4-0.1 Instructions.docx

Board of County Commissioners 224 Pine Ave SW, 2nd Floor, Live Oak, FL 32064 Franklin White, Chairman

BID SOLICITATION

Suwannee County, Florida will receive sealed digital bids on the County’s procurement portal, suwanneecountyfl.bonfirehub.com, or sealed paper bids at the Clerk of Court Cashier Window located within the Courthouse to the attention of Clerk to the Board, 200 South Ohio Avenue, Live Oak, FL 32064. All responses are due before Thursday, November 19, 2026, at 4:00 P.M. Responses will be publicly unsealed and read aloud at Suwannee County Administration, Conference Room, 224 Pine Ave SW, 2nd Floor, Live Oak, FL 32064, on Thursday, November 19, 2026, at 4:05 PM., for the following:

THREE-YEAR PINE STRAW LEASE PROGRAM

The Suwannee County Board of County Commissioners (County) is seeking qualified individuals or companies interested in entering into a three (3) year lease agreement for the harvesting, collection, baling, and removal of pine straw from designated County-owned properties located at parcel numbers 26-02S-13E-08017-000000 (41999) 85 and 35-02S-13E-08354-000020 (42002) 85.

The purpose of this lease program is to provide for the responsible and efficient harvesting of pine straw while generating revenue for Suwannee County, protecting County-owned timber resources, and maintaining the environmental integrity of the designated properties.

CONTRACT TIME: Contract time is three (3) years, starting with the Notice to Proceed date.

The following schedule will apply to the project:

· Award of contract by the Board of County Commissioners.

· Contractor shall return an executed copy of the contract to the County Administrator within 14 calendar days following receipt of the draft contract.

· No more than 21 calendar days following the execution of the contract, Contractor shall provide the County Administrator with evidence of Construction Bonds (if applicable). Notice to Proceed will then be issued.

· Failure to comply with the timeline may result in the County voiding the contract and the County beginning negotiations with the next lowest qualified bidder.

· Time extension requests shall be forwarded to the County Administrator for consideration. The County Administrator will convene a meeting with the CEI (as applicable) and the County Attorney to consider the request. The decision of the committee will be final.

· No work is allowed on Sundays or County designated holidays.

The Board of County Commissioners may accept all or part of any bid. Any response received after Thursday November 19, 2026, at 4:00 P.M, will be retained at the Clerk of Court Office, unopened, and will not be considered. Digital responding window will be locked at 4:00 p.m. online. Responses submitted in any other manner, besides through the online portal or sealed paper responses to the Clerk to the Board, will not be accepted or considered. By tendering a bid, respondent agrees that should the County fail to reach an agreement with the lowest responsible bidder, the County may negotiate with the next lowest responsible bidder and so on until an agreement is reached with a responsible bidder. The Board of County Commissioners reserves the right to reject all bids, waive formalities and re-advertise and award the bid in the best interest of the County.

NON-DISCRIMINATION POLICY STATEMENT: The Board of County Commissioners does not discriminate because of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, genetics, handicap status, income status, or family status.

CONE OF SILENCE NOTICE: A cone of silence shall be established on all County competitive selection processes. The cone of silence pertains to all solicitations (ITB, RFP, RFQ or other competitive solicitations), and prohibits any communication regarding such solicitation between the bidder (or its agents or representatives) or anyone on behalf of the bidder regarding such solicitation, and any County Commissioner or County employee, selection committee member or other persons authorized to act on behalf of the Board including the County’s Architect, Engineer or their subconsultants, or anyone designated to provide a recommendation to award a particular contract, other than Procurement Department staff. The cone of silence shall be in effect from the time of advertisement until contract award. Violation of the cone of silence by, or on behalf of, a bidder shall be grounds for disqualification from competing in the competitive solicitation.

SWORN ENTITY STATEMENT: The Board of County Commissioners requires a Sworn Statement under section 287.133(3)(a), F.S., on Public Entity Crimes.

INSURANCE: The Board of County Commissioners requires proof of insurance in the amount of one million dollars at a minimum.

The following conditions will be a part of the contract as required by Suwannee County:

Contractor shall utilize the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s E-Verify system, in accordance with the terms governing use of the system, to confirm the employment eligibility of;

1. all persons employed by the Vendor/Contractor during the term of the Contract to perform employment duties within Florida; and

2. all persons, including subcontractors, assigned by the Vendor/Contractor to perform work pursuant to the contract with Suwannee County.

HARVESTING REQUIREMENTS: The Lessee shall conduct all pine straw harvesting operations in accordance with generally accepted forestry management practices and the following requirements:

A. Tree and Vegetation Protection Harvesting activities shall not damage standing timber, tree roots, seedlings, or other vegetation designated for protection. No trees shall be cut, removed, or damaged without prior written authorization from the County.

B. Ground and Soil Protection The Lessee shall minimize soil disturbance, erosion, rutting, and compaction. Heavy equipment shall not be operated during conditions that may result in excessive damage to the property.

C. Equipment Operations All harvesting equipment shall be properly maintained and operated by qualified personnel. Equipment use shall not obstruct County roads, public access areas, or drainage facilities without prior authorization.

D. Chemical Applications No herbicides, pesticides, fertilizers, or other chemical treatments shall be applied to County property without prior written authorization from the County and compliance with applicable regulations.

E. Fire Prevention The Lessee shall take reasonable precautions to prevent wildfires and shall comply with applicable Florida Forest Service requirements, fire restrictions, and burn bans.

F. Site Cleanup Upon completion of each harvesting operation, the Lessee shall remove all trash, discarded materials, equipment, and other debris resulting from its activities.

LEASE PAYMENTS AND COMPENSATION: The lease shall be awarded in accordance with the County’s applicable procurement procedures and the terms established in the solicitation.

Bidders shall submit a proposed annual lease payment for the right to harvest pine straw from the designated County properties.

The following conditions shall apply:

Failure to submit required lease payment may constitute ground for termination of the agreement.

DOCUMENTS AVAILABLE ON: Electronic copies (in pdf format) of the bid documents, plans, specifications and addenda are available on the County’s procurement portal, suwanneecountyfl.bonfirehub.com. All addenda issued regarding this solicitation will only be available on the County’s procurement portal. Bidders using partial sets of Documents are fully responsible for any errors or omissions made due to not reviewing the entire set of Construction Documents. Due to the possibility of technical glitches, it will be the sole responsibility of the Contractor to check for all bid documents and addenda prior to submitting their subsequent bid response package.

QUESTIONS: Any questions concerning specifications and/or bid documents should be asked in the public questions and answers section for the specific solicitation. Deadline for questions Friday November 6, 2026, no later than 5:00 P.M. Any, and all, such interpretations and any supplemental instructions will be in the form of a written addendum which, if issued, will be posted on the County’s procurement portal, suwanneecountyfl.bonfirehub.com. All addenda so issued shall become part of the bid documents.

PAPER SUBMISSIONS: All sealed paper bids must be submitted with one original and one copy (2 total) and labeled on the outside of the envelope as:

CLERK TO THE BOARD

200 SOUTH OHIO AVENUE

LIVE OAK, FL 32064

SEALED BID NO. 2026-18

THREE-YEAR PINE STRAW LEASE PROGRAM

Phone: 386-364-3400 suwanneecountyfl.gov Fax: 386-362-1032 image1.png