REPORT/RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
OF THE COUNTY OF SAN BERNARDINO
AND RECORD OF ACTION
May 18, 2021
FROM
SHARON NEVINS, Director, Department of Aging and Adult Services
SUBJECT
Title
Contracts with Meal Providers for Great Plates Delivered Program
End
RECOMMENDATION(S)
Recommendation
Approve the following contracts to provide meals to seniors through Great Plates Delivered Program in the combined contract amount of $33,960,000 for the periods specified below:
1. Bruce’s Place in the amount of $550,000 for the period of May 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021.
2. C Café Inc., dba Carolyn’s Café in the amount of $470,000 for the period of May 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021.
3. California Corral Inc. dba Golden Corral Buffet and Grill in the amount of $1,900,000 for the period of May 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021.
4. Centro Basco in the amount of $320,000 for the period of May 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021.
5. Denco Enterprises, Inc. dba Denny’s Restaurant Hesperia/Rialto in the amount of $1,500,000 for the period of May 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021.
6. El Patron in the amount of $2,300,000 for the period of May 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021.
7. Gadi’s Restaurant and Bar in the amount of $470,000 for the period of May 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021.
8. Gourmet Gourmet Catering, Inc. in the amount of $1,900,000 for the period of May 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021.
9. Grizzly Café, Inc. in the amount of $500,000 for the period of May 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021.
10. Hilltop Collection, Inc. in the amount of $2,200,000 for the period of June 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021.
11. House of Eggs, Inc. in the amount of $1,100,000 for the period of May 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021.
12. Kombu Kitchen dba Nybll in the amount of $3,000,000 for the period of July 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021.
13. La Fortuna Spaggi’s Restaurant in the amount of $2,600,000 for the period of May 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021.
14. Little Aviator Café, LLC in the amount of $400,000 for the period of May 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021.
15. Main Street Catering in the amount of $2,300,000 for the period of May 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021.
16. Miro Den, Inc. dba Denny’s Restaurant Ontario in the amount of $1,000,000 for the period of May 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021.
17. Prime Hospitality, Inc. dba Woody’s Classic Grill in the amount of $3,200,000 for the period of May 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021.
18. Progressive Eats, LLC dba Citrus Kitchen in the amount of $1,400,000 for the period of May 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021.
19. SAS Restaurant Ventures dba Denny’s Restaurant Barstow/Yucca in the amount of $1,000,000 for the period of May 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021.
20. Seafood Ranch Grill, Inc. in the amount of $1,100,000 for the period of June 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021.
21. Silver Lakes Association in the amount of $350,000 for the period of May 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021.
22. Spring House Restaurant, Inc. in the amount of $1,300,000 for the period of May 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021.
23. The Tamale Factory in the amount of $3,100,000 for the period of May 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021.
(Presenter: Sharon Nevins, Director, 891-3917)
Body
COUNTY AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Provide for the Safety, Health and Social Service Needs of County Residents.
Pursue County Goals and Objectives by Working with Other Agencies.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
This item will impact Discretionary General Funding (Net County Cost) if no other funding is available for this program. The total amount of these contracts is $33,960,000. The original cost of the program at three meals per day was limited to $66 per day per participant, and the current cost of the program at two meals per day is limited to $38 per day per participant, which includes the cost of meals and delivery. The Great Plates Delivered Program will continue to be expensed from the General Fund as discussion is ongoing among staff at County Office of Emergency Services, Auditor-Controller, and Legislative Affairs to solidify the eligibility parameters of the program in order to fully explore all cost recovery options. If additional budget appropriation is necessary, the department will return to the Board of Supervisors (Board) with an additional item in 2021-22.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
On April 24, 2020, Governor Gavin Newsom announced the launch of the first-in-the-nation Great Plates Delivered program. The program helps seniors and other adults at high risk from COVID-19 stay home and healthy by delivering up to three nutritious meals a day while providing essential economic stimulus to local businesses and workers struggling to stay financially solvent during the COVID crisis.
Administered at the state level by the California Office of the Emergency Services (Cal OES), the Great Plates Delivered Program (GPD) was open to all county and city governments throughout California. Department of Aging and Adult Services (DAAS) was selected by the County to serve as the Local Administrator based on its designation by the state of California as the County’s Area Agency on Aging, extensive program experience, ability to scale meal delivery operations and workforce, and capacity to coordinate with county and city emergency operations. On April 30, 2020, DAAS submitted a letter of intent to participate in the program to the Cal OES and began enrolling participants and meal providers the same day. Meal deliveries began on May 1, 2020.
As the Local Administrator, DAAS is responsible for program administration, including enrolling eligible Californians through a self-certification process and selecting multiple licensed food providers with an emphasis on leveraging multiple small to medium sized vendors to meet participant demand. Under the guidance of the Cal OES, preference is given to providers that can:
• Meet the established nutritional standards established by the state of California,
• Meet the volume and have the capacity to ramp up quickly,
• Be flexible and adjust their menus to meet the needs of the population,
• Provide delivery services to areas where demand existed, and
• Provide all three meals per day (breakfast, lunch, and dinner).
By September 2020, nearly 3,500 participants were enrolled in the local GPD program and over 35 meal providers were preparing and delivering meals countywide. In November 2020, DAAS initiated a ramp down of the program and transitioned over 1,700 to its Elderly Nutrition Program. As a result of the sudden and substantial increase in COVID-19 case that month, the ramp down was suspended. As of early April 2021, the program continues to serve over 1,100 participants and has provided nearly 1.6 million meals to high-risk seniors who continue to shelter in place during the pandemic.
Due to the need to quickly implement the program in order to provide emergency meals to high-risk seniors countywide, Purchase Orders were created in lieu of contracts to ensure services could begin immediately and help make certain the vendors would receive payments swiftly. As the program was initially projected to be short-term, DAAS continued to work closely with the County’s Purchasing Department to create appropriate purchase orders for the vendors. Since the County continues to approve time extensions for the program, DAAS has been advised by the Purchasing Department to establish contracts with the remaining GPD program food providers rather than continuing to create purchase orders. This item is requesting retroactive contracts, as it ensures county purchasing requirements align with Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) guidelines. This item is being presented at this time as it is anticipated that the program will continue through September 30, 2021. Approval by the Board of Supervisors on this date will have no impact on DAAS’ services or activities in relation to these contracts.
PROCUREMENT
On April 24, 2020, the State announced the GPD program to serve meals to seniors and Californians impacted by COVID-19. Due to the emergency and time being of essence, DAAS collaborated with local restaurants and food providers based on the region and availability to provide food services to the entire County to ensure that senior residents who were age 65 and older, who had been exposed to or contracted COVID-19, but did not need hospitalization, or were high-risk with underlying health conditions had regular access to prepared meals. The County Purchasing Department supports this non-competitive procurement.
REVIEW BY OTHERS
This item has been reviewed by Human Services Contracts (Jennifer Mulhall-Daudel, Contracts Manager, 388-0241) on March 25, 2021; County Counsel (Jacqueline Carey-Wilson, Deputy County Counsel, 387-5455) on May 4, 2021; Purchasing (Stacey Chou, Buyer III, 387-3377) on May 6, 2021; Finance (Christopher Lange, Administrative Analyst, 386-8393) on May 6, 2021; and County Finance and Administration (Tanya Bratton, Deputy Executive Officer, 388-0332) on May 6, 2021.