Council will address city's growing use of consultants

"Last year, council brought in consultants to assist with planning, design, engineering, permitting and program-ming, as well as conducting studies to present in front to council. Shikada's report to council on the topic said consultants can offer valuable expertise on technical issues. "Consultants bring valuable technical and professional expertise, while city staff offer familiarity with local context, including community expectations, data resources, and internal procedures," Shikada's report said."

"The council hired consultants for a total of 44 projects last year. That included spending $4 million on a group of consultants to help with inspections and plan reviews. "I'm sure everybody is kind of in agreement: We probably over-utilize consultants a bit," Councilman Greer Stone said at a May meeting. The city spent $2.7 million hiring consultants for water quality control plant planning and $2.4 million for the design of a downtown parking garage."

"But consultants can save the city money by reducing the number of full-time employees the city needs to put on its payroll. "In some cases, the city outsources as a first step before adding permanent staff due to concerns around long-term financial commitments and the need to sustain consistent workloads," Shikada said. Consultants also let the city offer a wider range of services than it could otherwise, according to Shikada."

Palo Alto spent $27 million on outside consultants last year, contracting consultants for 44 projects including planning, design, engineering, permitting, inspections, and studies. City Manager Ed Shikada will ask the council to evaluate consultant use and streamline hiring processes to identify where consultants are necessary and where they are not. Consultants provide technical expertise and complement city staff familiarity with local context, community expectations, data resources, and procedures. Consultants can reduce the need for additional full-time staff and expand services but also generate significant expenditures, including multi-million dollar contracts for specific projects. The council aims to clarify criteria for hiring consultants rather than eliminate consultant use entirely.

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