Street Banners (City Branding)

The City of Palm Desert is soliciting proposals through a Request for Proposal for Wayfinding and Entry Monument Improvements under a design-build delivery method, with the RFP released on April 16, 2026, and proposals due by May 19, 2026, at 5:00 p.m. via electronic submission through the OpenGov Procurement portal. The procurement seeks qualified design-build firms to implement the City's adopted Wayfinding and Monument Master Plan, which includes the design, engineering, fabrication, installation, and construction of three new city entry monument signs; relocation of two existing public art monuments (the Roadrunner sculpture and the Desert Gateway Rock Sculpture); installation of approximately 58 new wayfinding signs; and removal of approximately 82 existing wayfinding signs throughout the community. The scope of work encompasses site verification, utility coordination, permitting, landscape design and installation, and provision of record drawings and maintenance manuals, with a project duration of 365 calendar days from Notice to Proceed, divided into a 120-day Construction Document Phase and a Construction Phase. Key evaluation criteria are weighted as follows: firm qualifications and relevant experience (25 percent), project team and key personnel (25 percent), technical approach and design-build integration (30 percent), and fee proposal (20 percent), with Phase 2 consisting of interviews weighted at 100 percent. Important deadlines include a non-mandatory pre-proposal meeting on April 27, 2026, at 11:00 a.m., a questions deadline of May 5, 2026, at 5:00 p.m., and clarifications to be issued by May 7, 2026, with interviews anticipated during the week of May 19, 2026. Proposers must include a qualified signage fabrication firm as a designated subcontractor and submit detailed fee proposals with cost breakdowns by major project elements, including design and engineering, fabrication, construction and installation, project management, and permitting costs.

The contract is structured as a lump-sum design-build agreement with a total project budget capped at $2,500,000, inclusive of all design, engineering, fabrication, installation, permitting, and construction services, for which the contractor assumes responsibility for design-to-budget delivery and cost control. Local vendor preference is available to businesses maintaining a physical location within Lakeland Electric's service territory for at least twelve consecutive months prior to proposal submission. Required insurance includes commercial general liability of $2,000,000 per occurrence (with a minimum of $1,000,000 noted in some documentation), business automobile liability of $1,000,000, excess liability of $2,000,000, and workers' compensation at statutory limits, along with performance and payment bonds equal to 100% of the contract price and professional liability insurance of $2,000,000. The project is subject to California Labor Code Section 1720(a) prevailing wage requirements and all California Public Works compliance obligations. Warranty requirements include a one-year workmanship and installation warranty, five-year finish and coating warranties, and assignment of all manufacturer warranties to the City. Liquidated damages are assessed at $1,000 per calendar day for delays beyond the Project Completion Date, and the contract is governed by California law with jurisdiction in Riverside County Superior Court.