The Administration recommends that the Mayor and City Commission of the City of Miami Beach, Florida, approve the Resolution accepting the City Manager’s recommendation, pursuant to RFQ 2023-008-WG, for financial advisory services. The Resolution authorizes the Administration to enter into negotiations with PFM Financial Advisors LLC, as the top-ranked proposer, and, if unsuccessful, enter into negotiations with Public Resources Advisory Group, as the second-ranked proposer, and, if unsuccessful, enter into negotiations with First Tryon Advisors, LLC, as the third-ranked proposer. The Resolution also authorizes the City Manager and City Clerk to execute the agreement upon the conclusion of successful negotiations.

This solicitation is currently under the cone of silence.

The City’s external financial advisor assists the Administration with debt issuance, including bonds, and the development of timetables, preparation of preliminary and final official statements, the Resolutions, and other documentation required. Further, the financial advisor makes recommendations for appropriate credit structures, evaluates the use of various credit enhancements, participates in presentations to the rating agencies, and reviews the marketing and sale of any debt before, during, and after sale.

They also assist the City in developing and implementing various financing strategies, including research and evaluation of the structuring, timing, and procurement of financing instruments.

On April 24, 2017, the City of Miami Beach (“City”) executed a three (3) year agreement, with three (3), one (1) year renewal options, for financial advisory services with RBC Capital Markets, LLC. The agreement is currently set to expire on April 24, 2023. To consider a replacement agreement, the City issued the RFQ requesting proposals from firms qualified to provide financial advisory services.

On November 16, 2022, the Mayor and City Commission approved the issuance of RFQ 2023-008-WG for financial advisory services. The Procurement Department issued bid notices to 13,104 companies utilizing the City's e-procurement system, with 59 prospective bidders accessing the solicitation. RFQ responses were due and received on January 10, 2023. The City received proposals from the following firms: First Tryon Advisors, LLC, PFM Financial Advisors LLC, Public Resources Advisory Group, and RBC Capital Markets, LLC.

On January 27, 2023, RBC Capital Markets withdrew its proposal and, accordingly, received no further consideration. On February 3, 2023, the Evaluation Committee appointed by the City Manager convened to consider the three remaining proposals. The Committee was comprised of Maria Cerna, Division Director, Capital Improvements Projects, Vyomie Greene, Assistant Director, Finance Department, Maria, Hernandez, GO Bond Program Director, Office of the City Manager and Allison Williams, Contractor, Finance Department.

The Committee was provided an overview of the project, and information relative to the City's Cone of Silence Ordinance and the Government Sunshine Law. The Committee was also provided with general information on the scope of services and a copy of each proposal. The Committee was instructed to score and rank each proposal pursuant to the evaluation criteria established in the RFQ.

The evaluation process resulted in the proposers being ranked by the Evaluation Committee in the following order (See Attachment A):

1st  ranked – PFM Financial Advisors

2nd ranked – Public Resources Advisory Group

3rd ranked – First Tryon Advisors

The following is a summary of the firms.

PFM Financial Advisors LLC (PFM)

Public Financial Management, Inc., a former affiliate of PFM Financial Advisors LLC, was founded in 1975 to provide independent financial advisory services to the public sector. PFM is 100% owned by managing directors who set the firm’s strategic direction and manage specific practice areas. Working together with clients in helping them to achieve immediate and long-term objectives, PFM and its affiliates bring a broad and deep range of expertise and experience to bear on their client engagements. As of January 1, 2023, PFM consisted of more than 340 employees, including 219 financial advisory personnel, located in 31 offices across the United States.

PFM’s Coral Gables office will have responsibility for the engagement with the City, with auxiliary support from other offices in Florida and across the country as needed. PFM has been providing independent financial advisory services to Florida clients for over 36 years.

Public Resources Advisory Group (PRAG)

PRAG is an independent, municipal advisory-only firm, and its only business is advising state and local governments, agencies, authorities, and non-profits both nationally and in Florida.

PRAG’s team brings a unique perspective to their advisory services given their diverse and complementary skill sets, backgrounds, and experiences in investment banking/ underwriting, commercial banking, Florida bond and tax law, municipal advisory, public-private partnerships, and municipal accounting.

PRAG believes it is a leader in the municipal advisory industry nationally and in Florida. PRAG has the ability to provide the City a comprehensive scope of financial advisory services.

First Tryon Advisors, LLC

First Tryon Advisors, LLC is an independent and privately-owned municipal advisory firm that has been in business for over 25 years. They have a total of 25 employees located throughout the Southeast and mid-Atlantic. Their proposed lead advisors are based in Naples and Orlando, Florida. First Tryon’s business consists exclusively of financial advisory work, and its proposed advisory team is comprised of professionals dedicated exclusively to providing financial advisory services.

First Tryon Advisors’ experienced team consists of professionals with legal, underwriting, advisory, and government finance backgrounds, offering their clients immediate access to a wealth of diverse experiences and perspectives to help them solve their problems. Its professionals have served over 350 different state and local governments, agencies, and authorities. This experience includes governmental bond financings aggregating over $10 billion in total issuance amount over the past five years.

The City does not budget for these services. Financial advisory services are usually funded from the bond or other debt proceeds at the time of issuance. In consideration of the services to be provided, the advisory firm shall be compensated based on negotiated hourly rates on a per-project basis. 

After reviewing the proposal and the results of the Evaluation Committee process, the Administration finds PFM Financial Advisors, the top-ranked proposer, to be well-qualified to provide financial advisory services for the City. While all of the proposing firms have sufficient experience to provide services needed by the City, PFM Financial Advisors, the largest of three firms, has an impressive portfolio of previous experience, with many clients similar to the City and with Miami-Dade County. The firm has an existing local presence and is very familiar with the Bond and Disclosure Counsel.

The second and third-ranked firms, Public Resources Advisory Group and First Tryon Advisors, respectively, are also well qualified and should be considered in the event that negotiations with PFM Financial Advisors are not successful.

For the reasons stated herein, the Administration recommend that the Mayor and City Commission approve the Resolution accepting the City Manager’s recommendation, pursuant to RFQ 2023-008-WG, for financial advisory services, authorizing the Administration to enter into negotiations with PFM Financial Advisors LLC, as the top-ranked proposer, and, if unsuccessful, enter into negotiations with Public Resources Advisory Group, as the second-ranked proposer, and, if unsuccessful, enter into negotiations with First Tryon Advisors, LLC, as the third-ranked proposer. The Resolution also authorizes the City Manager and City Clerk to execute the agreement upon the conclusion of successful negotiations.