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Rowlett council selects consultant for strategic plan after tie-breaker
Summary
After presentations from three finalists for RFP 2025-166-b, Rowlett City Council broke a tie and chose the firm identified in the meeting record as the Marangandro/Marando group. Council emphasized execution, recurring engagement, and a strong implementation plan.
The Rowlett City Council on Jan. 5 chose a consultant to lead an update of the city's strategic plan after hearing presentations from three finalists and breaking a tie in a council revote. The winning firm was identified in council discussion and staff tabulation by variant spellings in the record (Marangandro/Marando); staff will move forward with procurement steps under RFP 2025-166-b.
Council members said the city needs a strategic plan that goes beyond a one-off document and becomes a living guide for policy and budgeting. During presentations, Patrick Ybarra of the Vagorondo Group described his firm's approach as process-driven: "We see this as a process, not an event," Ybarra said, adding that the plan should produce "clarity, coherence and commitment" among staff and elected officials. Mike Mallory of SGR emphasized the difference between a strategic vision and an implementation plan, calling a strategic vision "about direction and priorities." Woody Battle of Baker Tilly highlighted tools intended to help execution, including KPI dashboards and a partnership with Inviso.
Why it matters: Rowlett is undergoing rapid growth and has multiple planning efforts underway (capital projects funded by recent bonds, a downtown plan and other documents council referenced). Council members said the chosen consultant should help translate long-range goals into measurable work and keep the council and staff accountable on implementation.
Council deliberations focused on three factors: demonstrated experience with similar Texas cities, the value of in-person retreats versus remote facilitation, and overall cost. Several council members cited McKinney and Frisco as useful regional comparators during the discussion. After staff reported a tie in the initial scoring, council revoted between the two top-ranked finalists and the record shows the Marangandro/Marando variant as the final selection with four council votes reported by staff.
The next step: Staff will finalize procurement paperwork and return to the council with recommended contract terms and any follow-up scope clarifications. The council said it expects the consultant to lay out a schedule for steering committee meetings, public engagement, and an implementation (deploy) phase that includes an action plan and KPIs.
The selection and the presentations occurred during the work session item on strategic planning (RFP 2025-166-b). The council's discussion emphasized that adoption alone is not adequate: council members repeatedly said they want recurring check-ins and a cadence of updates so the strategic plan informs budget and policy decisions rather than sits on a shelf.
