27AL2410 Pyramid State Park - Captain Unit Farm Lease

The Illinois Department of Natural Resources is requesting bids for agricultural farming services on approximately 92.50 acres within Pyramid State Park's Captain Unit in Perry County under IFB 27AL2410, with bids due November 4, 2026, at 2:00 PM and a mandatory pre-submission conference on October 13, 2026, at 10:00 AM in Cutler, Illinois.

The scope is a five-year farm lease (March 1, 2027 through February 28, 2032) requiring the lessee to personally farm the land under conservation agriculture practices. The lessee must plant designated fields with hay annually, manage invasive species (Johnson grass, wild parsnip, sericea lespedeza), maintain minimum 10-inch stubble height, and ensure bale removal within seven days of baling. Fields 2211-5 and 2199-2 may be hayed only once annually between July 1 and August 1. The lessee must provide all labor, equipment, machinery, tools, seed, fertilizer, and insurance. Mandatory soil testing in fall of years two and four, cover crop planting on designated fields, and submission of yield monitor data are required. No neonicotinoid-treated seeds or Dicamba herbicide use is permitted. The lessee may provide acceptable services in lieu of cash rent—including chemical application, equipment maintenance, field access road construction, drainage structure repair, and timber stand improvement—at rates set by University of Illinois Extension or Iowa State University Extension surveys, subject to agency approval for projects exceeding 10 percent of lease value or $10,000.

Pricing is submitted on a per-acre basis per year; the State awards to the highest responsive and responsible bidder. The lessee must guarantee annual lease payments either through full prepayment by March 1st or via irrevocable letter of credit. Leasehold property taxes (historically $1,192.64 to $1,931.56 annually) are the lessee's responsibility. A Certificate of Liability Insurance with $1 million per occurrence/$2 million aggregate Commercial Liability, plus Auto Liability and Workers' Compensation coverage, naming the State as additional insured, is required within 30 days of execution and annually thereafter. No subcontracting is permitted except for cover crop planting and hay baling. Bidders must submit active Illinois Procurement Gateway registration or complete Vendor Disclosure Forms, an Offer to the State, the signed Contract, and an Equipment List. Bidders currently delinquent on other IDNR agricultural lease taxes must document paid status. Remote participation in the pre-submission conference is available via WebEx. Questions are due within seven days after the conference.