1-RFP-02-Scope of Services.pdf

CITY OF FORT WORTH - PURCHASING DIVISION

SCOPE OF SERVICES

RFP Ref. #: 26-0229 Doc. Ref#: RFP-02 Page 1 of 11 RFP Title: Citywide Unimproved Alleyway Grounds Maintenance

1.0 INTRODUCTION AND PURPOSE

The City of Fort Worth (“City”) is requesting proposals from qualified companies to provide grounds maintenance services to various City-wide unimproved alleyways for the Park and Recreation Department. The purpose of these services is to maintain clear, safe, visually appealing alleyways through vegetation management, litter and illegal dumping removal, tree limb trimming, and proper disposal of all collected debris. Services include mowing and trimming vegetation across the full width and length of each assigned alleyway and performing all related maintenance activities necessary to maintain the alleyways in accordance with the specifications of this solicitation.

The City reserves the right to award agreements to one or more qualified Vendors. Awarded Vendor(s) shall furnish all labor, supervision, personnel, equipment, tools, materials, transportation, and incidentals necessary to perform the requested services. Work will be assigned on an as-needed basis at designated unimproved alleyways throughout the City. The City makes no guarantee regarding the quantity, frequency, scheduling, or value of work assignments under any resulting agreement. The successful respondent(s), hereafter referred to as the "Proposer" or "Vendor," shall perform the requested services in accordance with the requirements and specifications of this solicitation.

Attachment A - Alley Maps identifies the general location of the alleyways included in the current scope of services. The maps are provided for informational purposes only to assist Proposers in understanding the geographic distribution of the work.

Attachment B - Alleyway Locations provides alleyway inventory by district, including alley addresses, map area, and mow-able linear feet. Proposers shall use Attachment B when preparing proposals and pricing.

The City reserves the right to add, remove, or modify alleyway locations during the term of any resulting Agreement.

2.0 VENDOR REQUIREMENTS

2.1 The Vendor shall have at least two (2) years of verifiable experience providing commercial or governmental grounds maintenance services

RFP Ref. #: 26-0229 Doc. Ref#: RFP-02 Page 2 of 11 of a similar size and scope.

2.2 The Vendor shall maintain sufficient personnel, equipment, and resources to meet all response time requirements described herein.

2.3 The Vendor shall own, lease, rent, or otherwise have access to the equipment necessary to perform the required services.

2.3.1 Equipment, at a minimum, includes the following:

2.3.1.1 Tractors and/or skid steers

2.3.1.2 Zero-turn mowers

2.3.1.3 String trimmers

2.3.1.4 Pole trimmers

2.3.1.5 Edgers

2.3.1.6 Backpack blowers

2.4 The Vendor shall have the capability to collect, transport, and properly dispose of all litter, illegally dumped materials, vegetation, and other debris removed during the performance of the requested services.

Failure to demonstrate vendor requirements may result in rejection as non-responsive.

3.0 SCOPE OF WORK

3.1 Pre-Service Notification

3.1.1 The Vendor shall distribute door-to-door notification flyers to properties adjacent to the assigned alleyway at least three (3) business days before performing grounds maintenance services.

3.1.2 The Vendor shall print and distribute all notification flyers at its own expense. The City will provide the flyer template.

3.2 Alleyway Mowing and Vegetation Control

3.2.1 Alleyway mowing consists of mowing and trimming services for alleyways that have received regular maintenance and primarily require grass and light vegetation management.

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3.2.2 Alleyway clearing consists of removing brush, dense

vegetation, severe overgrowth, or similar conditions from alleyways that may not have been maintained for several years.

3.2.3 After the required notification period has occurred, the Vendor shall mow, trim, and/or clear vegetation across the full width and length of each assigned unimproved alleyway.

3.2.4 Upon completion, vegetation height shall not exceed four (4) inches and shall not be less than one (1) inch.

3.2.5 The Vendor shall:

3.2.5.1 Remove all litter and debris before mowing or

trimming.

3.2.5.2 Mow and trim the entire alleyway, including easement

edges, right-of-way shoulders, and fence lines.

3.2.5.3 Exercise care when trimming around fences, utilities, signs, and other obstacles to prevent damage.

3.2.5.4 Blow or sweep grass clippings and debris from paved

or hard surfaces back into turf areas only.

3.2.5.5 Not blow grass clippings, debris, or other materials

into streets, storm drains, or waterways.

3.2.5.6 Exclude any areas marked with caution tape unless

otherwise directed by the City.

3.2.5.7 Mow vegetation extending into the alleyway from

adjacent properties up to the property fence line, unless otherwise directed by the City.

3.3 Litter and Illegal Dumping Removal

3.3.1 The Vendor shall remove all litter, trash, and dumped materials from the assigned alleyway before or during each maintenance cycle.

3.3.2 Materials may include, but are not limited to:

3.3.2.1 Household waste

3.3.2.2 Tires

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3.3.2.3 Appliances

3.3.2.4 Furniture

3.3.2.5 Construction debris

3.3.2.6 Tree limbs

3.3.2.7 Brush

3.3.2.8 Other discarded materials

3.3.3 The Vendor shall immediately notify the Contract

Administrator or designee if hazardous materials are encountered.

3.3.4 The Vendor shall remove all collected materials from the site and properly dispose of them at an approved disposal facility at the Vendor's expense.

3.3.5 The City may request disposal receipts to verify proper disposal.

3.3.6 Failure to comply may result in non-payment or issuance of a notice of non-compliance.

3.4 Tree and Vegetation Trimming

3.4.1 The Vendor shall trim tree limbs, vines, and other vegetation overhanging into the alleyway to maintain a minimum vertical clearance of ten (10) feet above ground level.

3.4.2 The Vendor shall remove all trimmings and debris from the site within twenty-four (24) hours after trimming is completed.

3.4.3 All pruning shall comply with American National Standards Institute (ANSI) A300 Standards.

3.4.4 The Vendor shall not top trees or leave hazardous stubs.

4.0 PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENTS

4.1 All work shall be completed within two (2) business days of the assigned due date, weather permitting. The Vendor must notify the Contract Administrator of delays. The City reserves the right to reassign work at any time.

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5.0 WORK ORDER ASSIGNMENTS AND REQUIREMENTS

5.1 Work orders will be assigned by district. See Attachment A - Alley

Maps and Attachment B - Alleyway Locations for the alleyways assigned within each district.

5.2 The City will issue work orders through the City's electronic work order system.

5.3 The City may issue multiple work orders simultaneously based on operational needs.

5.4 The Vendor shall acknowledge receipt of each work order within one

(1) business day.

5.5 The City reserves the right to reassign work if required response times or deadlines are not met.

5.6 The Vendor shall have the capability to receive, perform, and close out work orders electronically. At a minimum, the Vendor shall have:

5.6.1 A smartphone or tablet with an active data plan (Android 8 or iOS 11+).

5.6.2 A 12-megapixel camera capable of capturing date-, time-, and location-stamped photographs.

5.6.3 A reliable high-speed internet connection.

5.7 The Vendor shall submit before-and-after photographs of each completed assignment within forty-eight (48) hours of completion.

5.7.1 Photographs shall include a date, time, and location stamp and clearly depict the full alleyway. Noncompliant submissions may be rejected.

6.0 INSPECTION AND ACCEPTANCE

6.1 All work shall be subject to inspection and acceptance by the City’s

Contract Administrator. Inspections may be conducted on-site or via photographs submitted through the City’s electronic work order system. Any work not meeting specifications must be corrected by the Vendor at no cost to the City within two (2) business days of notification of the defect. Failure to correct the defect within two (2)

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6.2 Work deemed unsatisfactory by the City of Fort Worth Contract Administrator or designee will be ineligible for payment. Contractor will have two (2) days once notified of the unsatisfactory work to correct it or risk forfeit of payment.

7.0 SAFETY AND PROPERTY PROTECTION

7.1 The Vendor shall exercise due care to prevent injury or damage to public or private property. Any damage must be reported immediately and repaired at the Vendor’s expense. Vendors must comply with applicable Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), City, and State safety standards.

8.0 DISPOSAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL COMPLIANCE

8.1 All collected debris must be securely transported and disposed of in compliance with City of Fort Worth’s Environmental Services and Code Compliance regulations and Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) regulations. No burning, burying, disposing of or on-site dumping of materials in waste receptacles not managed by the Vendor is permitted.

9.0 INVOICING REQUIREMENTS

9.1 Invoicing requirements are provided in RFP-01 Instructions to

Proposers, Section 26.

9.2 No work shall be performed without an authorized Purchase Order

(PO). Invoices submitted for work performed without an authorized PO may be rejected and will not be eligible for payment.

10.0 MEHOD OF AWARD - Proposals will be evaluated based on “best value” to the City. Proposals that receive less than 50% of the total available points, excluding price points, will not be considered for award.

11.0 EVALUATION FACTORS

To be considered, the Proposer must submit a complete Proposal by the stated deadline and in accordance with all Proposal requirements. All required documentation must be included for evaluation.

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Proposals that meet these requirements will be evaluated based on the criteria listed below.

11.1 Cost – up to 15 points available.

11.2 Small Business Participation – up to 25 points available.

Participation will be based on the following tier: 0% = 0 points, 1% to 10% = 10 points, 11% to 20% = 15 points, 21% to 29% = 20 points, 30% or more (goal met) = 25 points

11.3 Qualifications and experience related to the Scope of Work, including references – up to 15 points available.

11.4 Ability to meet the City's operational needs and performance requirements – up to 30 points available.

11.5 Available personnel, equipment, and operational resources – up to 15 points available.

12.0 PRICING STRUCTURE

12.1 Vendors are not required to submit pricing for every line in the Bid

Table. However, if a Vendor elects to bid on a District, pricing must be provided for every line item within that District. Partial pricing within a District will be deemed non-responsive.

12.2 All pricing shall be submitted through the Bonfire Bid Table (BT-

35HM).

12.3 Pricing information provided outside of the Bonfire Bid Table will not be considered for evaluation and will not be incorporated into any resulting agreement.

12.4 Submitted pricing shall include labor, supervision, personnel, equipment, tools, materials, transportation, and all other costs necessary to perform the services described herein.

12.5 An entry of "0" for any line item will be interpreted as no additional cost to the City.

13.0 CONTRACT AWARD PROCESS

13.1 The Purchasing Division will facilitate and manage the evaluation process.

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13.2 An Evaluation Panel consisting of representatives from various City departments and City consultants may be appointed to review and evaluate RFP responses in accordance with this RFP. City reserves the right at its sole discretion to include additional representatives at any point during the evaluation.

13.3 The Evaluation Committee will evaluate responses and may select Proposer for onsite interviews, presentations or demonstrations.

13.4 At its sole discretion, the City may request Best and Final Offers (BAFO) from proposers whose proposals are deemed most advantageous. Contract negotiations will be based on the BAFO submissions.

13.5 The City reserves the right to negotiate all elements that comprise the successful Proposer’s response to ensure that the best possible consideration be afforded to all concerned.

13.6 The City reserves the right to shortlist firms based upon scores/ratings received during the evaluation process.

13.7 The City will notify all proposers in writing of the outcome once an award determination has been made.

14.0 PROPOSAL FORMAT AND ATTACHMENTS

To facilitate and expedite the evaluation process, Proposals should adequately address all evaluation factors and include the following list of required items that will be used as part of the evaluation. A Proposal may be deemed to be non-responsive and may be disqualified, at the City’s discretion, if the Proposal fails to comply with the following instructions.

14.1 Proposal Format Requirements

14.1.1 Proposal format shall be in font no smaller than 12 point, 8.5-inch by 11-inch paper size, with one inch margins and single-spaced for the entire submitted proposal.

14.1.2 All proposal sections shall be divided by submission titles.

All pages within these sections shall be uniquely numbered for purposes of easy reference.

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14.2 Response Forms

14.2.1 Completed and signed RFP-04-CFW Required Forms.

14.2.2 Completed and signed RFP-05-Small Business Utilization

Form and Small Business Certificate (Note: both the Utilization Form and qualifying Small Business Certificate must be submitted by the proposal deadline to be considered for Small Business Participation.)

14.2.3 Completed and signed RFP-06-Deviations.

14.2.4 Signed addenda (if applicable). If none are issued, please add a page stating, “No Addenda Issued.”

14.2.5 Completed Bid Table (BT-35HM).

14.3 Technical Response

The Technical Response should be organized to generally align with the evaluation criteria and demonstrate the Proposer’s qualifications, operational capabilities, and ability to satisfy the vendor requirements identified in Section 2.0.

The Technical Response should include the following information:

14.3.1 Provide a brief narrative describing your company’s

experience performing commercial or governmental grounds maintenance services of a similar size and scope. Include the types of projects performed and experience maintaining unimproved properties, rights-of-way, parks, alleyways, or similar public spaces.

14.3.2 Describe your company’s approach to managing multiple

work assignments across the City, including scheduling, routing, supervision, quality control, and communication with the City's Contract Administrator.

14.3.3 Describe the equipment and resources available to perform the requested services. Include the quantity and type of equipment available for this project. At a minimum, identify the quantity of tractors and/or skid steers, zero-turn mowers, string trimmers, pole trimmers, edgers, and backpack blowers https://www.fortworthtexas.gov/departments/econdev/sbdp/sbe

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14.3.4 Describe how collected litter, illegally dumped materials, vegetation, and other debris will be transported and properly disposed of.

14.3.5 Describe how your company will ensure sufficient personnel, equipment, and resources are available to meet the City's response times and perform multiple work assignments simultaneously, if required.

14.4 Exceptions/Substitutions/Clarifications/Additions

14.4.1 Although the Scope of Work included Project Requirements of the solicitation represents the City’s anticipated needs, there may be instances in which it is in the City’s best interest to permit exceptions to requirements and accept proposed alternatives.

14.4.2 If no exceptions are taken, the Proposer shall indicate “No Exceptions Taken” on RFP-06-Deviations and submit the completed form.

14.4.3 It is extremely important for the Proposer to make clear where exceptions, clarifications substitutions and/or additions to the Scope of Services, Draft Vendor Service Agreement and General Terms and Conditions are taken and how substitutions shall be provided. The City does not recognize strikeouts, deletions, or changes to Solicitation documents. Therefore, exceptions, conditions, clarifications and/or substitutions to the provisions of the City’s requirements must be clearly identified along with the proposed addition or modification. If the Proposer does not make it clear that an addition, exception or clarification is taken, the City shall assume the Proposer is responding to and shall meet the City’s stated requirements.

14.4.4 Identify each exception, clarification, substitution and/or addition by specifically referencing the page number, section number, subsection number, item number or letter, RFP Ref. #: 26-0229 Doc. Ref#: RFP-02 Page 11 of 11 and, if necessary, paragraph, or line number.

14.4.5 Identify each item clearly as an addition, exception, clarification or substitution. It is not necessary to include the entire text of a particular section or subsection. However, for ease of reference, Proposers may use portions of the solicitation’s text, if helpful in explanation.

14.4.6 For substitutions/clarifications, provide an explanation of the difference between what the solicitation requests and what is proposed. The City is open to other means of accomplishing the requested Work. Proposers must explain why they believe their method of accomplishing the Work is equal to or better than that specified by the City.

14.4.7 For any addition(s) proposed or exception(s) taken, provide a rationale in as much detail as possible.

14.4.8 Begin responses to the major sections of the solicitation on a new page.

14.4.9 The City shall consider the number and substance of

alterations to the City’s stated requirements as a factor in determining the most advantageous response.

SMALL BUSINESS PROGRAM – The City of Fort Worth has established a 30% Small Business (SB) participation goal for this solicitation. This goal reflects the City’s determination that certified Small Business Firms are available to provide the goods and/or services required under this bid. Accordingly, at least 30% of the total awarded contract value must be subcontracted or spent with a certified Small Business Firm. All provisions and requirements outlined in City Ordinance No. 27832-08-2025 apply to this solicitation. Bidders are required to submit the following documentation with their proposal:

a. Small Business Utilization Form (RFP-05), detailing how the Small Business goal will be achieved.

b. Current Small Business Certification issued by a certifying entity approved by the City Manager.