Request for Proposal for Website Design

Salem Area Mass Transit District (SAMTD) is requesting proposals for website design, migration, hosting, and ongoing maintenance under RFP 26-006, with proposals due September 1, 2026. The project is federally funded through the Federal Transit Administration, making all federal procurement rules and regulations applicable.

SAMTD has established a DBE utilization goal of 4.49 percent and strongly encourages subcontracting with disadvantaged business enterprises. Proposers unable to meet this goal must provide detailed good-faith effort documentation. The contract requires the successful proposer to perform at least 25 percent of the work with their own organization; all subconsultants require pre-approval by SAMTD before commencing work.

The scope encompasses discovery and wireframing, UI/UX design, development and content migration, testing and compliance, and launch and training in Phase I (target completion within 12 months), followed by Phase II ongoing hosting, maintenance, security, and support through a five-year initial term. The platform must be non-proprietary and hosted by the proposer. All work must comply with SAMTD brand standards. An optional Employee Portal feature may be proposed separately. Pricing is structured as a Time & Materials not-to-exceed cap for Phase I and fixed annual fees for Phase II hosting and maintenance services across the five base years and three optional one-year extension periods (maximum eight-year engagement). No post-award escalations are permitted; all anticipated cost increases must be embedded in initial proposal pricing.

The awardee must maintain Commercial General Liability Insurance with limits of not less than $2 million per occurrence and $3 million annual aggregate; Business Auto Liability with combined single limits of not less than $2 million; Professional Liability Insurance with limits of not less than $2 million per claim and $3 million annual aggregate; and Workers' Compensation Insurance. Certificates of insurance are due within ten days of award.

Evaluation awards 30 points for qualifications and experience, 30 points for technical capability and approach, 10 points for communication and customer service, 10 points for risk and quality assurance, 5 points for transit-specific project experience, and 15 points for cost (lowest price receives maximum cost points). A pre-proposal conference is scheduled for July 14, 2026; clarification questions are due July 17, 2026; interviews are estimated for the week of September 7, 2026; Notice of Intent to Award is targeted for September 14, 2026; and Board approval is scheduled for September 25, 2026.