I&M Canal - Spillway Repairs

The Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) is soliciting competitive bids through an Invitation for Bid (IFB) process for the rehabilitation of four water control stoplog spillway structures along the Illinois & Michigan Canal located in Grundy and Will Counties, Illinois. The procurement encompasses comprehensive spillway repair services including the construction of cofferdams, removal of existing timber stoplogs and supports, construction of new stoplog supports, installation of new treated timber stoplogs with neoprene gaskets, structural steel erection, concrete work, and associated pedestrian traffic control measures at four spillway locations: Paper Mill, Aux Sable West, Aux Sable East, and Kankakee. Qualified vendors must be pre-approved on the Illinois Department of Transportation prequalified list, possess a minimum of three years of experience in civil construction, and demonstrate completion of at least five similar projects; vendors must also maintain an Illinois office as their primary place of employment and have current Illinois Procurement Gateway vendor registration or complete the required Vendor Disclosure form. Deliverables include all labor, equipment, materials, field engineering and surveying services, certified monthly payroll records, shop drawings and product data for approval, hand-marked as-built drawings, and construction completion by October 6, 2026, with closeout documents due by December 25, 2026. Bids must be submitted electronically through the BidBuy platform by the March 24, 2026 deadline, with the contract incorporating Standard Specifications for Road and Bridge Construction (January 1, 2022) and Supplemental Specifications (January 1, 2025). Evaluation will be based on responsibility, responsiveness, and price, with award given to the lowest priced responsive and responsible bidder; the contract term commences upon final signature and extends through May 21, 2027, with a maximum total contract term not exceeding ten years.

The solicitation is subject to Illinois prevailing wage requirements, mandating that all contractors and subcontractors pay laborers, workers, and mechanics the current prevailing wage rates for Grundy and Will Counties as established by the Illinois Department of Labor, with contractors required to provide certified monthly payroll records and employ a minimum of ninety percent Illinois laborers during periods of excessive unemployment (when state unemployment exceeds 5%) unless an approved exception is granted. Vendors may qualify for the Illinois Business Preference designation and Domestic Product Preference for applicable line items, and the solicitation encourages utilization of minority, women-owned, disabled person-owned, disadvantaged, and veteran-owned businesses through Business Enterprise Program and Veterans Small Business Program Utilization Plans; a $15 Minority Contractor Opportunity Initiative fee is required for awarded contracts valued at $1,000 or more. Required insurance includes General Commercial Liability of $1,000,000 per occurrence with $2,000,000 annual aggregate, Auto Liability of $1,000,000 per occurrence, and Worker's Compensation Insurance as mandated by law; no Bid Bond or Performance Bond is required, though a construction bond is required pursuant to the Public Construction Bond Act. A minimum of fifty-one percent of all work must be performed by the prime contractor, and subcontracts with annual values exceeding $100,000 require prior written approval with identical certifications. The project is funded entirely with State funds administered by IDNR through its Office of Reality and Capital Planning, and the resulting contract may be partially or totally funded with Federal funds, with the percentage and dollar amount to be disclosed upon notice of award; liquidated damages of $300 per calendar day apply if closeout documents are not completed by the specified deadline.