Lawn Care Checklist.pdf

1. General & Administrative Requirements

• Provide all labor, tools, vehicles, insurance, management/supervision, supplies, and equipment required.

• Provide year-round grounds maintenance at FEMA Aurora Annex, 635 W. Indian Trail Road, Aurora, IL 60506.

• Ensure outdoor areas are safe, secure, functional, and visually appealing.

• Plan and schedule work to ensure labor, equipment, and materials are available when needed.

• Implement quality control to ensure timely and adequate completion of all services.

• Maintain excellent communication with the COTR, Facility Manager, and Security as required.

• Do not use on-site dumpsters for lawn and landscaping residue.

Work Hours

• Perform work during regular administrative hours (7:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.), Monday through Friday, unless otherwise approved.

• Obtain written approval from the Contracting Officer (or designee) to work Saturdays, Sundays, holidays, or outside regular hours.

• For snow and ice operations, be prepared to work outside normal hours, 7 days a week.

2. Grounds Maintenance Methods

• Apply appropriate mix of:

o Corrective Maintenance o Preventative Maintenance o Condition-Based Maintenance o Predictive Maintenance

3. Grass Cutting & Lawn Care

• Keep all grass areas within and around FEMA building grounds and fences weed free.

• Maintain grass at a uniform height between 2 and 3 inches.

• Remove trash and debris (paper, cans, bottles, limbs, rocks, etc.) from turf before mowing.

• Fill low spots with soil and seed where necessary.

• Repair or replace bare or dead grass using best method (seeding, sodding, etc.).

• Ensure grass clippings are not left in piles or clumps.

• Distribute clippings evenly or bag and remove from site.

• Hand mow areas adjacent to buildings, hydrants, parking lots, manholes, fences, trees, hedges, and shrubs as required.

• Trim around trees, shrubs, beds, poles, walls, and similar objects to match surrounding grass height.

• Do not damage trees or shrubs during mowing or trimming.

• Keep trimming with herbicides within 12 inches of objects being trimmed.

• Repair or replace any grass, trees, or shrubs damaged by contractor at no cost to the Government.

• Remove grass clippings and trimmings from sidewalks and paved areas the same day as mowing.

Expert Lawn Services

• Provide aeration twice a year (spring and early fall).

• Provide dethatching (scarif ication) twice a year (spring and early fall).

• Provide overseeding twice a year (spring and early fall).

• Provide feeding/fertilization twice a year (spring and early fall).

4. Landscaping & Planting

• Ensure staff have skills in lawn maintenance, pest management, planting, and equipment operation.

• Maintain and work with trees, flowers, mulch, rocks, decks, gazebo/playground equipment, benches, and outdoor tables.

• Perform planting, mulching, seeding/overseeding, sodding, watering, and grounds repair as required.

• Remove dead plants, vegetation, and underbrush.

5. Trees, Shrubs, Bushes

• Prune all trees, yews, shrubs, hedges, and bushes as needed.

• Do not consider tree height a limiting factor for required trimming/pruning/cutting.

• Wrap or protect shrubs and plants during winter months if necessary.

• Annually prune trees and shrubs to remove all dead, dying, diseased, doubled, or broken limbs greater than 2 inches in diameter.

• Annually prune perimeter trees to:

o Raise crowns of deciduous trees to approximately 10 feet to match top of perimeter fence.

o Thin crowns of deciduous trees by about 30 percent to improve lines of sight at the top of the fence.

o Ensure branches do not touch or extend over the perimeter wall/fence.

• Coordinate perimeter tree pruning activities with the Security Manager.

• Remove all logs, limbs, chips, and debris generated by tree work.

• Restore the site as close as reasonably practical to pre-work conditions.

6. Edging, Trimming, and Weeding

• Edge along sidewalks, curbs, buildings, and other areas not accessible by normal mowing.

• Pull weeds in flower beds that cannot be treated with herbicide or removed mechanically.

• String trim entire inside and outside perimeter fence, removing grass, weeds, and debris.

• Trim approximately 2–3 feet along east outside perimeter fence, removing grass, weeds, and debris.

7. Herbicides & Pest/Bug Control

• Maintain current state license for vegetation control.

• Use certif ied personnel for herbicide and pest control applications.

• Comply with all Federal, State, Local, and Activity laws and requirements.

• Use only EPA-registered herbicides and pest control products.

• Follow label directions for target weeds and mold.

• Obtain COTR approval for herbicide selection, application rates, and techniques.

• Provide pest/bug control, including deterrence, eradication, and removal, for pests such as raccoons, opossums, birds/bats, rats, mice, bees, spiders, f lying insects, cockroaches, ants, f leas, and ticks.

• Have a responsible and competent representative on site during all herbicide/pest-control work, with authority to act for the contractor.

• Ensure the supervisor’s location is known to the COTR at all times during work.

8. Hard Surfaces / Hardscaping

• Remove and properly dispose of trash and debris from:

o Parking lot o Playground and picnic areas o Sidewalks o Rocks and other non-vegetative ground surfaces

• Physically remove weeds or invasive vegetation from hard surfaces and crevices.

• Treat residual hard-surface vegetation with herbicide where needed.

• Keep drains, downspouts, and all water access points free and clear of debris and bushes.

9. Snow & Ice Removal

• Monitor weather and initiate services for all winter weather events.

• Remove snow and ice from:

o Driveways o Sidewalks o Crosswalks o Parking lot (22 spaces) o Steps o Facility entrances and doorways o Gates (vehicle and pedestrian) o Handicapped parking areas

• Ensure hydraulic vertical pivot gate area and access card reader area are kept free of snow and ice and deiced as needed.

• Maintain sidewalks, entrances, crosswalks, steps, gates, and doorways in a safe, operable, snow-and-ice free condition.

• Commence snow removal 24/7 for any actual or anticipated snow accumulation greater than 1 inch.

• Schedule work, when possible, to avoid parked vehicles.

• Apply deicer chemicals as pretreatment and after snow removal when ice or black ice is present or anticipated.

• Apply liquid deicer prior to severe weather when appropriate.

• During extended snowfall, periodically remove snow and reapply deicer to keep sidewalks and crosswalks as clear as possible.

• Respond to additional snow/ice removal as directed by the COTR during normal duty hours.

• Clear approximately 6,000 square feet total of snow/ice, ensuring no large piles remain on site.

• Call in additional personnel if necessary to ensure timely clearing of sidewalks and crosswalks.

• Provide snow removal on an as-required basis in accordance with contract conditions and work schedule.

Ice Melting Chemicals

• Supply all ice melting chemicals.

• Use chemicals containing potassium chloride or comparable products that will not damage seeded areas.

• Obtain COTR and/or environmental supervisor approval for ice-melting chemicals.

10. Security Requirements & Access

• Attend pre-proposal site visit conducted by FEMA Facility Manager or designee (for bidding).

• After award, ensure all personnel entering FEMA spaces:

o Are screened by FEMA Security.

o Have specific permission from the FEMA Security Officer.

o Are either issued a FEMA access ID or placed on an approved access list and escorted by a FEMA representative.

• Follow access instructions provided by the Contracting Officer.

• Ensure contractor vehicles are clearly marked on both sides with company name

(permanent or semi-permanent/magnetic signage).

• Ensure all employees comply with FEMA facility access rules.

• Turn in all identif ication cards to the Contracting Officer or Pass and Registration Office when work is completed or when an employee is terminated.

11. Communications & Contact Information

• Provide the COTR with a list of 24/7 contact telephone numbers for the contractor or authorized representatives.

• Accept snow and other service orders by telephone from authorized callers.

• Provide detailed itemization of services rendered to the COTR by email whenever services are provided.

• Maintain and update “Authorized Callers” list as required.

12. Period of Performance (For Reference)

• 1 12-month base period with four 12-month option periods.

635 West Indian Trail, Aurora, IL 60506