Inshore Annual Construction (Federalized)

Palm Beach County, Florida, Department of Environmental Resources Management is soliciting sealed bids for Inshore Annual Construction (Federalized) Project No. 2021ERM02, an estuarine habitat restoration initiative funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Hurricane Irma Restoration Funds, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service National Coastal Wetlands Conservation Grant Program, and the Fish and Wildlife Service State Wildlife Grants Program. The procurement seeks construction services for the creation and restoration of inshore estuarine habitats including seagrass beds, mangrove forests, oyster reefs, and artificial reef structures within Palm Beach County's coastal waters, with anticipated initial work orders encompassing the Tarpon Cove Phase II Restoration (46 acres of habitat enhancement in Lake Worth Lagoon) and Monceaux Living Shoreline projects totaling approximately 92,547 cubic yards of sand and 17,125 tons of rock. Deliverables include shallow dredging, installation of limestone stone in various sizes, loose shell placement, sand placement, filter fabric installation, warning sign placement, mobilization, and demobilization; the contractor must provide all labor, materials, equipment, environmental protection, turbidity control and monitoring, quality assurance, and safety compliance. Required qualifications include proper state of Florida licensing and certification, a valid Palm Beach County business tax receipt, and submission of documentation regarding material sources (sand and stone), geotechnical analysis performed within 18 months of bid opening, three contractor references, and lists of assigned subcontractors. The contract structure employs unit-cost bidding with a base bid of $370,880 plus one of two mobilization options: Option No. 1 (Contractor staging area) at $8,921,843 or Option No. 2 (Florida Inland Navigation District staging area) at $7,211,650.40. Sealed bids were due May 10, 2021, at 2:00 P.M. at the Palm Beach County Department of Environmental Resources Management, Vista Center, 2300 Jog Road, 4th Floor, West Palm Beach, Florida 33411; a non-mandatory pre-bid meeting was held April 21, 2021, at 10:00 A.M. via Webex, and a non-mandatory site visit was scheduled for April 21, 2021, at 2:00 P.M., with written questions required to be submitted by May 3, 2021, to ERM-Bidding@pbcgov.org.

Due to the federal funding nature of this project, Palm Beach County's Local Preference Ordinance and Equal Business Opportunity Ordinance do not apply, and no Disadvantaged Business Enterprise goals have been established; therefore, there are no set-aside designations or restrictions limiting organizational eligibility based on minority or disadvantaged status. No incumbent contractor is identified in the solicitation documents. The contract includes an initial two-year term with an optional one-year extension, and the contract shall be awarded to the two lowest responsive responsible bidders. A bid bond equal to five percent of the base bid price is required at submission, with performance and payment bonds equal to 100 percent of each work order price required prior to execution; an additional $100,000 bond is required if the contractor utilizes the Florida Inland Navigation District staging site. Liquidated damages are established at $450 per calendar day for failure to achieve substantial completion within the contract timeframe. Davis-Bacon wage rates do not apply to this federally-funded project. Monthly progress payments will be based on units of materials placed to lines and grades as verified through field inspection, truck tickets, and payment surveys by the contractor's Florida-licensed surveyor, with all turbidity monitoring reports required before progress payment applications are accepted.