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City Council authorized the extension of legal and professional contract agreements on a month-to-month basis Thursday, while the administration prepares a request for proposals from law and consulting firms.
The 5-1 vote included a negative by Councilwoman Liz Miele, who expressed concern about extending Delta Development Group and Penn Strategies Inc. agreements on an hourly basis each month.
"I am concerned with the hourly terms," said Miele, adding the city may not have enough money to accommodate their needs.
The consulting firms are budgeted for, with council having to reinstate a tax increase in order to put $75,000 in the budget.
Miele said in her estimation the city is depleting its consulting budget more than it should.
Delta's prior contract was $17,500 a month while Penn Strategies was $8,333 a month. Delta has expertise on transportation-related grants and is working on the East Third Street Old City Gateway project and Penn Strategies is continuing to help the city with flood mitigation needs on Grafius Run and with the river levee project, Councilwoman Bonnie Katz said.
Both are in the middle of grant reporting and processing.
Separately, Jason Fitzgerald, president of Penn Strategies Inc. said he will show the city just how much the company does each month in hours worked.
In all, $20 million in grants between the companies has been secured or is in the process of potentially getting into the city for projects.
The request for proposals and adjustments to the consulting firm agreements are part of Mayor Derek Slaughter's efforts to ensure a fair, open and competitive process takes place, allowing for businesses to submit their interest for legal and professional services.
To ensure a smooth selection, Slaughter has asked for a representative of council to sit in on an administrative-led committee regarding the businesses and firms that respond to the request for proposals.