Pre-Advertisement Notice for Urban Forest Master Plan

The City of Atlanta Department of City Planning is soliciting professional consulting services to develop a comprehensive Urban Forest Master Plan through a multi-step competitive sealed bidding process with a prequalification phase followed by an Invitation for Bids, with questions due July 30, 2026. An SBE participation goal of 20% of the total contract value applies; all bidders must comply with the City of Atlanta's SBO and Equal Employment Opportunity Program requirements regardless of business size and submit a Covenant of Non-Discrimination, documented SBE outreach, and a Subcontractor Project Plan with NAICS codes and certification information. Failure to submit required SBO documentation or meet compliance requirements will render the bid non-responsive.

The consultant will provide project management, technical urban forest assessments, policy and code review, data collection and evaluation, GIS and technology recommendations, public and stakeholder engagement, implementation strategies, funding and resource analysis, and preparation of a comprehensive 15-year master plan with 3- to 5-year achievable benchmarks. Deliverables include a Public Engagement Plan, technical assessments, policy recommendations, planting priorities, funding strategies, performance metrics, and a final publishable plan document in PDF, editable Word format, and 25 printed bound copies, plus supporting electronic files, modeling, and mapping data. The consultant must demonstrate prior experience developing Urban Forest Master Plans for cities comparable to or larger than Atlanta in population and acreage, community engagement expertise, and knowledge of tree maintenance, natural area management, tree planting, and policy development. Work must be completed by April 30, 2029, with an anticipated start date of November 2026. The project is funded through a U.S. Forest Service Inflation Reduction Act grant.

Insurance and bonding requirements are substantial: Workers' Compensation at statutory limits with $1,000,000 Employer's Liability; Commercial General Liability of $1,000,000 per occurrence and $2,000,000 aggregate; Commercial Automobile Liability of $1,000,000 combined single limit; all carriers must meet a Best's rating of A- or higher; the City of Atlanta must be named Additional Insured on CG 20 26 07 04 or equivalent; and bid, performance, and payment bonds must be underwritten by U.S. Treasury Circular 570 listed companies.