The Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana Regional Council of Governments (OKI) is now accepting Statements of Qualifications (SOQ) for professional services to perform regional stormwater management analysis of inventoried basins and connected systems to determine regional capacity opportunities and vulnerabilities. OKI, as the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) for the Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky metropolitan area, will serve as the project manager and contract directly with the selected firm resulting from this RFQ.
If the Proposer is a team, the team must be led by a firm that has the managerial and technical resources to communicate and coordinate directly with OKI and manage the work of the entire team. The team lead will function as the “Prime” and will be expected to assist and advise OKI in managing the project.
This RFQ contains detailed submission guidelines and SOQ specifications.
Submittal: All items requested as part of the RFQ must be completed in their entirety. Failure to do so can result in the submittal being declared unresponsive and will be automatically DISQUALIFIED. OKI must be in receipt of all SOQs by the date identified in Section 2.1.1 at the following address. One (1) original and two (2) copies of the SOQ are required.
Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana Regional Council of Governments
Attn: Finance Department
OKI Stormwater Basin Inventory Evaluation &
Stormwater Management Capacity Analysis for Ohio Counties
– Statement of Qualifications
720 E. Pete Rose Way, Suite 420; Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
The SOQ should be placed in a sealed envelope and clearly marked “OKI Stormwater Basin Inventory Evaluation & Stormwater Management Capacity Analysis for Ohio Counties – Statement of Qualifications”. Submissions not marked clearly will not be opened. Submissions received after the deadline will not be evaluated. No exceptions.
Interested firms’ questions and inquiries on the specifications of this SOQ shall be submitted in writing via email to David Rutter. Questions will be accepted until the date identified in Section 2.1.1. The responses to all questions will be posted on www.oki.org within three (3) business days of receipt.
Join Zoom Meeting for RFQ Opening, November 14, 1 p.m.
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Meeting ID: 880 2639 6386
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Meeting ID: 880 2639 6386
Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kcu4Yxfcit
Questions:
1. Attachment 2 References/List of Relevant Work – Can more detailed 1-page project descriptions be attached with this form for the 3 projects listed or does all of the information need to be contained within this one page?
Detailed 1-page project descriptions can be attached to the form.
2. Is the 5 pages allowed for the “Approach to Project and Management of Subs” section supposed to cover the following three evaluation criteria:
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- Sound Approach to Completing Elements of the Scope of Work – 30%
- Experience of Project Manager – 20%
- Capacity to Perform Work Tasks – 30%
“Experience of Project Manager” will be reflected in Attachment #2 References/List of Relevant Work. The Approach to Project and Management of Subs should include your team’s “Sound Approach to Completing Elements of the Scope of Work” and “Capacity to Perform Work Tasks.”
3. Do you want to see an organizational chart of proposed team members and their resume/experience information? If so should this also be included in the “Approach to Project and Management of Subs” section?
Yes, please include a team organizational chart with brief experience summaries (a few sentences) for team members as a part of the Approach to Project Management of Subs section.
4. How many basins are in the existing inventory?
OKI is still collecting data from our stormwater partners but expects there to be several thousand unique points.
5. What attribute data are included in the existing inventory? Will flood frequencies and event dates be provided?
We expect the data available to be varied but include location, design capacities (if known), inspection notes, detention type, high water elevation, and volume.
6. Are site visits to perform inspections and condition assessments expected to be a part of the comprehensive evaluation? Will any new inventory data be created from site assessments?
There is potential for site visits for a small selection of basins to ground truth the desktop analysis but the bulk of the work is expected to be utilizing desktop tools.
7. Or will this evaluation primarily be a desktop exercise analyzing existing datasets?
See answer to question 6.
8. Will stamped professional engineering drawings be expected deliverables?
No.
9. Will surveying be an expected deliverable?
No unless selected firm determines it is necessary.
10. Will flow monitoring or modeling be expected deliverables?
There is no expectation for flow monitoring but we do expect some modeling to be a part of the analysis.
11. Will this evaluation be a high-level planning exercise that leads to future capital projects or O/M programs with the owners? If so, will the awarded firm(s) be precluded from bidding on any design, construction, or maintenance services that may be a result of this evaluation?
We expect this to be a high level planning exercise that will inform future capital projects by local stormwater management agencies. As OKI will not be the agency implementing those projects the awarded firm should not be precluded from bidding on any design, construction, or maintenance services that may result from this evaluation.
12. In Section 5.4 Deliverables, there is a #5 with no information. Is this a just a typo or is there a 5th deliverable that was omitted?
This is a typo. There are four key deliverables.
13. Is there a budget for the evaluation that can be shared?
We won’t be disclosing our budget for the project. The purpose of this RFQ request is to identify the most qualified applicant. Once selected, we will work with that applicant on a proposal that fulfills our project requirements and budget. We feel this prevents a budget figure from having an outsized influence on the selection process.
14. In section III, Instructions for submission of this SOQ, there are no requests of resumes throughout the SOQ, while requesting the experience of a strong project manager being 20% of the evaluation score. Are we supposed to place our project manager experience within the 5 page requirement for 3.1.2?
Please see the answers for questions 2-3 above.
15. Do we need to include resumes for our other proposed personnel as well?
Please see the answer to question 3 above. Detailed resumes are not needed at this stage.
16. Are there any specific formats or platforms that the data will be provided in?
The data will be in ESRI GIS format.
17. Are there any specific technical specifications or requirements that the civil engineering evaluation should adhere to?
No
18. Who are the key stakeholders that the selected firm should coordinate with during the evaluation process?
The key stakeholder is OKI with some probable coordination with local stormwater utilities in each of the four counties.
19. Are there any specific requirements or protocols for stakeholder engagement?
No
20. Will the evaluation criteria focus solely on system capacity and flood reduction or will other factors such as water quality or community benefit need to be considered? If there are other priority factors, can you provide a high level list?
Water quality and quantity benefits to receiving waters will be part of the evaluation but may be limited based on the quality of data for each basin. Full criteria will be developed with the selected firm.
21. Under your Response to Question 4 you mention that there will be several thousand unique points in the existing inventory. Are those locations problem areas, BMPs, locations of interest or a specific asset type? Can you share more about what asset types those several thousand points constitute?
The points available reflect the data available to us from local stormwater utilities and managers. Each point represents a stormwater BMP and not all of them will be relevant to the deeper analysis. Narrowing down the data set will be one of the first tasks.
22. ODOT does not have a prequalification requirement for the work being proposed. However, KYTC does have a drainage prequalification requirement. Would it be acceptable to submit an audited/approved Cognizant Certificate from KYTC to satisfy the last page of the RFQ in lieu of the ODOT “Firm Indirect Cost Rate Cognizant Review Approval Certificate”?
Because the work is being done in Ohio an overhead rate approved by the Ohio Department of Transportation is required. (See section 2.3.2(b) in the RFQ).
Further Clarification 10/30/2023: After further consultation with ODOT and internal discussions OKI has determined this project does not require pre-qualification or an approved overhead rate with ODOT. Having an ODOT approved overhead rate is preferred.
23. I am looking for a clarification on your answer [to 22]. We are currently working as a sub on the Brent Spence Bridge Project and ODOT is giving reciprocity for KDOT. Since the work is being performed in the tri-state area in several states, is their consideration for ODOT giving reciprocity for this project? Our team has a Cognizant Letter for KY and IN but not ODOT. Our only way to comply would be to submit info for the financial prequalification through ODOT (here: https://www.transportation.ohio.gov/programs/external-audits/audit-consultant/01-overhead-submittal) and note that our ODOT-approved rates are pending in the proposal. We understand that this process may not be quick.
The stormwater basin project is being funded with federal pass through dollars from ODOT. Work for the project will only cover basins in Butler, Clermont, Hamilton, and Warren Counties.
After further consultation with ODOT and internal discussions OKI has determined this project does not fall under a category requiring pre-qualification or an approved ODOT overhead rate. Therefore attachments 7 and 8 are not required, however, an approved ODOT overhead rate is preferred. Please provide in attachment 8 if available.