26-125 -RFP for Redevelopement Cousel Services 2026

CITY OF CLIFTON
DEPARTMENT OF PURCHASING
26-125-REDEVELOPMENT COUNSEL
SERVICES FOR
THE CITY OF
CLIFTON 2026 - 2027

NOTICE OF REQUEST FOR FAIR AND OPEN PROPOSAL
Pursuant to N.J.S.A. 19:44A-20.4 et seq., the City of Clifton is soliciting Fair and Open Proposals
for Redevelopment Counsel Services for the period of one (1) year from date of contract
award. Proposals shall be endorsed "Redevelopment Counsel Services" and delivered to
Purchasing Agent Amisha Jariwala, City of Clifton, 900 Clifton Avenue, Clifton, New Jersey
07013.
Due Date: April 30, 2026, at 11:00 a.m.

CITY OF CLIFTON REQUEST
FOR PROPOSALS
REDEVELOPMENT COUNSEL SERVICES
FOR THE CITY OF CLIFTON
The City of Clifton is soliciting a Request for Proposal ("RFP") to provide Redevelopment
Counsel Services for the City, as directed by the City Manager, Municipal Attorney or designee
thereof, for a contract period of one (1) year from date of contract award. All candidates are
required to comply with N.J.S.A. 10:5-31, et seq. and N.J.A.C. 17:27 as amended (Affirmative Action).
I - GENERAL
City of Clifton is seeking Proposals ("RFP") from law firms licensed to practice law in the State of
New Jersey that wish to provide Redevelopment Counsel Services and legal representation of the
City in all matters relating to redevelopment.
All candidates are required to comply with N.J.S.A. 10:5-31 et seq. and N.J.A.C. 17:27 et seq. as
amended. (Affirmative Action).
The successful firm must have significant experience in representing New Jersey municipalities in
large scale Redevelopment matters. Applicants should demonstrate knowledge and experience with
redevelopment, Municipal Land Use Law, zoning and planning. The successful firm will provide the
City of Clifton (City) with legal guidance relating to redevelopment including, but not limited to:
1. Negotiate and prepare developer's agreements, redevelopment plans and amendments;
2. Draft ordinances, pleadings and stipulations for redevelopment issues;
3. Represent the City in litigation in federal and state courts and administrative forums with regard to
Redevelopment issues;
4. Any other related matters as directed by the City.
All questions relating to the RFP shall be submitted in writing to City of Clifton Purchasing Agent,
Amisha Jariwala, via email to: ajariwala@cliftonnj.org, no later than 3:00 p.m. on April 23, 2026. Any
questions, which in the opinion of the City warrant a return reply or an amendment to the RFP, will be
furnished to all parties not less than seven (7) business days prior to receipt of Proposals.
Proposals shall be received no later than 11:00 a.m. on April 30, 2026, and must be made on the
basis that they either meet or exceed the requirements contained herein.

II - SCOPE OF SERVICES
The City of Clifton requires outside counsel for representation of the City in Redevelopment,
drafting Redevelopment plans, preparing ordinances and resolutions.
A. Represent the City in all Redevelopment matters, including the redevelopment of the former
Hoffman LaRoche site. Redevelopment counsel shall advise and assist the Municipal Attorney, the
City Manager, City Engineer, Planners and City Officials.
B. Attend meetings of the City Council as directed by the Municipal Attorney or designee thereof, draft
ordinances and resolutions as required and provide legal opinions on redevelopment matters which
may arise.
C. Represent the City in redevelopment litigation, trials, appeals and other proceedings affecting the
interest of the City as may be necessary or desirable, subject to the approval of the Municipal Attorney.
D. The Redevelopment Counsel shall provide but not be limited to the following:
1. Legal research and/or advisory opinions as needed;
2. Negotiate redevelopment projects for the City with potential developers;
3. Negotiate Payments in Lieu of Taxes for redevelopment projects;
4. Have knowledge of Municipal Land Use Law, Affordable Housing Law (COAH), and
City of Clifton zoning ordinances as they may affect a potential redevelopment project;
5. Meet with appropriate officials and/or City employees upon request;
6. Review Council on Affordable Housing requirements and mandates as they affect
redevelopment projects.
E. Represent the City, subject to the approval of the Municipal Attorney or City Manager, in
redevelopment matters before the State entity which is conferred with the authority to administer
redevelopment matters.
F. Participate, as may be necessary and as may be directed by Municipal Attorney or the City
Manager in preparation of any documents required by the State entity which is conferred with the
authority to administer redevelopment matters.
G. Work may include drafting pleadings, motions, briefs, and all other papers to be filed in court;
conducting and responding to discovery; attending all pre-trial, trial, and post-trial court appearances;
and handling appeals.
H. Respondent must also be free of any conflict of interest and must comply with the conflicts
policy referred to in section III.i below.

III - MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE
Listed below are the minimum requirements necessary to be considered for this proposal:
a) At a minimum, the Respondent shall have five (5) consecutive years experience as
Redevelopment Counsel, representing a municipality or other public entity, preferably with
experience in large scale redevelopment projects.
b) Respondents must demonstrate knowledge of substantial Redevelopment projects and the
applicable laws and regulations of the State of New Jersey.
c) The Respondent must maintain a bona fide office in the State of New Jersey. Please list the firm's
office address on the proposal signature form enclosed herein.
d) The Respondent must list past and present public entities represented in Redevelopment
matters and litigation.
e) The Respondent must identify the attorney(s) and support staff that will be assigned to the
account for handling Redevelopment litigation and their experience in handling such actions and
the outcomes of the actions that they handled.
f) The Respondent must maintain an office within a reasonable distance to the City of Clifton.
g) The Respondent must be licensed to practice law in the State of New Jersey and appear before
all state and federal and administrative courts of the State of New Jersey for a period of not
less than five (5) years preceding appointment.
h) The Respondent must have a sufficient staff to perform the services set forth in the Scope of
Services in this RFP.
i) The Respondent must not have represented or is not currently representing a client whose
interests are adverse to those of the City of Clifton, thereby creating a conflict of interest and the
period of time covered by this restriction is five years prior to the date of the proposal submitted
in response to this RFP.
j) The Respondent must maintain professional liability insurance in the minimum amount of One
Million Dollars per occurrence (One million aggregate).
IV - PROFESSIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS
The Respondent:
1. Shall provide Name, Federal I.D. number, address, phone and fax numbers of the firm submitting the

proposal and a brief description of legal background such as years in business, size of staff and any
affiliations.
2. Shall provide Name, title and address of principal/individual preparing this response and the
contact person for the RFP.
3. Shall provide Name, title, address and phone number of individual(s) to be assigned as the
Redevelopment Counsel Services for the City.
4. Shall describe the professional achievements of the firm and the principal who would be assigned to
the City of Clifton as its account consultant such as educational background, licenses, number of
clients handled and number of years as a Redevelopment Litigation attorney. Resumes or summarized
credentials are too be attached.
5. Shall provide a list of New Jersey public sector entities for which the firm has provided similar
services to those contained herein, including the name, title and phone number of the appropriate
contact person within the entity.
6. All respondents must be partners, owners, employees of the firm.
7. Respondents must provide a comprehensive schedule of proposed fees and hourly rates for partners
and associates of the firm.
8. The Respondent may submit any supplemental information it deems important to the evaluation of
this proposal and the reason why it should be considered in the overall evaluation of the proposal.
V - COMPENSATION
1) Payment to the successful Respondent shall be based on the hourly rates with monthly invoices
submitted to the City broken down by tenths of hours.
2) All expenses and fees other than compensation as set forth above shall be actual out- of-
pocket expenses incurred by the Respondent without any additions for overhead, etc. No
additional charges will be billed for fax transmissions or online research fees and copy costs
will be billed at 15 cents per page.
3) Hourly rates for paralegal services are not permitted.
4) The Firm's fees shall be paid after receipt of a proper invoice and executed payment voucher.
The Firm shall not accept any compensation for related City activities from any source other than
the fee paid by the City of Clifton.
VI - CONTRACT TERMS AND CONDITIONS
1) The term of this agreement is to be a period of one (1) year from date of contract execution.

2) Respondent's proposal shall remain valid for a period of ninety (90) days after submission
and will be considered as a binding offer to perform the required services.
3) Respondents shall comply with all Local, State and Federal directives, orders, and
laws as applicable to this proposal.
4) The successful Respondent shall not assign or transfer this agreement to any other
person or company without prior consent and approval in writing from the City of Clifton.
5) Only one (1) proposal from the same Firm will be considered. A Respondent
submitting more than one (1) proposal will cause the rejection of all the proposals of
said consultant. If there is a reason for believing that collusion exists among
Respondents, those proposals shall be rejected.
6) All proposals and documents submitted to the City of Clifton in response to this RFP
shall become the property of the City of Clifton and are subject to the Open Public
Records Act of the State of New Jersey, after the contract is awarded.
7) The City of Clifton may secure background information based upon the references
provided in this RFP.
VII - SUBMITTAL REQUIREMENTS (FORMS)
1. Affirmative Action Employee Information Report or Certificate of Employee Information Report.
2. Acknowledgment of Receipt of Addenda (if applicable).
3. Non-Collusion Affidavit.
4. Investment Activities in Energy or Finance Sectors of Iran.
5. Prohibited Activities in Russia and Belarus.
6. Stockholder Disclosure Certification.
7. Proposal Form.
8. New Jersey Business Registration Certificate.
9. IRS W-9 Form.
10. Pay to Play Advisory Form.
Note: Failure to submit any one of the above items may be cause for rejection.
VIII - PROPOSAL EVALUATION
A. GENERAL
1. Responsiveness to the scope of services.
2. Organization of Proposal.

B. PERSONNEL
1. Experience and qualifications of principal assigned to this project and of the
firm's principals.
C. EXPERIENCE AND SERVICES OF FIRM
1. History and experience with similar types of government entities.
2. Favorable references from public sector clients for which similar services have been provided.
3. Reputation in the legal community in representing management.
4. Experience and reputation in the legal community of the partner that will be the primary
attorney to function as Redevelopment Counsel Services for the City of Clifton.
D. TECHNICAL EXPERTISE
1. Knowledge and skill in areas of brief writing, handling of Redevelopment
litigation, and appellate practice.
E. HOURLY RATES FEES
1. The City will consider hourly rates proposed of Respondent's partners and associates.
F. COMMUNICATION SKILLS
1. Ability to work and communicate effectively with City of Clifton staff,
Management personnel, and any others as may be necessary.
IV - SUBMISSION DATE
Proposals shall be received by the Purchasing Agent no later than 11:00 a.m. on
April 30, 2026.
Respondents are to submit Two (2) copies: (1) bound copy and (1) un-bound copy and one
digital copy on Flash Drive/Thumb Drive (marked with firm name or sealed in small envelope with
firm name marked outside).
X - AWARD OF CONTRACT
The City of Clifton reserves the right to reject any and all Proposals, to waive any
curable irregularities or technicalities and to award a contract to the Respondent whose
response is most advantageous, price and other factors considered to the City of Clifton.

CITY OF CLIFTON PROPOSAL FORM
REDEVELOPMENT COUNSEL SERVICES
Firm Name:
Signature: Date:
Print Name: Title:
Address:
Tax ID/FEIN:
Phone: Fax:
Email:
Respondents hereby propose the following rates:
1. Hourly Rate for Partners: $
2. Hourly Rate for Associates: $
A.

FAILURE TO SUBMIT FORMS SHALL BE CAUSE FOR REJECTION OF THE PROPOSAL
A. Mandatory Affirmative Action Certification
No firm may be issued a contract unless it complies with the affirmative action regulations of
N.J.S.A. 10:5-31 et. seq. (P.L. 1975, c 127).
1. Procurement, Professional and Service Contracts
All Successful vendors must submit, within seven days after receipt of the notice of intent
to award the contract or the receipt of the contract, one of the following:
i. A photocopy of a valid letter for an approved Federal Affirmative Action Plan (good
for one year from the date of the letter), or
ii. A photocopy of an approved Certificate of Employee Information Report
,
or
iii. If the vendor has none of the above, the public agency is required to provide the vendor
with an initial Affirmative Action Employee Information Report (AA-302).
B. Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990
Discrimination on the basis of disability in contracting for the purchase of bids and services is prohibited.
The successful Respondent is required to read Americans with Disabilities language that is part of this
specification and agrees that the provisions of Title II of the Act are made a part of the contract. The
successful Respondent is obligated to comply with the Act and to hold the City of Clifton harmless.
C. Stockholder Disclosure
Chapter 33 of the Public Laws of 1977 provides that no corporation or partnership shall be awarded any
contract for the performance of any work or the furnishing of any materials or supplies, unless, prior to the