Pre-Bid Questions Meeting Notes RFI 1 thru 30.pdf

07/11/2023

Monday Lick Pre‐Bid Notes:

Schedule:

1. Began Sign‐in at 10:00 AM

2. Departed Ranger Sta on for site at 10:15 AM

3. Concluded mee ng at 11:15

4. Last contractor le site at 1:00 PM

Reviewed Mee ng Agenda at site.

Ques ons:

1. Where are construc on plans? Planned trails located on map a achment as well as marked in field.

2. What is the width of trail? The trail width is defined on the standard details based on designed color.

3. Is there a restric on on the number of employees the company has? No.

4. There are no CAD drawings available in the solicita on. CAD drawings will be made available, they were inadvertently missing from the solicita on.

5. What is in the seed project? SOI in Solicita on is for pricing purposed only. Task orders will be issued with specific trail segments once IDIQ award is made.

6. Key personnel requirements conflic ng please clarify. SOW is incorrect. It should read: “Contractor shall have at least one team leader and/or lead operator who has constructed at least ten (10) miles of similar shared‐use natural surface trail during the past five (5) years onsite during all work ac vi es.”

7. Contractor is concerned that their bond company does not give any proof of ability to bond. Bonding will be required throughout the contract for anything over $35k. A simple le er from the bonding agency is all we are seeking. A statement of bondability is generally nothing more than a le er wri en on either the surety's or bonding agent's le erhead iden fying the contractor (principal), the surety offering the le er and the limits for which the contractor is qualified.

Bonding companies MUST be cer fied and on this list:

h ps://www.fiscal.treasury.gov/surety‐bonds/list‐cer fied‐companies.html

8. How far is the project “bike leaning”. Trails have designed use of Mountain

Biking, with permi ed shared use.

9. Will this be a shu leable trail system? Yes

10. Prime points seeking for ride center criteria? (SHARC Coordinator in a endance answered the ques on with preface that he was of no authority to the project)

Looking for shu leable system that contains all levels intermediate‐expert trails, and a mix of flowy and technical terrain.

11. How firm is the Monday‐Friday work week? Concern of addi onal mobiliza on due to scheduling. Most trail crews work 10+ days straight. This is at the discre on of CO/COR. Will seek clarifica on from them.

Can work on weekends on non‐cri cal tasks, with understanding that COR will s ll be reviewing/approving work done during this me.

12. Is 2 working week no ce necessary? May not be able to give this much based on availability. This is at the discre on of the COR. Will seek clarifica on from her.

COR is willing to reduce to 1 week no ce for ini al work start. Once work is started, schedule change no ce requirements will be coordinated between contractor and COR.

13. Is the project funded yet? Yes

14. Approval for trail bikes or other motorized equipment? No guarantee, but poten ally with wri en approval from COR and Ranger.

UTV usage is allowable on site of project as a part of their delivery and safety systems. Should ac vity increase trail width or resource impacts

(ru ng) then contractor will address and fix at their expense.

UTV is not to be transporta on from camp to project area.

15. Can there be a waiver for the maximum 14 day camping requirement? No guarantee, but poten ally with approval from the ranger.

Camping on site is ok upon request with supplemental rules.

No group camping with family and friends (business use only)

Site will be clean and follow all normal rules and regula ons. (no special authority granted for fire, trash and grey water that wouldn’t be ok for standard public use)

NO PARKING UTV at camp site. (UTV is for work purposes only and should only be operated at worksite)

16. How many task orders? 5‐8 an cipated, subject to change.

17. What is the DBE requirement and is there room for modifica on? Have concerns that the project may get shutdown. Goals presented in the solicita on are to be efforts made in good faith.

18. Buy American act clarifica on about unreasonable premium. Noted that there were a few clauses in the act and would ask CO for clarifica on if there is concern. Does not apply to COTS. There are several countries allowed through

WTO agreements.

19. Can phase 1 trail segments be disclosed. We can provide a preview however please note these are DRAFTs and subject to change. Phase 1 segments are slated to be 429A, 430, 432A, 432B, 432C. This is dependent on meline of award and task order issuance since we are meline restricted in areas by the

NEPA decision.

20. What areas are most difficult to build on. Project is overall a challenge, can’t say which areas are most difficult, however based on mapping the steepest segment is 430.

21. Is the units for retaining wall actually EA? No ‐ clerical error, should be SF.

22. There was a statement that the first task order will be issued for construc on in fall of 2023. Does submi ng a bid obligate us to fulfill that task order if contractor does not have capacity to fulfill this season prior to Bumblebee Restric ons. Timing and contractor availability can be discussed prior to TO issuance.

23. How far in advance will contractors be no fied of task orders to plan and schedule staff for execu on of work? Typically 10 days, contractor does have the opportunity to not do the task order. Post award, once the two contractors are selected and receive awards we will have early discussions about what we were hoping to get accomplished for each contractors por on of the en re project (for their pre‐planning purposes) and also discuss the an cipated por on for the first years phase. Then we can revisit each year before the season begins to discuss expecta ons for that year’s phase

24. At the pre‐construc on mee ng, a desire for technical, rocky trails like what is available at Snowshoe. Should contractors bid the work as this technical In‐Tread Rock Work being incidental to linear foot of trail or will this rock work be billed at a unit cost in accordance with the Rock Armoring Bid Item. Based on Unit Price No.7L Rock Armoring ‘increase rugosity on technical sec ons’, our interpreta on is that this rock armoring would be measured and payable at that unit item? FS representa ve never men oned construc ng “rocky trails like what is available at snowshoe”. The only men on of Snowshoe was that the trails would ul mately be a part of the IMBA Snowshoe Highlands Ride Center. Any rock tread constructed to specifica ons and standard details will be paid at the rock armoring line item, and allowance for quan ty limited to what is in the task order SOI, as defined in sec on 012100 in the Specifica ons.

25. Does the owner an cipate rock breaking (jackhammer) or blas ng? Is this ac vity measurable and billable to Rock Armoring bid Item if encountered? The need for rock breaking is not an cipated, but not restricted. Therefor it is considered a de minimis ac vity and does not have a separate payable unit.

Where rock outcrops have to be traversed during build it is recommended those rock features be incorporated as anchors, trail tread, or built over using rock walls and fill.

26. Project Specifica on 011000 ‐ 1.7B contains the statement “Reference a ached NEPA documenta on”. Please a ach this documenta on for review by contractor. If Available, please provide HPZ zone maps where not clearly iden fied in the NEPA documenta on. See a ached NEPA Document and updated GIS Map.

27. Project Specifica on 011000 ‐ 3.1 limits construc on performance period from May 15‐Septemeber 30 in HPZ for RPBB protec on. This construc on window is fully inclusive of the NLEB cu ng restric ons dated April 1 – November 14th. If trees greater than 5” DBH must be cut to meet the specifica ons for a given trail segment, will this cu ng be allowed within the HPZ outside of the designated Build Window (May 15th – September 30th)? If not, will a variance to width specs be allowed to comply with these overlapping seasonal restric ons?

See map for RPBB HPZ. Project wide, all trees less than 5” DBH and any hazard trees can be removed from April 1 – November 14, and any tree can be removed from November 15 – March 31. In RPBB HPZ areas, ground disturbance may only take place during the May 15 – September 30 window. Tree clearing in the RPBB HPZ may take place with no ground disturbances (including UTV/equipment traffic) associated with the clearing ac vity. No trees shall be removed or ground disturbed if cri cal habitat is observed by contractor. If habitat is present, please no fy COR immediately.

28. If possible, please clarify Narra ve etc. for each of the trail types. Did IMBA provide a ‘trail matrix’ as part of their design deliverable that can be made available for review by all contractors? The Monday Lick trails are intended to provide a tradi onal backcountry singletrack experience suitable for shared‐use.

These are not intended to be a bike park style trail and the emphasis should be on a sustainable build with good sightlines and an open and flowing feel.

Consistent meander and undula on is desirable. Grade reversals resul ng from design and meander are preferred over grade reversal created by manufactured rollers in a straight line. Local examples of historical trails that meet this experience objec ve would be Dowells Dra and Braleys near Stokesville.

29. Was pre‐bid mee ng a endance required in order to submit a proposal? Pre‐bid/site visit is not mandatory in order to provide bids.

30. Can you confirm that for the Blue and Black Trails, Type 1 refers to par al/balanced bench construc on and Type 2 refers to full bench construc on? type 2 is full bench, type 1 is par al bench