Greater Burrows board discusses RFP, timeline and budget for five-year strategic plan

The Greater Burrows Partnership for Health advisory board reviewed a draft scope of services and timeline for a five-year strategic plan and discussed the proposed budget and deliverables.

The draft RFP (presenter) proposed a budget cap of $25,000, a posting next week with a closing date after Dec. 16, and a vendor selection by mid-January to support a February–May implementation period. Board members compared examples from other towns, noting Foxborough used $25,000 while some jurisdictions spent substantially more for document review and feasibility assessments.

Members recommended adding explicit sustainability objectives (funding and organizational continuity over five years), specifying deliverables (document review, feasibility/sustainability assessment, and a final live presentation of recommendations), and identifying 3–4 vendors to solicit quotes. Suggested vendor candidates mentioned during discussion included CMRPC, HRIA, JSI and BME Strategies. Several members favored boosting the budget to about $30,000 so proposals can include more specific, tangible deliverables; the group agreed to update the draft with sustainability language and to finalize vendor selection and deliverables in a December meeting.

The board tentatively scheduled a follow-up meeting for Dec. 18 at 1 p.m. (to be confirmed with absent member Ann Marie) to finalize objectives and the RFP text prior to posting. Staff said the final product would include a public presentation of recommendations to the advisory board and be timed to feed into next year’s work plan.