East Martello Historic Masonry Restoration

Monroe County Board of County Commissioners in Florida is soliciting competitive sealed proposals via Request for Proposals (RFP) for the East Martello Historic Masonry Restoration project, which encompasses the repair and repointing of existing historic masonry brick at Fort East Martello Tower, a functioning public museum located at 3501 South Roosevelt Boulevard in Key West. The project requires contractors to match existing brick and mortar exactly while adhering to the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation, with work including structural stabilization of historic masonry dating from 1845 to 1862, restoration using lime-based mortar, selective demolition, site clearing, and masonry cleaning. Contractors must prepare additional construction documents for review and approval by the City of Key West Building Department and Historic Architectural Review Commission (HARC), with all permitting fees the contractor's responsibility. Required qualifications include a minimum of three years' aggregate experience on similar historic preservation projects, documented evidence of qualifications with resumes and employment history, three professional references including at least one project owner and one architect or engineer, and personnel with documented experience in historic preservation to supervise the work. The contract will be awarded on a stipulated-sum basis with unit prices for repointing and replacing brick masonry on a per-square-foot basis, and contractors must submit mock-up masonry panels, a schedule of repairs for each elevation, and 2' x 2' on-site test panels for mortar color matching. Evaluation criteria include relevant experience (25 points), project approach and quality control (15 points), staffing and project team composition (25 points), and overall proposal including price (35 points). Key dates include a non-mandatory pre-proposal conference on May 5, 2026, at 11:00 a.m. at East Martello Tower; proposal submission deadline of June 4, 2026, by 3:00 p.m. via the Bonfire electronic bidding platform; Selection Committee Meeting on June 16, 2026; Board of County Commissioners Award on July 15, 2026; Notice to Proceed and Pre-Construction Meeting on August 3, 2026; and substantial completion required by March 31, 2027, establishing a 240-calendar-day performance period. The museum must remain operational during construction with work hours limited to Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., unless 72 hours' written approval for schedule modifications is obtained, and all clearing and demolition activities must be monitored by the Owner's archaeologist with 72 hours' advance notice.

Monroe County offers a local business preference of 2.5 percent for qualifying Monroe County-based vendors, with an additional 2.5 percent available if 50 percent or more of the work is subcontracted to local businesses. A pre-qualified bidders list includes five contractors: Innovative Masonry Restoration LLC, Contracting Specialists Inc. - South East, Stone and Lime Inc., Cenaxo LLC, and William Frigon; however, other contractors may bid subject to qualifications review. All proposals must be submitted electronically through the Monroe County Bonfire platform at https://monroecounty-fl.bonfirehub.com, with physical, mailed, or emailed submissions not accepted. Specific technical requirements mandate the use of US Heritage NHL 3.5 Natural Hydraulic Lime Mortar (color code USHG #19-124-3) or contractor-proposed alternatives subject to architect approval and testing at the contractor's expense, with replacement brick required to match existing historic brick exactly in size, color, and strength, and compression testing required for new brick incorporating a minimum of four brick colors to match the historic blend. Financial requirements include a bid bond equal to five percent of the maximum bid price and a Public Construction Bond equal to the contract cost unless the contract amount is $200,000 or less, along with Workers' Compensation insurance with statutory limits, Employers' Liability of $1,000,000, General Liability of $500,000 combined single limit, and Vehicle Liability of $300,000 combined single limit. Liquidated damages are assessed based on contract amount and days of delay, ranging from $50 to $3,500 per day depending on the contract size and delay period, and Monroe County reserves the right to reject any and all proposals and to waive irregularities in the bidding process.