Finishing touches are being put on the request for offerings on a new entertainment center and sports complex for Sacramento. The document should be ready for public release early next week, followed by details of the citizen’s task force now being formed to review and evaluate project concepts.

The request for Offerings, or "RFO" is a unique document, designed in a unique way. Let me take a moment to explain.

Normally, requests for qualifications and proposals are formal documents, issued by the city manager’s office with approval or guidance from the city council.

This time, we are taking a different approach – with the goal of ending up in the perfect destination: a new entertainment and sports complex.

In other words, we are thinking in and outside of the box.

The goal is to receive as many realistic project concepts as possible, and to have them evaluated by a citizen’s task force filled with experts in many fields, including development, finance, design, construction, legal, accounting and communications.

If the task force thinks we’ve got a winner, I will review the recommendations with the goal of placing it on the city council's agenda for further discussion and action.

This new process has several advantages.

First, it’s streamlined – the task force will work on a tight time frame. There will be a 45-day window to submit concepts, followed by three 30-day periods for internal review, public discussion and final reporting out.

Second, the process is credible – the task force will feature leading citizens and experts from our community.

Third, it’s transparent – with our leading citizens doing evaluations and public review built into the process.

And let me add a fourth category – it’s free to the taxpayer. The task force is working without pay, on its own time. That means the taxpayers will not be picking up the bills, great news in this economy.

As for the document itself, it’s based on the Rules of the Game for building a new entertainment and sports complex.

I released the Rules last week:

1. The Taxpayer Comes First;

2. The City Will Not Be Used as Leverage;

3. We Will Negotiate On Even Terms;

4. We Must Think In and Out of the Box.

The request language is a bit technical, but let me share one part of the section that covers community impact. It says, "Specify the number of jobs created during both construction and ongoing operations. Specify the expected financial impact of the project on taxpayers and the City of Sacramento. Describe the expected impact of the project in furthering broader goals for economic development, arts and entertainment, transportation, and sustainability."

Let me make it simple. The language speaks to Rule of the Game No. 1. I’ll say it one more time: The Taxpayer Comes First. 

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