1-RFI265X901161 BuildReady.pdf

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REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) – SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE

BUILDREADY MIDDLE HOUSING

DUE DATE: March 27, 2026, 12:00 PM ET

RFI NUMBER: RFI265X901161

ACCEPTANCE: Chief Procurement Officer City of Cincinnati, Office of Procurement Two Centennial Plaza, Suite 234 805 Central Avenue Cincinnati, Ohio 45202

Submittal: https://cincinnati-oh.bonfirehub.com/

All proposals must be submitted electronically via the City’s Bonfire portal at the above link. Responses submitted by hard copy, mail, or e-mail will not be accepted. See “Submission of Responses to the RFI” for more details.

Requests for information related to this Notice should be directed to:

Bethany Pritchard email: bethany.pritchard@cincinnati-oh.gov

Issue Date: March 3, 2026

NOTE: The City publishes information on the City of Cincinnati Internet web site at www.cincinnati-oh.gov, which includes the Cincinnati Municipal Code (CMC) and the information concerning the rules and regulations governing the City’s Small Business Enterprise (SBE) Program and Minority/Women Business Enterprise (M/WBE) Program. Offerors may register as a City vendor online at www.cincinnati-oh.gov/vss.

Last Revised 11/16/10

I. REQUEST

PURPOSE OF THE REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI)

The City of Cincinnati, hereinafter referred to as “City,” cordially requests responses from parties, herein after referred to as “Offeror” to this Request for Information. The City is seeking information from potential sources (i.e., firms, vendors, companies, etc.) capable of performing the requirements set forth in the subsequent Scope of Services.

This is not a procurement solicitation. The City will not reimburse any costs associated with the development and submission of materials in response to this request. There is no solicitation available at this time. However, should a procurement solicitation materialize, no basis for claims against the City shall arise as a result of a response to this RFI or the City’s use of such information as either part of our evaluation process or in developing specifications for any subsequent procurement solicitation.

SCOPE OF SERVICES

The primary objective of this RFI is to obtain information related to the Pathways to Removing Obstacles to Housing (PRO Housing) grant from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) that the City of Cincinnati received, which has created the BuildReady initiative.

The City is requesting information regarding the following, at a minimum:

a. Information related to experience and potential options regarding development of a design competition for middle housing (2-,3-, and 4-family buildings)

b. Information regarding pre-approved plans for middle housing

c. Information related to barriers to constructing middle housing in the private housing market

Please see Attachment 1 for the full list of questions for this RFI. Respondents only need to respond to questions pertaining to their expertise, field, or experience with those topics.

Reference Number RFI265X901161 Page No.3

RESPONSES TO THE RFI

This RFI may aid in the planning and developing of activities related to the implementation of the PRO Housing grant initiative.

All responses to this RFI should contain, at a minimum, the following:

a. Company Contact Info (i.e., Name of company and point of contact (POC); telephone number, address, and email address of POC);

In the event a procurement solicitation or contract materializes for this service, all Offerors shall be subject to the provisions of the economic inclusion programs found in Chapter 323 and 324 of the Cincinnati Municipal Code and the Equal Employment Opportunity Program found in Chapter 325 of the Cincinnati Municipal Code. Information about these programs can be obtained by visiting the following website http://www.cincinnati-oh.gov/inclusion/.

TIMETABLE

Milestones for the Process are: Date

1. Release of RFI 3/3/2026 at 2:00pm EST

2. Virtual Information Session 1 3/10/2026 at 12:00pm EST

3. Virtual Information Session 2 3/12/2026 at 12:00pm EST

4. Deadline for Questions 3/13/2026 at 12:00pm EST

5. Deadline for Responses 3/27/2026 at 12:00pm EST

6. City issues procurement for related services (if necessary) To be determined

VIRTUAL INFORMATION SESSIONS

To attend a virtual information session, please RSVP to bethany.pritchard@cincinnati-oh.gov and confirm which session you would like to attend. Once your response is received, an invitation will be sent to the email address you provide.

Reference Number RFI265X901161 Page No.4

INSTRUCTIONS FOR SUBMITTING INFORMATION

Submission of Responses to the RFI The Offeror shall develop a written response to this RFI structured to comply with Section II of this

RFI.

While each submission will be considered objectively, the city assumes no obligation to accept to take action on any submission. The City assumes no liability for any costs incurred in preparing or submitting any submission.

Responses to this RFI must be submitted through the City’s Bonfire portal at https://cincinnati-oh.bonfirehub.com/. Responses submitted by hard copy, mail, or e-mail will not accepted.

Important notes:

Logging in and/or uploading your file(s) does not mean your response is submitted. Offerors must successfully upload all file(s) and must click the submit button before closing time.

You will receive an email confirmation receipt with a unique confirmation number once you finalize your submission. This will confirm that you have successfully submitted your response.

If a requested file is mandatory, you will not be able to complete your submission until the requirement is met.

Uploading large documents may take time, depending on the size of the file(s) and your internet connection speed.

Please note the type (doc, .pdf, etc.) and number of files (one only or multiple) allowed. The maximum file size for upload is 1,000 MB. Please do not embed any documents within your uploaded files as they will not be accessible or evaluated.

For technical questions or issues related to your submission, please contact Bonfire directly at support@gobonfire.com or 1 (800) 354-8010, ext. 2. The support team is available Monday-Friday, 8:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m. ET. You can also visit their help forum at https://bonfirehub.zendesk.com/hc.

Submissions can be withdrawn at any time until the deadline date, at which time submissions will be considered firm and become the property of the City and will not be returned. Offeror must login to Bonfire to withdraw their submission through the system. If resubmitting, Offeror is responsible for submitting prior to the closing time and receiving a new email confirmation receipt. By responding to this RFI, Offerors waive any challenge to the City’s decisions.

Questions and Inquiries

Questions and Inquiries, written only, will be accepted by any and all firms. Inquiries pertaining to this Request for Information must include the following in the subject line: RFI number and RFI. All written questions should be directed to Bethany Pritchard via email at bethany.pritchard@cincinnati-oh.gov.

All questions shall be received no later than 12:00pm ET, March 13, 2026.

Corrections and Addendums

If it becomes necessary to revise any part of this request or if additional data is necessary to enable an exact interpretation of provisions in this request, an addendum will be issued. It is the

Reference Number RFI265X901161 Page No.5 responsibility of the Offeror to ensure that all addendums are received prior to submitting information.

References

All Offerors shall include, with their responses, a list of current references for whom comparable work or equipment has been supplied. This list shall include company/municipality name, person to contact, email address and telephone number.

Miscellaneous Requirements

All information shall provide a straightforward, concise delineation of the firm’s capabilities to satisfy the requirements of this request. Emphasis should be on completeness and clarity of content.