Concord advisory board advances RFP for MCI Concord planning, sets procurement schedule and stresses community engagement

The MCI Concord advisory board reviewed a revised draft request for proposals on the redevelopment of the former MCI property and moved the procurement process toward release, members said.

At a virtual meeting, the chair said the town had secured a two-week extension on the advisory board’s budget timeline and that the Executive Office of Economic Development’s reimbursement contract had not yet been received; procurement staff said the town typically allows about a week for internal review before posting on the state procurement platform. The team is targeting to post the RFP by the 29th and hold an informational session in mid-December, with a contract award expected in mid-February, though members adjusted several dates to avoid holidays.

Why it matters: The RFP will shape which consulting teams propose land-use scenarios, economic impact analysis, zoning recommendations and public-outreach approaches for a large, multi-phase redevelopment effort. Several members said those deliverables will guide whether the project can move from vision to implementation.

Board members asked for clearer RFP language on site boundaries after DOC staff confirmed the historic cemetery will remain under DOC maintenance and that parts of the property and adjacent lots are available for planning work. Members also urged the RFP to spell out phases beyond the June 30 reimbursement period so proposers can price later tasks and future allocations.

A central debate concerned Task 2, described in the draft as marketing and communications. Members agreed community engagement is central to all tasks and should be evaluated as pervasive across the scope rather than treated as a peripheral line item. One participant noted the RFP’s structure allows tasks to be separately priced so evaluators can prefer teams that present integrated communications capacity.

Procurement and budget guidance: Town staff and procurement advisers recommended not including a firm dollar amount in the RFP unless required, noting prior projects have used a published budget figure only in select cases. Procurement staff also advised using COMMBUYS to reach state-approved planning consultants.

Next steps: Subcommittees will meet to integrate edits and circulate a revised draft; the board agreed to coordinate an information session that includes a DOC-led site tour for prospective proposers. The advisory board also confirmed mciconcordboard@concordma.gov as the central mailbox for stakeholder submissions, which staff will track as part of evaluation and outreach planning.

The meeting concluded with members asking procurement to finalize posting dates and circulation plans; no formal vote on the RFP text was recorded at the meeting.