RFP CMAR for Improvements at the Water Gardens

The City of Fort Worth is requesting proposals for Construction Manager-at-Risk (CMAR) services for comprehensive improvements to the Fort Worth Water Gardens facility located at 1502 Commerce Street (Project No. 104751). The scope of work includes renovations to the eastern active pool area and associated pump building, encompassing replacement of water features piping, plaster, lighting, controls, and filtration systems; expansion of pump room #1 with new chemical and electrical equipment rooms; renovation of existing restrooms to meet ADA compliance; and miscellaneous site improvements. The project design is currently at approximately 30 percent completion by the Engineer, Freese and Nichols, Inc., and proposers must submit both a preconstruction phase cost and a construction phase fee expressed as a percentage of cost of work. Evaluation criteria include corporate experience and financial stability (10 points), pricing (5 points), key personnel qualifications and experience (20 points), and project approach including preconstruction services, construction methodology, quality assurance/quality control, safety plans, and cost/schedule control (65 points). A pre-proposal conference is scheduled for March 12, 2026 at 1:00 p.m. at Fort Worth City Hall, with proposals due by March 26, 2026 at 1:30 p.m. via the City's Bonfire platform; public opening and reading of fees will occur at 2:00 p.m. the same day. Contract award is anticipated in May 2026, with Notice to Proceed for preconstruction services scheduled for May/June 2026 and construction phase services commencing in March 2027.

The City of Fort Worth has established a 30 percent small business participation goal for construction phase services, with failure to meet this goal resulting in rejection of the GMP proposal, thereby restricting participation for firms unable to achieve this subcontracting threshold. The CMAR must provide performance, payment, and maintenance bonds; commercial general liability insurance of $1,000,000 per occurrence/$2,000,000 aggregate; automobile liability of $1,000,000; and workers' compensation at statutory limits, with all bonds and insurance complying with Texas Government Code Chapter 2253. Prevailing wage rates established by the City apply to all laborers and workers on the project. The Guaranteed Maximum Price (GMP) estimated construction budget is $4,050,000, representing the maximum project investment, though the City reserves the right to reject any or all proposals and may determine not to proceed with construction phase services at its sole discretion if the GMP exceeds the construction budget or cannot be successfully negotiated during the preconstruction phase. No incumbent vendors or current contractors are identified in the RFP materials, and the project design documents serve as the primary reference for required integration and technical specifications.