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City staff recommends two on‑call communications consultants; council requests contract review before consent
Summary
City staff proposed two two‑year on‑call communications contracts, capped at $75,000 per year, to support community outreach and small emergency messaging; council members asked for clarity on crisis communications and requested to see contract language before final consent placement.
City staff presented two proposed on‑call communications contracts intended to supplement the city’s internal communications and community‑outreach capacity.
Lisa Maher, Deputy Director for the Executive Department, told the Committee of the Whole the city ran an RFP that produced nine applications and that staff selected Jefferson & Associates (a current vendor) and Cascadia Consulting Group (a new, smaller vendor with prior work on Redmond 2050). Each agreement would have a two‑year base term with an annual cap of $75,000 and an option for an additional two‑year renewal, for a maximum four‑year term.
Maher said the contracts are meant to augment internal staff work: neutral facilitation of stakeholder groups, communications plans, informational materials, design and printing, and small emergency messaging such as quick translation or infographics. She clarified that larger crisis public‑relations needs — for example sustained media management during a cybersecurity attack or major natural disaster — would be addressed through a separate crisis‑communications contract the city plans to reissue as an RFP.
Council President Kritzker and Councilmember Nueva Camino questioned whether the scope distinguishes clearly between routine outreach and crisis communications. Maher said the recommended firms are suitable for community outreach and targeted emergency tasks but are not intended to serve as the city’s primary crisis‑communications vendor.
Several council members signaled initial support for placing the contracts on consent at a future business meeting, but Kritzker specifically requested that council members be allowed to review contract language before final consent placement. Staff committed to emailing bid results and the proposed contract to council members once available.
The item will return to committee materials and staff will provide contract documents and bid results to council before it is scheduled for action.
