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RFP - CLOSED

420 Boulevard of the Allies - Design of URA Offices

July 18, 2018
July 24, 2018 at 5:00 p.m. ET
Strada

RFP Details

The URA is requesting proposals for architecture consultants and/or consultant teams to design URA office space for its new offices at 420 Boulevard of the Allies.

General

The purchase of 420 Boulevard of the Allies will allow for the relocation of the occupants of the John P. Robin Civic Building (the Civic Building) including the URA, Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh (HACP), and City of Pittsburgh (City) departments. The relocation to a larger newly renovated facility will allow these entities to provide enhanced public service. A major addition to the facility will be the inclusion of a first floor “one-stop shop” for City permitting activities and HACP public facing resident services.

420 Boulevard of the Allies is a nine-story, approximately 150,000 square foot building in Pittsburgh’s Central Business District. The building has recently been rehabilitated with core and shell improvements including: upgraded life safety, mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems; renovated bathrooms; new ground floor lobby finishes; and a partial lower level build-out that includes a kitchenette, large conference room, storage space, etc.

The URA has approximately 90 employees, currently spread throughout four and a half floors in the Civic Building. This move is an opportunity to develop an improved and collaborative work environment for URA employees, better enabling staff to serve the City of Pittsburgh. URA offices will be relocated to the eighth and ninth floors of 420 Boulevard of the Allies. These new offices comprise approximately 31,000 square feet. It is the expectation that these floors will be linked through a communal stairwell. The URA will seek LEED Silver at a minimum for the renovation of its new office space.

The URA has adopted a goal for this project of 25 percent minority-owned enterprise participation and 10 percent women-owned enterprise participation. To that end, majority Consultants are encouraged to team with, subcontract, and/or joint venture with minority and women-owned firms.

The URA will make the following information available to the selected consultant:

· Specs from core and shell renovation (in pdf)

· Permits for core and shell upgrades

· Inspection reports

· Preliminary programming and conceptual layout plans for URA office space

Schedule

Selection of the Consultant is expected to take place the week of July 23, 2018.

Scope of Services

The selected Consultant will be required to produce contract documents (drawings and specifications) for public bidding. The Consultant will be responsible for all analysis, review and permitting with public agencies. It is the expectation that Consultant services will include services for LEED Silver certification at a minimum, Audio Visual/Information Technology Engineering, and Furniture services.

The following is a preliminary scope of work to complete the project:

  1. Analysis and Understanding of Needs

    · Evaluate existing conditions at 420 Boulevard of the Allies

    · Review and refine programming for URA offices

    · Engage with URA employees to establish an understanding of office needs and the day to day work environment. It is expected that the Consultant will engage with URA staff in three ways:

            · Officewide workshops with URA staff

            · One-on-one meetings with department directors Regular meetings with the design committee including the Executive Director, Project Manager and URA Architect to direct design work

  2. Schematic Design

    · Develop preliminary design schemes to refine and finalize programming and relationships between uses

    · Develop analysis for LEED certification

    · Consult and coordinate with the City and HACP with regards to common spaces and access

    · Develop preliminary cost estimate

    · Other services as necessary to complete Schematic Design

  3. Design Development

    · Develop mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and fire protection assessment and drawings

    · Develop AV/IT assessment and drawings

    · Select preliminary finishes and furniture for new spaces

    · Advance LEED certification

    · Refine cost estimate

    · Other services as necessary to complete Design Development

  4. Construction Documents

    · Perform design services and attend regular coordination meetings as needed to enable the URA to publicly bid and award the project

    · Prepare construction documentation (drawings and specifications) for public bidding

    · Submit 60 percent and 90 percent complete design package for URA comments and approvals, and incorporate all revisions; Submittals must meet the standards for all municipal agencies reviewing the work. Files must be submitted in both hard copy and digital (PDF) format.

    · Contract technical specifications and special conditions shall be prepared in accordance with URA standards

    · Consultant shall perform all work necessary to obtain required permits to construct the project. Permit fees are the responsibility of the client.

    · Prepare final construction cost estimate

    · Prepare a distribution of contract time schedule for URA’s use in determining construction completion time

    · Continue to coordinate with the City and HACP regarding the design of common spaces and access points

    · Submit one hard copy and one digital (PDF) copy of bid documents (plans and specifications) prior to advertisement to the URA

  5. Pre-Construction Services

    · Attend pre-bid meeting, prepare and distribute meeting minutes, and prepare any required addenda

    · Review bids, prepare bid tabulation and make recommendations regarding award of the contract

    · Attend pre-construction meeting and prepare meeting minutes

  6. Services During Construction

    · Review shop drawings

    · Attend bi-weekly construction progress meetings as required · Provide responses to Requests for Information (RFI) from the contractor

    · Provide design solutions to address problems and respond to contractor RFIs that are identified during construction Prepare final as-built drawings; The Consultant will also record other information on the as-built drawings as provided by the URA’s construction monitoring firm (to be selected at a future date) as required.

Proposal Requirements

The Consultant shall submit a proposal that includes a technical section and a fee section.

The Technical Proposal shall address the specific issues below. It should be limited to 6 pages.

1. A written narrative description of the Consultant’s plan for managing the project including tasks to be performed by subconsultants; Include Consultant and subconsultant experience with similar type projects

2. Experience with similar projects, and experience working with the City is essential to the project; Provide a detailed explanation of prior experience.


3. A Bar Diagram Project Schedule indicating the projected duration of the major tasks and subtasks identified in the scope of work shall be included.

4. Consultant’s current work load and availability of staff to deliver this project on schedule shall be included.

5. Minority and Women-Owned Business Participation:

Indicate how your firm would propose to incorporate minority and women-owned business (MWBE) participation into this project.

The URA is committed to providing equal employment opportunities to minorities and women and equal opportunities for business growth and development to minority and women entrepreneurs. To that end, the URA requires that all contractors and subcontractors performing work for the URA shall demonstrate a good faith effort to obtain the participation of minority and women business enterprises in the work to be performed for the URA and to employ minorities and women during performance of the work.  It is the URA's objective to obtain minority and women's participation in this project with the goal of 25 percent of the contract amount expended for minority-owned enterprise participation and 10 percent of the contract amount expended for women-owned enterprise participation. The URA promotes the full utilization of subcontracting activities to ensure a successful Minority and Women’s Participation Plan.

The proposal package must include a Preliminary Minority and Women Business Enterprise Narrative detailing how the respondent plans to meet the URA’s expressed MWBE participation goals for the project in the event the respondent is awarded the contract (the Plan Outline). The Plan Outline should be written on company letterhead and must include the following:

· A one- or two-page narrative summary detailing how the respondent plans to meet the 25 percent MBE goal and 10 percent WBE goal through the incorporation of MWBE firms on the project

· Potential scope areas where work can be subcontracted, along with any outreach efforts to ensure that MWBE firms are aware of the opportunity

· A list of any MWBE firms that will be included as a part of the team or invited to bid on work

· An expressed commitment to demonstrating a good faith effort to meet the URA’s MWBE goals

· An expressed commitment to remain in communication with the URA’s MWBE Program Officer in order to develop a finalized MWBE plan should the project be awarded

Respondent(s) will be asked to develop a final MWBE Plan upon the awarding of a URA contract.

Any questions about MWBE requirements should be directed to Diamonte Walker, MWBE program officer, at (412) 255-6610 or mwbe@ura.org.

6. Sustainability

The URA is committed to fostering, encouraging and supporting sustainable development and green building practices to the maximum extent possible in the City of Pittsburgh.

Issues of sustainable design and how green building practices can be incorporated into this project should be addressed in the proposal. The URA will be considering the design team’s experience with LEED during the selection process.

The Fee Proposal shall include a completed copy of the Cost Summary attached as Exhibit “A,” and identify the derivation of the total fee by indicating:

1. The level of effort in manhours for the various tasks and subtasks corresponding to the scope of services and the technical proposal

2. Assumptions made in estimating time and costs

3. The job classifications and hourly rates applied to the work tasks

4. Total cost for services including an allowance for reimbursable costs

Include a master spreadsheet that includes total level of effort (manhours) for each task. The spreadsheet shall list employee name, job classification, projected hours, and pay rates in separate columns. Prime subconsultants/subcontractors which make up your team must also be included in the master spreadsheet.

CONSULTANT SELECTION CRITERIA

Selection for this assignment will be made based on the following criteria:

1. The qualifications of the staff and subcontractors assigned to the project and their professional experience with similar type projects

2. Organization and management of the project including efficient staff utilization

3. The level of MBE/WBE participation

4. The quality of the narrative on sustainability and the experience of the project team in incorporating sustainability concepts in projects

5. Project design schedule and the teams perceived ability to meet the schedule

6. The fee proposal

PROPOSAL SUBMISSION AND PROCESSING

Proposals must be submitted through Public Purchase no later than 5:00 p.m., ET prevailing time on July 24, 2018. Proposals will not be returned.

All questions regarding this RFP should be submitted, and will be answered, through the Public Purchase platform. Both the question and corresponding answer will be visible and available to anyone registered on the site who reviews this opportunity. Please see instructions regarding how to register on publicpurchase.com, attached as Exhibit “B.”

LEGAL INFORMATION

Responses to the RFP will be evaluated by a selection committee. The selected respondent(s) will be chosen based on the selection criteria listed above. The URA reserves the right to verify the accuracy of all information submitted.

One or more respondents may be asked to meet with the selection committee in a formal interview process.

The URA shall be the sole judge as to which respondent(s) meet the selection criteria. The URA reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to reject any or all responses received, to waive any submission requirements contained within this RFP, and to waive any irregularities in any submitted response.

By responding to this RFP, proposers acknowledge that the URA has no liability to any individual or entity related to this RFP or any proposal and/or the URA’s use or nonuse of any such proposal.

NONDISCRIMINATION

The proposer, for itself and its employees, contractors, and primary subcontractors, agrees not to discriminate, whether in employment, contracting or otherwise, in violation of any federal, state, or local law and/or on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity, and/or gender expression.

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