Sections:
2.50.030 - Evaluation and rating criteria.
2.50.040 - How award decisions will be made.
The Mason County board of commissioners adopted basic criteria to define the purpose of the park development partnership program:
(1)
The funds shall be made available to plan, construct, reconstruct, repair, rehabilitate, and improve public parks serving persons located within Mason County.
(2)
A public park is defined as any structure, facility or field that is intended to be used primarily for park and recreation purposes.
In addition, the commissioners request that this program do the following:
(1)
Encourage the leveraging of funds from other sources through community partnerships;
(2)
Hold an annual request-for-proposal (RFP) process to solicit project proposals from throughout Mason County.
(Res. 31-07 § 1, 2007).
Public parks are already the focus of many recreation activities. Sometimes a park facility has fallen into disrepair and needs only a modest investment to rehabilitate it (and perhaps a commitment from a local organization or the community to help maintain it) in order for the facility to be usable again by the public. Other public park lands have the same potential for recreational use with a modest investment. These policies stress a partnership between public entities with suitable property and the surrounding community or neighborhoods including community recreation organizations.
(1)
Eligible Activities. The funds will be available to plan, construct, reconstruct, repair, rehabilitate, and improve public parks serving persons located within Mason County. Funds are not available for design work (architectural/engineering services) or permits.
Projects located on publicly owned property are emphasized and the application must be made by a public entity. Such property may include that which is currently owned by schools, a city or the county, utility districts, and other public entities.
Maximum award: fifty thousand dollars (per project)
(2)
Eligible Geographic Areas. Any area in Mason County is eligible.
(3)
Eligible Applicants/Recipients. Because this program emphasizes partnerships, applications for projects occurring on publicly owned property must be jointly submitted by a community group or recreation organization and a specific public entity. The partners must develop a use agreement to govern the use of the property and assign responsibilities. The general public must have access to the facilities. Mason County will reserve the right to review and recommend changes to the agreement for a funded project. Agreements must be finalized prior to contracting and release of funds. Mason County will contract with the public entity for distribution of funds.
(4)
Matching Requirements. Because the program is designed to leverage funds from other sources, there is a matching requirement for all projects. Projects that provide more match will generally score or rate better. Projects must have at least a ten-percent match of the overall project cost estimate. Match will be evaluated based on its adequacy in completing a quality project more than simply meeting the program requirements.
Match Criteria:
(A)
Timing is important. Match resources must only be used after the project is actually awarded a notice to proceed. Applicants must keep records of all match expended. Once under contract, recipients will be asked to report on match expended.
(B)
A match may include cash, volunteer labor, donated supplies, equipment, or professional services such as plans, design work, etc.
(C)
A portion of the total resources provided as match must come from the community or recreation organization itself and must be easily identifiable as resources independent of those provided by the partnering public entity (city, port district, school district, local government, etc.).
(D)
At least fifty percent of the total match must come from the public entity.
(E)
All volunteer labor will be valued at fifteen dollars an hour. Volunteer time devoted to fundraising and completing the project application is not considered part of the match.
(F)
Professional services shall be valued at the reasonable and customary value of the product or service contributed by the professional to the proposed project. Any professional services claimed as a match must be directly related to the project.
(G)
Other assistance or funds (unrelated to this grant program) from Mason County will not be accepted as part of a match.
(H)
The amount and type of match must be appropriate to the needs of the proposed project. The applicant must be prepared to justify that each element of the match, in the amount proposed, is required to complete the proposed project.
(I)
Match contribution may be pledged by donors as opposed to being actually collected and in-hand. However, the pledged match must be secure; that is, the applicant must have evidence to support each element of the match from each donor.
(J)
All applications will be checked against the list of match requirements. If the match, as described in the application, does not meet this definition, the application may be considered ineligible.
(Res. 31-07 § 2, 2007).
2.50.030 - Evaluation and rating criteria.
Proposed projects which meet the match requirements above will be evaluated and rated based on the criteria below:
(a)
Mason County evaluates proposals using an evaluation team (four to five members) consisting of Mason County parks staff and members of the parks advisory board. The evaluation team will assess each project principally on the criteria shown on the table below.
(b)
Applicants, using a computer and printer (or equivalent) must respond to the questions individually.
(1)
Use white, eight and one-half by eleven-inch paper with one-inch margins.
(2)
Use a regular typeface, such as Arial or Times Roman, twelve-point size.
(3)
At the top of each page, print: application name, project name, and date written.
(4)
The total of all evaluation responses must not exceed three single-sided pages.
(5)
In order, print the question's number, followed by the question, and then the response. Each question must have its own separate answer.
(6)
The addition of photographs of the project site is encouraged to provide evaluators with a visual image of the project. (Pictures may be in addition to the three-page printed application.)
Park Development Partnership Program
| Number | Item | Points |
| 1 | Need of the project | 0—10 |
| 2 | Need satisfaction—fulfillment | 0—10 |
| 3 | Project design and management | 0—10 |
| 4 | Readiness to proceed | 0—5 |
| 5 | Cost benefit | 0—5 |
| 6 | Project support | 0—5 |
| 7 | Matching shares | 0—10 |
| 8 | Use agreement | 0—5 |
| Total Points Possible | 60 |
SCORING CRITERIA FOR PARTNERSHIP PROJECTS
(a)
Need. How great is the need for improved parks and recreation facilities?
Does the project address a current deficiency for recreation facilities? (+ 0 to 10 points)
| No or very weak need established | 0—2 points |
| Fair to moderate need established | 3—5 points |
| Strong need established | 6—8 points |
| Very high—Exceptional need established | 9—10 points |
(b)
Need satisfaction—Fulfillment. To what extent will the project satisfy the area needs of the service area identified in question 1, "need?" (+ 0 to 10 points)
| No or very weak need satisfaction established | 0—2 points |
| Fair to moderate need satisfaction established | 3—5 points |
| Strong need satisfaction established | 6—8 points |
| Very high—Exceptional need satisfaction established | 9—10 points |
(c)
Project Design and Management. Is the proposal appropriately designed and organized for intended uses and users?
Proposed project is well planned, well designed, and ready for implementation. (+ 0 to 10 points)
| Poor evidence presented or the design is inappropriate | 0—2 points |
| Below average—Moderate | 3—5 points |
| Good—Design is adequate or reasonable | 6—8 points |
| Very good—Excellent—Design is outstanding | 9—10 points |
(d)
Readiness to Proceed. Is the applicant prepared to begin the project?
Proposed project is ready to move along quickly. (+ 0 to 5 points)
| Very large barriers exist that will delay the project | 0 points |
| Substantial or significant barriers exist | 1—2 points |
| Minimal or ordinary barriers exist to delay the project | 3—4 points |
| No barriers exist to delay the project | 5 points |
(e)
Cost Benefit. Do the benefits of the project outweigh the costs?
The proposed benefit of the project far outweighs the costs. (+ 0 to 5 points)
| No evidence of benefit presented | 0 points |
| Little to modest evidence of a mild net benefit | 1—2 points |
| Adequate to strong evidence of a good net benefit | 3—4 points |
| Substantial evidence of an exceptional net benefit | 5 points |
(f)
Project Support. To what extent do the users and public support the project?
The proposed project is supported by the users and public. Documented by letters of support, public testimony, positive media coverage, etc. (+ 0 to 5 points)
| No or very weak evidence of support presented | 0 points |
| Minimal or fair specific evidence of support | 1—2 points |
| Moderate or good support | 3 points |
| Exceptional—Overwhelming support | 4—5 points |
(g)
Matching Shares. To what extent will the applicant match the county funding with contributions from its own resources?
More support of the project by the applicant will be scored higher to maximize the leveraging of county funding. (+ 0 to 10 points)
| 0 to 9% of projects value will be contributed by the applicant | 0 points |
| 10% to 15% of the project value will be contributed by the applicant | 2 points |
| 16% to 25% of the project value will be contributed by the applicant | 4 points |
| 26% to 35% of the project value will be contributed by the applicant | 6 points |
| 36% to 45% of the project value will be contributed by the applicant | 8 points |
| Over 46% of the project value will be contributed by the applicant | 10 points |
(h)
Use Agreement. The proposed use and maintenance agreement is reliable and sufficient. (+ 0 to 5 points)
Maximum points will be awarded to projects with agreements that clearly delineate responsibilities for scheduling, maintenance, replacement of worn/broken material or parts, including labor and cost.
A long-term use agreement must be in place between the partners. Use agreement will include a term for facility maintenance, public access, and recreation programming.
| No evidence of agreement presented | 0 points |
| An agreement presented with very few details | 1—2 points |
| Adequate to strong agreement with some detail | 3—4 points |
| Evidence of an agreement that meets program expectations | 5 points |
(Res. 31-07 § 3, 2007).
2.50.040 - How award decisions will be made.
Mason County staff and the evaluation committee will evaluate the applications and rank them by score. The Mason County board of county commissioners will review the evaluations and scoring. Using a projection of total funds available, the commissioners will recommend which projects should receive funds. The Mason County board of county commissioners will make the final decisions.
Legal and Contractual Requirements. The Mason County board of county commissioners' decision is not yet noticed to proceed. Spending authority comes through a Mason County contract.
Mason County will contract with the public entity. At the time of contracting, the following items apply:
(1)
A long-term use agreement must be in place between the partners. The use agreement will include a term for facility maintenance, public access, and recreation programming.
(2)
All necessary construction permits required by the appropriate jurisdiction must be obtained or identified and being applied for.
(3)
Certificate of Insurance. The agency will note Mason County as additional insured during the contract period and supply Mason County with a certificate of insurance that includes appropriate levels of insurance as noted in the contract.
(4)
State prevailing wages may apply. This may impact a project's proposed budget.
(Res. 31-07 § 4, 2007).