EDA LWP PDF.doc

TOWN OF ELIZABETHTOWN

REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS FOR ENGINEERING SERVICES

RELATED TO THE

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ADMINISTRATION (EDA) GRANT PROGRAM

MARCH 20, 2024

RFQ 032024

IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE GUIDELINES FOR SOLICITING PROFESSIONAL ENGINEERING SERVICES FOR COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT FUNDED PROJECTS, THE TOWN OF ELIZABETHTOWN, NORTH CAROLINA (Owner) HEREBY REQUESTS QUALIFICATION STATEMENTS FROM QUALIFIED FIRMS OR INDIVIDUALS TO PROVIDE PROFESSIONAL ENGINEERING SERVICES AS STATED BELOW.

Qualification statements are invited for consideration and must be received no later than 5:00 P.M. on May 31, 2024, to:

Dane Rideout, Town Administrator Town of Elizabethtown Post Office Box 700 905 West Broad Street Elizabethtown, North Carolina 28337 Firms wishing to utilize the US Postal Service for delivery shall use the post office box address. Firms wishing to utilize a courier service (such as Fed Ex) or hand deliver the Qualification Statements shall utilize the street address.

The following attachments are designated as, and hereby made, a part of this Request for Qualifications:

Attachment A

Project Statement

Attachment B

Scope of Services

Attachment C

Project Schedule

Attachment D

Contract Type

Attachment E

Qualification Statement Contents

Attachment F

Factors for Award/Evaluation Criteria

Attachment G

Required EDA Contract Provisions Three (3) copies of the engineering Qualifications Statement shall be submitted. Interviews may be conducted at the discretion of the Owner. This is a competitive negotiation procurement process and is not a low bid process.

All Questions regarding this RFP should be directed to:

Rusty Worley, Town Planner

(910) 874-3719 Any Engineering firm or person directing questions, inquiries, or other communications related to this RFQ to any other person(s) than those listed above may be disqualified from consideration at the sole discretion of the Owner’s Agents listed above.

Historically underutilized businesses including qualified Section 3, women-owned, minority-owned, local, and small businesses are encouraged to submit Qualification Statements. The Town of Elizabethtown is an equal opportunity employer.

Esta información está disponible en español y otros idiomas a petición. Póngase en contacto con Rusty Worley en (910) 874-3719 Elizabethtown Ayuntamiento, 805 West Broad Street, Elizabethtown, North Carolina 28337 alojamientos para esta aplicación.

ATTACHMENT A

The Town of Elizabethtown has received an EDA grant in the amount of $690,604 and a $364,896 grant from the Golden LEAF Foundation for the design of Water, Sewer and Roads for the Live Work Play Industrial Park. The general scope of the project as it relates to this Request for Qualifications is to accomplish each of the following:

GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF SANITARY SEWER PHASE TASKS:

1) Design, Permitting, and Construction Administration of the proposed Sanitary Sewer System shown on the Live Work Play Master Plan.

2) Preparation of all necessary permit applications, submission of necessary permit applications and data, and fully securing all required regulatory permits, including, but not limited to, those required by the Town of Elizabethtown, State of North Carolina, and other applicable regulatory agencies.

3) Provide Bid Assistance and Construction Administration Services for the anticipated project.

ATTACHMENT B

SCOPE OF SERVICES

The Scope of Services shall consist of each of the following tasks:

1. Review grant application, preliminary engineering documents, and project cost estimate.

2. Meet with the Town to discuss and clarify any changes, special circumstances and/or topics of importance which may arise from above review;

3. Verify the location of all utilities, existing and planned, within 50 LF of the proposed construction;

4. Procure video inspection services for the existing sewer lines to be rehabilitated and review the inspections to evaluate the condition of the existing piping;

5. Provide topographic survey information and verify any and all existing public right-of-way within the project area;

6. Prepare applications for, and secure, any and all required regulatory permits and/or approvals including those necessary but not limited to encroachment, construction, environmental, adjacent utilities, and/or local government agencies;

7. Prepare complete construction plans and specifications in accordance with applicable regulations, also provide hard copies of plans and specifications to the Owner;

8. At 50 and 90 percent completion of plans and specifications, review plans and specifications with Owner making required changes;

9. Prepare an updated cost estimate for the project;

10. Prepare complete construction bid packages including all required documents for EDA and GoldenLEAF funded projects;

11. Prepare and be responsible for bid advertisements in coordination with the project grant administrator, including providing the Town with a copy of all affidavits of publications. Bid notices and advertisements are to be published locally and in appropriate venues serving historically underutilized businesses;

12. Manage the competitive bidding process including the preparation of bid packages for prospective bidders, respond to bidder inquiries concerning the technical aspects of the project, prepare any and all necessary addenda to the bid packages, attend bid opening to answer any questions as may arise, review bids for accuracy, investigate bid documents for eligibility and completeness, make recommendation to the Owner regarding the acceptance of the lowest responsible bid and other technical assistance as may be requested by the Town during the bidding process;

13. Prepare formal contract documents, including any and all documents required for EDA and GoldenLEAF projects, for execution of the construction contract; including providing the Town with four (4) copies of said final documents.

14. Provide construction field representation and management services as necessary to expedite construction in a timely fashion, insuring compliance with the general and technical specifications by the successful bidder, and that construction is in strict accordance with the plans such that all work is documented as having been completed in accordance with the approved plans, permits, and specifications.

15. Prepare and issue necessary change orders, and review any and all request for change orders from the successful bidder, upon approval of the Owner;

16. Investigate any and all requests for partial and final payments prior to approval to ensure payment to bidder in accordance with the contract documents as executed and amended;

17. Provide engineering services for all EDA program amendments, project extensions, or adjustments in scope that may arise during this project;

18. Conduct final inspection of construction upon completion of work by the successful bidder, and accompany Owner and Construction Coordinator on courtesy inspection prior to approval of final payment to successful bidder;

19. Prepare “AS-BUILT” record drawings and provide two (2) sets to the Owner along with certification of completion and satisfaction of project requirements, and recommendation of final acceptance by the Owner.

20. Provide regular status updates to the Town to report Engineering Progress on Project and to discuss problems or issues, which may arise;

21. Manage and coordinate with Contractor all one-year construction-related warranty issues that may arise from date of certification of completion of construction, including individual household connections.

ATTACHMENT C

PROJECT SCHEDULE

All proposals shall be accompanied by a proposed Project Schedule outlining estimated timelines to accomplish all items listed in the Scope of Services specified in Attachment B.

ATTACHMENT D

CONTRACT TYPE

Please include hourly rates and fee schedules for all members of your staff who are proposed for use on this project. Additionally, fee schedules should include unit rates for all expenses, sub-consultants proposed for use, etc. as part of this project. The final contract and amount will be negotiated with the selected firm in accordance with the requirements of the Federal “Brooks Act” and the North Carolina “Mini-Brooks Act.”

Substitutions in key personnel assigned to any aspect of this project must be approved in writing by the Owner.

ATTACHMENT E

QUALIFICATION STATEMENT CONTENTS

The Qualification Statement must contain each of the following components in a basic outline format comparable to the list appearing below:

1. Technical: Describe the overall project approach to be taken and provide an outline of each task undertaken (NOTE: The tasks shown in the scope of services appearing in Attachment B of this RFP shall be considered a minimum acceptable level of service). Detailed information regarding the tasks is preferred but optional.

2. Management: Describe the internal management plan to be used, including staff and professional personnel assignments. Provide resumes for key staff members, and include an estimated schedule for completing the proposed services.

3. Prior Related Work Experience: Describe or list the firm’s experience in the areas listed in Attachment A. Provide reference contact information including telephone number and individual names of key persons representing current and previous clientele.

4. Cost and Pricing Information: Pricing information should include the firms’ current hourly rate and fee schedule and related information as requested in Attachment “D” above.

5. Current Backlog and Staff Availability: All Qualification Statements should include detailed information regarding the firm’s current workload backlog and levels of availability of all project team members proposed for use as part of this project for the anticipated duration of professional services.

Firms may include any other additional information that provides key information regarding their specific qualifications for this work. Please note that all Qualification Statements shall be limited to a maximum page count of ten (10) pages, excluding the front and back cover pages.

ATTACHMENT F

FACTORS FOR AWARD/EVALUATION CRITERIA

The following factors will be the basis for consideration and selection of the Engineer.

1. Technical/Design Approach, Familiarity with the Project and

Understanding of Project Need:

30%

2. Work Management Plan:

20%

3. Firm Experience in Directly Related Projects:

20%

4. Customer Service – including proposed communications with client and public relations approach/management:

10%

5. Experience of Project Team members proposed for

20%* use in the project – include resumes’ for all team members proposed for use on this project.*

* All Qualification Statements should include detailed information relating to the Project Manager’s, Project Engineer’s, Construction Field Representative’s and related project-level staff’s SPECIFIC experience for those persons to be assigned to this project. In the event the persons proposed for use on this project are not available, the Town reserves the right to approve and/or reject any other staff members the Engineer may propose for use on the project prior to said person’s addition to the project team. This requirement is to ensure that the ability to establish and maintain successful working relationships between the Engineer’s staff and Town staff is not compromised, resulting in project performance issues or issues with meeting local, State, and Federal design and permitting requirements in a timely manner.

ATTACHMENT G

REQUIRED EDA CONTRACT PROVISIONS

By submission of a Qualification Statement, Contractor agrees to comply with the following provisions. Failure to comply with any and all provisions herein may be cause for the contracting agency to issue a cancellation notice to a contractor and maybe construed as a breach of contract by Contractor. The Contractor shall also be required to comply with additional EDA provisions as they are introduced throughout the course of the project.

I.

Interest of Members, Officers, or Employees of the Local Governing Body, or other Public Officials.

No member, officer, or employee of the local government, or its agents, and no other public official of the local government who exercises any functions or responsibilities with respect to the program, during his tenure, or for one year thereafter, shall have any financial interest, either direct or indirect, in any contract or subcontract, or the proceeds thereof, for work to be performed in connection with the program assisted under this agreement. Immediate family members of said members, officers, employees, and officials are similarly barred from having any financial interest in the program. The contractor shall incorporate, or cause to be incorporated, in all subcontracts, a provision prohibiting such interest pursuant to this section, and shall take appropriate steps to assure compliance.

II.

Interest of Contractor and Employees

The Contractor covenants that he presently has no interest and shall not acquire interest, direct or indirect, in the project area or any parcels therein or any other interest which would conflict in any manner or degree with the performance of his services hereunder. The Contractor further covenants that in the performance of this Contract, no person having any such interests shall be employed.

III.

Legal Remedies/Termination of Contract

If, through any cause, the Contractor shall fail to fulfill in a timely and proper manner his obligations under this Contract, or if the Contractor shall violate any of the covenants, agreements or stipulations of this Contract, the Local Government shall thereupon have the right to terminate this contract by giving written notice to the Contractor of such termination and specifying the effective date thereof, at least five days before the effective date of such termination. In such event, the Contractor shall be entitled to receive just and equitable compensation for all satisfactorily completed work. Notwithstanding the above, the Contractor shall not be relieved of liability to the Owner and Local Government for damages sustained by the Owner and Local Government by virtue of any breach of the Contract by the Contractor, and the Local Government may withhold any payments to the Contractor for the purpose of set-off until such time as the amount of damages due the Local Government from the Contractor is determined.

IV.

Nondiscrimination Clause - Section 109 of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974

No person in the United States shall on the grounds of race, color, national origin, or sex be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity funded in the whole or in part with funds made available under this title.

V.

Age Discrimination Act of 1975, as amended - Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Age

No qualified person shall on the basis of age be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or otherwise be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity which receives or benefits from Federal Financial assistance.

VI.

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended - Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Handicap

No qualified handicapped person shall, on the basis of handicap be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or otherwise be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity which receives or benefits from Federal Financial assistance.

VII.

Section 3 – Compliance in the Provision of Training, Employment, and Business Opportunities:

a.

The work to be performed under this contract is subject to the requirements of section 3 of the Housing and Urban Development Act of 1968, as amended, 12 U.S.C. 1701u (Section 3). The purpose of Section 3 is to ensure that employment and other economic opportunities generated by HUD assistance or HUD-assisted projects covered by Section 3, shall, to the greatest extent feasible, be directed to low- and very low-income persons, particularly persons who are recipients of HUD assistance for housing.

b.

The parties to this contract agree to comply with HUD’s regulations in 24 CFR part 135, which implements Section 3. As evidenced by their execution of this contract, the parties to this contract certify that they are under no contractual or other impediment that would prevent them from complying with the part 135 regulations.

c.

The contractor agrees to send to each labor organization or representative or workers with which the contractor has a collective bargaining agreement or other understanding, if any, a notice advising the labor organization or workers’ representative of the contractor’s commitments under this Section 3 clause, and will post copies of the notice in conspicuous places at the work site where both employees and applicants for training and employment positions can see the notice. The notice shall describe the Section 3 preference, shall set forth minimum number and job titles subject to hire, availability of apprenticeship and training positions, the qualifications for each; and the name and location of the person(s) taking applications for each of the positions; and the anticipated date the work shall begin.

d.

The contractor agrees to include this Section 3 clause in every subcontract subject to compliance with regulations in 24 CFR part 135, and agrees to take appropriate action, as provided in an applicable provision of the subcontract or in this Section 3 clause, upon a finding that the subcontractor is in violation of the regulations in 24 CFR part 135. The contractor will not subcontract with any subcontractor where the contractor has notice or knowledge that the subcontractor has been found in violation of the regulations in 24 CFR part 135.

e.

The contractor will certify that any vacant employment positions, including training positions, that are filled (1) after the contractor is selected but before the contract is executed, and (2) with persons other than those to whom the regulations of 24 CFR part 135 require employment opportunities to be directed, were not filled to circumvent the contractor’s obligations under 24 CFR part 135.

f.

Noncompliance with HUD’s regulations in 24 CFR part 135 may result in sanctions, termination of this contract for default, and debarment or suspension from future HUD assisted contracts.

g.

With respect to work performed in connection with Section 3 covered Indian housing assistance, section 7(b) of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 450e) also applies to the work to be performed under this contract. Section 7(b) requires that to the greatest extent feasible (i) preference and opportunities for training and employment shall be given to Indians, and (ii) preference in the award of contracts and subcontracts shall be given to Indian organizations and Indian-owned Economic Enterprises. Parties to this contract that are subject to the provisions of Section 3 to the maximum extent feasible, but not in derogation of compliance with section 7(b).

VIII.

Access to Records and Record Retainage

All accounts and records shall be maintained, including personal property and financial records, adequate to identify and account for all costs pertaining to the Contract and such other records as may be deemed necessary to assure proper accounting for all project funds, both federal and non-federal shares. These records shall be retained for three years after project closes out unless permission to destroy them is granted by the funding agency.

IX.

Lobbying Clauses: Required by Section 1352, title 31, U.S. Code a.

No federal appropriated funds have been paid or will be paid, by or on behalf of the undersigned, to any person for influencing or attempting to influence an officer or employee of a Member of Congress, or an employee of a Member of Congress in connection with the awarding of any federal contract, the making of any federal grant, the making of any federal loan, the entering into of any cooperative, agreement, and the extension, continuation, renewal, amendment, or modification of any federal contract, grant, loan, or cooperative agreement.

b.

If any funds other than federal appropriated funds have been paid or will be paid any person for influencing or attempting to influence an officer or employee of any agency, a Member of Congress, an officer or employee of congress, or an employee of a Member of Congress in connection with this federal contract, grant, loan, or cooperative agreement, the undersigned shall complete an submit Standard Form -LLL, “Disclosure Form to Report Lobbying,” in accordance with its instructions.

This is a material representation of fact upon which reliance was placed when this transaction was made or entered into. Submission of this certification is a prerequisite for making or entering this transaction imposed by Section 1352, Title 31, U.S. Code. Any person who fails to file the required certification shall be subject to a civil penalty of not less than $10,000 and not more than $100.00 for each such failure.

X.

Certification of Eligibility

By entering into this contract, the contractor certifies that neither it (nor he or she) nor any person or firm who has an interest in the contractor’s firm is a person or firm ineligible to be awarded Government contracts by virtue of 29 CFR 5.12(a)(1) or to participate in HUD programs pursuant to 24 CFR Part 24 or, if applicable, by virtue of Section 3(a) of the Davis-Bacon Act.

No part of this contract shall be subcontracted to any person or firm ineligible for award of a Government contract by virtue of 29 CFR 5.12(a)(1) or to participate in HUD programs pursuant to 24 CFR Part 24 or, if applicable, by virtue of Section 3(a) of the Davis-Bacon Act.

The penalty for making false statements is prescribed in the U.S. Criminal Code, 18 U.S.C. 1001 and 18 U.S.C. 1010.

XI.

Key Personnel

The Contractor shall not substitute key personnel assigned to the performance of this contract without prior approval by the local government and the grantor agency, the North Carolina Department of Commerce, Division of Community Assistance. Individuals designated as key personnel for purposes of this contract are those specified in the proposal submitted by the Service Provider.

XII.

Subcontracting

Work proposed to be performed under this contract by the Contractor or its employees shall not be subcontracted without prior written approval by the Local Government and the grantor agency, Acceptance of an offeror’s proposal shall include any subcontractor(s) specified therein.