Title
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A Resolution approving an amendment to the professional services agreement between the Village of Oak Park and Elevate Energy for the program design for an energy one stop shop to change the not to exceed amount from $125,565 to $300,000 and authorizing its execution
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Introduction
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This item is a resolution approving an amendment to the professional services agreement with Elevate Energy for the program design for an Energy One Stop Shop changing the not to exceed amount from $125,565 to $300,000 and authorizing its execution.
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Recommended Action
Staff recommend approving the attached professional services agreement with Elevate Energy for the program design for an Energy One Stop Shop. The completion of this contract will aid in the negotiation of a second contract for the implementation and administration of the One Stop Shop.
Prior Board Action
• On July 22, 2025, the Village Board voted to approve Resolution 25-226 to approve the contract with Elevate Energy from program design for an Energy One Stop Shop.
Background
The 2024-2025 Village Board Goals include the goal (5.1.d.ii): Revise the current Village’s housing rehabilitation programs to a multi-year program to encompass electrification, renewable energy, climate resiliency, and healthy housing retrofits for highly vulnerable community members to maintain affordability.
The Board goal aligns with several actions within the Climate Ready Oak Park (CROP) plan, specifically within the goal area “Establish Programs to Support Building Decarbonization”. Actions BD03, BD05, and BD06 all align with the concept of a One Stop Shop.
The One Stop Shop concept was identified through the development of the CROP plan. The community group, Oak Park Climate Action Network (OPCAN), deemed the concept to be significantly important and decided to form the Climate Coaches program to serve in the role while the Village developed the One Stop Shop more formally. In their first year, the Climate Coaches program had 18 volunteer coaches who worked with 103 residents. The most popular requests through the Climate Coaches program were for information and assistance about available grants, rebates, and tax credits, installing rooftop solar, and switching from gas to electric heating. The Village’s One Stop Shop will build on the Climate Coaches’ work by providing full audits and roadmaps for making residences (single household up to mid-sized multihousehold) healthier, more efficient, and electric.
In May of 2025, the Village of Oak Park issued a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) for two contracts. The first contract is for the design of the One Stop Shop. The proposer selected for Contract 1 will be able to negotiate Contract 2 for the implementation and administration of the program designed under Contract 1. The Village received four proposals from extremely qualified firms. After evaluating the proposals against the criteria outlined in the RFQ, the Village selected Elevate Energy based on their extensive experience and similar programs established in other communities.
The Village Board approved Contract 1 on July 22, 2025. Elevate’s proposal for Contract 2 included a soft launch in 2025 before a full launch of the program implementation in FY2026. Staff are currently working with Elevate to create the program design and have identified the need to include the “soft launch” as part of the program design phase. Doing so will help the Village and Consultants to test some of the assumptions made based on stakeholder engagement and try best practices identified from other communities to ensure that they will work and achieve the desired outcomes in Oak Park. By changing the not-to-exceed amount and including a soft launch as part of the program design, Village Staff can ensure that the proposal for FY26 and Contract 2 are facilitating a program that will serve the needs of the community and meet the CROP plan goals.
Timing Considerations
The Fiscal Year 2025 Sustainability Budget includes funding for the development of the One Stop Shop. If the contract extension is approved development can begin on a soft launch which will further inform Contract 2 and initiate implementation in early 2026.
Budget Impact
The Village Board approved $300,000 in account #2310.41020.101.570852.000. The current contract extension is for an amount not to exceed $300,000.
Staffing Impact
Development of the One Stop Shop will include input and guidance from staff in Neighborhood Services, Development Services, and Sustainability. No more than 80 hours of staff time will be dedicated to participating in design and reviewing drafts.
The Office of Sustainability will be responsible for the administration and management of the contracted work. No more than 40 hours will be required for the administration of this contract.
DEI Impact
The design of the One Stop Shop program will take specific care to identify and overcome barriers to participation in energy efficiency and other housing programs by vulnerable community members. The One Stop Shop will be designed with the intention to meet the CROP plan commitments of directing 40% of public climate and sustainability dollars to the most vulnerable and partnering with the most impacted to create climate and sustainability policies and programs. The One Stop Shop will be designed using stakeholder engagement and will be designed with ongoing stakeholder engagement, monitoring and adaptability to make sure that these commitments are being met.
Community Input
The One Stop Shop concept was identified through the CROP planning process and included as a high-priority immediate action in the final CROP plan.
Village Staff sought input from multiple entities before issuing the RFQ.
• The Environment & Energy Commission reviewed the RFQ at the April 8th meeting and provided feedback incorporated into the final draft.
• Members of OPCAN and the Climate Coaches program reviewed and provided comments in April, which were incorporated into the final RFQ draft.
• Staff from Argonne National Laboratory provided a review of the RFQ as part of the Energy to Communities (E2C) technical assistance funded through the Department of Energy and the National Renewable Energy Lab.
Through the program design phase, Elevate and staff have begun and will continue to engage the following entities in program design. So far, Elevate has engaged with OPCAN Climate Coaches and conducted one stakeholder engagement event, which included representatives from community-based organizations, homeowners, property managers, contractors, and tenants. The following additional outreach is planned.
• A community survey on Engage Oak Park.
• Interviews with landlords and multifamily property owners.
• Input from the Township, Aging in Communities Commission, and the Disability Access Commission.
• Attendance at Tenant Workshops to encourage participation in the survey.
Staff Recommendation
Approve the Resolution
Advantages:
• The Village will amend the agreement with a highly qualified vendor to design a program identified as a high priority in the CROP plan.
• Approving the amendment will provide the opportunity to utilize a soft launch of the program in the program design process before finalizing the implementation plan for 2026.
Disadvantages:
• Staff time will be needed to manage the contract and provide input on design.
• Funds from the Sustainability Fund will be needed to pay the vendor.
Alternatives
Alternative 1:
The board can elect not to approve the Resolution and not increase the not to exceed.
Advantages:
• The soft launch can be conducted under Contract 2.
Disadvantages:
• The Soft Launch will not inform Contract 2 and the proposal for full implementation.
Anticipated Future Actions
Staff anticipate that the final program design, including soft launch will be complete in Quarter 1 of 2026 and that the item will return to the Board to approve the design and Contract 2 for implementation in early 2026.
Prepared By: Lindsey Roland Nieratka, Chief Sustainability Officer
Reviewed By: Jack Malec, Assistant to the Village Manager
Approved By: Kevin J. Jackson, Village Manager
Attachment(s):
1. Resolution - Elevate PSA amendment
2. PSA amendment - Elevate Energy
3. Memo