The procurement process for a new long-term lease was approved by Council on 5 June 2019 and had two stages - a publicly advertised invitation for Expressions of Interest (EOI), released on 8 June, 2019, and a Request for Proposal (RFP) approved by Council for release to a shortlist of tenderer's on 18 September 2019.

Following the close of the RFP period on 19 December 2019, a two-stage process for the evaluation of proposals was conducted in accordance with an approved evaluation plan by an evaluation panel comprising of members with varied but specific expertise and supported by specialist consultants. Proposals were comprehensively assessed against a set of evaluation criteria designed to achieve the Site Vision and Objectives and the design parameters identified in the Site Brief.

The purpose of Stage 1 of the evaluation process was to evaluate and recommend proposals to Council to proceed to Stage 2, the negotiation phase, and outline the broad framework and key points for refinement of the proposal/s. In this stage, Councillors had an opportunity to provide feedback on the design proposals.

The Evaluation Panel Report recommended proposals progress from Stage 1 Evaluation to Stage 2 Evaluation. Negotiation was endorsed by Council on 18 March 2020. This report also detailed the proposed negotiation strategy, which responded to Councillors' feedback on the design presentations.

The purpose of Stage 2 Evaluation was to undertake a negotiation process. The negotiation stage provided the opportunity for Council to refine the proposals to better suit Council's and the community’s requirements as reflected in the site vision and objectives, and the evaluation criteria.

Following initial negotiations and proposal refinement, Councillors were presented with an opportunity to review the refined design and provide feedback. A detailed assessment was undertaken by the evaluation panel of the final refined proposal and an evaluation panel report detailing the process, assessment against the selection criteria and a recommendation was provided to Council for decision.

Stage 2 of the RFP evaluation was completed on Wednesday 15 July when Council resolved to appoint a preferred tenant (AMDC) for the St Kilda Marina, subject to Council completing the process under Sections 190 and 223 of the LGA, resolving to grant the lease and obtaining Governor in Council approval.

You can find more information about the procurement process, including the Council-approved Procurement Plan, and the evaluation criteria approach St Kilda Marina project - The City of Port Phillip.