendors and will increase its flexibility to change out products. 

According to state officials, the RFP would be the largest state spend on cybersecurity tools in Alaska's history.
New York- The town of Riverhead is considering an agreement that would allow for the development of a regional sports facility. Officials are interested in developing Veterans Memorial Park in Calverton, and a feasibility study is underway. The 90-acre Veterans Memorial Park was dedicated as parkland in 2013, and the town has developed about 60 acres with ballfields, a dog park and parking facilities. 

Town officials first discussed building an indoor sports facility at a work session in February where the potential for a public-private partnership (P3) was explored. A request for proposals is pending the recommendation of the feasibility study.
Florida- Broward County officials intend to enter into a public-private partnership (P3) to redevelop the BB&T Civic Center. The county recently awarded a firm to design a phased, mixed-use master plan for the redevelopment of the 140-acre indoor arena in Sunrise. Much of the surface-parking around the arena is expected to be replaced with what county officials are calling a "live-work-play anchor community in western Broward County." 

The BB&T Civic Center regularly hosts National Hockey League games and large-scale entertainment events. In the spring, the county will issue a request for proposals for companies interested in becoming a master real estate developer for the property.
Massachusetts- The city of New Bedford plans to issue a request for proposals for consulting services to see if the city could sustain a new conference center. If the market analysis shows positive results, then city officials will begin looking for ways to have a conference center built. 

The exact size and location of the convention center will remain an unknown factor until after the feasibility study, but city officials have suggested that it be located downtown and provide an occupancy capacity of 500 or more people. New Bedford hopes this will help attract conferences on important industries such as fishing and offshore wind energy. Additionally, the city will also use the study to evaluate the feasibility of a potential sports arena.
Alabama- Auburn University recently hosted a town hall where the Student Government Association discussed a ride-sharing partnership. The new platform has the potential to disrupt the traditional ways of getting to campus by car by offering a discount on ride share services that originate or end in the immediate area of the campus. Currently, stakeholders are interested in creating a 5-mile radius emanating from the Student Center at the heart of campus. 

The new perk for students and faculty would be in lieu of further expansion of on-campus parking offerings. The school's parking service director stated that the initial request for proposals is in its final stages of development and should be released by the end of January.
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Rhode Island- Narragansett council members have agreed to issue a request for proposals (RFP) for architectural and engineering services for a library project. In 2016, voters approved a $5.8 million bond and the town later acquired a $2.8 million property in the Pier Marketplace for a new library. 

The property acquired consists of two buildings and a number of parking spaces. The town engineer estimated the cost of buildout for the larger of the two buildings to be close to $200,000. The town is expected to issue the RFP no later than February.
Rhode Island- The city of Providence is interested in a water leasing agreement with another public or private entity. An upcoming request for qualifications will be released in mid-January to find someone willing to take over the management of the Providence Water Supply in exchange for a sum great enough to allow the city to stabilize its underfunded Employee Retirement System. 

At this time it is not clear if the plan would require enabling legislation at the state level due to the environmental and consumer protections already put into place, but the legality of the deal will be further determined when willing partners come forward to the city. The city is interested in alternative financing, as well as the development of a short-term capital improvement plan and asset management.
Colorado- The city of Cortez is interested in a public-private partnership (P3) to expand the city's fiber optic network. A request for proposals (RFP) was issued Dec. 5 with the intent of expanding high speed internet service to all homes and businesses in the city limits. The city budget has cut funding for the development of the fiber optic lines in the coming years, so a P3 is being pursued to fill the financial void. 

The RFP seeks companies that could handle financing, design, business model, rate structure, construction, operations and maintenance - or a combination of any of the tasks. The RFP closes Jan. 18.
CALENDAR OF EVENTS

March 4-6 / Dallas, Texas
The 7th Annual Public-Private Partnership Conference & Expo will be held March 4-6 at the Sheraton Dallas Hotel. Government Contracting Pipeline readers can use promo code 100GCP to receive $100 off their registration. In addition to this offer, receive another $200 off by registering up until Dec. 14. Register for the event here. 

Join over 1,250 senior representatives from governments, higher education institutions and leading firms in the global construction and financial markets. The conference attracts professionals from all corners of the industry and provides a valuable opportunity to facilitate new partnerships with industry peers and public sector partners. Attendees will discover new alternative project delivery methods, strategies for implementing successful P3 projects, the nuts and bolts of how deals work, and how to manage risks associated with legal and financial frameworks. Attendees will participate in interactive panels, workshops, and conversations specifically tailored to the needs of public agencies evaluating P3s. The conference is designed for all levels in the market including those beginning to explore P3s and seeking to better understand where alternative and accelerated project delivery methods can be applicable.

Attendees will participate in interactive panels, workshops, and conversations specifically tailored to the needs of public agencies evaluating P3s. The conference is designed for all levels in the market including those beginning to explore P3s and seeking to better understand where alternative and accelerated project delivery methods can be applicable.
PEOPLE ON THE MOVE

- Terrence Woods has been appointed as Oregon's chief information officer (CIO), after nearly eight months in which Woods filled the position on an interim basis. Woods became interim CIO for Oregon earlier this year following the April resignation of then - CIO Alex Pettit. Pettit left the job in June for a newly created position with the Oregon Secretary of State's Office. Woods is a veteran of Oregon's public sector at the state level, having previously been the CIO and administrative services administrator for the Department of Revenue. 
- Destin's Interim City Manager Lance Johnson has been promoted to the position of city manager. He served as Destin's parks and recreation director from 2006 until this past August, when he was named interim manager. After two years on the job, Carisse LeJeune resigned as city manager this past summer. 
- The city of Atlanta has named Tye Hayes as its new chief technology officer. Hayes served most recently as the CEO of an IT consulting firm with a focus on the public sector - specifically education and government. Prior to that, Hayes was the deputy chief information officer for Atlanta Public Schools for most of 2014. Hayes' appointment is part of the ongoing transformation of the executive team in Atlanta. 
- President Donald Trump announced that he wants Gen. Mark Milley, who has been chief of the Army since August 2015, to succeed Marine Gen. Joseph Dunford as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Dunford's term doesn't end until Oct. 1. Dunford is a former commandant of the Marine Corps and commander of coalition troops in Afghanistan. Milley commanded troops during several tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. Milley will need to be confirmed by the Senate. - Ervan Rodgers II will move from his role as chief information officer (CIO) at the Ohio Attorney General's Office to become the state's next CIO. Rodgers will take the job of Spencer Wood who became interim CIO in September following the departure of Stu Davis, who was the country's second-longest-serving state CIO. Rodgers served as CIO of the Ohio Attorney General's office since 2014. 
- Brad Mortensen was selected by the Utah State Board of Regents to be the 13th president of Weber State University. Mortensen has been with the university since 2004 and he served as a vice president of university advancement for 11 years. Former university President Charles Wight stepped down from the post in June 2018. Wight is now the president of Salisbury University in Maryland. Mortensen will step into his new role early next year.
- The National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA) today announced that former government cybersecurity expert Kelvin Coleman has been appointed as executive director. A veteran of high-stakes cybersecurity posts at the White House and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Coleman has excelled in public and private sector leadership roles throughout his career of more than 20 years. Coleman assumes the position currently held by Interim Executive Director Russ Schrader. 
- Dan O'Donnell was selected as the county administrator by the Roanoke County Board of Supervisors. O'Donnell, who has been with the county since 2000, will take over as county administrator Jan. 5 when Tom Gates steps down. O'Donnell currently serves as the assistant county administrator. O'Donnell first joined Roanoke County as an assistant administrator in June 2000. Prior to that, he spent four years serving as the county administrator for Steuben County. 
- Dee Jackson has been appointed to the position of county administrator by the Gadsden County Board of County Commissioners. Jackson, who is currently serving as interim county administrator, will assume her new role immediately following her tenure. Prior to her appointment to Interim County Administrator in 2017, Jackson served as the grant writer for the Gadsden County Board of County Commissioners. 
- Saratoga Springs Fire Chief Robert Williams will retire Feb. 28. Williams joined the fire department in 1984 and worked his way up through the ranks to become chief in 2009. Interviews will be conducted of candidates for fire chief and an announcement is expected in time for Williams to work with the new chief on the transition. Williams is a third-generation city firefighter. His father, Thomas J. Williams Jr., was also the fire chief. 
- Patrick Duhaney has been named Cincinnati's permanent city manager. Duhaney has been the city's acting top administrator since former City Manager Harry Black resigned in April. Duhaney was an assistant city manager when Black left. He also worked in the city's chief procurement office overseeing the purchasing division of the finance department. Duhaney began his career with the city in June of 2009. 
- Lisa Morrell has been chosen by Palm Bay City Council members to become the permanent city manager of east-central Florida's second-largest municipality. Morrell had been named interim city manager in November after former City Manager Gregg Lynk stepped down. Morrell was hired by the city in August 2000 and worked as network analyst, network administrator, network manager and technical services manager. In June 2009, she became director of information technology.
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