Memorandum

CITY OF DALLAS

DATE

October 13, 2016

TO

The Honorable Philip T. Kingston

City Councilmember

SUBJECT

Fair Park Privatization

By email sent on October 9, 2016 you have asked this office to provide answers to several
questions regarding the management contract for Fair Park Privatization including the following
question: "Whether the Humann Organization actually meets the competitive bidding exemption
referenced in the management contract?"
In response to your question cited above, reference is made to Section 252.022 (a) (7) (F), Local
Government Code, which provides an exemption to the general requirement that expenditures of
public funds be competitively bid if the expenditure is for "a procurement of items that are
available from only one source, including: ... management services provided by a nonprofit
organization to a municipal . . . park . . . to which the organization has provided significant
financial or other benefits." (Emphasis added).
This office provided an opinion to the City Council on September 15, 2016, addressing a similar
question regarding the Fair Park Texas Foundation (the "Foundation") which is the non-profit
organization founded by Walt Humann. In that opinion, the CAO opined that under the facts
provided regarding the Foundation, the Foundation qualified under the competitive bidding
exemption. I concur with that opinion based on the facts known at the time it was written that
there were no other potential sources for the management services that would require City
consideration under a competitive process.
As of this date, the CAO has learned that other potential qualified providers of management
services may exist and are willing to submit proposals for such services. Because it is now
reasonable to believe that the provision of management services at Fair Park could be provided
by at least two vendors, the elements to the exemption to competitively bidding process outlined
in Section 252.022 are no longer satisfied. Therefore, the CAO believes that the City must
proceed with a competitive process to select a qualified entity to manage Fair Park.
As to your other questions, regarding the standard of review a court would use in addressing a
legal challenge to whether the exemption to the bidding statute was lawfully exercised, and how
a court would likely view such a decision by the City Council, given the new facts and the CAO
re-evaluation of the continued use of the exemption, I respectfully request that a legal analysis of
these questions be addressed at such time as the questions are immediately relevant.

"Dallas - Together, we do it better!"

In response to your question, "Whether the City may use an RFQ to satisfy state competitive
bidding law and our own ordinances," an RFQ process may be used in conjunction with another
competitive procurement process authorized by state law, but may not be used alone to make a
final award.
In response to your question, "Whether the Parks and Recreation Department can respond to an
RFP or RFQ with either a fully public proposal or in conjunction with a private partner", if you
are asking whether the Park Department can be a responder to an RFP or RFQ and submit its
own department proposal to the City, the answer is no. This would not be permissible as a City
department constitutes the City and is not qualified to be an "offerer," or "person" that can
contract with the City under the competitive process.

~a~
LARRY E. CASTO
City Attorney
c: The Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
A.C. Gonzalez, City Manager

"Dallas - Together, we do it hcucr! ..