7 May 2002
This was submitted in response to the Request for Proposals from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey/Lower Manhattan Development Corporation for initial planning of the WTC area of Manhattan. The deadline for submission was 4:00 PM, 6 May 2002.
All proposals submitted are public documents.
MICHAEL SORKIN STUDIO
ROBERT PAASWELL Phd PE
NATSIOS YOUNG ARCHITECTS
251 West 89th Street, New York NY 10024
Telephone: 212-873-8700 Fax: 212-787-6102
E-mail: jya@pipeline.com
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May 6, 2002
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey
241 Erie Street
Jersey City, NJ 07310-1397
Attention: Laurie Spencer, Senior Consultant Programs Specialist.
Subject: Request for Proposals to Provide Expert Professional Consultant Services Related to the Initial Phase of a Comprehensive Urban Planning and Transportation Study of the Downtown Manhattan Area with Special Emphasis on Development of the World Trade Center Site and Adjacent Areas
Dear Ms. Spencer,
We are pleased to submit this proposal in response to the RFP cited above.
Sincerely,
Michael Sorkin
Michael Sorkin Studio
John Young
Natsios Young Architects
Attached: 12 Copies of Proposal.
PORT AUTHORITY OF NEW YORK AND NEW JERSEY
LOWER MANHATTAN DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION
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PROPOSAL TO PROVIDE EXPERT PROFESSIONAL CONSULTANT SERVICES RELATED TO
THE INITIAL PHASE OF A COMPREHENSIVE URBAN PLANNING AND TRANSPORTATION STUDY
OF THE DOWNTOWN MANHATTAN AREA WITH SPECIAL EMPHASIS ON DEVELOPMENT OF THE
WORLD TRADE CENTER SITE AND ADJACENT AREAS
MAY 6, 2002
__________________________________________________________________
MICHAEL SORKIN STUDIO
ROBERT PAASWELL PhD PE
NATSIOS YOUNG ARCHITECTS
251 West 89th Street, New York NY 10024
Telephone: 212-873-8700
Fax: 212-787-6102
E-mail: jya@pipeline.com
SORKIN PAASWELL NATSIOS YOUNG
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CONTENTSAgreement on Terms of Discussion
Required Submittals
4. Qualifications of project participants.
5. Staffing and estimated cost for tasks.
6. Relevant experience of firms.
7. Project understanding, approach and management.
8. Potential conflicts of interest with downtown Manhattan projects.
9. Subconsultants, compensation, qualifications and staffing.
SORKIN PAASWELL NATSIOS YOUNG
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AGREEMENT ON TERMS OF DISCUSSION
The Port Authority's receipt or discussion of any information (including information contained in any proposal, ideas, models, drawings, or other material communicated or exhibited by us or on our behalf) is not to impose any obligation whatsoever on the Port Authority or to entitle us to any compensation therefor (except to the extent specifically provided in such written agreement, if any, as may be entered into between the Port Authority and us). Any such information given to the Port Authority before, with, or after this letter, either orally or in writing, is not given in confidence and may be used or disclosed to others, for any purpose at any time without obligation or compensation and without liability of any kind whatsoever. Any statement which is inconsistent with this agreement, whether made as part of or in connection with any information received from us, or made at any other time in any fashion, shall be void and of no effect. This letter is not intended, however, to grant to the Port Authority rights to use any matter which is the subject of valid existing or potential letters patent. The foregoing applies to any information, whether or not given at the invitation of the Port Authority.
____________________________________________
John Young, Principal
Sorkin Paaswell Natsios Young
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SUBMITTALS
1. Documents for compliance with items A through D of
the RFP.
PrincipalsMichael Sorkin Studio, Urban Designer, Planner (Studio Portfolio)
Robert Paaswell, PhD, P.E., Transportation Consultant (Resume, CV)
Natsios Young Architects, Planners, Historic Preservationists (Web site)Consultants
Buro Happold Transportation and Structural Engineers (Web site, CV)
Margie Ruddick, Landscape Architect Consultant (Projects, CV)
Helen Ng, Development and Finance Consultant (Projects, CV)
Jean Gardner, Environmental Consultant and Historian (CV, Article)
Joye & Associates, Inc., Underground Structures Consultant (Projects, CV)
Urban Centre Developments, Retail/Public Space Consultant (Projects, CV)All principals have long practiced and lived in the New York/New Jersey area.
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2. The "multiplier" referred to in the first line of subparagraph 7.A of the Standard Agreement including a breakdown of said multiplier, indicating all of its components (e.g., vacation, holiday, sick pay, worker's compensation, office rent, insurance, profit).
Multiplier 2.50 times the actual salaries paid to architects, planners, engineers or other professional and technical personnel but not partners and principals for time actually spent by them in the performance of services hereunder, plus an amount equal to the number of hours actually spent by partners and principals in the performance of services hereunder times the billing rate (no multiplier applied) described below but in each case excluding premium payments for overtime work or night work or for performing hazardous duty.
3. The name(s), title(s) and hourly rate(s) and job classifications of architectural, planning, engineering and technical personnel, including subconsultants who will be assigned to perform any services requested.
For Urban Designer, Planner, Engineer, Architect, Consultant, SubconsultantsPrincipals $150
Project Managers 50
Senior Staff (Directors, Planners, Designers, Analysts) 45
Middle Staff (Planners, Designers, Researchers, CADD) 40
Junior Staff (Planners, Designers, Researchers, CADD) 30
Clerical (Clerical, Administrators) 25
Organizational structure proposed for the project, including all team members involved, and the resumes of all managers, principals and team leaders.
Principals:Michael Sorkin, Urban Designer, Planner
Robert Paaswell, PhD, P.E., Transportation Consultant
Deborah Natsios, Architect, Urban Designer
John Young, Architect, Planner, Historic PreservationistConsultants:
Buro Happold Transportation and Structural Engineers
Margie Ruddick, Landscape Architect Consultant
Helen Ng, Development and Finance Consultant
Jean Gardner, Environmental Consultant and Historian
Joye & Associates, Inc., Underground Structures Consultant
Urban Centre Developments, Retail/Public Space Consultant
Written commitment of time to be devoted by the firm(s) principal(s).
Michael Sorkin 75% of work week
Robert Paaswell 25% of work week
Deborah Natsios 75% of work week
John Young 100% of work week
Name of the person who will serve as the point of contact regarding any such issue related to project services.
John Young
Natsios Young Architects
251 West 89th Street
New York, NY 10024
Tel: 212-873-8700
Fax: 212-787-6102
E-mail: jya@pipeline.comAlternates:
Michael Sorkin, Sorkin Studio
Deborah Natsios, Natsios Young Architects
SORKIN PAASWELL NATSIOS YOUNG
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4. Technical qualifications of architectural, planning,
engineering and other technical personnel referred to in paragraph 3
above.
Please see Submittal 1.
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5. A staffing analysis and an estimated cost for the
performance of each task listed in Attachment A.
Tasks
A. Create a baseline of pre-9/11 vehicular traffic, transit and pedestrian volumes and flows, including pre-existing problems and planned improvements.
Sorkin Studio, Paaswell, Natsios Young, principals, staff and ConsultantsEstimated Cost: $250,000
B. Analyze post-9/11 vehicular traffic, transit and pedestrian volume and flow, including the impact and effectiveness of interim measures.
Sorkin Studio, Paaswell, Natsios Young, principals, staff and ConsultantsEstimated Cost: $250,000
C. Review and evaluate short-term transportation improvement projects (2-5 year implementation) for their impact, relationship to network conditions, funding sources, time line and cost/benefit.
Paaswell and NgEstimated Cost: $300,000
D. Review and evaluate available forecasts of future commutation demand on transportation network serving Lower Manhattan, including trans-Hudson intermodal connections.
Paaswell and NgEstimated Cost: $300,000
E. Review and evaluate long-term transportation improvements for technical feasibility, impacts, cost, relationship to demand forecasts, funding sources and environmental and regulatory approvals necessary.
Sorkin Studio, Paaswell, Natsios Young, principals, staff and ConsultantsEstimated Cost: $450,000
F. Develop forecasts of Downtown Manhattan population and land usage trends, including residential, commercial, office space, cultural, recreational and retail.
Sorkin Studio, Paaswell, Natsios Young, principals, staff and ConsultantsEstimated Cost: $500,000
G. Provide an urban design framework for Downtown Manhattan concentrating on the area south of Chambers Street/Brooklyn Bridge.
Sorkin Studio, Paaswell, Natsios Young, principals, staff and ConsultantsEstimated Cost: $750,000
H. Study the compatibility of proposed Downtown Manhattan and WTC Site-specific commercial retail, office, cultural and memorial uses against the LMDC “Principles for Action” and “Blueprint for Renewal”.
Sorkin Studio, Paaswell, Natsios Young, principals, staff and ConsultantsEstimated Cost: $250,000
I. Review and evaluate preliminary urban design proposals for the WTC Site with a focus on land use, street and block plans, building massing, vehicular and pedestrian circulation, open space, and links to a proposed underground transportation concourse.
Sorkin, Vovk, Laiter, Young, Natsios, Marshall, PaaswellEstimated Cost: $150,000
J. Provide an urban design plan for the World Trade Center Site and its immediate surroundings, taking into consideration both above and below grade areas.
Sorkin Studio, Paaswell, Natsios Young, principals, staff and ConsultantsEstimated Cost: $500,000
K. Develop an appropriate building program for WTC Site uses including memorial and cultural uses, office space, hotel, retail and service areas.
Sorkin Studio, Paaswell, Natsios Young, principals, staff and ConsultantsEstimated Cost: $750,000
L. Incorporate related transportation analyses, forecasts and plans developed by stakeholders and agencies with an interest in Downtown Manhattan development. In addition to the Port Authority and LMDC, input from various participating transportation and planning agencies, such as the MTA/NYCT, NYS and NYC DOT’s, NYC Department of City Planning, New York Metropolitan Transportation Council, North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority, private transportation operators, and other civic and community groups must be included in the various studies.
Sorkin Studio, Paaswell, Natsios Young, principals, staff and ConsultantsEstimated Cost: $250,000
M. Participate in meetings with the Port Authority and LMDC (1 per week) and working sessions with participating agencies (as required), as well as regular presentations at public hearings, community board meetings, and advisory councils (approximately 2 per month).
Sorkin Studio, Natsios Young, principals, Consultants as requiredEstimated Cost: $50,000
N. Coordinate with the entity leading the memorial development process to fully integrate a permanent memorial into the WTC Site.
Sorkin Studio, Paaswell, Natsios Young, principals, staff and Consultants:Estimated Cost: $100,000
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6. Specific relevant experience of firm.
Description of relevant projects, including client contact information
Please see Submittal 1.
Work currently being done by the firm relating to the lower Manhattan area.
Michael Sorkin Studio: Pro bono planning.
Previous work done by the firm relating to the lower Manhattan area.
None.
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7. Demonstrate your understanding of the planning and transportation issues and outline your technical approach to be taken, including a project management work plan.
The task at hand is to create a place of civic grandeur and dignity that will commemorate the tragedy of September 11 and restore the interrupted vitality of Lower Manhattan. There is a convergence between the history and the destiny of the site that is linked to its intense accessibility. Clearly, a primary ambition of any scheme must be to repair and expand the connectedness of the site with the city, the region, and the world. To accomplish this, the site must bring together water, road, rail, and pedestrian systems in the most seamless possible interface.But the project must produce more than convenience. It must be a great project, a living memorial. This means that a plan must carefully but passionately finesse the mix of uses and structures on, and means of access to, the site. Despite the emerging consensus so well articulated by the LMDC, this is not a deductive process leading inevitably to a single solution. Indeed, it is the role of planning to articulate serious options, not simply to run variations on a single theme. We would therefore undertake to examine the viability of alternatives ranging from a “no build” solution – one that might dedicate most of the ground plane to a memorial – to a more purely culturally and civically oriented mix, to a more predominantly commercial one.
To do this, we would listen to and consult with the many publics with an interest in the future of this place. The breadth of participation in New York’s spiritual and physical renewal since September 11th has been breathtaking. Given the specificity of the views expressed, planning has the obligation to give careful consideration to every suggestion, to gain a sense of both public needs and desires. A satisfying plan will seek not simply to respond to these but to allow this ongoing discussion of our urbanism to continue.
Imagining such a range of solutions also requires an investigation that extends far beyond the site itself, looking at a wide range of alternative locations for various functions, examining regional patterns of commutation and tourism, and inventorying larger municipal, institutional, and private agendas for expansion in New York City. Certainly, given the tremendous scale of potential investment, it is the responsibility of planning to leverage maximum synergy with the city as a whole. And, as the LMDC and PA have made clear, the reconstruction cannot be understood without reference to detailed planning for all of Lower Manhattan.
Finally, this project represents an opportunity to create a community that is a model of sustainability. Transportation and mix are the keys. Fortunately, Lower Manhattan already enjoys the highest level of public transit use in the country and this can be further enhanced in efficiency, variety, and architectural presence. Moreover, the dramatic increase in the residential population south of Canal Street in recent years is a harbinger of the kind of mix that produces both vibrant, 24-hour, communities, and – by locating appropriate residential development in proximity to workplaces – further reduces the demand on transit, allowing pedestrianism to assume the alpha role in local circulation.
In the end, the project as a whole must reflect the greatness, the diversity, the aspiration, and the memory of New York City. This is not a site on which to produce second-best solutions. Building here, we are sending a message to the world.
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8. Disclose any potential conflicts of interest with any current downtown Manhattan projects.
None.
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9. Intended subconsultant(s), the terms and conditions
for their compensation (including their multiplier, if applicable), the estimated
number of hours of subconsultant services, their MBE/WBE status and the technical
qualifications of their key personnel to be assigned to the subject
project.
Please see Submittals 3 and 10.
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10. Minority Business Enterprise participation in this project.
Women ParticipantsDeborah Natsios, Natsios Young Architects
Margie Ruddick, Consultant
Helen Ng, Consultant
Jean Gardner, ConsultantHispanic
Jair Laiter, Michael Sorkin Studio
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11. A complete list of your firm's affiliates.
None.