1-RFP 26-04035BCM Lawn Care Landscape Maint.docx

UTAH TRANSIT AUTHORITY

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

Cover Sheet General Information

Project Description

Weekly lawn care service and as needed, additional landscape maintenance service as requested by UTA, for forty-three (43) UTA Properties. Landscape maintenance upon request for: Spring Clean Up, Lawn Aeration, Lawn Weed Control and Fertilization, Flower Bed Weeding, Shrub Trimming, Fall Clean Up.

DBE Goal

Procurement Process Information

Contract Administrator *All correspondence during RFP must be directed through the Contract Administrator.

Brent Miller 669 West 200 South Salt Lake City, Utah 84101

(801) 287-3009 brmiller@rideuta.com

Evaluation Criteria:

Technical (70 points)

· Demonstrated Ability to Perform the Work (35pts)

· Experience and Qualifications providing Required Service (20pts)

· Ability to Service Property Locations (5pts)

· Warranty (5pts)

· Forms (5 pts)

Price (30 Points)

This is a best-value procurement. UTA will select the team(s) whose proposal is most advantageous to UTA, considering both price and quality/technical factors. The technical factors will account for Seventy points (70pts) of the total evaluation. The price will be considered Thirty points (30pts) of the total evaluation. See Part 2 for more information on proposal content and the rating method.

Projected RFP Schedule:

Please refer to Euna U3P Bonfire for updates to all dates and times.

Included as part of this RFP

Part 1 – Project Specific Information Part 2 – Procurement Process Information Part 3 – Standard Solicitation Terms Part 4 – Standard Contract Terms / Sample Contract Part 5 – Standard Forms plus Federal Forms and Certifications (Appendix I) and Federal Clauses (Appendix II) (If applicable)

Proposal Contents

Page Limit Cover pages, table of contents, divider tabs, and resumes, the Price Proposal, and required forms do not count toward the page limit.

20 pages

Submittal Instructions

· One (1) electronic copy of the technical proposal and one (1) electronic copy of the price proposal shall be uploaded to Bonfire on or before the deadline referenced above. See Part 3 of this RFP for further instructions.

Required Forms To be considered responsive, proposals must include the additional forms, declarations, and certifications listed below:

· Completed Signed Proposal Forms and Declarations Part 5 of this RFP.

· Cover Sheet with Company Information.

· Must meet all Prerequisites on Euna U3P/Bonfire.

· Proposer’s Technical Proposal with all Evaluation Criteria addressed.

· Proposer’s completed Price Proposal using UTA’s 26-04035BCM Price Schedule.

· Certificate of Insurance (COI) compliant with UTA’s Insurance Requirements (All Forms must be completed and uploaded to Euna U3P/Bonfire)

Part 1 – Project Specific Information

GENERAL OVERVIEW

This Request for Proposal is to provide Utah Transit Authority (UTA) Weekly lawn care service and as needed additional landscape maintenance service as requested by UTA, for forty-three (43) UTA Properties. The additional landscape maintenance service will be for; Spring Clean Up, Lawn Aeration, Lawn Weed Control and Fertilization, Flower Bed Weeding, Shrub Trimming, Fall Clean Up, will be upon request only, by UTA’s Property Manager.

UTA reserves the right to make an award of all or part of its requirements under this RFP to multiple Proposers subject to the best value offered UTA for each Property Group.

Contractor will have a minimum of five (5) years of experience delivering Lawn Care and Landscape Maintenance services, as outlined in the Statement of Work and Specifications, to customers managing multiple property locations (each with more than 15 sites), with each property containing a minimum of 5,000 square feet of lawn or landscaped area.

The Proposer will provide at least three (3) customer references, each representing accounts with multiple property locations for which the Proposer has performed these services.

A Proposer's failure to follow the format specified may be considered non-responsive.

The Project Manager will oversee any technical aspect of this RFP and provide Guidance as needed.

PROJECT goals To ensure lawns and landscape of UTA properties are properly manicured and esthetically presentable

THE UTAH TRANSIT AUTHORITY’S MANAGEMENT PHILOSOPHY

UTA continues to provide sustainable public transportation systems that help move people and connect communities through employee empowerment and good stewardship of public funds.

Prerequisites

PROJECT FUNDING

Loal Funds will be used for this project.

CONTRACT PERIOD

Awarded Service Contract(s) will be Firm Fixed Price and performance will commence upon the last contract signature date and will continue for a period of five (5) years expiring approximately October 15, 2031. The expectation is that the Proposer will provide all services and support necessary to fulfill all requirements set forth in this RFP for the duration of this contract period. The contract period may be extended if Contractor and UTA mutually agree to an extension evidenced by a written Change Order.

PROJECT SCHEDULE And Service LoCATIONS The Contractor will be required to contact UTA’s Project Manager or authorized designee of the Property location, to coordinate and schedule all on-site service activities and start times. Proposer shall refer to the 26-04035BCM Price Schedule which is uploaded into Utah State’s Public Procurement Site, Euna U3P/Bonfire for this RFP, to obtain Property Group service area address locations, required service types, aerial map for each UTA property, and the designated property managers. Refer to the Statement of Work and Specifications of this RFP for further instructions.

EXPLANATION OF THE price All pricing will be Firm Fixed Price. The Proposer must use and complete UTA’s excel sheet titled “26-04035BCM Price Schedule” which is uploaded into Utah State’s Public Procurement Site, Euna U3P/Bonfire for this RFP and submit it as its Price Proposal. Follow the instructions as stated in both Part 2 of this RFP and as listed on the Price Schedule.

PRICE ADJUSTMENTS

See UTA’s 26-04035BCM Price Schedule which is uploaded into Euna U3P/Bonfire for this RFP.

ENVIRONMENTAL DOCUMENTATION

Refer to Part 4 (SAMPLE CONTRACT) Sections: (6) LAWS AND REGULATIONS; (17) CONTRACTOR SAFETY COMPLIANCE; (19) ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITY, and STATEMENT OF WORK for additional environmental requirements.

SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS

1. Property area locations requiring service will be those as identified on UTA’s 26-04035BCM Price Schedule.

2. Pre-Proposal Meeting for Site-Walks are not required but suggested to gain a physical perspective of UTA’s general lawns and landscaping. The site visits will be for the selected properties as listed below. UTA will not accept documents or other materials from Proposers during the site visits. No information will be given to an individual team that would give any team an unfair competitive advantage. Please arrive 5 minutes early to complete the sign-in process. Contract the Contract Administrator, Brent Miller brmiller@rideuta.com or phone 801-287-3009 to schedule appointment for the site-walks. All Site-Walks must be completed by before January 21, 2026, 2:00pm MST.

ITNERARY SCHEDULE FOR SITE-WALKS:

Sandy, UT 84070 Johnny Johnson

STATEMENT OF WORK

Contractor(s) will provide lawn care services and as needed additional landscape maintenance for UTA Bus, TRAX (Light-Rail) and FrontRunner (Commuter Heavy-Rail) facilities. This will be a five-year scope for forty-three (43) UTA Properties. The additional landscape maintenance services specifically include Spring Clean-Up, Lawn Aeration, Lawn Weed Control and Fertilization, Flower Bed Weeding, Shrub Trimming, and Fall Clean-Up. UTA reserves the right to add or reduce the properties assigned to the contract.

Lawn cutting services are based on 25 occurrences per year (April – October), however actual number of occurrences may be higher or lower depending on the seasonal weather conditions. Property Location Numbers; 1, 7, 10, 26, 32, 34, 39, and 41, may also require weekly flower bed weeding. The Contractor will contact UTA’s respective Project Manager or designee to coordinate and schedule weeding service. All other landscape maintenance services as listed in the Price Schedule are based on a single annual occurrence and must be provided by the Contractor upon request only from UTA’ s Program Managers or designee. UTA reserves the right to request additional occurrences of any lawn care and landscape maintenance services as needed.

The contractor shall provide all labor, materials, supplies, appropriate equipment, (i.e. large-scale commercial grade mechanical lawn mowing and grass catcher equipment), and transportation necessary to provide lawn care and landscape maintenance services at the locations specified in the Price Schedule and herein as set forth in this Statement of Work and Specifications. This service covers all lawn cutting and grounds care per the Specifications. At no time will contractor personnel cross into the track area or onto the rail right-of-way.

The Proposer must provide at least three (3) customer references, each representing accounts with multiple property locations for which the Proposer has performed these services.

Past service performance history will be considered to help further assess qualifications.

4. PROJECT SCHEDULE AND SERVICE LOCATIONS: Contractor will be responsible for creating and maintaining service schedules for each property location and notify the appropriate Project Manager or authorized designee one week in advance of any schedule changes. Refer to the 26-04035BCM Price Schedule which is uploaded into Utah State’s Public Procurement Site, Euna U3P/Bonfire for this RFP, to obtain Property Group service area address locations, required service types, aerial map for each UTA property, and the designated property managers. All lawns must be cut on a weekly basis; days between cuttings must not exceed 7 days. All Lawn Care and Landscaping services will be completed on the same day as they started. During periods when weather conditions prevent normal scheduled services, the Contractor must complete service on the next available day that weather conditions would allow, and notify the Project Manager or authorized designee.

6. EQUIPMENT: The contractor will provide all labor, materials, supplies, appropriate equipment (i.e. large-scale commercial grade mechanical lawn mowing and grass catcher equipment) necessary to perform all services in this RFP. The Contractor will maintain all equipment in good repair with sharp blades etc. and safe operating condition. UTA reserves the right to have unsafe equipment removed from UTA property. Replacement of unsafe equipment will be at no additional cost to UTA. The Proposer’s Technical Proposal must list the service equipment and materials to be used.

7. CONTRACTOR LIABILITY: Contractor will be liable and responsible for all damage done to trees, shrubs, bushes, sprinkler systems and or sprinkler heads, barriers and or any damage done to real property resulting from the negligence of the Contractor in the course of this contract. All such damages will be repaired/ replaced as damaged by the Contractor at no cost to UTA. Contract will comply with all applicable State and Federal guidelines and regulations.

8. INSPECTIONS & NON-PAYMENTS: Invoices will not be paid for work not completed. Cameras may be used to verify work performed. Periodic physical OR camera recording inspections will be conducted by UTA Facilities personnel to verify that work is completed as required. Inspections will be made as determined necessary by the Facilities Manager, or his designated representative (hereinafter referred to as the “ inspector”), and may be made based on the Contractor’ s performance throughout the contract. Inspections may be scheduled or unscheduled. Invoice payments will be at the discretion of the Facilities Manager based on each situation encountered. Performance issues and payments withheld will be fully documented and processed through the Project Manager.

SPECIFICATIONS

All lawns must be cut on a weekly basis; days between cuttings must not exceed 7 days. All cutting will be completed the same day as started. Grass will be cut to a length of 2" to 3” except for the first and last cuttings of season which will be 1 " long. Any variations will be as instructed by the Project Manager or authorized designee.

1. All lawns must be edged and trimmed around sidewalks, driveways, cement retaining walls, fencelines, and shrub beds. Trimming/edging will include grass and/or weeds in the cracks in the fencelines, sidewalks, curbs, gutters, parking areas, and driveways, to include any intrusive tree saplings.

2. All sprinkler heads and valve boxes must be kept clear of grass (grass trimmed below heads). Pop up sprinkler heads will be cleared as required.

3. All clippings will be removed by the use of grass catchers and will be disposed of in a legal manner. All clippings and debris will be removed on the day of service.

4. Grass/debris cannot be blown onto or left in roadways, parking areas or track right-of-way.

5. All weeds in parking lots and sidewalks will be trimmed weekly.

6. All sidewalks and walkways must be cleaned and grass clippings removed and disposed of in a legal manner.

7. All trash and papers that blow onto the lawn and flower/shrub beds must be cleaned up and removed at each weekly cutting.

8. Trash along curb areas will be removed and curb areas kept clean.

9. Cutting is to be started and completed on the same day each week. (Example: If initial cutting is accomplished on Wednesday, then all subsequent cutting will be on Wednesdays). All cutting is to be accomplished in one day without delay.

10. The following will be done upon the Project Manager’s request:

a. Lawn aeration

b. Lawn weed control and fertilization

c. Flower bed weeding

d. Shrub trimming

e. Fall/Spring flower bed and leaf clean up.

11. Other UTA properties may be added upon request.

Areas requiring service will be those identified in the Price Schedule which includes the Property Group with respective service site address and aerial map for each service site location.

12. See Appendix A for Aerial Maps of forty-three (43) Property Locations. Proposer shall use Aerial Maps to view Property Locations to calculate lawn and landscaping square footages for determining pricing.

Part 2 – Procurement Process Information

PROPOSAL FORMAT

Proposals must adhere to the following format:

· Proposals should be formatted primarily to 8 ½ by 11 inches. An 11 by 17-inch format may be used for charts, tables, and schedules. No text should be included on the 11 by 17-inch size format except for text that is required for the interpretation of the chart, table, or schedule.

· Proposals should use a minimum of 12-point font.

· If a proposal is submitted in double-sided format, both sides of the page will be counted against the page Limit.

· The proposal must not exceed the page limit shown on the RFP Cover Sheet. The Proposer shall not submit brochures or additional materials. Hyperlinks will be counted toward the page limit unless specified as exempt. At its discretion, UTA will not consider such additional materials in the selection of the successful Proposer.

· The maximum file upload size in Bonfire is 50mb.

Failure to follow the format described above may result in the proposal being deemed non-responsive.

PROPOSAL CONTENT AND EVALUATION CRITERIA

The proposal should consist of the following sections in the order listed below:

Cover Letter Explain the interest of the Proposer in the work covered by this RFP and identify the Proposer’s point of contact, including name, address, telephone, and e-mail address. Limit the cover letter to one page.

Technical Proposal (70 ponts)

1. Meet or exceed Statement of Work and Specification(s) – Ability to Perform the Work (35pts) The Proposer must have sufficient information in its Technical Proposal to allow UTA to evaluate compliance with all requirements of this RFP. Provide objective evidence that demonstrates the Proposer’s ability to fulfill all requirements as outlined in the Statement of Work and Specifications to include but not be limited to:

a) Service – Capacity to service multiple property locations on time in accordance with service schedules

b) Response Time - Ability to provide urgent services within a 24-hour notice

c) Personnel – Capability to train and provide personnel skilled in lawn care and landscaping services with the capacity and ability to maintain service schedules

d) Subcontracted Work – Proposal must indicate if Contractor plans to use Sub-Contractor(s) and if so confirm compliance with UTA’s restriction for subcontracted work as listed section K Special Instructions of this RFP

e) Equipment - Provide a list of proposed service equipment and materials used to perform services. Provide process for maintaining equipment in a state of good repair and fully operational

f) Specifications – Provide the approach or method used to achieve all Specifications defined in this RFP.

2. Experience and Qualifications (20pts) Proposers shall demonstrate its ability to meet the experience and quality requirements of this RFP.

a) Contractor must have a minimum of five (5) years of experience delivering Lawn Care and Landscape Maintenance services, as outlined in the Statement of Work and Specifications, to customers managing multiple property locations (each with more than 15 sites), with each property containing a minimum of 5,000 square feet of lawn or landscaped area

b) Provide a brief biography for each key team member (including key personnel working for each sub-consultant). Provide a description of the specific qualifications and capabilities, relevant to this RFP, of the staff to be assigned to this project including licenses, certifications, and years of experience

c) Show experience and any prior performance relevant to the requirements of this RFP, to include prior quality, service delivery, and price performance history. may be reviewed for consideration. Past service performance history will be considered to help further assess qualifications

d) Provide at least three (3) customer references, each representing accounts with multiple property locations (each with more than 15 sites), for which the Contractor has performed Lawn Care and Landscape Maintenance services as outlined in the Statement of Work and Specifications. References must include contact names, address, phone numbers and email address.

3. Ability to Service Property Locations (5pts)

a) Proposer shall demonstrate its ability to service the required property locations of this RFP.

4. Warranty (5pts)

a) Proposer shall provide warranty information that meets the warranty requirements of this RFP to include the life of the warranty periods for all services, products and supplies and states the process for warranty recovery.

5. Forms (5pts) Proposal Documents must be uploaded to Utah State’s Public Procurement Site, Euna U3P/Bonfire for this RFP to include:

a) Completed and signed Proposal Forms and Declarations Part 5 of this RFP.

b) Cover Sheet with Company Information.

c) Must meet all Prerequisites listed in the RFP and on Euna U3P/Bonfire.

d) Proposer’s completed Price Proposal to be uploaded to Euna U3P/Bonfire using UTA’s RFP 26-04035BCM Price Schedule.

e) Certificate of Insurance (COI) compliant with UTA’s Insurance Requirements.

Proposal forms are supplied for the purpose of listing the Proposer’s team or individual data. The Proposer shall provide the data in the appropriate form. A Proposer's failure to follow the specified format may be considered non-responsive.

Submit Two (2) separate Proposals, one (1) Technical Proposal, and one (1) Price Proposal to be uploaded to Euna U3P/Bonfire with all evaluation criteria addressed.

THE TECHNICAL PROPOSAL MUST BE UPLOADED IN EUNA U3P/BONFIRE AS A SPEARATE FILE FROM THE PRICE PROPOSAL AND MUST NOT CONTAIN ANY COST INFORMATION

Price Proposal (30 points) The price proposal shall be evaluated based on both price and cost realism. Price will be taken at face value, while cost realism will be evaluated based on whether the evaluator believes the Contractor’s price reflects a realistic understanding of the scope of effort and resources required to complete the project. Price proposals shall receive a rating from 0 to 30 based on the combined evaluation of price and cost realism.

PRICE PROPOSAL shall be submitted using UTA’s EXCEL SHEET TILED “26-04035BCM Price Schedule” which is uploaded into Utah State’s Public Procurement Site, Euna U3P/Bonfire for this RFP. THE PRICE PROPOSAL MUST BE UPLOADED IN EUNA U3P/BONFIRE AS A SEPARATE FILE FROM THE TECHNICAL PROPOSAL.

(All Forms must be uploaded in Euna U3P/Bonfire. A Proposer's failure to follow the specified format may be considered non-responsive)

WEIGHTING OF EVALUATION CRITERIA

Proposals will be evaluated based on responses to the information requested herein. The Utah Transit Authority may interview one or more firms as part of the evaluation process; however, a decision to award a contract may be based solely upon the submitted proposals.

This is a best-value procurement wherein the award will be made to the responsive and responsible respondent whose proposal is determined to be the most advantageous to UTA, with the evaluation taking into consideration both the technical and pricing factors. In the evaluation, the technical and pricing factors shall be weighted as detailed above:

The Price Proposal must be submitted in a separate file from the technical proposal.

The Technical Proposal must not contain any cost information included in the proposal.

UTA may use the following cost formula: Each price proposal will be given a score of from 0 to 30 points based on both price and cost realism. A proposal which is low price with a high degree of cost realism shall be given a score on the upper end of the scale. A proposal which is high priced with a low degree of cost realism shall be given fewer points on the lower end of the scale. To arrive at an overall total score, the price proposal rating will be weighted according to the overall evaluation criteria and combined with the technical evaluation scores.

In addition to the above, proposals whose total evaluated price is fifty percent (50%) or more above or below the median price of all responsive proposals may be deemed unreasonably priced and non-responsive and may be removed from further consideration at the Authority’s sole discretion.

The Authority reserves the right to disqualify such proposals without further evaluation if it determines that the pricing reflects a material risk to successful performance or does not represent a fair and reasonable price.

Part 3 – Standard Terms of Solicitation

INSTRUCTIONS TO PROPOSERS

1. Submission of Proposals.

Proposals must be uploaded to Euna U3P Bonfire by the “Bid Ends” date and time listed on Bonfire. Proposals uploaded after the deadline will be considered non-responsive. It is the responsibility of the Proposer to ensure that its proposal is properly uploaded by the deadline.

Log on to Euna U3P Bonfire at https://utah.bonfirehub.com/portal/?tab=openOpportunities ; if you have already registered, log in and search by Utah Transit Authority or the RFP number.

If you need to create an account, please select “Create Account,” and then you can search UTA or the RFP number identified on the Cover Page. If you need assistance, please email the Utah Supplier Portal Support at https://purchasing.utah.gov/training/for-vendors-training/. Instructions to proposers are included in the RFP documents.

For ease of review, UTA may also request delivery of hard copies of Proposals (see RFP Cover Sheet).

2. Federal Requirements.

If federal funds are being used to finance this project, the Contractor shall also comply with the additional applicable federal terms and conditions listed in Appendix I and submit all applicable certifications, forms and reports listed in Appendix II.

a. UTA eComply Solutions. In addition, where federal funds are being used, the Bidder/Proposer shall submit required labor and subcontractor information to UTA through following portal: https://uta.ecomply.us. The information provided shall include the following:

· Set up and maintain contractor login for all persons inputting information in the system.

· Description of payments received from UTA and payments made to subcontractors of all tiers, including amounts and confirmation of payment.

· All certified payroll must be input into eComply Solutions which may be accomplished either through direct input or importation from the contractor’s accounting system.

· All subcontract award amounts, dates signed, and change orders.

· Certified payroll information shall be uploaded on a weekly basis; all other information shall be uploaded or input no less than monthly.

The Contractor shall include this clause in all subcontracts and manage and monitor compliance of all subcontractors within the UTA eComply system.

3. Minimum Standards.

This RFP sets forth the minimum requirements that all Proposals must meet. Failure to submit Proposals in accordance with this RFP may render the Proposal unacceptable or non-responsive. UTA may, in its sole discretion, waive minor irregularities in a Proposal that do not alter the quality or quantity of the information provided.

4. Confidential, Protected, and Public Information In accordance with Utah Code Section 63G-2-305(6) of the Government Records Access and Management Act (GRAMA) and UTA's Procurement Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), procurement information related to this procurement will not be made public until after the execution of the Contract with the successful Proposer. Procurement information includes the Proposals submitted by Proposers in response to this RFP, any accompanying documentation, and records maintained by UTA during the procurement process.

UTA will maintain a process to ensure confidentiality for the duration of this procurement. If the Proposer submits information in its Proposal that it believes is "trade secret," the Proposer must follow the procedure set forth in Section 63G-2-309 of GRAMA.

Additionally, for ease of Proposal evaluation, UTA requests that each Proposer also follow the steps identified below:

1. Clearly mark all trade secret information as such in its Proposal at the time the Proposal is submitted and include a cover sheet stating, “DOCUMENT CONTAINS TRADE SECRET INFORMATION,” and identifying each section and page which has been so marked.

b) Include a statement with its Proposal justifying the Proposer’s determination that certain records are trade secret information for each record so defined.

c) In addition to the Proposal uploaded to Bonfire, upload a second copy of the Proposal (as an attachment) that has all the trade secret information deleted, and label this copy of the Proposal “Public Copy.” If a Proposer uploads a Proposal containing no trade secret information, no "Public Copy" needs to be submitted. However, any Proposer that submits a Proposal containing no trade secret information must so certify in a cover letter to its Proposal; and

d) Defend any action seeking release of the records it believes to be trade secret information and indemnify, defend, and hold harmless UTA and the State of Utah and its agents and employees from any judgments awarded against UTA and its agents and employees in favor of the party requesting the records, including any and all costs connected with that defense. This indemnification survives UTA’s cancellation or termination of this procurement or award and subsequent execution of the Contract. In submitting a Proposal, the Proposer agrees that this indemnification survives as long as the trade secret information is in possession of UTA.

All records pertaining to this procurement will become public information after the execution of the Contract, unless such records are identified as trade secret information as specified above. No liability will attach to UTA for the errant release of trade secret information by UTA under any circumstances.

5. Submitting Questions to UTA Questions and Requests for changes to the RFP must be submitted via Euna U3P/Bonfire Q&A page before the end of the Question and Answer period. UTA’s answers to timely questions will be posted on the Euna U3P/Bonfire Q&A page. All communications regarding this RFP should be addressed solely to the Contract Administrator whose name and contact information are listed on the Cover Page of the RFP.

6. Requests for Approved Equals or Changes Whenever a brand, manufacturer, or product name is indicated in this RFP, it is included only for the purpose of establishing identification and a general description of the item. Wherever such names appear, the term "or approved equal" is considered to follow.

Requests for Approved Equals must be submitted via Bonfire Q&A page. UTA retains the discretion to withhold approval for one or more requested equals if the magnitude of requested approvals exceeds UTA’s available resources to allow for adequate evaluation in support of a timely procurement.

Any request for an approved equal must be fully supported with technical data, test results, or other pertinent information as evidence that the substitute offered is equal or better than the RFP requirement.

UTA will only assess requests for approved equals if the price of the substitute product is competitive with the price of the product specified in the RFP, as determined by UTA in its sole discretion.

It should be understood that specifying a brand name, components, and/or equipment in this RFP will not relieve the Proposer from its responsibility to provide the product in accordance with the performance warranty and contractual requirements. The Proposer shall notify UTA of any inappropriate brand name, component, and/or equipment that may be called for in this RFP and shall propose a suitable substitute for consideration.

7. Addenda to the Request for Proposals UTA reserves the right to make changes to the RFP by issuing a written addendum to the RFP which will be posted to Bonfire.

8. Multiple or Alternative Proposals The submission of multiple or alternative Proposals, except as specifically called for in the RFP, may render all such Proposals non-responsive and may cause the rejection of some or all of such Proposals.

9. Withdrawal of Proposals A Proposer may withdraw its Proposal from Bonfire before the Proposal due date without prejudice to itself.

10. Cost of Proposals UTA is not liable for any costs incurred by Proposers in the preparation, presentation, or negotiation of Proposals submitted in response to this RFP.

11. Examination of Request for Proposals The submission of a Proposal constitutes an acknowledgment upon which UTA may rely that the Proposer: (i) has thoroughly examined and is familiar with the RFP, including the contractual terms in Part 4, (ii) is familiar with any work site identified in the RFP, and (iii) has reviewed and inspected all applicable statutes, regulations, ordinances, and resolutions addressing or relating to the goods and services to be provided hereunder. The failure or neglect of a Proposer to receive or examine such documents, work sites, statutes, regulations, ordinances, or resolutions will in no way relieve the Proposer from any obligations with respect to the Proposer’s Proposal or to any contract awarded pursuant to this RFP. No reduction or modification in the Proposer’s obligations will be allowed based upon a lack of knowledge or misunderstanding of this RFP, work sites, statutes, regulations, ordinances, or resolutions.

12. Firm Offer Unless otherwise stated in this RFP, submission of a Proposal constitutes an offer to provide the goods or services described in the RFP, for the price set forth in the Proposal. Such offer must be good and firm for a period of ninety (90) days after the Deadline to Submit Proposals.

SELECTION PROCESS

1. No Public Opening This is an RFP and, as such, the Proposals submitted in response to this RFP will not be subject to a public opening.

2. UTA’s Procurement Options Based on submitted information, UTA may do or take any of the following actions, without limitation:

· Select a Proposer based solely on the written proposals, with or without subsequent negotiations.

· Ask for more information or clarifications before making a selection.

· Use presentations, interviews, or problem-solving exercises before making a selection.

· Under specific circumstances described in the Utah Procurement Code, determine a Competitive Range, conduct Discussions, and/or request Best and Final Offers (BAFO) before making a selection if a material error in the RFP is discovered during the evaluation process, UTA may issue an addendum to all Proposers that have submitted Proposals requesting revised Proposals based upon the corrected RFP.

· Decline to accept any Proposal.

· Re-advertise.

· Cancel the procurement or

· Elect to otherwise procure the needed services in accordance with UTA policy and procedures.

UTA reserves the right to negotiate price, scope, schedule, and other contract terms with the preferred Proposer after a selection is made.

3. Responsibility UTA will not select a Proposer who is deemed by UTA, in its sole discretion, to lack the ability or responsibility to perform successfully under the terms of the contract. Such determination of responsibility may encompass management, technical, legal, financial matters and cyber security preparedness. Proposers deemed to be not responsible to cyber security risk factors will be notified and may be given an opportunity to remediate.

4. Checking References UTA reserves the right to contact any reference specifically named by the Proposer in its Proposal or any other additional references as deemed appropriate by UTA, including references suggested by the Proposer's named references or references known to UTA through its own knowledge of the transportation industry.

5. Requests for Clarification The Proposer shall provide accurate and complete information to UTA. If information is incomplete, contains a clerical error, or is otherwise unclear, UTA may either (i) declare the Proposal non-responsive, (ii) evaluate the Proposal as submitted, or (iii) issue a Request for Clarifications to the Proposer stating the information needed and a date and time by which the information must be provided. If the Proposer does not respond to the Request for Clarifications in a timely manner, or if the Proposer’s response is deemed to be insufficient by UTA, in its sole discretion, then UTA may declare the Proposal non-responsive.

All requests for Clarification will be in writing via Bonfire Q&A page, with responses submitted according to the instructions contained in the request for Clarification. Responses must be limited to answering the specific information requested by UTA.

6. Presentations / Interviews / Problem-Solving Exercises UTA may utilize presentations, interviews, and/or problem-solving exercises during this procurement if, at the sole discretion of UTA, it is considered to be in UTA's best interest. If UTA determines that presentations and/or interviews and/or problem-solving exercises are in its best interest, UTA will notify all or a short-list of the most highly qualified Proposers of the decision to utilize presentations and/or interviews and/or problem-solving exercises and schedule the presentations and/or interviews and/or problem-solving exercises in such a way as to not unduly delay the procurement process.

UTA reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to conduct multiple rounds of presentations and/or interviews and/or problem-solving exercises, if it deems necessary to do so, with one or more Proposers.

7. Competitive Range Under specific circumstances described in the Utah Procurement Code, UTA may declare a Competitive Range that includes only those Proposers with a reasonable chance of being selected. UTA will declare a Competitive Range, if it chooses to do so, after a thorough analysis of the Proposals.

8. Discussions UTA may, at its sole discretion, conduct written and/or verbal discussions with any of the Proposers in the Competitive Range regarding the content of their Proposal. If discussions are held, they will be held with all Proposers in the Competitive Range.

9. Best and Final Offers UTA may request Best and Final Offers from responsible offerors:

a. Only with the approval of the Chief Procurement Officer; and

b. Only if:

i. No single proposal adequately addresses all the specifications stated in the RFP;

ii. All proposals are unclear or deficient in one or more respects;

iii. All cost proposals exceed the identified budget Although UTA reserves the right to issue a request for Proposal revisions (including Best and Final Offers), UTA is under no obligation to do so. UTA may make its selection and award based on the initial Proposals submitted.

If UTA requests Proposal revisions and/or BAFOs, Proposers in the Competitive Range may be informed of and requested and/or allowed to revise their Proposals, including correction of any weaknesses, minor irregularities, errors, and/or deficiencies identified to the Proposers by UTA following initial evaluation of the Proposals. The request for Proposal revisions and/or BAFOs will allow adequate time for the Proposers to revise their Proposals. Upon receipt of the Proposal revisions and/or BAFOs, the evaluation process will be repeated. The process will consider the revised information and re-evaluate and revise ratings as appropriate. Although this RFP allows for Proposal revisions and/or BAFOs, all efforts will be made to make a selection based on initial Proposals. If Discussions are held, UTA will attempt to limit the selection process to a single BAFO following Discussions. If a Proposal revision and/or BAFO is requested of a Proposer, and that Proposer opts to not submit a Proposal revision and/or BAFO that Proposer's original Proposal or most recent Proposal revision, as appropriate, will be treated as its BAFO.

10. Best Value Determination This is a Best Value procurement, in which selection of a Proposer is based on a combination of price and qualitative components, as set forth on the RFP Cover Sheet. Accordingly, UTA may not select the Proposal with the lowest price, or the Proposal with the highest qualitative/ technical rating. UTA will select the responsible Proposer whose Proposal is deemed to be the most advantageous to UTA.

11. Negotiations After selection, but prior to award of the Contract, UTA may, at its sole discretion, either conduct negotiations with the successful Proposer or UTA may choose not to conduct negotiations with the successful Proposer and award the Contract to the successful Proposer based on its written Proposal and any additional information received during Discussions and Proposal revisions and/or BAFOs, if conducted.

If UTA and the selected Proposer are unable to reach an agreement on the scope, contractual terms, and/or price of the Contract, then UTA may, in its sole discretion, negotiate with the next most advantageous Proposer or choose to terminate the procurement in its entirety.

Once negotiations have been terminated with any Proposer, the negotiations may not be reopened with that Proposer under any circumstances.

If UTA receives only one responsive Proposal, UTA reserves the right to negotiate all elements of the Proposal and the Contract with the sole responsive Proposer, including, but not limited to, profit.

12. Notice to Unsuccessful Proposers Following execution of the Contract between UTA and the successful Proposer, UTA will inform unsuccessful Proposers of the number of Proposals received and the name of the successful Proposer. UTA will attempt to provide this notice promptly after the Contract is executed. However, UTA’s failure to give this notice will not be deemed to affect the validity of the Contract.

13. Debriefs Upon request from an unsuccessful Proposer, UTA may, but is not required to, provide debriefing information for the sole purpose of discussing, in a limited manner, the strengths and weaknesses of the unsuccessful Proposal.

14. Protests Protests are governed by the Utah Procurement Code, Utah Code Ann. § 63G-6a-1601 et seq. To be valid, a protest must be in writing and be filed with UTA within the timeframes set forth in Utah Code Ann. § 63G-6a-1602. A protest will be deemed to be filed pursuant to these procedures when actually received by the designated recipient via email to protests@rideuta.com.

All protests must include:

The Procurement Officer shall make a written determination regarding the protest. An unfavorable determination by the UTA Procurement Officer is eligible for administrative reconsideration by a panel determined by the Chair of the UTA Board of Trustees. A notice of appeal must be delivered by the Protestor within five (5) calendar days of the date of the Procurement Officer’s decision. A notice of appeal addressed as follows:

Chair, UTA Board of Trustees c/o Utah Transit Authority 669 West 200 South Salt Lake City, Utah 84101 Attn: Board Coordinator

CONTAINS TIME-SENSITIVE PROTEST MATERIALS

Any further appeal may only be made pursuant to Utah Code Ann. § 63G-6a-1801 et seq. A protesting entity must exhaust administrative appeals prior to filing a judicial appeal pursuant to Utah Code Ann. § 63G-6a-1801 et seq.

Part 4 – SAMPLE CONTRACT

(EXAMPLE ONLY)

GOODS AND SERVICES SUPPLY AGREEMENT

(To be used as the Contract template for all procurements of Goods and Services)

UTA CONTRACT #

[INSERT DESCRIPTION OF THE GOODS]

THIS GOODS AND NON-PROFESSIONAL SERVICES SUPPLY AGREEMENT (“Contract”) is entered into and made effective as of the date of last signature below. (“Effective Date”) by and between UTAH TRANSIT AUTHORITY, a public transit district organized under the laws of the State of Utah (”UTA”), and [INSERT NAME OF CONTRACTOR], a [INSERT DESCRIPTION OF ENTITY TYPE] (the ”Contractor”).

RECITALS

WHEREAS, on [INSERT PROPOSAL DUE DATE], UTA received competitive proposals to provide [INSERT DESCRIPTION OF THE GOODS OR NON-PROFESSINAL SERVICES] and (as applicable) all associated hardware, software, tools, installation services, commissioning and testing services, training and documentation (the “Goods and Services”) according to the terms, conditions and specifications prepared by UTA in [INSERT RFP NUMBER] (the “RFP”); and

AGREEMENT

NOW, THEREFORE, in accordance with the foregoing Recitals, which are incorporated herein by reference, and for and in consideration of the mutual covenants and agreements hereafter set forth, the mutual benefits to the parties to be derived here from, and for other valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which the parties acknowledge, it is hereby agreed as follows:

1. GOOD AND SERVICES TO BE PROVIDED BY CONTRACTOR

Contractor hereby agrees to furnish and deliver the Goods and/or Services in accordance with the Contract as described in Exhibit A (Statement of Work or Services) (including performing any installation, testing commissioning and other Services described in the Contract).

2. TERM

This Contract will be Firm Fixed Price and performance will commence upon the last signature date page (pg. # ) and will continue for a period of five (5) years expiring approximately October 15, 2031. The Contract may be further extended if the Contractor and UTA mutually agree to an extension evidenced in writing. The rights and obligations of UTA and Contractor under the Contract shall at all times be subject to and conditioned upon the provisions of the Contract.

3.…