Community Engagement and?Communications?Services

San Mateo County
Flood and Sea Level Rise
Resiliency District
Request for Proposals for
Master Service Agreement for
Community Engagement and Communications Services
RFP Number FSLRRD-2026-04-10B
Release Date: April 10, 2026
Preproposal Workshop: April 27, 2026, 10:00 AM PST
Deadline for Questions: May 4, 2026, 5:00 PM PST
Deadline to Respond: May 15, 2026, at 5:00 PM PST
*No Extensions*

TABLE OF CONTENTS
1 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................. 3
1.1 Project Overview .................................................................................................................... 3
1.2 About OneShoreline ............................................................................................................... 3
2 CONTEXT ........................................................................................................................................ 3
2.1 Goals and Anticipated Outcomes ........................................................................................... 5
3 PROPOSAL PROCESS AND REQUIREMENTS ............................................................................ 5
3.1 RFP Schedule ........................................................................................................................ 5
3.2 Proposal Process ................................................................................................................... 6
3.3 Submission of Questions ........................................................................................................ 6
3.4 Submission of Proposals ........................................................................................................ 6
3.5 Interviews ............................................................................................................................... 6
3.6 Proposal Requirements .......................................................................................................... 7
4 SCOPE OF WORK, SCHEDULE, AND BUDGET ......................................................................... 10
4.1 Scope of Work ...................................................................................................................... 10
4.2 Project Schedule and Budget ............................................................................................... 12
5 CONSULTANT RESPONSIBILITIES AND QUALIFICATIONS ..................................................... 12
5.1 Consultant Responsibilities .................................................................................................. 12
5.2 Quality Management ............................................................................................................ 13
5.3 Firm Qualifications ................................................................................................................ 13
5.4 Key Staff Minimum Qualifications ......................................................................................... 13
6 PROPOSAL EVALUATION ........................................................................................................... 14
6.1 Initial Review ........................................................................................................................ 14
6.2 Evaluation ............................................................................................................................ 15
6.3 Interviews ............................................................................................................................. 15
6.4 Selection and Contract Award .............................................................................................. 15
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1 INTRODUCTION
1.1 Project Overview
The San Mateo County Flood and Sea Level Rise Resiliency District, known as OneShoreline, seeks to
retain a single qualified consulting team to provide on-call professional services in support of its flood
resilience and climate adaptation initiatives in the areas of community outreach and stakeholder
engagement, multi-jurisdictional facilitation and governance support, and general branding and
communications.
Services will be delivered under a Master Services Agreement (MSA) with a not-to-exceed value of up
to $500,000 for a three-year term structured across task orders reflecting specific service areas.
Procurement of a consultant team does not guarantee a minimum volume of work or obligate
OneShoreline to issue any task orders. OneShoreline reserves the right to modify, suspend, extend, or
conclude services as project needs evolve and may extend the Agreement term by up to one (1)
additional year and increase the contract amount in accordance with District policies.
OneShoreline is advancing a growing portfolio of flood resilience and climate adaptation initiatives
across San Mateo County, spanning multi-jurisdictional shoreline planning, watershed-scale
coordination, and community-focused engagement in areas experiencing current and increasing flood
risk. This work involves collaboration with cities, regional agencies, community partners, and regulators,
and requires consistent facilitation, engagement, and public-facing communications as projects evolve.
As OneShoreline's project portfolio expands, this on-call contract is intended to provide the District with
additional capacity to support stakeholder engagement, facilitation, and communications work across
multiple concurrent initiatives
The selected firm must demonstrate experience delivering equity-centered community engagement for
public agencies; facilitating multi-stakeholder and advisory processes; translating complex technical
planning and engineering information into clear, accessible public-facing communications; and
supporting public agencies with strategic communications and branding.
1.2 About OneShoreline
OneShoreline is the San Mateo County Flood and Sea Level Rise Resiliency District, established by
State legislation effective January 1, 2020 as the first independent government special district in
California created specifically to address the water-related impacts of climate change across
jurisdictional boundaries (Assembly Bill 825, Mullin, 2019).
OneShoreline works to advance resilience to sea level rise, extreme storms, drought, erosion, and
groundwater rise for developed, natural, and recreational areas, and to plan land use and infrastructure
for both current and future climate-driven conditions. To do this, OneShoreline works with local
governments, state agencies, scientific and educational institutions, asset owners, advocacy
organizations, community-based organizations, and the public to use the best available science and
public and private resources to deliver multiple benefits equitably to people, ecosystems, and the
economy.
2 CONTEXT
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OneShoreline is advancing a growing portfolio of flood resilience and shoreline adaptation efforts
across San Mateo County, spanning policy guidance, planning, design, and early implementation.
These efforts require coordination across cities, regional agencies, asset owners, technical partners,
and community members. Upcoming flagship efforts include the Brisbane Shoreline Resilience Plan,
Brisbane Living Shoreline, and the Southern Bayside Cities Shoreline Resilience Plan, which together
address interconnected shoreline and watershed systems along San Francisco Bay, building on prior
vulnerability assessments to advance coordinated adaptation strategies responsive to sea level rise,
coastal flooding, stormwater constraints, and groundwater rise.
A range of policy requirements inform this work, including SB 272, BCDC's RSAP guidelines, California
Coastal Commission Local Coastal Plan requirements, local General Plans and Hazard Mitigation
Plans, and evolving regulatory frameworks. As we advance detailed planning along the entire 12 miles
of bayside shoreline, we see a growing need for consistent messaging and frameworks, coordinated
engagement, stronger brand awareness, and structured facilitation to advance decision-making and
build public support.
OneShoreline is also expanding its presence on San Mateo County's Pacific Oceanside, working with
public agency partners including the San Mateo County Harbor District, Caltrans, the Sewer Authority
Mid-Coast, cities, the Resource Conservation District, and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to secure
funding, and address sea level rise and shoreline hazards affecting vulnerable shorelines, critical
infrastructure, public trails, coastal landfills, and other community resources. The engagement needs
and planning frameworks on the oceanside are distinct from the Bay shoreline context.
Across both Bay and Oceanside efforts, OneShoreline is advancing watershed-scale flood resilience
initiatives and neighborhood-level engagement in communities experiencing recurring or increasing
flood risk, often involving overlapping project boundaries, multiple implementing partners, and evolving
funding opportunities. As the portfolio grows, there is increasing need for communications, stakeholder
engagement, and facilitation support that can scale across projects while maintaining consistency in
messaging, documentation, and public-facing materials.
The services requested through this RFP provide flexible, countywide support across three areas:
* Community and Stakeholder Engagement supports the full spectrum of OneShoreline's flood
resilience and climate adaptation planning and project work, from multi-jurisdictional shoreline
adaptation planning to neighborhood-scale outreach in communities experiencing recurring or
increasing flood risk.
* Multi-Jurisdictional Facilitation and Coordination supports alignment across the cities,
agencies, and regional partners, including facilitation of Technical Advisory Committees,
interagency working groups, and cross-jurisdictional stakeholder processes where shared
understanding, coordinated messaging, and documented progress are essential to advancing
planning and implementation decisions.
* Countywide Communications and Branding supports transparency, public trust, and
awareness of OneShoreline's efforts through newsletters, webpages, media campaigns, etc..
Work may span individual projects, cross-project coordination, and district-level initiatives, and will
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require close collaboration with OneShoreline staff, partner jurisdictions, technical consultants, and
community-based organizations.
2.1 Goals and Anticipated Outcomes
The primary goals are to:
* Support inclusive, accessible, and equity-centered community engagement across
OneShoreline's shoreline adaptation planning and climate risk reduction initiatives.
* Increase public understanding of flood risk, climate impacts, and adaptation strategies through
clear, consistent, and audience-appropriate communications.
* Meaningfully incorporate community perspectives, lived experience, and local knowledge into
planning, design, and implementation.
* Strengthen coordination and shared understanding among jurisdictions, agencies, and
stakeholders involved in shoreline and watershed-scale resilience efforts
* Communicate project milestones, funding investments, and program outcomes through
branding, storytelling, and media support
Anticipated outcomes of this work include:
* Community members in flood-prone and historically underserved neighborhoods have
participated in engagement processes and can describe current and future flood risks relevant
to their homes and neighborhoods
* Documented input from renters, limited-English-proficiency populations, and other
underrepresented groups is reflected in planning decisions, project prioritization, and
implementation strategies
* Engagement processes for RSAP projects meet BCDC's Equity Assessment Standard, with
input from priority communities documented at each planning milestone
* OneShoreline and participating jurisdictions are using shared messaging frameworks and
consistent public-facing materials across projects and geographies
* Jurisdictions, agencies, and stakeholders have established working relationships and shared
decision-making processes that support coordinated action
* OneShoreline's initiatives are recognized by target audiences through a coherent brand
presence across digital, print, and media channels
3 PROPOSAL PROCESS AND REQUIREMENTS
3.1 RFP Schedule
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Milestone Date
Advertisement of RFP April 10, 2026
Pre-Proposal Workshop April 27, 2026, at 10:00 AM PT
Deadline for Proposers to Submit Questions May 4, 2026, at 5:00 PM
OneShoreline Posts Responses to Questions May 8, 2026, at 5:00 PM
Deadline to Submit Proposals May 15, 2026, at 5:00 PM PT
Consultant Interviews May 27-28, 2026
Notification of Selection June 3, 2026
Deadline for Negotiation of Agreement June 16, 2026
OneShoreline Board Authorization to Execute Agreement June 22, 2026
3.2 Proposal Process
Prospective consultants are encouraged to attend a virtual pre-proposal workshop to learn more about
the project and RFP.
* Date/Time: April 27, 2026 at 10:00 AM
* Register here: https://oneshoreline-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/GBhA4w3zQHqow7ToXDtaIw
While oral responses may be provided during the workshop, only written addenda issued by
OneShoreline shall be considered binding.
3.3 Submission of Questions
Questions regarding this RFP must be submitted via email to:
Projects@OneShoreline.org
Subject line: Engagement RFP
Responses to all questions will be posted at: https://oneshoreline.org/document-library/
3.4 Submission of Proposals
Proposers must submit an electronic copy by the proposal deadline to:
Stephanie Lau, Grants and Communications Advisor
Projects@OneShoreline.org
Proposals must be valid for a period of 120 days from the date of submission. Late or incomplete
proposals will not be considered.
3.5 Interviews
OneShoreline may invite multiple consultants for interviews at OneShoreline's offices, located at 1700
S. El Camino Real, San Mateo, CA, or remotely via Zoom.
Key staff should reserve availability for May 27-28, 2026, as OneShoreline may not have flexibility
to reschedule this date. Interviews will focus on team qualifications, approach, and ability to effectively
collaborate with OneShoreline and project partners.
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3.6 Proposal Requirements
Length & Formatting
All proposals must adhere to the following length and formatting. Proposals that do not comply with
these instructions may be deemed non-responsive and disqualified from further consideration.
The required content section of the proposal must not exceed 10 pages total, including all supporting
materials except:
* Front and back cover
* Section dividers
* Appendices
Proposals and appendices must follow the stated formatting requirements, specifically:
* Minimum 11-point font for body text; min 10-point for all other text including graphics and tables.
* Number all pages clearly and sequentially. Do not number cover pages or section dividers.
* Page layouts must be US Letter size (8.5" x 11") but may include up to two Tabloid sized pages
(11" x 17"), each counted as one page. Additional Tabloids will count as two pages each and
should be numbered as such.
* Proposals shall be a single consolidated PDF for electronic submission, with headings
bookmarked and a linked table of contents.
Required Content
Proposals must include the following content sections, organized in the order listed below:
Cover Materials. Proposals shall include the following materials:
* Proposal cover including RFP title and number, prime firm name, and submission date
* Signed cover letter from an individual authorized to contractually bind the proposer
* Primary point of contact (name, title, phone number, and email address)
Executive Summary. Brief overview of team qualifications, understanding of OneShoreline's needs
and opportunities under this MSA, and differentiating qualifications or approaches.
Section 1. Proposed Team. Proposals shall describe the composition, roles, and capacity of the
proposed on-call project team, including:
* Description of prime firm and subconsultants, with roles and responsibilities.
* Organizational chart showing all proposed key team members, their firms, and their roles.
* Bios for key personnel, including roles, qualifications, office locations, and percent availability by
quarter through the end of 2026.
Section 2. Relevant Firm Experience: Brief descriptions of two (2) to three (3) relevant past projects,
with an emphasis on equity-centered engagement, flood resilience or climate adaptation efforts, and
multi-agency or multi-stakeholder facilitation. Include client name, project scope, and the proposer's
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role.
* Client name, project scope, schedule, and budget
* Team members involved and their roles
* Description of technical components and outcomes relevant to this scope
* One agency reference per project: name, title, phone, and email
Section 3. Engagement Approach and Strategy Menu: A recommended menu of equity-centered
community engagement strategies tailored to the scope of work described in this RFP. Proposals
should demonstrate flexibility across project type, geography, and community context.
Section 4. Billing Rates: Proposed billing rates for 2026 and 2027, including rates for all firms and
anticipated job classifications. Rates should be all-inclusive, incorporating any additional charges such
as technology fees or similar overhead costs.
Required Appendices
The following appendices are required and excluded from the ten-page narrative limit:
A. Sample Scope of Work and Budget:
A sample community engagement scope of work for a not-to-exceed amount of $90,000 (inclusive of
any stipends and CBO subcontracts) for a support of a Subregional Shoreline Adaptation Plan,
modeled after OneShoreline's Ocean Protection Council workplan for the Brisbane Shoreline
Resilience Plan. This work would fall under service Category A, community and stakeholder
engagement. Proposers should draw on the RSAP's flow of plan elements and Equity Strategy
Standard, as well as OneShoreline's publicly available project materials (e.g., the Context for Brisbane
Shoreline Resilience Planning (Attachment A), OPC Workplan (Attachment B), Brisbane projects
webpage, and Master Services Agreement for Brisbane Shoreline Resilience Planning RFP). The
sample scope should address the following:
* Developing a community engagement plan and schedule, developed collaboratively with
OneShoreline and the engineering consultant, integrated with subregional shoreline adaptation
planning milestones and updated as the project advances
* Concepts for engagement approaches to reach equity audiences and fulfill BCDC's RSAP
equity strategy standard, tailored to Brisbane's demographics and shoreline user groups
* Engagement and coordination at the vulnerability prioritization milestone, including how
technical risk findings will be translated into accessible materials and how community input on
priorities will be gathered and documented
* Engagement and coordination at the local vision and adaptation strategies milestone, including
how strategy options and tradeoffs will be presented accessibly and how community
preferences will feed into the technical evaluation process
* Engagement and coordination at the draft plan milestone, including how plan findings will be
communicated and how the team will build toward community and stakeholder endorsement
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* Equity Standards Assessments following the vulnerability prioritization, local vision and
adaptation strategies, and draft plan publication milestones, including how findings will be
integrated into subsequent planning steps
The sample scope should identify proposed tasks, key milestones, major deliverables, assumptions
and coordination touchpoints with OneShoreline and the engineering consultant to align engagement
activities with technical analyses and subregional shoreline adaptation planning milestones, assuming a
24-month schedule. OneShoreline may use the sample scope as the basis for negotiating an initial task
order with the selected firm. The maximum length of the sample scope is eight pages, inclusive of
figures.
A detailed fee proposal aligned with proposed scope of work shall also be provided, including:
* Task and subtask budget breakdown with labor hours by staff classification
* Fully burdened billing rates by staff classification for each firm
* Subconsultant costs included in task budgets; markups shall not exceed 5%
* Itemized allowable direct costs
* Assumptions underlying scope limitations, labor, tasks and direct costs
* The minimum font size for the fee proposal is 10 point.
B. References
Three (3) references from clients other than OneShoreline for whom the firm has performed
comparable community engagement or communications work within the past five years. References
should be current and directly familiar with the firm's work. For each reference, provide the client
organization, contact name, title, phone number, email address, and a brief description of the project
and the firm's role.
C. Resumes:
Resumes for up to ten (10) proposed key staff, not to exceed two (2) pages each.
D. Legal and Contractual Disclosures
Proposals shall include the following legal and contractual disclosures:
* Disclosure of any active or recent litigation (last 3 years)
* Any exceptions to this RFP or OneShoreline's standard contract
* Confirmation of acceptance of:
OneShoreline's Standard Agreement and Insurance Requirements
o
Non-Collusion and Conflict of Interest Statement
o
Optional Appendix
Proposers may include up to ten (10) pages of optional graphics, tables, or sample materials
demonstrating the quality and range of prior engagement and communications work, such as fact
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sheets, infographics, meeting summaries, social media graphics, branding materials, videos, etc.
Reserved Rights and Legal Requirements
OneShoreline reserves the right to modify the RFP's scope of work, make corrections, and reject any or
all proposals. OneShoreline may also correct errors in the RFP and contact the proposers with any
clarifications. Consultant shall ensure full compliance with Federal, State and local laws, directives, and
executive orders regarding California Public Contract Code and other provisions of laws applicable to
this Project.
4 SCOPE OF WORK, SCHEDULE, AND BUDGET
The following describes the enabling scope of work for each service area. Specific task orders will be
scoped and negotiated as individual projects, needs, and funding arise over the contract period.
4.1 Scope of Work
SERVICE AREA A - COMMUNITY AND STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT
Provide community and stakeholder engagement support for shoreline adaptation planning efforts
across OneShoreline's portfolio, including the Brisbane Shoreline Resilience Plan, Brisbane Living
Shoreline Project, and Southern Bayside Cities Shoreline Resilience Plan. Engagement activities must
support communities and stakeholders in understanding, evaluating, and providing meaningful input on
RSAP adaptation strategies and their tradeoffs, with materials and facilitated processes that are
accessible and culturally responsive. Potential services include:
* Co-creation of engagement workplans with OneShoreline and technical project teams to align
outreach activities with planning milestones, RSAP decision points, and adaptation strategy
evaluation processes
* Development and implementation of engagement strategies tailored to specific communities
and contexts
* Identification, cultivation, and coordination of community-based organizations (CBOs) serving
shoreline-adjacent and flood-prone communities, sustaining participation throughout multi-year
planning processes
* Coordination with CBOs to co-design outreach approaches, draw on existing community trust
and networks, and reflect the needs, languages, and priorities of the communities they serve
* Design and facilitation of community workshops, open houses, pop-up events, and small-group
meetings on community priorities, adaptation strategy options, and tradeoffs
* Targeted outreach to residents, renters, small businesses, CBOs, and historically underserved
communities using culturally responsive methods and trusted community partnerships
* Development of plain-language materials explaining flood risk, sea level rise projections, RSAP
adaptation strategies, and near-term actions, tailored to different audiences and shoreline
contexts
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