High Low Ropes Athletic Challenge Course for High School in the Community

The City of New Haven, Connecticut is requesting proposals for design, construction, and implementation of a high and low ropes athletic challenge course for High School in the Community, with proposals due June 23, 2026 at 11:00 a.m. and questions due June 16, 2026 at 5:00 p.m. The contract is funded entirely through American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) federal fiscal recovery funds, with all project expenditures required by December 31, 2026.

Respondents must hold current ACCT accreditation to design and build challenge and ropes courses and must demonstrate the capability to formally certify stakeholders in challenge course facilitation and safety. Proof of insurance including $1 million in Abuse and Molestation coverage is required for vendors with direct contact with youth under age 21. Compliance with the City of New Haven Living Wage Ordinance applies to contracts exceeding $25,000 in labor costs. Equal employment opportunity standards and the "Ban the Box" hiring ordinance are mandatory. The contractor must comply with extensive federal compliance requirements under 2 CFR Part 200 (Uniform Guidance), conflict of interest disclosures, and prevailing wage standards for construction work.

The project scope includes indoor gymnasium installation of the challenge course, experiential learning programming, and staff training. The course must be completed by December 30, 2026, with the initial contract term set at one year; all renewals remain at the City's sole discretion. The total project budget does not exceed $50,000, and proposals must include detailed cost breakdowns covering design, materials, equipment, construction/installation, training, stakeholder certification, and additional services.

Evaluation criteria are weighted as follows: relevant experience (15 points), staff certification and training ability (15 points), design quality and feasibility (15 points), program integration strength (15 points), cost-effectiveness (15 points), ability to meet goals and timeline (15 points), and references/past performance (10 points). Cost scoring uses the "Reward Low Cost" methodology, where the lowest submitted cost receives 100 percent of available points and higher-cost proposals receive proportionally fewer points.

Proposals must be submitted electronically through the City's OpenGov eProcurement Portal. Indirect costs are capped at 10 percent of the total award. The contractor must register and maintain a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) at SAM.gov and maintain detailed expenditure records through December 31, 2031.