The Birmingham Planning Board on Oct. 22 discussed six responses to an RFP to update the city’s zoning ordinance and narrowed the list to four firms for in‑person interviews at the board’s November meeting.

City planning staff and board members reviewed proposals that ranged from about $165,000 to $340,000 and timetables from roughly 11 to 24 months. City staff noted the commission allocated $200,000 for the project in the budget. Planning staff and multiple board members emphasized the need to align the zoning rewrite with the City’s 2040 (Birmingham Plan '24) master plan.

Key outcomes
- The board directed staff to invite Halsey Levine, Kendig/Encode Plus, McKenna and Giffels Webster for interviews. Two firms — Place Strategies and Clarion/SmithGroup/OEGM (Clarion consortium) — were not advanced.
- Interviews will be held at the board’s November meeting; the board indicated Nov. 12 as the date and said in‑person attendance by key project staff is preferred. Each shortlisted firm will be given about 15 minutes to present, followed by about 15 minutes of questions from the board; the board expects to make a recommendation to the city commission in December.

What the board considered
City staff and board members described each proposal’s strengths and weaknesses. Staff recorded that the proposals generally met submission requirements and that internal review panels (planning, building, assistant city manager and city attorney offices) had provided preliminary scores.

- Halsey Levine scored well for graphics and GIS analysis; staff flagged a concern about the proposed project manager’s short tenure with the firm and recommended checking references in communities such as Hinsdale, Ill., and Flint, Mich.
- Kendig/Encode Plus was praised for its Encode/OnCode platform (cloud‑based code hosting and public collaboration features) and for a responsive team; references indicated the platform improved public engagement and streamlined code edits for some municipalities.
- McKenna (Northville) was noted for established local experience and a proposal tied closely to Birmingham’s 2040 plan; their 11‑month timetable drew questions about feasibility, but staff said local familiarity could shorten the schedule.
- Giffels Webster offered a thorough municipal product and public engagement capability but proposed using a proprietary “clear zoning” product that may require the firm to maintain future amendments; the firm’s price was modestly above the city budget.
- Place Strategies’ submittal was described internally as the least detailed and the lightest in staffing; it did not advance to interview.
- Clarion/SmithGroup/OEGM submitted a comprehensive, higher‑cost proposal that several board members felt was “too much” for Birmingham’s needs; it did not advance to interview.

Recusal and procurement context
Chair remarks to the board included a public recusal notice: the chair said he had retired from a former firm that submitted a proposal and that he recused himself from proceedings related to the selection once he learned that firm had submitted a response. He told the board: “I immediately recused myself from all proceedings, related to this project.”

Budget and schedule notes
Staff reported the RFP asked for a target completion by Dec. 31, 2027. Submitted budgets ranged from roughly $165,000 to $340,000; timelines quoted by proposers ran from about 11 months to 24 months. Staff recommended interviews of the four shortlisted teams and asked board members to prepare specific questions for the interviews. The board asked staff to require firms to send their intended project leads and to emphasize in‑person availability for the November meeting.

Next steps
Staff will contact shortlisted firms to schedule the interviews and circulate a set of board questions in advance. The board intends to complete interviews at the November meeting, deliberate and forward a recommendation to the city commission in December.