Pritchardville / Okatie Library Branch Design Services

Beaufort County is soliciting qualifications from architectural and engineering design professionals for design services on a new Pritchardville/Okatie Library Branch at 76 May River Road, Bluffton, South Carolina, with qualifications due June 30, 2026. This RFQ covers design services only; construction and design-build services are excluded.

The scope encompasses full professional design across civil, structural, mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and fire protection disciplines, including conceptual and schematic design, design development, construction documents and specifications, site and planning coordination, traffic engineering studies, utility coordination, and zoning compliance. Interior and functional planning for specialized spaces—children's areas, maker spaces, meeting rooms—is included. The design must incorporate Lowcountry/coastal architectural influences, modern library features, sustainability considerations, and coastal resilience strategies. Limited construction administration support is also in scope.

Evaluation criteria are weighted as follows: Relevant Experience (30 points), Design Quality and Approach (30 points), Understanding of Project Goals (25 points), and Team Qualifications (15 points). The County reserves the right to conduct oral presentations with top-ranked firms if the best proposal is not clearly identified from the point summary. The County has not determined whether to select one or multiple firms; award is at the County's sole discretion. Fees will be determined through negotiation rather than sealed bid pricing, following qualifications-based selection procedures.

Contractors must maintain professional liability insurance at minimum $1 million per occurrence, commercial general liability at $1 million each occurrence / $2 million aggregate, workers' compensation, automobile liability at $500,000 combined single limit, and umbrella liability at $2 million minimum. The proposal is firm for 90 days from closing. All projects are subject to non-appropriation of funds; the County may terminate for convenience without penalty.

A non-mandatory pre-proposal meeting is scheduled for June 3, 2026 at 2:00 p.m. EST via Microsoft Teams. Questions are due by 5:00 p.m. on June 10, 2026.