Americans_with_Disabilities_Act_(ADA)_Accessibility_Evaluation_&_Project_Plan.pdf

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Accessibility Evaluation & Project Plan

Request For Proposal (RFP #RFP-2022-0008)

Tuolumne County

Human Resources

Issued: Thursday, July 14, 2022

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (RFP No. RFP-

2022-0008)

AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT (ADA)

ACCESSIBILITY EVALUATION & PROJECT PLAN

Deadline for Submission of Proposals: Wednesday, July 27, RESPONSES MUST BE SUBMITTED ELECTRONICALLY TO:

https://secure.procurenow.com/portal/tuolumnecountyca https://secure.procurenow.com/portal/%7bproject.government.code%7d

Table of Contents

I. Introduction

II. Scope of Services

III. Minimum Qualifications

IV. Proposal Package Requirements

V. RFP Process

VI. Evaluation of Proposals

VII. Contract Information

1. INTRODUCTION

1.1. Summary

The County of Tuolumne invites proposals for an evaluation of the accessibility of its County buildings, parks, recreational areas, misc. property, policies, and computer and phone systems for development of a project plan to implement improvements that will ensure that members of the public with mobility and language access limitations can fully access services and assistance from the agency.

1.2. Background

The County of Tuolumne (herein known as “the COUNTY”) provides a wide range of assistance to residents and desires to ensure that its physical property is fully accessible to all members of the public and County employees. As a recipient of federal funds, the COUNTY is bound by all federal civil rights laws, including the Fair Housing Act and the Americans with Disabilities

(ADA) Act. The COUNTY owns and leases office space throughout the county and intends to work with any property owners and the selected consultant to develop a plan that is fully compliant with all federal laws and correct current deficiencies that inhibit its ability to fully serve all people. The approximate square footage for all County owned and leased buildings, outside recreation areas, and out-buildings is 750,000. This contract is not to exceed 200 buildings/properties. The COUNTY retains the right to modify the property list below.

1.3. Contact Information

Deborah Schoeman

Senior Human Resources Analyst

2 South Green Street

Sonora, CA 95370

Email: dschoeman@co.tuolumne.ca.us

Phone: (209) 533-6957

Department:

Human Resources

Department Head:

Paul Loehr

Human Resources Director

1.4. Timeline

Release of published RFP July 14, 2022

Deadline for receiving all questions July 20, 2022, 3:00pm

Deadline for RFP responses to be received by County

July 27, 2022, 3:00pm

Review Committee completes evaluation and ranking of proposals

August 3, 2022

Notice of contract award (Tentative) August 5, 2022

Deadline for protests/appeals

(Tentative)

August 19, 2022

BOS Approval & Contract executed

(Tentative)

September 6, 2022

Provide a draft report of all findings and recommendations for review and discussion

November 4, 2022, 4:00pm mailto:dschoeman@co.tuolumne.ca.us tel:(209)533-6957

Final plan transition due to County December 2, 2022, 4:00pm

2. SCOPE OF SERVICES

2.1. Scope of Services

1. Review the COUNTY’s existing assessment of limitations to full accessibility.

2. Conduct a complete evaluation of all buildings, parks and recreation facilities, and misc.

properties both owned and leased, to confirm all necessary improvements and physical changes required to render our properties fully accessible, including building improvements, furniture, fixtures, and signage available to and necessary for members of the public and County staff.

• This will include sidewalks, the County maintains the sidewalks in approximately 8 different communities including Columbia, Jamestown, Twain Harte, Mono Way

(Sonora), Tuolumne and Groveland as well as the sidewalks around County properties.

Total sidewalk mileage is approximately 5 miles. The number of curb ramps is unknown, but the exact number will be provided after award of the contract. There are 12 signalized intersections (three of which we share responsibility with the City of Sonora) and an unknown number of unsignalized intersections. There are approximately 40 unsignalized intersections in the communities with sidewalks.

3. County technology, including webpages, computer/network systems and program, and communications technology must be able to be used by persons with disabilities (e.g. there must be an option for blind person to hear the information on our webpage, etc.). Our expectation is for the contractor to do a fully accessibility audit to identify where the County is deficient in accessibility for persons with disabilities.

4. Review and evaluate County policies, procedures, and programs to identify potential inconsistencies with the ADA that impacts members of the public and County staff. The review shall evaluate current level of program accessibility, including accessibility requirements, participation requirements, communications, and emergency procedures.

• The County needs to know areas of non-compliance or areas that may be out of compliance for any changes to the law that you may be aware of in the future. We will need to recognize de minims barriers. We will want a document that is for internal use only and an executive summary that will become a public document. The executive summary can be all inclusive for all facilities, but we would also require a summary based upon liability exposure. We will want to include County Counsel in the discussion for details on the final documents.

5. Identify accommodations that can be provided to assist people prior to implementation of needed changes.

6. Recommend permanent accommodations of historic buildings that may be necessary for some employees and members of the public after improvements are made.

7. The Tuolumne County Transportation Council runs public transportation for the County including bus service where some transit stops are on county property. They are insured by the

County of Tuolumne and should be included in this study.

8. Develop a preliminary budget, schedule, and process which the COUNTY can use to implement recommended changes and improvements that will remove existing barriers to accessibility. Itemize recommendations by criticality and budget implications and include any recommended funding sources, such as CIP, CDBG, Grants, and other sources.

9. Provide draft written report of all findings and recommendations no later than Friday, November 4, 2022 at 4:00 p.m.

10. Provide a full written report of all findings and recommendations no later than Friday, December 2, 2022 at 4:00 p.m.

3. MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

Interested and qualified Consultants that can demonstrate their ability to successfully provide the requested serviced outlined in the Scope of Services, of this RFP are invited to submit a proposal, provided they meet the following requirements. If these requirements are not met, the proposal may not receive further consideration, as determined at the sole discretion of the

COUNTY.

A. The Consultant must have a minimum of three (3) similar projects within the last five (5) years providing equivalent or similar services as those identified in the Scope of Services.

B. The Consultant must have a Project Manager assigned to the contract with five (5) years of recent experience, providing services equivalent or similar to the services identified in the Scope of Services.

C. The Consultant must have sufficient staff and/or sub-consultants available with experience in the disciplines required for this service.

D. The Consultant’s staff and/or sub-consultants performing inspections as outlined in the

Scope of Services, must be under the supervision of someone who is CASp certified.

E. The Consultant shall provide a description of local, state, or regional experience.

F. The Consultant must have the administrative and fiscal capability to provide and manage the proposed services.

4. PROPOSAL PACKAGE REQUIREMENTS

Proposals are to be straightforward, clear, concise and responsive to the information requested.

In order for proposals to be considered complete, proposers must provide all requested information.

Each proposer must submit their response online via the County’s e-Procurement platform, https://secure.procurenow.com/portal/tuolumnecountyca.

4.1. Proposal Elements*

For ease of review and to facilitate evaluation, the proposals for this project should be organized and presented in the order requested as follows:

Experience

• Provide specific information in this section concerning the firm's experience in the services specified in this RFP. Examples of completed projects, as current as possible, should be submitted, as appropriate. References are required. Please provide names, addresses, and telephone numbers of contact persons within three (3) client agencies for whom similar services have been provided.

• Debarment or Other Disqualification ‐ Consultant must disclose any debarment or other disqualification as a vendor for any federal, state, or local entities. Consultant must describe the nature of the debarment/disqualification, including where and how to find such detailed information.

References

• The Consultant must provide a minimum of three (3) references for whom the Consultant has provided similar services as outlined in the Scope of Services.

Approach

• Describe your approach to providing the Scope of Services described in this RFP in a high quality, cost-effective, environmentally sound manner that will meet the County’s desired outcome and timeline.

• Demonstrate a thorough conceptual and technical understanding of the purpose and scope of the project. If planning to contract out for any services in the Scope of Services, identify which items and demonstrate your ability to education and train the contract workforce.

Staff to be Assigned

• Provide a staff organization chart and identify the roles and responsibilities to be fulfilled by each staff member or subcontractor.

Cost

• The proposal shall clearly state ALL of the costs associated with the Project.

• The proposal shall provide a rate sheet / hourly rate should the COUNTY choose to amend the number of facilities in the plan.

*Response required

4.2. Proposal Cost*

Proposer shall upload a fee schedule here. Information should include any and all costs associated with the fulfillment of the Scope of Services.

*Response required

5. RFP PROCESS

5.1. Submittal of Proposals

Sealed proposals must be received at the online, NO LATER THAN 3:00 pm on Wednesday, July 27, 2022.

Proposals are to be submitted electronically using the County’s e-Procurement platform, https://secure.procurenow.com/portal/tuolumnecountyca. Proposals will be received only as instructed above, and must be received before 3:00 pm on Wednesday, July 27, 2022. Proposals shall not be submitted via hard copy, (hand delivered or mailed), facsimile, nor via email. It is the sole responsibility of the proposer to properly upload its proposal so that it is received by the time and date required. Any proposal received after said time and/or date or in any other format other than as instructed herein, cannot be considered and will not be accepted. The County’s e-

Procurement Platform records the time stamp for every proposal submitted properly in the system. Once a proposal is submitted in the e-procurement platform, the Proposer will receive an email confirmation, and the proposal status will also show as “submitted.”

5.2. Submitter's Questions

Questions regarding the RFP must be submitted exclusively in writing to the County by 3:00 pm on Wednesday, July 20, 2022 via the County’s e-Procurement platform, in the Q&A tab. Except for questions that might render the award of this contract invalid, the County will not respond to any questions submitted after this time. The County will use an addendum to the RFP to post any questions received, along with written responses, on the County e-Procurement platform, https://secure.procurenow.com/portal/tuolumnecountyca. It is the responsibility of the proposers to check the County website to review the questions and responses. Any oral responses to questions are not binding on the County.

5.3. Cost of Developing the Proposal

All costs incurred in the preparation of a proposal are the responsibility of each proposer and will not be reimbursed by the County.

5.4. Proposal Terms and Conditions

It is the responsibility of each proposer to be familiar with all of the specifications, terms and conditions of the RFP. By the submission of a proposal, the proposer certifies that if awarded a contract, proposer will make no claim against the County based upon ignorance of or misunderstanding of the specifications.

Each proposer shall submit its proposal with the understanding that the proposal will become a part of the official file on this matter and shall be subject to disclosure, if requested by a member of the public, following the completion of negotiations.

By submitting a proposal, each proposer certifies that all statements in this proposal are true.

This constitutes a warranty, the falsity of which shall include the right, at the County’s option, of declaring any contract made, as a result thereof, null and void. Proposals shall be completed, executed, and submitted in accordance with the instructions of this RFP. If a proposal is not submitted in the format specified in this RFP, it may be rejected, unless the County determines that the nonconformity is either a minor irregularity or that the defect or variation in the proposal is immaterial or inconsequential. The County may give the proposer an opportunity to cure any deficiency resulting from a minor irregularity or an immaterial or inconsequential defect, or

County may waive such deficiency, whichever is most advantageous to the County.

The County cannot accept proposals from any individual who is currently employed with the

County of Tuolumne (California Government Code §29708).

5.5. Successful Proposal as Part of Contract Services

Proposals received in response to this solicitation, at the County’s discretion, may be incorporated into the awarded contract and may serve as basic terms and conditions for the ultimate contract. Therefore, proposers are advised that, if successful, they will be held responsible for levels of services proposed at the funding levels quoted. The County reserves the right to negotiate modifications or revisions to any awarded contract.

5.6. Evaluation of Proposals

See #Evaluation of Proposals.

5.7. Other Requirements

In order to contract with the County of Tuolumne, a proposer must meet the following requirements:

• Make available to the County its federal Tax Identification Number (TIN) or Social

Security Number (SSN).

• Comply with all Federal, State and local rules, regulations and policies, including but not limited to:

o Standard contract language of the County; and, o Insurance coverage to include worker’s compensation, general liability, auto liability and professional liability, unless waived by the County.

• Meet the requirements for audit of its expenditures if required in the above documents.

5.8. Non-Discrimination

Non-Discrimination: The Contractor selected through this RFP shall provide services without discrimination based on race, creed, color, ethnic or linguistic identification, gender or sexual preference, disability or handicap or any other basis prohibited by law.

5.9. Protest/Appeal Process

The following procedure is provided in the event that a proposer wishes to protest the RFP process or appeal the recommendation to award a contract for RFP once the Notices of

Award/Non-Award have been issued.

https://secure.procurenow.com/portal/tuolumnecountyca/projects/23692?section=186757

Any protest must be submitted in writing to Human Resources, 2 South Green Street, Sonora, CA 95370, Attention: Deborah Schoeman

The protest must be submitted before 5 pm of the tenth (10th) business day following the date of the Notice of Award.

The protest must contain a complete statement of the basis for the protest. The protest must include the name, address, telephone number and e-mail address of the person representing the protesting party.

The procedure and time limits are mandatory and are the proposer’s sole and exclusive remedy in the event of a bid protest.

Proposer’s failure to comply with these procedures shall constitute a waiver of any right to further pursue the protest, including filing a Government Code claim or legal proceedings.

Upon receipt of written protest/appeal, the Human Resources Director will review and provide an opportunity to settle the protest/appeal by mutual agreement, will schedule a meeting to discuss or issue a written response to advise of an appeal/protest decision within five (5) business days of receipt of the appeal/protest.

5.10. Public Records Access

Proposers should be aware that submitted proposals are subject to the California Public Records

Act and may be disclosed to members of the public upon request. It is the responsibility of the proposers to clearly identify information in their proposals that they consider to be confidential under the California Public Records Act. To the extent that the County agrees with that designation, such information will be held in confidence whenever possible. All other information will be considered public.

All information regarding the proposals will be held as confidential until such time as the

Review Committee has completed its evaluation and, or if, contract negotiations are complete.

6. EVALUATION OF PROPOSALS

The objective is to perform a thorough and fair evaluation of submitted proposals and facilitate the selection of a contractor/consultant that best satisfies the County’s requirements. The following describes the evaluation process and associated components.

A. Selection Process:

1. The County shall name, for the purpose of evaluating the proposals for this RFP, a

Review Committee composed of representatives from the County. The County may also elect to include as part of the Review Committee qualified representatives from other agencies or entities.

2. Proposal documentation requirements set forth in this RFP are designed to provide guidance to proposers concerning the type of information that will be used by the

Review Committee. Proposers shall be prepared to respond to requests by the Review

Committee for additional items deemed necessary to assist in the evaluation process.

B. Evaluation Criteria & Scoring:

1. The Review Committee shall be responsible for performing the evaluations of each proposal. Each member of the Committee shall rate the proposers separately. The scores of each of the Committee members shall then be averaged to provide a total score for each of the proposers. The proposals shall be evaluated on the following categories and the maximum weight possible for each category is listed below.

C. Award:

Award will be made to the qualified proposer whose proposal will be most advantageous to the

County, with price and all other factors considered. The County will negotiate with the highest ranked proposer to develop the scope of work and contract for mutual satisfaction.

If the County cannot successfully negotiate a contract with the highest ranked proposer, the

County will terminate negotiations and begin negotiations with the next highest ranked proposer.

Proposers will receive mailed Award/Non-Award notification(s), which will include the name of the proposer to be awarded this contract.

Proposers are advised County reserves the following prerogatives:

• To reject any or all proposals;

• To consider historic information and fact, whether gained from the proposer’s proposal or any other source, in the evaluation process; and

• The proposer is cautioned that it is the proposer’s sole responsibility to submit information related to the evaluation categories and the County is under no obligation to solicit such information if it is not included with the proposal. Failure of the individual or firm to submit such information may cause an adverse impact on the evaluation of the proposal.

No. Evaluation Criteria Scoring Method Weight (Points)

1. Completeness of Proposal Pass / Fail 25 (20% of Total)

2. Qualifications 0-100 Points 40 (32% of Total)

3. Service Delivery/Methodology 0-100 Points 30 (24% of Total)

4. Reasonable Cost of Service 0-100 Points 30 (24% of Total)

7. CONTRACT INFORMATION

7.1. Sample Agreement

A sample Agreement is attached to this RFP, which details all standard terms and conditions required by the County of Tuolumne.

7.2. Term/Termination

The term of the initial contract awarded under this RFP will be for: three (3) months. By mutual agreement, this contract may be extended for three (3), thirty (30) day increments, under the following circumstances:

• The County receives adequate funding to extend program operations;

• The Contractor has achieved demonstrable success by meeting all of the contract’s service requirements;

• The County continues to need the services purchased under this RFP;

• The Contractor is willing and able to modify the services provided to best meet the needs of the program as determined by the County.

The contract will be subject to termination by either party upon (30) days’ advance, written notice of intent to terminate. The County may terminate the contract at any time, without written notice, upon a material breach of contract by the Contractor.

7.3. Funding Availability

It is mutually agreed that if the County budget of the current year and/or any subsequent years covered under this Agreement does not appropriate sufficient funds for the program, this

Agreement shall be of no further force and effect. In this event, the County shall have no liability to pay any funds whatsoever to Contractor or to furnish any other considerations under this

Agreement and Contractor shall not be obligated to perform any provisions of this Agreement.

Contractor’s assumption of risk of possible non-appropriation is part of the consideration for this

Agreement. County budget decisions are subject to the discretion of the Board of Supervisors.

If funding for any fiscal year is reduced or deleted by the County budget for purposes of this program, the County shall have the option to either cancel this Agreement with no liability occurring to the County, or offer an Agreement amendment to Contractor to reflect the reduced amount.

7.4. Insurance

A. Contractor shall procure and maintain for the duration of the contract insurance against claims for injuries to persons or damages to property which may arise from or in connection with the performance of the work hereunder and the results of that work by the Contractor, his agents, representatives, employees or subcontractors. Coverage shall be at least as broad as:

1. Commercial General Liability (CGL): Insurance Services Office Form CG 00 01 covering CGL on an "occurrence" basis, including products and completed operations, property damage, bodily injury and personal & advertising injury with limits no less than $2,000,000 per occurrence. If a general aggregate limit applies, either the general aggregate limit shall apply separately to this project/location (ISO

CG 25 03 or 25 04) or the general aggregate limit shall be twice the required occurrence limit.

2. Automobile Liability: ISO Form Number CA 00 01 covering any auto (Code 1), or if Contractor has no owned autos, hired, (Code 8) and non-owned autos (Code 9), with limit no less than $1,000,000 per accident for bodily injury and property damage.

3. Workers' Compensation: as required by the State of California, with Statutory

Limits, and Employer's Liability Insurance with limit of no less than $1,000,000 per accident for bodily injury or disease.

4. Professional Liability (Errors and Omissions): Insurance appropriates to the

Contractor's profession, with limit no less than $2,000,000 per occurrence or claim, $2,000,000 aggregate.

5. If the Contractor maintains broader coverage and/or higher limits than the minimums shown above, the County requires and shall be entitled to the broader coverage and/or the higher limits maintained by the contractor. Any available insurance proceeds in excess of the specified minimum limits of insurance and coverage shall be available to the County.

B. Other Insurance Provisions: The insurance policies are to contain, or be endorsed to contain, the following provisions:

1. Additional Insured Status. The County, its officers, officials, employees, and volunteers are to be covered as additional insureds on the CGL policy with respect to liability arising out of work or operations performed by or on behalf of the Contractor including materials, parts, or equipment furnished in connection with such work or operations. General liability coverage can be provided in the form of an endorsement to the Contractor's insurance (at least as broad as ISO Form CG 20 10 11 85 or if not available, through the addition of both CG 20 10, CG 20 26, CG 20 33, or CG 20 38;

and CG 20 37 if a later edition is used).

2. Primary Coverage. For any claims related to this contract, the Contractor's insurance coverage shall be primary coverage at least as broad as ISO CG 20 01 04 13 as respects the County, its officers, officials, employees, and volunteers. Any insurance or self-insurance maintained by the County, its officers, officials, employees, or volunteers shall be excess of the Contractor's insurance and shall not contribute with it.

3. Notice of Cancellation. Each insurance policy required above shall provide that coverage shall not be canceled, except with notice to the County.

4. Waiver of Subrogation. Contractor hereby grants to County a waiver of any right to subrogation which any insurer of said Contractor may acquire against the County by virtue of the payment of any loss under such insurance. Contractor agrees to obtain any endorsement that may be necessary to affect this waiver of subrogation, but this provision applies regardless of whether or not the County has received a waiver of subrogation endorsement from the insurer.

5. Self-Insured Retentions. Self-insured retentions must be declared to and approved by the County. The County may require the Contractor to purchase coverage with a lower retention or provide proof of ability to pay losses and related investigations, claim administration, and defense expenses within the retention. The policy language shall provide, or be endorsed to provide, that the self-insured retention may be satisfied by either the named insured or County.

6. Acceptability of Insurers. Insurance is to be placed with insurers authorized to conduct business in the state with a current A.M. Best’s rating of no less than A:VII, unless otherwise acceptable to the County.

7. Verification of Coverage. Contractor shall furnish the County with original

Certificates of Insurance including all required amendatory endorsements (or copies of the applicable policy language effecting coverage required by this clause) and a copy of the Declarations and Endorsement Page of the CGL policy listing all policy endorsements to County before work begins. However, failure to obtain the required documents prior to the work beginning shall not waive the Contractor's obligation to provide them. The County reserves the right to require complete, certified copies of all required insurance policies, including endorsements required by these specifications, at any time.

8. Special Risks or Circumstances. County reserves the right to modify these requirements, including limits, based on the nature of the risk, prior experience, insurer, coverage, or other special circumstances.

9. Failure to Comply: Upon failure to comply with any of these insurance requirements, this Agreement may be forthwith declared suspended or terminated. Failure to obtain and/or maintain any required insurance shall not relieve any liability under this

Agreement, nor shall the insurance requirements be construed to conflict with or otherwise limit the indemnification obligations.

10. Claims Made Policies. If any of the required policies provide claims-made coverage:

a. The Retroactive Date must be shown and must be before the date of the contract or the beginning of contract work.

b. Insurance must be maintained, and evidence of insurance must be provided, for at least five (5) years after completion of the contract of work.

c. If coverage is canceled or non-renewed, and not replaced with another claims-made policy form with a Retroactive Date prior to the contract effective date, the

Contractor must purchase "extended reporting" coverage for a minimum of five

(5) years after completion of work.

7.5. Hold Harmless

Pursuant to the full language of California Civil Code §2782, Contractor agrees to indemnify, including the cost to defend, County and its officers, officials, employees, and volunteers from and against any and all claims, demands, costs, or liability that arise out of, or pertain to, or relate to the negligence, recklessness, or willful misconduct of Contractor and its employees or agents in the performance of services under this contract, but this indemnity does not apply to liability for damages arising from the sole negligence, active negligence, or willful acts of the County;

and does not apply to any passive negligence of the County unless caused at least in part by the

Contractor. The County agrees that in no event shall the cost to defend charged to the Contractor exceed that professional' s proportionate percentage of fault. This duty to indemnify shall not be waived or modified by contractual agreement or acts of the parties.

If such indemnification becomes necessary, the County Counsel for the County shall have the absolute right and discretion to approve or disapprove of any and all counsel employed to defend the County. This indemnification clause shall survive the termination or expiration of this

Agreement.

7.6. Compliance

Contractor shall comply with all federal, state and local laws, codes, ordinance and regulations applicable to Contractor’s performance under this Agreement, including, but not limited to, laws related to prevailing wages. Specifically, Contractor shall not engage in unlawful employment discrimination, including, but not limited to, discrimination based upon a person’s race, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, physical handicap, medical condition, marital status, gender, citizenship or sexual orientation, as prohibited by state or federal law.