Greenbelt_Cemetery_Master_Plan_RFP_1.14.25_final.pdf

City of Greenbelt 25 Crescent Road

Greenbelt, MD 20770

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

FOR

MASTER PRESERVATION PLAN FOR THREE GREENBELT HISTORIC

CEMETERIES

FOR

WALKER, TURNER & HAMILTON CEMETRIES

Contract No. 2025-01-R

PROPOSALS DUE

February 14, 2025 @ 3:00 PM

This project is funded by the City of Greenbelt and a Maryland Heritage Areas Authority Program Capital Grant administered by the Maryland Historical Trust. It must meet with all City of Greenbelt procurement requirements. The City of Greenbelt is an Equal Opportunity

Employer

Greenbelt Department of Planning and Community Development 15 Crescent Road, Suite 200 Greenbelt, Maryland 20770

(301) 345-5417

CITY OF GREENBELT

MASTER PRESERVATION PLAN FOR THREE HISTORIC GREENBELT

CEMETERIES

CITY OF GREENBELT, MARYLAND

CONTRACT NO. 2025-01-R

The City of Greenbelt (“Owner”) requests proposals from qualified historic preservation and cultural planning professionals (“Consultant”) for the preparation of a Preservation Master Plan for the preservation, maintenance and use of three historic cemeteries. The project is being funded by a grant received from the Maryland Heritage Area Authority/Maryland Historic Trust.

Greenbelt is a National Historic Landmark. Its three cemeteries, the Hamilton, Turner and Walker, contain the history of Native Americans, successive waves of European settlers dating back to the early 1700s, the enslaved, small farmers, Revolutionary War heroes, and tenants of all kinds. The Greenbelt Cemetery Plan will research and document the history of the sites and their existing conditions, make recommendations for preservation, maintenance, programming, including accessibility for individuals of all abilities, and wayfinding and interpretation of the sites. The Plan will also recommend ways to incorporate the cemeteries into existing programming for historic Greenbelt, the Greenbelt Museum, the Greenbelt Cinema, and related Anacostia Trails Heritage Areas (ATHA).

Information on the City may be found on our website: Greenbelt, MD | Home (greenbeltmd.gov)

I. GENERAL INFORMATION

A. RFP Title: Master Preservation Plan for Three Historic Greenbelt Cemeteries

B. RFP Number: 2025-01-R

C. Brief Description: The purpose of this project is to develop a master plan of preservation for three historic cemeteries: Hamilton, Walker, and Turner (map provided in appendix) located in the City of Greenbelt. The Master Preservation Plan will provide guidance for the restoration, preservation, heritage tourism and maintenance of the cemeteries.

D. Issuing Officer:

Terri Hruby Director of Planning & Community Development Department of Planning and Community Development 15 Crescent Road, Suite 200 Greenbelt, Maryland 20770

301-345-5417 Fax # 301-345-5418 E-mail: thruby@greenbeltmd.gov

E. Response Due Date: Proposals must be delivered to the Issuing Officer no later than 3:00pm on Friday, February 14, 2025

F. Q&A Answers Posted: All requests for clarifications or additional information related to this Request for Proposal (RFP) must be submitted in writing (via email) by January 29, 2025 and directed to Terri Hruby, Director of Planning and Community Development, at thruby@greenbeltmd.gov. All answers will be provided in writing and posted on the City’s website on or before January 31, II. SCOPE OF WORK

The City of Greenbelt is seeking proposals from qualified consulting groups specializing in historical preservation, cultural resource management, and historic cemetery maintenance to develop a Master Preservation Plan for Greenbelt’s three historic cemeteries. The motivations for this plan are the desire to:

a. Provide a living document for both present and future restoration and maintenance needs ensuring the historic resources of the cemeteries are preserved and maintained properly;

b. Establish a restoration, preservation and maintenance plan ensuring any restoration work and repairs undertaken follow appropriate methods of repair;

c. Promote the preservation and maintenance of fundamental pieces of Greenbelt’s history. This plan will serve as an historical document, inventory database and maintenance guide for the three cemeteries; and

d. Identify the cemeteries’ role in heritage tourism.

The project will allow the City to have an all-encompassing document for the historic sites and provide the City the ability to prioritize maintenance needs in the future.

The Scope of Work shall result in a final Preservation Plan that meets applicable State and County regulations.

Project budget is $70,000

Task 1 Project Initiation and Analysis

1.A. Project Initiation

The Consultant will begin to work with the City by creating a project schedule to identify key milestone dates such as City staff meetings and City Council meetings (provided by the City) and the products that will be presented for discussion during those meetings.

The draft schedule will be presented for review by the City in advance of the kick-off meeting.

1.B. Kick-off Meeting

The kick-off meeting will provide the Consultant and the City an opportunity to introduce one another, to describe roles on the project team, discuss and confirm the City goals for the project, review the project schedule and to walk the project site with the group to discuss key issues and opportunities.

1.C. Fact Finding Meetings

Following the kick-off meeting, the Consultant will meet with key staff to discuss current operations, needs, and wants for the future. Consultant will provide meeting notes for each meeting. Consultant will synthesize the findings from the interviews for discussion with the City.

1.D. The Preservation Plan (Research and Analysis)

The Preservation Plan Scope of Work will include the following, tailored to the need of each cemetery:

Preface o Table of Contents o Executive Summary o Introductions

Development History o History of the Property o Archaeological Evaluation o Site and Landscape Evaluation, including tree inventory o Architectural Description (in this context, a stone inventory of the grave markers, monuments, and crypts and documentation of their existing conditions) o Structural Evaluation (fencing, monuments, etc.)

o Material Analysis – stone, brick and mortar as applicable

Treatment and Use o Treatment Philosophy o Use and interpretation of the resource including but not limited to a plan for physical and programmatic access by individuals with disabilities and ways to address diverse or inclusive historical narrative o Code and Accessibility review o Property Treatment Recommendations (landscaping, wayfinding, pathways, parking, drainage, benches, lighting, etc.)

o Architectural Treatment Recommendations (grave markers, monuments, and crypts; walkway, benches, fencing, signage, etc.)

o Prioritization and cost estimates for the work Maintenance Plan, including o Schedule and regular/annual tasks and knowledge required o Training indicated for city public works and volunteers o Budget for annual maintenance and upkeep

Heritage Tourism Assessment Provide a Funding and Revenue plan for the continuing preservation of the cemeteries o Grants o Strategies o Historic Heritage programming

Evaluation: how the success of the plan will be measured 1.E. Presentation to the Community

The Consultant will prepare and present the information gathered and analyzed during this task to the community and interested stakeholders to obtain their input.

Task 2: Draft Master Plan

The Consultant will create a draft Master Plan for consideration. The Plan will address the items included in the research and analysis task, laying out ideas and concepts for addressing deficiencies and enhancing the City assets.

Development of the draft Master Plan will include preliminary identification of phases based on priorities articulated by the City. Consultant will provide a narrative of the draft Master Plan to accompany the illustrative graphics.

During this Task, the Consultant will also provide a Master Plan level estimate of probable costs of implementing plan recommendations

The Consultant will conduct a work session with the City at about mid-point during development of the draft Master Plan to review progress and receive additional input as the draft Plan is being refined. The Consultant will conduct a second work session with the City just prior to finalizing the draft Master Plan to allow the City to review the material prior to presentation to the City Council for their review and approval.

The Consultant will prepare and present the draft master plan to the City Council and the interested public for their information.

Task 3: Final Master Plan

The Consultant will finalize the Master Plan, incorporating comments from the City Council and public into the final documents. Work during this task will include updating the estimate of probable construction costs and finalizing the phasing plan to reflect the final Master Plan. The Consultant will conduct a final meeting with the City to review information at approximately 95% complete.

Final deliverables will include the following:

Master Plan Report containing narratives, analysis, draft alternatives, draft, and final

Illustrative Master Plan of the Property Perspective sketches of key areas as appropriate Final Phasing Plan Implementation Plan with associated costs Master Plan as a PDF Presentation for the City Council meeting

III. PROPOSAL REQUIREMENTS

The requirements of this Proposal are as follows:

a. Executive Summary

i. Provide your understanding of the project scope and important aspects of this project.

ii. Identify the proposed Project Manager and key project team members

iii. Summarize the proposed scope of work, project cost and timeline

b. Firm/Team Qualifications:

i. Describe specific project experience related to projects of similar size, scope, type, and project team.

ii. Provide a brief summary of your team’s experience on similar projects

iii. Provide three references for relevant projects including company name, address, contact name, telephone number, description of project, and successes/outcomes.

c. Proposed Project Team:

i. Provide a staffing plan identifying all key principals and staff from all firms on your team whom you intend to assign to this project and include their profiles indicating relevant experience, education and training.

ii. Confirm the availability of the project team to start immediately and identify major projects that your proposed project team is expected to be involved in through the duration of the project. Note that any future change in key personnel will require approval in advance by the City’s Project Manager.

iii. Provide a schedule of hourly rates for the proposed personnel, which will remain intact for the duration of the project.

d. Project Approach:

i. Describe how your team would approach completing the tasks and goals identified in this RFP based on your firm’s expertise and experience with similar projects.

ii. Describe your approach to identification and management of risks influencing on time/on-budget completion.

iii. Specify the number of included meetings (in person and virtual), business community meetings and Council work sessions/presentations.

e. Project Fee Proposal:

i. Provide your fee proposal for the required services as a not to exceed fixed fee.

ii. Provide hourly billing rates to be used for both based fee invoicing and additional services should they be approved.

iii. Include a list of reimbursable expenses and an estimate of the total amount anticipated.

iv. Include a cost per additional meeting, if required, beyond those included above.

f. Other Conditions

i. Living Wage – The City of Greenbelt requires that all contractors performing work for the City pay their employees a Living Wage.

According to the State of Maryland, The Living Wage rates change each year based upon the changes in the Consumer Price Index. New rates are published at the beginning of the State’s fiscal year in July and become effective 90 days from the end of the state fiscal year in June.

IV. EVALUATION CRITERIA

Evaluation of proposals will be based on criteria at the Owner’s sole discretion, but will broadly be based on overall best value with respect to the following criteria.

Overall Experience of the Firm/Team 10% Experience and Qualifications of the Project Team 25% Project Approach and Schedule 35% Project Cost 20% References 10%

a. Interview Format: The City’s Project Manager may determine a short list of teams for interviews, upon review of the Proposals submitted. In the event that interviews are warranted, a short list of firms will be notified and provided a schedule of available days/times for in-person interviews.

b. Selection: A selection is expected to be made by the end of February 2025, and the City’s Project Manager will begin facilitating the execution of a mutually acceptable contract between the City and the selected consultant. The selected team and contract will be presented to the City Council at a Regular Council Meeting for approval.

V. PROPOSAL SUBMISSION

PROPOSALS MUST BE RECEIVED ON OR BEFORE 3:00PM February 14, 2025.

Please provide an electronic and original hard copy to:

Terri Hruby, Director Department of Planning and Community Development 15 Crescent Road, Ste. 200 Greenbelt, MD 20770 thruby@greenbeltmd.gov

All requests for clarifications or additional information related to this Request for Proposal (RFP) must be submitted in writing (via email) by January 29, 2025, and directed to Terri Hruby, Director of Planning and Community Development, at thruby@greenbeltmd.gov.

All answers will be provided in writing and posted on the City’s website on or before January 31, 2025.

By submitting a proposal, the consultant agrees and warrants that it fully understands the project requirements. The City reserves the right to amend or cancel the RFP at any time at its sole discretion before the execution of a contract with the selected consultant. In the event the RFP is withdrawn or canceled, the City shall not be liable to any proposer for the costs incurred in connection with the RFP or the preparation of the proposer’s response.

Disclaimer:

The RFP, including the documents incorporated and/or referenced in the RFP, has been prepared to solicit proposals, and are not contract offers. The only document that will be binding on the Owner is the contract, if any, duly executed by the Owner and the selected Consultant. No proposal shall be construed as creating any contractual relationship between the Owner and any party responding to this RFP. Nothing contained in this RFP in writing or implied by the selection process shall create any obligation on the part of the Owner and/or the Owner’s Project Manager to select any firm for the services described herein. The Owner reserves the right at their sole discretion to select any firm or team, to decide not to select a firm or team, or proceed with the project, or to otherwise modify their approach to the assignment.

VI. Attachments

a. Location Map of Cemeteries

b. Sample Contract with Terms and Condition