Blackwater Falls Sled Run Tree Removal

The West Virginia Department of Administration Purchasing Division, on behalf of the Division of Natural Resources, is issuing a Centralized Request for Quote (CRFQ 0310 DNR2600000001) for tree removal and related work services at Blackwater Falls State Park in Tucker County. The procurement requires the felling and limbing of approximately 209 diseased trees (primarily affected by Beech Bark Disease) and approximately 41 healthy trees with dead limbs marked within the Sled Conveyor and Sled Run drop zone area spanning approximately 2,000 feet in length with widths of 20 feet for the conveyor and 50 feet for the sled run slope, with trees ranging from 1 foot to 5 feet in diameter. Deliverables include all debris removal, tree debris cleanup from right-of-ways and drop zones, site regrading, grass seeding with fertilizer and straw application, proper work area barricading, and coordination with utilities to prevent damage to underground and overhead infrastructure serving snow-making equipment and slope lighting, with no burning of materials permitted on site and work limited to manual chainsaws or saws with no heavy equipment allowed except rubber tracked boom lifts and offroad units in non-wooded areas. Qualified vendors must possess a West Virginia Contractor's License, demonstrate experience completing at least three similar tree removal projects, and maintain Commercial General Liability Insurance of at least $1,000,000 per occurrence and Automobile Liability Insurance of at least $500,000 per occurrence. Pricing shall be submitted as a lump sum covering all labor, materials, and equipment, with a mandatory bid bond of 5% of the total bid amount required to accompany the submission. A mandatory pre-bid meeting was held on July 30, 2025, at Blackwater Falls State Park; the question submission deadline was August 7, 2025, at 4:00 PM ET; and bids were due on September 9, 2025, at 1:30 PM ET. The contract is designated as a fixed-period contract with a sixty-day completion timeline from the notice to proceed, which will be issued on or after October 15, 2025, in compliance with the Endangered Species Act regarding protection of the threatened Cheat Mountain Salamander habitat.

The solicitation documents do not identify any set-aside designations, disadvantaged enterprise restrictions, or incumbent vendor information. No specific award value or budget range is disclosed in the provided solicitation materials. Vendors are required to submit a Drug-Free Workplace Affidavit, properly notarized, with their bid and must acknowledge receipt of all addenda (two addenda were issued on August 18, 2025, and August 21, 2025) by completing and submitting the Addendum Acknowledgment Form; failure to do so may result in bid disqualification. The State will not pay for general conditions, winter conditions, or delay-related costs, with vendors responsible for mitigating delay expenses. Equipment restrictions include prohibition of climbing gaffs, spikes, or spurs per National Arborist Standards, and any terrain or grassed area damage caused by equipment use becomes the vendor's responsibility for regrading, seeding, and straw application. For additional information and inquiries, prospective bidders should contact Joseph (Josh) E. Hager III at the West Virginia Purchasing Division at (304) 558-2306 or joseph.e.hageriii@wv.gov.