Holiday Lights, Displays, and Decorations

The City of Clearwater is requesting proposals for leased or rental holiday lighting, decor, and themed display solutions with optional design, installation, maintenance, removal, storage, and program support services, with proposals due August 11, 2026 and questions due August 1, 2026.

The City intends to award contracts to multiple vendors based on discounted catalog pricing to provide flexible access to holiday lighting and decor options across multiple public locations including downtown corridors, major roadways, gateways, public buildings, and waterfront areas. Scope encompasses design and planning, commercial-grade materials and equipment, installation at designated sites (including Cleveland Street, Fort Harrison Avenue, Sand Key, and Clearwater Beach), routine maintenance throughout the display period, removal and storage, and hurricane/emergency preparedness services. Installation must be completed by mid-November, with displays operational from mid-November through January 1 each year and removal completed by the second week of January.

Vendors must demonstrate a minimum of three holiday lighting and decorative display projects of similar scope completed within the past five years and possess knowledge of electrical systems, permitting, and safety standards. Commercial General Liability insurance with limits of $1 million per occurrence and $2 million general aggregate, plus Commercial Automobile Liability ($1 million combined single limit) and Workers' Compensation, is required. Additional insurance of $3 million general aggregate and $5 million umbrella coverage applies for elevated building installations exceeding twenty feet.

The initial contract term runs September 2026 through August 2027, with four possible one-year renewals at the City's option. All pricing must be firm for one year, including labor, materials, equipment, transportation, supervision, overhead, and profit. Pricing adjustments during renewals may be requested based on the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater area, subject to City approval.

Evaluation criteria: experience and qualifications (25 points), approach and methodology (20 points), design and creativity (20 points), staffing and capacity (10 points), pricing and value (15 points), and references and past performance (10 points). Presentations may be requested during the week of August 31, 2026, with award recommendations and council authorization anticipated for September 2026. No minimum or maximum work quantities are guaranteed.