Holiday and Special Event Decoration Rental, Installation, and Removal

The City of St. Cloud, Florida, on behalf of Polk County, is soliciting proposals through Request for Proposal 2026-036 for the rental, installation, and removal of holiday and special event decorations. The procurement seeks a qualified contractor to design and install LED C-lamp pole-mounted Christmas decorations along US-192 and Lakeshore Boulevard, install warm white LED lighted garland pole wraps with bows in the downtown area, and provide a minimum 32-foot Christmas tree with warm LED lights and ornaments at City Hall. Installation must commence no earlier than November 12th and be completed prior to Thanksgiving Day with City approval, with all decorations removed between January 6th and January 15th. Qualified proposers must demonstrate a minimum of five years of experience serving public agencies, maintain general liability insurance of $1,000,000 per occurrence, and provide current certificates of insurance with an A.M. Best rating of A- or better. The evaluation criteria are weighted as follows: qualifications and experience (30 points), project understanding and proposed approach (30 points), demonstration of similar projects (30 points), and price proposal (10 points). The mandatory pre-proposal meeting is scheduled for April 14, 2026 at 10:00 am at City Hall, with written questions due by April 24, 2026 at 5:00 pm, and electronic proposals due through the City's procurement portal by May 7, 2026 at 10:00 am, followed by virtual proposal opening via Zoom at the same date and time.

The solicitation does not specify set-aside designations or restrictions limiting participation to disadvantaged enterprises or particular organization types. No incumbent vendor or current contractor is identified in the available documentation. The contractor must maintain comprehensive general liability insurance with minimum limits of $1,000,000 per occurrence and $2,000,000 general aggregate, workers' compensation insurance with statutory limits, and automobile liability coverage if vehicles are used on City property, with the City named as an additional insured. The contractor shall be responsible for all permits, licenses, and fees, and must comply with Florida's E-Verify employment eligibility verification requirements. The contract term will be negotiated based on the selected firm's proposal, with an initial three-year term and options for two additional one-year renewal periods, subject to mutual agreement; the document does not specify an overall award value or budget range for the procurement, though pricing proposals must include all anticipated costs for holiday decoration services with special events to be negotiated separately.