RIVIERA BEACH, Fla. ' The Riviera Beach City Council on Oct. 15 agreed to hear oral presentations from the two shortlisted development teams for the City Hall complex and to hold a special meeting Nov. 17 for those presentations, delaying a staff recommendation to begin negotiations immediately with the highest-ranked firm.

The action followed a staff presentation by Latonya Ammons, the city's procurement director, who told the council the invitation to negotiate (ITN-1106-24-2) drew three responses and that an evaluation committee had scored "Sonnenblick Development LLC" highest with 116.6 points and Forest Development LLC second with 112.6 points. Ammons told the council the ITN process is meant to allow flexibility and negotiation with one or more firms.

"The solicitation closed on June 28, 2024, and two firms were evaluated by our committee," Ammons said. "The evaluation committee ranked Sonnenblick first and Forest second, and staff recommended commencing good-faith negotiations with the top-ranked firm."

Council members pushed for more public-facing review. Several members said they wanted to hear both teams explain how their proposals would deliver community benefits, local participation, timing and other commitments before the city entered negotiations. Attorney Joe Goldstein and city staff advised that the ITN format allows the council to negotiate with more than one proposer and that oral presentations could be added if the council directed.

Mayor Douglas Lawson and council members expressed concerns about process and public transparency but stopped short of rejecting the committee's work. Instead the council voted unanimously to schedule a special meeting on Monday, Nov. 17, for oral presentations and to receive a rules-of-engagement memo from staff that will include the scoring parameters and the proposed negotiation team. Staff said it would return with a timeline and hybrid public/negotiation process options.

The council's decision preserves the evaluation committee's scoring and keeps open the ITN's negotiated approach while giving the full council a direct opportunity to compare the two shortlisted teams before direction to begin negotiations.

The Nov. 17 meeting was set as a primary date; staff indicated a backup date would be identified if necessary. The council also reminded participants that the solicitation remains under a cone of silence and that communications about the procurement should go through official channels.

Why it matters: The City Hall complex is the largest development effort the council has considered in recent years and will shape the downtown redevelopment strategy. Council members said the project could surpass other local projects in size and impact, and they repeatedly emphasized local hiring and contractor participation as priorities.