End User Operations (EUO) Leadership Summit for the Department of Veterans Affairs

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) intends to award a sole source contract to Kansas City Plaza Lessee, LLC, 220 West 43rd Street, Kansas City, Missouri 64111-3112 for a period of five (5) days. The Department of Veterans, Office of Information Technology (OIT), End User Operations (EUO), requires the procurement of conference support and audio-visual support to assist in the successful facilitation and execution of Annual OIT Leadership Conference for 2024.

Kansas City Plaza Lessee, LLC was found to be the only vendor capable of providing adequate facilities for nearly 240 federal employees from 03 Jun 2024 to 07June 2024.

The selection of a venue for the EUO Leadership Summit was governed by stringent criteria essential to meet the specific needs of OIT organization. Critical factors included the availability of adequately sized and outfitted conference facilities with audiovisual services, which are paramount to the success of the summit. The strategic location of the venue was also a priority, ensuring easy access for all attendees. This is particularly important given the nationwide distribution of EUO employees, who are required to attend, and which presents unique logistical challenges. A comprehensive search and assessment of potential venues made clear that very few conference spaces could meet these combined requirements as well as a fiscally responsible budget allocation. The Kansas City Plaza Lessee, LLC stood out not only for its facilities and location, but also for its capacity to accommodate a large gathering of 240 federal employees on the required dates without compromising service quality while coming out of a long-term continuing resolution. During the venue selection process, OIT team meticulously evaluated the travel costs of federal employees alongside 38 hotels across various states including MO, IL, TX, GA, CT, LA, FL, KS, and NE. Factors such as cost, size and configuration of meeting rooms, availability during the preferred weeks of May through June, and proximity to major airports were carefully considered. From this pool, only five (5) hotels met the basic criteria of availability and fiscal feasibility within government per diem rates. Among these, the Kansas City Plaza Lessee, LLC, offered the most advantageous package by providing the full package of what OIT needed with the least expense. This included meeting all specified requirements for audiovisual and conference facilities, which are crucial for the interactive and collaborative elements of the summit.

This proposed contract is for services for which the Government intends to solicit and negotiate with only one source under the authority of FAR 13.106. This is a "Notice of Intent" and not a request for competitive proposals or quotes. This is a written notice to inform the public of the Government's intent to award the required services on a sole source basis. Interested parties that believe they can satisfy the requirements listed above for VA may clearly and unambiguously identify their capability to do so in writing to the point of contact listed in this notice with a capability statement no later than 10:00 AM Eastern Standard Time (EST) on 05 May 2024. Any questions regarding this notice must be submitted in writing via email to maribel.fratina@va.gov  and katrina.white3@va.gov.

 A determination by the Government not to compete this proposed contract based upon responses to this notice is solely at the discretion of the Government. Information received will typically be considered exclusively to determine whether to conduct a competitive procurement. The VA will not be responsible for any costs incurred by interested parties responding to this notice. Only written responses will be considered. As a result of analyzing responses to this notice, the Government shall determine whether a solicitation will be issued. Any prospective contractor must be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM) https://sam.gov/content/home in order to be eligible for an award and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) List of Approved Hotels and Motels for Federal Travelers https://apps.usfa.fema.gov/hotel/.

Interested parties that believe they could satisfy the requirements listed above for VA may clearly and unambiguously identify their capability to do so in writing on or before the response date for this notice. This notice of intent is not a solicitation. Information submitted in response to this notice will be used solely to determine whether competitive procedures could be used for this acquisition.