RFB09182024 For License Sale of Timber Yatesville Lake WMA

The Commonwealth of Kentucky, Department of Finance and Administration Cabinet, Division of Real Properties, on behalf of the Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources, is soliciting sealed bids for the license sale and harvest of timber at Yatesville Lake Wildlife Management Area located in Lawrence County, Kentucky, spanning approximately 151 acres divided into three separate units (Unit 1: 62 acres; Unit 2: 56 acres; Unit 3: 33 acres). The successful bidder must remove all timber within a two-year contract period from the date of execution, with an option to renew only if reasonable progress is demonstrated during the initial term. Bidders must submit sealed bids specifying lump sum amounts for each of the three timber units, with documented road improvement costs for the approximately 2.6-mile Arrington Branch access road to be deducted from the total payment; all road improvements and rock work must be accounted for in the bid. Timber harvesting is restricted to August 1 through March 31 due to United States Fish and Wildlife Service regulations protecting migratory birds. Bidders must provide up to three landowner or character references from timber harvesting work completed within the past five years, and bids submitted with fewer than three references will be rejected. The contract will be awarded based on a 55-point evaluation of bid amount and 45-point evaluation of prior work quality determined through reference comments, with references scored as 45 points for excellent performance, 30 points for satisfactory performance, and 0 points for poor performance. Sealed bids were originally due by 3:00 p.m. ET on September 18, 2024, but a first addendum extended the bid opening date to 3:00 p.m. ET on Wednesday, September 25, 2024, at the Division of Real Properties office in Frankfort, Kentucky; site visits prior to bid submission are encouraged, and the bid opening will be conducted publicly with telephone conference access available.

The solicitation contains no specific set-aside designations or restrictions limiting response to particular categories of organizations, and no incumbent vendors or current contractors are identified. The successful bidder must post a $5,000 deposit within five days of contract signing and provide a total $10,000 performance bond plus the full lump sum timber price before operations commence; the bidder must also obtain commercial general liability insurance with a minimum $1,000,000 combined single limit and $2,000,000 aggregate and maintain worker's compensation insurance. All bidders must comply with the Kentucky Forest Conservation Act Best Management Practices and applicable federal, state, and local regulations. No specific award value or budget range is disclosed in the solicitation documents; instead, the contract value will be determined by the lump sum bids received for each of the three timber units. For inquiries regarding this opportunity, prospective bidders should contact Kelly Hawkins at 502-229-4366. Online bidding is prohibited for this solicitation, and all bids must be submitted in physical form in accordance with the terms and conditions outlined in the complete solicitation documents.