2024-08 - Ray's Pond Stormwater Improvements

NOTICE TO PROPOSERS
 
The City of Mary Esther, Florida (City), is accepting sealed competitive submittals for Proposal for Water Storage Tank Maintenance. The intent of this Request for Proposals (RFP) is to solicit and obtain the services of an experienced water storage tank maintenance firm to enter into a full-service agreement with the City of Mary Esther to provide a maintenance program for the water storage tanks within the City’s potable water system. This program shall include, but is not limited to, the following: inspection, rehabilitation, as-needed repairs, recoating, washout services and preventive maintenance. The selected firm shall enter into an agreement to assume full responsibility and accountability for all maintenance issues related to the City’s water storage tanks. Any submittal should include all costs associated with labor, materials, equipment, overhead, profit, travel, reimbursables, inflation and all other expenses related to the provision of the necessary service as defined in the Scope of Work and the Schedule of Work. It is the intent of this RFP to determine the most qualified firm to which the City of Mary Esther could contract these services.
Proposals must be received by the City Clerk's Office at the City of Mary Esther, 195 Christobal Rd. N, Mary Esther, Florida 32569, in a sealed envelope clearly marked “RFP 2024-08, PROPOSAL FOR “WATER STORAGE TANK MAINTENANCE PROGRAM”, along with the name, return address and telephone number of the firm submitting the proposal, no later than 2:00 p.m. Central Daylight Time, on October 3, 2024 at which time they will be opened and identified aloud.  
 
CITY OF MARY ESTHER, FLORIDA
 
REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS (RFP) NO. 2024-08
 
PROPOSAL FOR:  Water Storage Tank Maintenance Program
 
I.          PURPOSE: The purpose of RFP No. 2024-08 is to secure sealed proposals for, Water Storage Tank Maintenance Program
II.        SCOPE OF WORK: 
 
Project Description
City of Mary Esther currently owns, operates, and maintains seven (7) potable water storage tanks as part of the City’s water distribution system. The tank locations and sizes are as follows:

1. 40,000-gallon Ground Storage tank – 140 Christobal Rd. (Tank #1)
2. 40,000-gallon Ground Storage tank – 140 Christobal Rd. (Tank #2)
3. 40,000-gallon Ground Storage tank – 140 Christobal Rd. (Tank #3)
4. 100,000-gallon Elevated Storage tank – 140 Christobal Rd. (Christobal Tank)
5. 40,000-gallon Ground Storage tank – 27 Mary Esther Dr. (Mary Esther Drive Tank)
6. 250,000-gallon Elevated Storage tank – 27 Mary Esther Dr. (Mary Esther Drive Ped Tank)
7. 250,000-gallon Elevated Storage tank – Town Lane (Town Lane Tank) 

6. A detailed proposal shall adhere to the specifications given in this Request for Proposal. All surface preparation and coatings specified should be adhered to strictly. These specifications are identified in this Request for Proposal under the Specifications of Work section below. In addition, all rules and regulations of the State of Florida will be adhered to strictly. Any and all permits, approvals, etc., required by the State of Florida will be the responsibility of the successful firm. 
7. Each bidder shall submit a detailed insurance certificate of the firm. This insurance certificate should detail all levels of insurance that may be required by the City of Mary Esther to accept a contractual obligation. The insurance carrier must possess an AM Best rating of A- or better. In addition, all firms shall provide a detailed certificate that indicates they carry Pollution Liability Insurance in the amount of no less than $2,000,000.00 of coverage. A copy of this insurance certificate must be attached to the last page of this RFP and is mandatory for consideration of RFP response. 
8. Each proposal should include a detailed contract document for the tanks included in this RFP. This contract shall be for a 10-year timeframe, with the possibility of one renewal. The maintenance contract can be extended for an additional 10-year period unless the City of Mary Esther elects to cancel. Within the contract document shall be a specific cancellation clause, which indicates procedures that the City of Mary Esther may take for cancellation of the contract, including for appropriation by the city council each year consistent with F.S. 166.241. The firm may not cancel the contract during the contract period for any reason other than non-payment by City of Mary Esther. Moderate inflation (no more than 5% per annum) shall be allowed in the contract and would be subject to city council approval. A maximum % must be specified in the pricing form and the inflation cannot be tied to the Consumer Price Index.
9. Each proposal shall include a formal Safety Program stating company policy on all safety procedures. Documented procedures are to include workers protection, confined space, fall protection and general safety procedures.
10. Each proposal shall include evidence of proposer’s State of Registration and must have a State of Florida contractor’s license.
11. Each proposal shall include a listing of any cancellations of their maintenance agreement within the last 5 years including the system name, contact information, and reason for cancellation.
12. Each proposal shall include a listing of any litigations within the last 10 years including the system name, contact information, and a brief explanation of the litigation. 

1. Primer Coat:  One (1) complete coat of Tnemec Series Epoxy shall be applied to achieve a dry film thickness of 4.0 to 6.0 mils dry film thickness.                 
2. Finish Coat:  One (1) complete finish coat of Tnemec Series Epoxy shall be applied to achieve a dry film thickness of 4.0 to 6.0 mils dry film thickness. 
3. Contrasting Color:  Each coat of epoxy paint shall be of contrasting color.
4. Stripe Coat:  One additional coat of epoxy shall be applied by brush and roller to all weld seams after Primer coat and prior to Finish coat.
5. Caulking:  All seams around structured beams and lapped steel shall be caulked with Sika-Flex 1A

1. Letter of interest:
   1.     An individual authorized to legally bind the firm shall sign the transmittal letter. The letter shall include the firm’s mailing address, electronic mail address, fax number, and telephone number. Any request for confidential treatment of information shall be included in the transmittal letter in addition to the specific statutory basis supporting the request and an explanation why disclosure of the information is not in the best interest of the public. The transmittal letter shall also contain the name, address and telephone number of the individual authorized to respond to the City about the confidential nature of the information.
   2.     Specific services offered by the firm – ensure that all aspects of Water Storage Tank Maintenance Program outlined above are covered.
2. Table of Contents.
3. Joint Ventures, Background Information & Business Credentials – Provide a synopsis of the firm’s qualifications, to include specific capabilities of the firm: 
   1.     Name, address, telephone number, fax number and e-mail address of the firm including all d/b/a’s or assumed names or other operating names of the firm.
   2.     Identify and specify the location(s) and telephone numbers of the major offices and other facilities that relate to the firm’s performance under the terms of this RFP.
   3.     Local office address and phone number (if any).
   4.     Joint venture information/previous experience. Firms submitting proposals as a joint venture shall submit to the City, as part of proposals, a copy of any joint venture agreement.
   5.     Registration – State of Florida licensing/registration qualifications of the firm’s personnel and business office. Provide copies of same.
4. The firm shall prepare an executive summary and overview of the RFP requirements, including all the following information:
   1. Statements that demonstrate that the firm understands and agrees with the terms and conditions of the RFP. 
   2. Statement through which the firm certifies that the contents of the proposal are true and accurate.
   3. An overview of the firm’s plans for providing the necessary services to the City. 
   4. An explanation as to why the firm should be awarded this engagement.

5. Expertise – Provide proof of your company’s expertise. Include listing of clients verifying same. The firm must provide the following information regarding its experience:

1. Number of years in business.
2. Number of years’ experience with providing the types of services sought by the RFP.
3. Describe the level of technical experience in providing the types of services sought by the RFP.
4. Describe any significant changes in your firm’s organization, focus or leadership for the past 10 years and whether any changes are anticipated in the near future.
5. Describe any investigative, disciplinary or enforcement actions pending against your firm, and information on any such investigations which concluded with enforcement or disciplinary action against your firm since January 2014.

6. Specific Accomplishments – Provide a listing of specific accomplishments with a description of the work performed by the firm of the type of work proposed under this Request for Proposal/Qualifications.
7. Firm(s) projects (List as many projects as necessary to adequately describe firm’s experience) Include the name and telephone number of the Owner’s Representative or Contact. Be especially careful to provide current names, current contact information, to include email of owner’s representatives to be contacted by the City.
8. Project Management Organization – Provide information for all key personnel who will be involved in executing the services contemplated by this RFP. Include only those who will likely be assigned to this account and indicate the day-to-day contact person or persons. The following information must be included:

1. Full name.
2. Education, licenses, registrations.
3. Years of experience and employment history particularly as it relates to the scope of services specified herein.
4. Expected role in the City’s transactions.

9. References – List five (5) references representative of related past experience to include, as a minimum, a contact person, company name, phone number, and a brief description of the work performed. 
10. Additional Information & Comments – The contents under this heading are to be left to the discretion of the consultant. Material must be pertinent to the proposal but not be otherwise requested in the Request for Proposal.
11. Conflict of Interest Disclosure Form – The award hereunder is subject to the provisions of Chapter 112, Florida Statutes. All respondents must disclose with their proposal the name of any officer, director, or agent who is also a public officer or an employee of the City of Mary Esther, or any of its agencies. (Attachment #3)

12. Public Entity Crime Form Each Bid shall contain a completed Public Entity Crime Form (Attachment #1) pursuant to Florida Statutes, Section 287.133(2)(a), providing that no public entity shall accept any Bid from or award any contract to or transact any business in excess of the threshold amount for Category Two ($35,000) for a period of thirty-six months from the date placed on the convicted vendor list.

13. Drug Free Workplace Certification – Preference shall be given to businesses with drug-free workplace programs included as Attachment # 2. Whenever two or more proposals that are equal with respect to price, quality and service are received by the City for the procurement of commodities or contractual services, a proposal received from a business that certifies that it has implemented a drug-free workplace program shall be given preference in the award process. 

14. Liability & Indemnification Form – To the fullest extent permitted by law, Firm shall indemnify and hold harmless the City, its officers and employees from liabilities, damages, losses, and costs including but not limited to reasonable attorney fees, to the extent caused by negligence, recklessness, or intentional wrongful conduct of the Firm and other persons employed or utilized by the Firm in the performance of this Agreement included as Attachment # 4. 

15. Insurance coverage specified herein constitutes the minimum requirements and said requirements shall in no way lessen or limit the liability of the Firm under the terms of the Contract. The Firm shall procure and maintain at their own expense any additional types and amounts of insurance that, in their own judgment, may be necessary for their proper protection in the prosecution of the work. The Firm shall carry insurance as prescribed herein and all policies shall be with companies which carry an AM-Best financial rating at minimum of (A-). 

16. Acceptance of Terms and Conditions - The firm shall specifically agree that the proposal is predicated upon the acceptance of all terms and conditions stated in the RFP. If the firm objects to any term or condition, the firm must specifically refer to the RFP page, and section. Objections or responses that materially alter the RFP may be deemed non-responsive and disqualify the firm.
17. Certification of Independence and No Conflict of Interest - The firm shall sign and submit with the proposal the document included as Attachment # 5 in which the firm shall certify that it developed the proposal independently. The firm shall also certify that no relationship exists or will exist during the contract period between the firm and the City that interferes with fair competition or is a conflict of interest. The City reserves the right to reject a proposal or cancel the award if, in their discretion, any relationship exists that could interfere with fair competition or conflict with the interests of the City. 

18. Authorization to Release Information - The firm shall sign and submit with the proposal the document included authorizing the release of information to the City.
19. Firm Proposal Terms - The firm shall guarantee in writing that the services offered in this RFP will be guaranteed for the term of the contract. 
20. Proposal Form. The Proposal Form submitted should contain all the mandatory information required in this RFP. Any additional information submitted in support of the Bid shall follow the required information.
21. Public Access:  The selected firm will be required to have on file with the City a Public Access form for the maintaining of public records.

22. Responsive Proposals. Only those Proposals fulfilling all requirements outlined in this RFP will be considered.

• Qualifications and experience of the key personnel
  1. All full-time employees with N.A.C.E. certifications must be listed
  2. A statement of qualifications and resume’ detailing the experience of all individuals responsible for providing service under this contract should be submitted  
• Principals involved should be listed along with their names and addresses of the individuals placed in charge for the administration of the terms and conditions of the contract 
• Identify extent of experience and past performance working with DEP, EPA, DOT, FAA, NWFLWMD, SRF, EDA and other Grant Loan Programs.

• Prior performance with City of Mary Esther
• Prior interactions with City of Mary Esther

• A list of systems that are currently in your Maintenance Program should be submitted. Include the Name of the System, Contact Person, Telephone Number of Contact, and Number of Tanks in the System under contract. A minimum of forty (40) systems (not tanks) must be submitted. Any company with less than forty (40) existing systems under their maintenance program will not be considered. 

• Each proposal shall include a listing of any cancellations of their maintenance agreement within the last 5 years including the system name, contact information, and reason for cancellation.
• Each proposal shall include a listing of any litigations within the last 10 years including the system name, contact information, and a brief explanation of the litigation.

• All maintenance program costs, and inflation must be calculated and included in final pricing with the completion deadline of these projects in mind.   No “brush” blasting and/or over coating shall be permitted on interior renovations.  Should any tank experience premature coatings failure then the coatings must be repaired at once utilizing best practices including complete renovations of the existing surfaces utilizing the above specifications for no additional charge.  
• Complete “Pricing Submittal Form”, appendix “A” 

• Santa Rosa/Walton/or Escambia Counties (1pt)
• Okaloosa County (3pts)
• City of Mary Esther (5pts)

1. The Bid Committee will evaluate all proposals received as follows:
   1. Prepare an alphabetical listing of those proposers determined to be interested, responsive and available. 
   2. Evaluate the proposals meeting minimum submission criteria based upon the seven criteria provided above. Each committee member will review the provided material and score each submittal independently. Committee members may not speak to each other or any firm which has submitted a proposal except at the committee meeting or during firm presentations. 
2. At the designated time, the committee members will independently submit their evaluation form to the City Clerk. 
3. The City Clerk will combine the scores for review by the committee at the scheduled meeting. 
4. During the committee meeting the members will discuss the scores and determine final rankings. At this time, the committee will determine if presentations are necessary and which firms will be invited. It is advised that the committee discuss any questions they would like respondents to be prepared to answer. 
5. Upon approval of the agreement by the City Council, the parties shall execute a formal written agreement prior to commencement of the work associated with the contract.

1. The City of Mary Esther, in its absolute discretion, may reject any proposal of a firm that has failed, in the opinion of the Bid Committee, to complete or perform a City contracted service in a timely fashion or has failed in any other way to perform a prior contract in a satisfactory manner, and has directed the City Clerk to emphasize this condition to potential proposers.
2. The City reserves the right to award the proposal to firm submitting a responsive proposal with a resulting agreement which is most advantageous and in the best interest of City of Mary Esther, and to reject any and all proposals or to waive any irregularity or technicality in proposals received. City of Mary Esther shall be the sole judge of the proposal and the resulting negotiated agreement that is in its best interest and its decision shall be final.
3. The City Council reserves the right to waive any informalities or reject any and all proposals, in whole or part, to utilize any applicable state contracts in lieu of, or in addition to, this proposal and to accept the proposal that in its judgment will best serve the interest of the City.
4. The City Council specifically reserves the right to reject any conditional proposal and will normally reject those which make it impossible to determine the true amount of the proposal.

1. More than one proposal for the same work from an individual, firm, or corporation under the same or different name.
2. Evidence that the proposer has a financial interest in the firm of another proposer for the same work.
3. Evidence of collusion among proposers. Participants in such collusion will receive no recognition as proposers for any future work of the City until such participant shall have been reinstated as a qualified proposer.
4. Uncompleted work which in the judgment of the City might hinder or prevent the prompt completion of additional work if awarded.
5. Failure to pay or satisfactorily settle all bills due for labor and material on former contracts in force at the time of advertisement of proposals.
6. Default under previous contract.
7. The Bid Committee, in its absolute discretion, may reject any proposal of a proposer that has failed, in the opinion of the Committee, to complete or perform a City of Mary Esther contracted project in a timely fashion or has failed in any other way, to perform a prior contract in a satisfactory manner, and has directed the City Clerk to emphasize this condition to potential proposers.
8. The Bid Committee reserves the right to waive minor discrepancies in a proposal which do not adversely affect other proposers.

1. Public Entity Crime Information - A person or affiliate who has been placed on the convicted vendor list following a conviction for a public entity crime may not submit a proposal on a contract to provide any goods or services to a public entity, may not submit a proposal on a contract with a public entity for the construction or repair of a public building or public work, may not submit proposal on leases of real property to a public entity, may not be awarded or perform work as a contractor, supplier, subcontractor, or consultant under a contract with any public entity, and may not transact business with any public entity in excess of the threshold amount provided in Section 287.017, for CATEGORY TWO for a period of 36 months from the date of being placed on the convicted vendor list.
2. Discrimination - An entity or affiliate who has been placed on the discriminatory vendor list may not submit a bid on a contract to provide goods or services to a public entity, may not submit a proposal on a contract with a public entity for the construction or repair of a public building or public work, may not submit proposals on leases of real property to a public entity, may not award or perform work as a contractor, supplier, subcontractor, or consultant under contract with any public entity, and may not transact business with any public entity.