Winter Grooming of Snowmobile Trails

The State of Colorado, Department of Natural Resources, Division of Parks and Wildlife, is issuing a Notice of Proposed Sole Source procurement for winter grooming services of snowmobile trails across Colorado, with jurisdictional applicability to Denver County and Denver City. The procurement seeks contractors to groom over 3,000 miles of snowmobile trails annually during the winter season from November 15 through April 15 each year, with contract performance spanning five grooming seasons from 2018-2019 through 2022-2023. Key deliverables include annual trail grooming operations and maintenance services that maintain recreational snowmobile trail infrastructure throughout the state's diverse geographic regions. Interested vendors must submit a cover letter signed by an authorized representative that includes company name, address, phone number, and email address, along with a detailed description of the firm's capability to supply these specialized services. The solicitation number is NPSS1 PMAA 2017000092, and submissions should be directed to Maggie Van Cleef at the Department of Natural Resources Purchasing Office. The posting date was November 5, 2018, with a due date of November 8, 2018. Required qualifications include possession of specialized grooming equipment, familiarity with local terrain, annual operator training, and appropriate certifications to conduct these services.

This procurement is designated as a sole source justification based on each snowmobile club's exclusive United States Forest Service Special Use Permit required to conduct grooming activities, combined with their specialized equipment, local terrain knowledge, and annual operator training qualifications that create exclusive provider status. The incumbent contractors are Colorado's existing snowmobile clubs currently providing these services, including the Rifle Snowmobile Club, Snow Country Explorers, Lake City Continental Divide Snowmobile Club, Delta SnoKrusers, North Park Snow Snakes, and Arrowhead Snowmobile Club, among 27 total clubs participating in the grooming grant program. The Colorado Division of Parks and Wildlife has budgeted approximately $710,000 for work through April 2019, with the 2018-2019 funding cycle distributed across the 27 snowmobile clubs with individual awards ranging from approximately $6,685 to $54,876. Future fiscal year budgets are expected to be similar but remain subject to available funding variations. No specific set-asides for disadvantaged enterprises or restrictions on organizational types are identified in the procurement documents. The established infrastructure includes the existing trail systems spanning over 3,000 miles and the equipment currently maintained by incumbent snowmobile clubs throughout the state.