Pulaski County moves to seek consultants for updated comprehensive plan with $120,000 cap

Lou (Speaker 4) told the council the county's comprehensive plan has not been updated in roughly 17 years and urged the council to fund a new, more detailed plan to guide land-use decisions and the allocation of solar project economic-development funds. "Our current plan is going on 17 years old," Lou said, and added that local conditions and development pressures have changed since 2009.

Lou said the state grant maximum the county has seen is "somewhere around $60,000," which he and an executive director he consulted believe is likely too low to cover a full, modern comprehensive plan. He told the council that a preferred firm previously proposed price points from about $80,000 to $120,000 and that the finalized RFP will ask consultants to provide cost breakdowns and alternative scopes so the county can compare bids.

Councilmember Speaker 6 moved to present the RFPs to consultants and to stipulate that proposals be evaluated with an upper cost cap of $120,000; the motion was seconded and the chair called a roll for approval. The transcript records both that the "motion carried" and later records "Motion carried 3 to 4," an internal inconsistency in the meeting record. The transcript does not provide an unambiguous, itemized vote tally by name.

Next steps: The county will issue the RFP to a larger pool of firms (Lou said he has about 13 firms under consideration) and request detailed proposals with multiple pricing alternatives so the county can decide funding sources (Lou proposed a mix of his professional-services budget and solar project or rainy-day funds).