Design Services for the Wetland Mitigation Bank

Jacksonville Electric Authority (JEA), a municipally owned utility in Duval County, Florida, is requesting proposals for comprehensive wetland mitigation bank development and management services under a consultants' competitive negotiation solicitation, with responses due September 22, 2026 at 12:00 PM EST and a mandatory pre-response meeting on August 26, 2026 at 10:00 AM via Microsoft Teams. JEA intends to award one contract, though it reserves the right to award multiple contracts or exclude work items.

The scope encompasses reviewing and finalizing a conceptual pro forma and multi-property development strategy; designing, permitting, and constructing a mitigation bank to meet JEA's future wetland credit needs; preparing federal Prospectus documentation; developing and implementing passive public recreational opportunities as permitted by regulatory agencies; selecting and managing all contractors, consultants, and firms for ecological, construction, surveying, and related services; overseeing ongoing maintenance, ledger management, permit compliance, and required agency reporting; achieving all success criteria and securing agency concurrence for credit release; transitioning the bank into perpetual management; and serving as project manager and owner's representative for all regulatory coordination and communications.

Respondents must demonstrate minimum qualifications including successful experience designing, permitting, and constructing a wetland mitigation bank in Florida with final credit value of $10 million or greater, good standing with the Florida Department of State Division of Corporations, and ability to attend in-person meetings within five business days of request. The project team must include a professional wetland scientist or Florida Certified Wetland Evaluator plus a professional engineer, hydrologist, or geologist, either in-house or through a qualified partner.

Evaluation under Florida's Consultants' Competitive Negotiation Act excludes price from initial ranking. Scoring criteria are professional staff experience (25 points), design approach and workplan (40 points), company experience (30 points), and use of Jacksonville Small and Emerging Business (JSEB) program firms (5 points). Pricing is fixed firm for year one, with optional annual CPI adjustments capped at 3 percent thereafter. Required insurance includes workers' compensation, commercial general liability ($1 million per occurrence, $2 million aggregate), automobile liability ($1 million combined single limit), professional services/errors and omissions ($1 million per claim, $2 million aggregate), and excess or umbrella liability ($1 million per occurrence and aggregate). Responses must be submitted through JEA's Zycus Supplier Network portal and include a Minimum Qualifications Form, Response Form, and JSEB or subcontractor firm listing.