Site work for a road / highway in Starksboro, Vermont. Conceptual plans call for site work for a road / highway.

Summary and Background Through a subgrant of funds from a DEC Water Quality Formula Restoration Grant from the Addison County Regional Planning Commission (ACRPC), the Lewis Creek Association (LCA) is seeking a qualified contractor to prepare a Final Design for Road Erosion on a private road that drains to Lewis Creek in the Town of Starksboro. LCA also requests rough cost estimates for construction oversight for the implementation of this project, to be completed at a later time if funding is received. Deliverables: As detailed below and consistent with the applicable project type in the latest version of the State of Vermont Clean Water Initiative Program Funding Policy. Project Duration: This project is expected to commence in October 2024 and will be completed no later than January 31, 2025. Lewis Creek Association has been working with many partners over the last seven years to launch and grow the "Ahead of the Storm" program. Ahead of the Storm (AOTS) was developed in light of community concern that people are being slow to take on the responsibility/burden of water quality issues. AOTS promotes an all-in approach that shows individuals and communities how to improve the way all stormwater is managed in order to slow the rate of water pollution while preparing for extreme weather events and pollution impacts related to climate change. This project will potentially become a demonstration site through LCA's AOTS program. The purpose of this Request for Proposal (RFP) is to solicit proposals from consultant organizations through an evaluation process based on criteria listed herein. The Lewis Creek Association will select the candidate who best represents its direction and goals for furthering the AOTS program and overseeing the engineering for this project. Any questions regarding this RFP must be submitted by 5 PM EST on September 6, 2024. Replies to questions will be submitted to those who posed the question(s) and also supplied to other vendors from whom the LCA is also soliciting bids or proposals. If the organization submitting a proposal must outsource or contract any work to meet the requirements contained herein, this must be clearly stated in the proposal. Additionally, all costs included in proposals must be all-inclusive to include any outsourced or contracted work. Any proposals which call for outsourcing or contracting work must include a name and description of the organizations being contracted. All costs must be itemized to include an explanation of all fees and costs. In order to be considered responsive to the RFP, each proposal must conform to the following requirements: o Submit one digital PDF of the proposal, either via email (lewiscreekorg@gmail.com) or via a Dropbox link (lewiscreekorg@gmail.com). o Clearly indicate the following on the submissions: Project name (LCA Final Design Road Erosion - Common Ground Center), the name and address of the prime consultant along with the name and telephone number of the appropriate contact person. Contract terms and conditions will be negotiated upon selection of the winning bidder for this RFP, and once project funding has been received. Project Purpose and Description The purpose of this project is as follows: A recent Watersheds United Vermont project development block grant provided funding for LCA to pursue several projects in the Lewis Creek watershed. This project will take one of those identified projects and progress it to final (100%) design. The site will potentially become an Ahead of the Storm demonstration site in the future. Project Description: This project will result in a 100% design, but will require several tasks along the way. The selected consultant shall attend a project kickoff meeting, collect and review existing data, and visit the site to update GIS basemapping. A final design will be drafted, and will include a cost opinion, and an O&M plan. (LCA will take the lead on engaging DEC programmatic staff to determine permit needs, including preliminary VDHP project review.) The consultant will provide draft permit application materials. A team meeting to review the design will be held with minutes provided by the consultant, and one round of edits will be made to the plans by the consultant based on this meeting. The design shall be finalized. A project memo will be completed, and the consultant will assist with grant closeout. LCA also requests rough cost estimates for construction oversight for the implementation of this project, to be completed at a later time if funding is received. LCA also requests rough cost estimates for construction oversight for the implementation of this project, to be completed at a later time if funding is received. All electronic files, supporting data, GIS layers and documents generated by the retained consultant in the performance of this contract shall become the property of the LCA, the ACRPC as the Basin 3 Clean Water Service Provider, and the State of Vermont. The consultant may retain copies of the files and documents as well. Evaluation of proposals will be conducted from before September 27, 2024. If additional information or discussions are needed with any bidders during this window, the bidder(s) will be notified. The selection decision for the winning bidder will be made no later than September 30, 2024. Upon notification, the contract negotiation with the winning bidder will begin immediately. Notifications to bidders who were not selected will be completed by middle of October 2024. Project Timeline: Initial kickoff meeting with project team is anticipated around October 15, 2024. Data collection should be complete by middle of November 2024. Final Design should be completed by middle of December 2024. Final memo and grant closeout should be complete by end of January 2025. Bidder Qualifications Bidders should provide the following items as part of their proposal for consideration: o Qualifications - description of experience in road erosion design or other similar work o Examples of 2 or more related projects you have completed o Scope of Work - detailing the consultant's proposed approach to the work tasks described in the RFP, and any recommended adjustments to the scope or individual tasks o Proposed Schedule - include completion of work tasks and deliverables as well as any key meetings o Resumes of key staff (not exceeding 2 pages for each person), a brief description of their role in the project, and a brief description of their work on related or similar projects o References (please provide a minimum of two, including the name, email, and telephone number of the contact person). o Required Cost Information: schedule of staff to be assigned to the project, their hourly rates, and estimated hours per person by task. Overheard rates, equipment fees, mileage charges, printing fees, etc. Proposal Evaluation Criteria Lewis Creek Association will evaluate all proposals based on the following criteria by a selection committee comprised of staff/volunteers of LCA. To ensure consideration for this Request for Proposal, your proposal should be complete and include all of the following criteria: o Qualifications of the firm and the personnel to be assigned to the project (20 pts) o Demonstration of overall project understanding, insights into project goals, insights into potential issues, and demonstrated understanding of the project deliverables (20 pts) o Demonstrated ability to successfully implement water quality improvement projects, as well as produce quality written work (30 pts) o Clarity of the proposal and creativity/thoughtfulness in addressing the scope of work (20 pts) o Submission of a complete proposal with all elements required by the RFP (10 pts) Once the proposal is discussed and ranked, the cost proposal will be reviewed for consistency with, and in light of, the evaluation of the proposal. LCA reserves the right to seek clarification of any proposal submitted and to select the proposal considered to best promote LCA's goals. All proposals become the property of LCA upon submission. The cost of preparing, submitting and presenting a proposal is the sole expense of the consultant. LCA reserves the right to reject any and all proposals received as a result of this solicitation, to negotiate with any qualified source, to waive any formality and any technicalities or to cancel the RFP in part or in its entirety if it is in the best interest of LCA. This solicitation of proposals in no way obligates LCA to award a contract. For further information on this RFP, please contact: Kate Kelly, LCA Program Manager, at kate@lewiscreek.org, (802) 488-5203.