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NYC 9/11 Public Portal Document

MEMORANDUM TO; Selection Committee

FROM: Richard C. Wager Robyn A. Yilmaz

RE: Lower Manhattan Communications Plan: Firm Selection

DATE: May 30. 2002

Background

In an effort to transition from short-term emergency response to long-term recovery and redevelopment of the downtown community.—tbe Deputy Mayor’s Office for Economic •TJevelopment and Rebuilding, through the City’s Economic Development Corporation, initiated a Request for Proposals process asking for firms to develop coherent communications strate^iss that effectively disseminate information about Lower ManhattaTTs progress. I he target audiences for this'slrategy were identified as the area’s businesses, residents, and visitors. The goal was to provide these constituents with much needed information, as well as to restore a sense of confidence in Lower Manhattan as a place to live, work, and visit.

RFP Process

Request for Proposal (RFP)

On March 29, 2002, EDC advertised a Request For Proposals (RFP) with the City Record that ran for 15 consecutive business days. In addition, EDC posted the RFP on its web page April 2, 2002 through April 18, 2002, allowing the public access to this solicitation 24 hours-a-day, 7 days- a-week for a period of 17 calendar days. Finally, a direct mailing was sent out to 50 consulting firms with expertise in communications. The firms selected for the direct mailing came from listings published by the Council of Public Relations Firms. The top 25 Public Relations firms, by revenue, and all 24 Ad agencies listed by the Council received the RFP. In addition, one agency selected from the EDC Bidders List received the RFP.

The Selection Process

EDC received 76 proposals from various firms throughout the City, as well as one from California. The selection process was implemented with the goal of being a thorough, consistent, and inclusive process. EDC representatives participated in each stage of the selection process. The process involved the following steps:

1. EDC Representatives reviewed all submissions, initially removing firms that did not substantially meet the “Required Submissions” section of the RFP. Seven firms failed to meet this minimum requirement and were removed from the pool of candidates.

2. The remaining 69 proposals were reviewed by the same EDC Representatives and ranked based upon the attached “RFP Evaluation Form” (see attached). This form asked for a ranking of the firm based upon 17 different criteria.

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