Competitive Process for Consultant Contracts
San Diego Municipal Code § 22.3202
in effect§22.3202 Competitive Process for Consultant Contracts
Except as otherwise provided in section 22.3208:
(a) For consultant contracts estimated to be $25,000 or more, notice of requests for qualifications and proposals shall be published in a newspaper or posted on the City’s website, or a website of a firm hired by the City to post such notices.
(b) The selection of private architectural, landscape architectural, engineering, environmental, land surveying, or construction project management firms shall be on the basis of demonstrated competence and on the professional qualifications necessary for the satisfactory performance of the services required.
(1) The Purchasing Agent shall negotiate the cost of the consultant contract with the most qualified firm, for a price determined to be fair and reasonable to the City.
(2) If the Purchasing Agent is unable to reach agreement with the most qualified firm on the cost of the consultant contract, the Purchasing Agent shall reject the proposal of the most qualified firm and may begin negotiations with the next most qualified firm.
(3) This negotiation process may continue until an agreement is reached with a qualified firm, or until all proposal are rejected pursuant to this section or section 22.3015.
(c) The selection of all other consultants shall be on the basis of the proposal offering the best value to the City, considering price, qualifications, experience, and other factors determined by the Purchasing Agent.
(d) The Purchasing Agent may establish a short-list of qualified firms through requests for qualifications or proposals to compete for consultant services on a rotating, as-needed basis.
(e) This section does not apply to consultant contracts that are entered into pursuant to a developer reimbursement agreement as defined in Chapter 14, Article 2, Division 6 of this Code.
(f) A consultant shall not be retained through a cooperative procurement contract.
(g) In the selection of consultants, the Purchasing Agent shall follow the requirements of Chapter 2, Article 2, Division 36 of this Code to maximize the participation of small and local businesses.
(“Authority to Enter Contracts; Competitive Bid Process Required” added 6–29–1998 by O–18532 N.S.)
(Amended 4-23-2012 by O-20148 N.S.; effective 5-23-2012.)
(Retitled to “Competitive Process for Consultant Contracts” and amended 1-18-2018 by O-20893 N.S.; effective 2-17-2018.)
(Amended 6-4-2020 by O-21192 N.S.; effective 7-4-2020.)
(Amended 8-10-2022 by O-21516 N.S.; effective 9-9-2022.)
Source: City of San Diego Office of the City Clerk, San Diego Municipal Code and City Charter (docs.sandiego.gov PDFs)URL: https://docs.sandiego.gov/municode/MuniCodeChapter02/Ch02Art02Division32.pdf#page=1Fetched: 10/28/2026