Description

INTRODUCTION On November 3rd, 2020 voters in Multnomah County overwhelmingly supported the “Preschool For All” ballot measure. The approval of Preschool for All will give 3- and 4-year-olds in Multnomah County access to free, high-quality, developmentally appropriate, culturally affirming preschool experiences. A detailed Preschool for All Plan was published in July 2020 in advance of the November 2020 election.   The Multnomah County Department of County Human Services, as the administrator of this new program, is interested in identifying and assessing organizations capable of overseeing a Preschool for All Facilities Fund for providers. These funds will be available to preschool providers to improve or expand their existing space or improve, construct, or purchase a new preschool space.  Information gathered as a result of this Request for Information (RFI) will not result in a contract award, however it will assist the County in the creation of any potential solicitations and provide the County knowledge of available services and service providers in the community. There shall be no monetary exchange or contract resulting from this RFI. BACKGROUND AND POTENTIAL SCOPE OF PROJECT Preschool for All will provide access to high-quality, culturally responsive preschool for all 3 and 4 year-olds in Multnomah County. Preschool for All will be a mixed-delivery system that will include in-home providers, schools, centers, and multi-generational preschool programs. Preschool for All will grow over time, increasing the number of providers and families, until the system is universally available in 10 years.  All families in Multnomah County will be eligible for Preschool for All. As the system builds to full capacity, children who currently have the least access to high-quality preschool experiences will be prioritized. Priority populations include: Black, Indigenous and all children of color, English Language Learners, and children with developmental delays or disabilities.  Increasing the number of high-quality environments is essential for Preschool for All to meet its goal of becoming universally available in 2030. Providers experience many barriers when trying to improve or expand their space and most have limited access to capital dollars. To help providers overcome these obstacles, Preschool for All would like to create a facilities fund to support the development of more high-quality early learning spaces in Multnomah County.  Facilities Fund Overview The Preschool for All Facilities Fund will make infrastructure dollars available to providers.  Providers who have had the least access to capital dollars should be prioritized to receive money to improve or expand their space, with a focus on Black, Indigenous and other providers of color.  All funding is for infrastructure investments need to prioritize reducing racial inequities. This includes investing in BIPOC owned preschools, culturally specific preschools, and preschools in areas with higher populations of Black, Indigenous and other families of color.  The desire is for the Facilities Fund to be in place in early 2022. Funding for the first five years is estimated to be between $4 million and $8 million dollars per year.  Role of Facilities Fund Administrator Manage the application, evaluation, and approval process for the Facilities Fund using guidance from Multnomah County  Receive, validate, and process invoices from providers  Establish procedures and guidelines to ensure that Facilities Fund dollars are spent on approved projects with reputable vendors Monitor and report on the status of projects funded by the Facilities Fund Additional Services Offered by the Facilities Fund Administrator may include: Monitor contractor selection, possibly provide a list or roster of qualified vendors. Architect management in the form of pre-development support: In addition to the Facilities Fund, Preschool for All would like to fund pre-development support for providers. It has not been decided if this part of the program will also be led by the same organization administering the Facilities Fund. Pre-development support will give providers access to vetted architects with experience designing early learning spaces during the provider’s planning process. Experienced architectural input at the beginning of a project will result in better planned and designed projects.  Providers who participate in the pre-development support or feasibility funding can also apply to the facility fund.  Architects would hold a contract with Multnomah County or the organization administering the Facilities Fund. Each provider receiving pre-development support would receive a specific number of hours of architectural work to help with their planning.  Details for Preschool Providers  Below is a draft structure for the Facilities Fund awards. The organization overseeing the PFA Facilities Fund will advise on and support the development of the final award details.  Awards for In-Home Providers Awards of up to $50,000 per provider If the project is funded, providers commit to 3 years of participation in Preschool for All.  If a provider is a renter, the property owner must also commit to the 3 years of participation.  Funds are for construction, renovation, purchase, or rehabilitation of preschool facilities, which includes learning spaces as well as other related spaces (kitchens, bathrooms, storage, etc.) Design, construction or rehabilitation of outdoor play spaces Project costs that are not construction, such as design, project management, environmental testing, and permitting costs. Awards for Centers, Head Starts and School Districts Awards of up to $1,000,000 Funds are for construction, renovation, purchase, or rehabilitation of preschool facilities, which includes learning spaces as well as other related spaces (kitchens, bathrooms, storage, etc.) Design, construction or rehabilitation of outdoor play spaces Project costs that are not construction, such as design, project management and permitting costs The size of the award will determine: The number of years that a provider must commit to participating in Preschool for All. The larger the award, the longer time period that a provider will need to commit to participating.  The required minimum amount of remaining time on the lease. The larger the award, the longer the lease time will need to be.  Projects that request more than $250,000 or above must have at least 50% of the total project funding committed from other sources. Matching funds can include a loan, donated land, funding from another source, or fundraising.  Feasibility funds of up to $25,000 will be available to providers and developers to determine the feasibility of including early learning spaces in larger developments, such as affordable housing. If including an early learning space in the project is infeasible, a report will be required to detail the challenges identified, building Preschool for All’s knowledge of barriers and projects that are most likely to be successful. CONFIDENTIALITY Multnomah County is required to disclose non-exempt public documents pursuant to ORS 192.410-192.505). ORS 192.502(4) exempts the County from disclosing information submitted in response to a sourcing event where the information is such that it “should reasonably be considered confidential.” A respondent who determines that information within a response meets the statutory requirement and desires that such information remain confidential shall mark the bottom of the pages containing such information with the word “CONFIDENTIAL.” If a respondent marks every page of a response as “CONFIDENTIAL”, the statutory requirement is not met; any response so marked will not be deemed to have been submitted in confidence, and upon request, the entire response will be disclosed. The County will keep properly marked information confidential unless ordered to release the information and materials by the District Attorney pursuant to ORS 192.460. SUBMITTED MATERIALS PROPERTY OF COUNTY All materials submitted for any portion of this Request for Information shall become the property of the County, and will not be returned to respondents. SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS Response must be submitted electronically through this Sourcing Event. QUESTIONS FOR POTENTIAL SUPPLIERS Provide an introduction to your organization and any relevant partners in the community. Describe level of interest and current capacity to provide Facilities Fund management services. Please include examples of similar projects your organization may have completed. Describe how your organization would provide services in a culturally responsive manner; or ways your organization can work to prioritize reducing racial inequities. Please add any additional information your team believes may improve or otherwise add value to the proposed service.

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