Addendum_2___Final.pdf

ADDENDUM # 2

RFP 014-25 CONVOCATION CENTER MANAGEMENT

Solicitation Released: November 11, 2024

Where any original item, term, or requirement is not specifically amended, voided or superseded by this addendum, it will remain in effect. This clarification is being provided to all known respondents.

1. Clayton County Public Schools (CCPS) has received questions pertaining to this RFP.

The questions and their resulting answers are attached hereto as Exhibit 1.

2. CCPS has received questions pertaining to available event spaces at the venue. The floor plan is attached hereto as Exhibit 2.

3. CCPS has received questions pertaining to specifications for the venue. The specifications for the venue are attached hereto as Exhibit 3.

Drexal Paulk, MBA, CPM CPPO, CPPB Issue Date Director, Department of Purchasing

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

This sheet must be completed, signed, and returned with any proposal to acknowledge receipt of this Addendum. Failure to do so may result in the rejection of any proposal submitted.

The above addendum is hereby acknowledged:

Signature

Title

Company Name

Date

12/18/2024 | 1:41:05 PM EST

RFP 014-25 ADDENDUM # 2 CONVOCATION CENTER MANAGEMENT Exhibit 1 Q&A

Questions Answers

1 Is this bid more focused on the management of an event or the management of the venue? This bid is focused more on the management of the venue

2 Is the bidder expected to both manage the venue and produce events for CCSD? Yes, it is the district's expectation that the bidder manage the venue as well as produce events

3 Do all subcontractors have to be disclosed in the bid or will we be able to decide them after winning? Subcontractors should be disclosed in the bid submission

Do we have to complete a formal competitive bidding process for subcontractors or can these be chosen at will based on previous and/or current business relationships?

TBD

5 When will the arena be 100% complete for public use and or soft opening? At this time the expected date of use for the public is August 2025

6 When will it be 60% complete with the ability for us to walk through? February 2025

7 What decisions, rules, etc have been made regarding the arena including softwares, equipment, etc? TBD

8 What is the total expected cost to complete the venue? $120m

Should the bidder expect to have to invest any funds into the operations or management of the venue besides internal operating cost, or will the school system provide a budget based on negotiations with the awarded bidder?

The expectation is that the venue is self-sustaining financially

10 How long will the initial contract term be for?

The initial term of this Agreement shall be for one (1) year, and may be automatically renewed for up to four (4) additional one (1) year terms upon the same terms and conditions. See Section 5, Term of Agreement - Page 11 of 92

These opportunities are unique and hard to come by in our business community.

As such, so is capital. Will CCSD seriously consider qualified small, Black, and minority owned-companies with limited but modest financial resources?

Yes.

12 Are there 3D renderings available at full resolution? Yes

13 Is the venue looking to host a professional sports team on a long term basis? Yes, it is possible.

14 Is the school district open to naming rights sponsorships? (ex. State Farm Arena, Mercedes-Benz Stadium?) Yes, already under contract with consultant who will handle this.

15 Do you all plan to close off the parking lot in order to be able to charge for parking?

Because the parking is in a mall area, at this time there are no plans to close off, however, it is something we are open to considering

Is the school district open to national or regional food chains as licensed concessionaires via 3rd party caterer? Is the management company able to receive revenue shares as part of any such agreement?

Yes, the District is open to national or regional food chains as licensed concessionaires via 3rd party caterer. As to revenue sharing, this is negotiable.

17 Will alcohol be allowed to be sold at the venue? Only by the operator as the district is not allowed to serve alcohol

18 Will there be suites? If so, can these suites to leased/sponsored by companies? Yes, there will be suites that can be leased/sponsored by companies

19 Have purchase decisions been made about security systems? Cameras, alarm systems, and access control are included infrastructure.

20 Have purchase decisions been made about A/V and broadcast systems? See specifications attached as Exhibit 2 for included infrastructure.

21 Will the bidder have any responsibility for managing or operating the Career Center? This will be a shared responsibility at this time

22 Is the school district interested in any student work-based learning partnerships? Yes

23 Will the arena have direct access points to Southlake mall via the old Sears entrance? No

24 Has the ticketing platform for the venue been decided upon? No

25 What is the CAPEX budget that the district has committed to the venue for the first 3-5 years? The question is not understood.

26 What is the OPEX budget that the district has committed to the venue for the first 3-5 years? A budget has not been determined at this time. See answer to Question #9

27 Will the venue be debt free upon opening or will there be a debt service in place? The venue will be debt free

28 How is the venue being insured? The District is self-insured

29 Is the CCPS open to exclusives for A/V Utilities? (Power, Rigging, Internet, Drape, etc) The question is not understood.

How does the district wish to compensate the management company for it staffing? Does CCPS intend to pay any upfront cost for the implementation of this RFP prior to opening?

CCPS will not be paying any expenses. This will be handled by the CCPS Foundation

31 Does the bidder need to have a local business license to bid or can this be acquired after contract award? Yes, a local business license is required to bid.

32 Considering the amount of work left to complete the arena, are equipment manufacturers required at this time? Not at this time

33 What decisions are you looking for awarded bidder to assist with making leading up to opening of the venue? All operating, general management

34 Will the management company or the school district be responsible for maintenance operations (electrical, HVAC, internal, IT, window washing, etc) ? Management company

35 What are the exact bonding requirements of this RFP? Bonding requirements are not applicable for this RFP

36 Has any venue rental pricing been set? Not at this time

37 Are any financial proforma documents available? Not at this time

38 How much revenue does the county anticipate bringing in annually? $20M

Are we able to present additional cost proposal options laid out more thoroughly and in a different format that better matched the business model, as long as the annual cost matches that of the cost proposal worksheet?

Any alternate or optional fee structures must be submitted on a separate sheet and shall not be submitted in lieu of this Cost Proposal Form.

40 Is the cost proposal work sheet meant to be on an annual basis? If not, please elaborate. The Cost Works Sheet is for annual cost.

41 How many events annually does the school system plan to hold? Minimum 30, with the potential for more

42 Please elaborate on all the available event spaces at the venue? The additional spaces will be the arena, conference rooms, event lawn, and rooftop loft.

See floor plan attached as Exhibit 2.

Due to the time until arena opening, nature of the business and scope of the contract - does the entire team that will operate the facility need to be scoped out during the RFP process, as we intend to hire for many of these roles?

Yes, at a minimum provide staff needed to operate

44 11.2.7.6 "Describe what systems the Proponent has in place for order tracking and issue resolution." Is this in regards to ticketing? The district uses Facilitron for facilities rental and plan to use for this venue

45 11.2.7.12 - What kinds of events, aside from commencements will the Proponent need to plan and produce for the school system?

Conferences, athletic competitions, proms, convocation, district banquets and other large events

46 11.2.7.15 - What entertainment are you proposing to be secured and managed? All entertainment events are able to be sustained at this space.

47 11.2.7.16 - As it relates to participant registration, would this be for CCPS events or all events? A selected vendor will be used for all facility rental registration for all events.

48 11.2.7.20 - Given the size of the parking lot at the mall? How often to you anticipate that there would need to be road closings?

We do not anticipate any road closings at this time. Traffic management will be handled by the district's police department.

49 Is it more important the Proponent to have venue management or event production/planning experience? Both

Could you please confirm all the additional spaces that will apart from this property in addition to the arena? (Outdoor Lawn, Ballrooms, Convention/Exhibitor space)

The additional spaces will be the arena, conference rooms, event lawn, and rooftop loft.

See floor plan attached as Exhibit 2.

51 11.2.7.27.4 - What restaurants are you referring to? Concessionaires or outside food vendors, neighboring restaurants, etc?

All participating restaurants/concessions must be compliant with trash management, safe food handling, food storage and personnel hand washing at each restaurant booth.

52 11.2.7.30 - Should this plan be for CCPS events or all internal and external events? Both

53 Is there a plan in place currently or part of the construction to purchase flooring for arena football, pickleball, basketball, etc?) Yes.

54 What role does the school system expect to play in any sponsorship acquisitions? CCPS Foundation will handle this

55 11.2.7.40 - Could you please elaborate on what role the vendor will need to play in CEU applications? What specifically is this for and/or related to? TBD

11.2.7.41 - Is CCPS asking that we directly host these programs or facilitate them via a 3rd party? This generally falls well outside the scope of event and venue management and planning?

TBD

Does CCPS have a list of FT managerial and support positions that they wish for the Proponent to provide for the venue or should we propose that as part of our response?

Please provide as part of your response

58 Will CCPS have to approve all event applications and venue rentals once pre-approved or reviewed by the Proponent? Yes

59 Did CCPS purchase any of the parking lots around the mall or is all parking open and shared? The District did purchase a portion of the parking.

Does the CCPS currently have any contracts in place as part of the architectural and/or construction to provide art for the venue or would the Proponent be responsible for art throughout the venue?

No. Art is not part of this solicitation.

61 Has CCPS established any venue rentals rates or will the awarded bidder and CCPS work together on this? This will be a shared responsibility of the bidder and CCPS Foundation

62 How many concession stands will be located in the venue? See floor plan attached as Exhibit 2.

63 Who is the A/V integrator for the project and is there any information available as to what has been spec'd for the venue? See specification attached as Exhibit 3.

64 How many offices are available or the square footage of office spaces? See floor plan attached as Exhibit 2.

65 Have any sponsors or concessionaires already committed to the venue? We noticed in the video on YouTube, Chick-fil-A is shown.

Chick-fil-A serves as a sponsor for the JA Discovery Zone. There are no other sponsors or concessionaires at this time

66 Will CCPS or the Proponent be responsible for lawn care? Proponent

Has a POS (point-of-sale) system already been spec'd for venue concessions and merchandising? If not, will this system be spec'd and or procured by CCPS or the awarded Proponent?

No POS has been spec'd; this should be procured by the awarded Proponent

68 Will the Proponent have any responsibility for the Discovery center component of the arena? No.

69 Is CCPS open to the Proponent using CCPS students as A/V workers or in other hourly hospitality roles for work-based learning? Yes

Will the venue management firm control and/or manage the venue's bank account, finances, etc or will this be managed in collaboration with CCPS Finance?

This will be in collaboration with the CCPS Foundation

71 For internal events (CCSP or CC), will police services be provided by the school district's or county's local police or sheriff dept at no cost or be billed back? At no cost

72 Will Fire Marshall services for internal events (CCSP or CC) be provided at no-cost or be billed back? At no cost

73 Will EMS services for internal events (CCSP or CC) be provided at no cost or billed back? No cost

74 Will the local trash and refuse service for CC be provided to the venue at no cost or must an account be established for service to be billed to the venue? Account must be established to bill

In the section titled "General Information" under section 2. Background - its states that "The Proponent will manage day-to-day operations, supervision of volunteers, hiring and paying of contractors (except for those outlined in the Scope of Service, Section 9, i.e. toilets, trash)

However, in Section 9, I do not see any further information on toilets, trash. What is the RFP attempting to convey here? Are those services not apart of the RFP and being handled by CCPS or another vendor?

The services will be managed by the Proponent.

In order for subcontractors (catering.concessions, janitorial. etc) to prepare proper bids, a tour of the facility as well as a complete list of what has or has not already been or is planning on being purchased and acquired by the school system. To that end, must all of our subcontractors be pronounced in the RFP response, given that we wish to create our own RFP for these contractor services? Or at a minimum, should we list some of the companies that we intend on having bid on these services?

At a minimum, please list the companies that you intend on having bid on these services.

77 Does the school system intend to provide any administrative support to the arena or should it all be included in the cost proposal? Should be included in proposal

In the Background section of the RFP, second paragraph, a sentence reads, "The Proponent must also provide CCPS Foundation a report of all ticketed events with a breakout of the revenue sharing with CCPS Foundation."

Is the Foundation seeking a business model in which events share ticket revenue with the venue or is this related to merchandise, concessions, event services bill backs, etc?

Proponent will need to provide a model for Foundation to review

79 Is CCPS Foundation requiring a revenue share for exclusive services such as rigging, drape, event labor, internet, electrical, etc? Not known

The RFP mentions that the school systems electrical contractor will be responsible for electrical maintenance and operations at the venue. Does this include temporary event power services and hookups for exhibitors, promoters, etc OR just electrical for the venue (i.e., changing light bulbs, install new plugs, fixing building issues)?

The Operator will be responsible

From a legal perspective, if or when a claim (personal injury, tort, contract dispute, EEO, worker's compensation, negligence, etc) was to arise from any customer, attendee, or vendor, employee, etc - would those legal matters be handled by the school system or would the management company's legal team handle the matter, or a combination of the two?

If the latter, how would the school system handle the reimbursement of costs for claims on behalf of the venue, which is owned by the system but managed by the prospective bidder?

TBD