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Livingston URA authorizes contract with consultant Brianne Downey up to $25,000; task-order approach explained
Summary
The Livingston Urban Renewal Agency approved a contract with consultant Brianne Downey allowing up to $25,000 in task-ordered work. City staff explained that ownership of materials created under the contract rests with the URA and that task orders will define scopes, billing and durations.
The Livingston Urban Renewal Agency voted Feb. 20 to approve a contract with consultant Brianne Downey that establishes an open-ended, task-order arrangement for services up to $25,000. The authorization empowers staff to sign the contract.
During board discussion, members asked for clarification on ownership of materials, billing and how work would be scheduled and authorized. City Manager Gager explained that Section 8 of the contract designates ownership of materials created under the contract as the property of the URA, while the final sentence of that section grants the contractor a license to use those documents for marketing — a relatively typical provision. Gager described a task-order model in which the URA would issue discrete task orders for specific scopes of work (for example: general board support, marketing for a grant program, or coordinating with a downtown master plan effort), each with a defined scope, duration and budget estimate.
The contract sets a $25,000 cap on total spending under the agreement; any increase would require an amendment. Gager said billing would generally be done on a task-order or project basis rather than as weekly invoices, and that the contract clarifies how to compute days for termination and other deadlines. Both parties retain termination rights; the contract includes a 15-day termination provision. The board also discussed practical matters such as whether task-order requests and scope approvals can be exchanged by email; staff said formal contractual notices (for termination) follow the written-notice section but that routine task-order communications could and likely would proceed by email, provided they do not create a quorum issue among board members.
Board member Julie Evans moved to approve the contract and authorize staff to sign; Lisa Garcia made the motion and the measure passed unanimously among members present. Brianne Downey, who called into the meeting, thanked the board and said she looked forward to working with the URA.
The board indicated staff should create a simple task-order template (one-page scope and budget) to accelerate small assignments and to return to the board with guidance on how routine task orders will be managed.
