PUBLIC NOTICE
RFQ NO. 22-029
 
Construction Management at Risk (CMAR) Services for the EAT Fat City Center
 
Deadline for Submissions: July 1, 2022 at 3:30 p.m.
 
The Parish of Jefferson is hereby requesting the submittal of a Request for Qualifications from person(s) or firm(s) interested and qualified to provide Construction Management at Risk (CMAR) services for the EAT Fat City Center, a community campus for entrepreneurship, art, & technology and its associated transportation hub/parking garage. (Council District 5)
 
Jefferson Parish’s vision is to create a collaborative resource center that will make available opportunities to explore options in entrepreneurship, the arts, and technology sectors. The owner, Jefferson Parish (“Parish”), is issuing this Request for Qualifications (“RFQ”) for Construction Management at Risk (CMAR) services, for a new multi-faceted municipal building described herein as the project (“Project”).
 
In response to this RFQ, in accordance with Louisiana Revised Statute 38:2225.2.4, the intent is to receive a Request for Qualifications (“RFQ”) from qualified respondents (“Proposers”). Each RFQ must be submitted in strict accordance with the conditions prescribed herein.
 
Proposers are required to have recent experience performing Preconstruction Phase Services and Construction Phase Services for comparable projects to the facility required by this Project. Only those Proposers who have experience and qualified staff under current employment will be considered. A Selection Review Committee (“Evaluation Committee”) will evaluate the RFQ’s and the Jefferson Parish Council will thereafter select the Preconstruction Manager (“PCM”) as described herein.
 
Architectural services are being solicited, and the successful PCM will join the Parish and Architect as a member of the project delivery team. The Parish has also secured ReForm RES, LLC who will serve as a representative of the Parish through a Project Management Contract and as the Project’s Program Manager (“Program Manager”).
 
The Parish’s objective in issuing this RFQ is to identify a qualified Louisiana State Licensed General Contractor to join the Parish and Architect to perform Preconstruction Phase Services as the Preconstruction Manager (“PCM”). Should the Parish accept a Guaranteed Maximum Price (“GMP”) proposal from the PCM, the intent is to enter into a Construction Phase Services contract with the PCM as the Construction Manager at Risk (“CMAR”). The benefit of this objective is concurrent collaboration through design and construction to reduce overall project risks, schedule, and cost. The Parish desires to minimize potential for design and construction disputes inherent in conventional project delivery methods.
 
Jefferson Parish drives economic growth across Greater New Orleans and the State of Louisiana, serving as the logistical hub of the ten-parish region and home to one of the fastest growing airports in the United States with strategic access to major highways, railways, and waterways, including the Mississippi River.  To foster its ongoing success, it would be beneficial for unincorporated Jefferson Parish to improve Fat City as its “city center”— an urban community that is its social, economic, and cultural core, stimulating the creative economy, offering urban living, attracting new residents, incubating start-ups, and growing business.
 
To this end, Jefferson Parish has developed a vision for the EAT Fat City Center, a campus of activity that facilitates the respective advancement and positive interaction of various agencies, offices, organizations, community leaders, industry experts, and the public-at-large across numerous fields and disciplines, especially in relation to: Entrepreneurship, Art, and Technology.
 
It is anticipated that the EAT Fat City Center will link together an array of public and private entities, increasing their proximity to people who need their services most. Whether someone is starting a business, looking for workers, seeking job training, or looking for a new career path, the EAT Fat City Center will act as a one-stop resource center for economic development.
 
Planned partners include: a technology library & makerspace, a workforce development office, an east bank satellite office for the Jefferson Parish Economic Development Commission (JEDCO), an office for the Metairie Business Development District (MBDD), a business incubator space, a co-working space, hot desk space, offices for local business organizations and associations, a transportation hub/public parking garage, and various shared amenities, including an ample amount of flexible meeting rooms to accommodate the region’s fluctuating business and community needs. Additionally, community leaders have expressed an interest in partnering to further expand the arts offerings within the EAT Fat City Center campus, especially with respect to digital, technological, visual, performing, and collaborative arts.
 
It is further planned that the EAT Fat City Center building will relate to an adjacent, to-be-designed outdoor recreational park, thereby allowing the two sites to be thoughtfully integrated and to collectively serve as a cohesive campus for shared hosting of community events and festivals. The current total campus footprint for the structures is approximately 49,000 sq. ft., adjacent to an additional outdoor park space of approximately 32,000 sq. ft. The anticipated size of the EAT Fat City Center building is 35,000–40,000 sq. ft.
 
The EAT Fat City Center will also include a structured parking garage/transportation hub with a target size of approximately 250 parking spaces. This structure may or may not be connected to the aforementioned EAT Fat City Center building. The structured parking will meet a core need to support the redevelopment of the neighborhood.
 
These square footage approximations for the building structures and park may be adjusted to enlarge the park/building footprint by potentially relocating the transportation hub/parking garage onto a separate nearby site so as to better serve both the EAT Fat City Center as well as the surrounding Fat City neighborhood.
 
MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS FOR EVALUATION & SELECTION
 
The persons or firms submitting a Request for Qualifications shall have the following minimum qualifications:
A minimum of five (5) years of experience as a licensed General Contractor.
Experience in new construction or renovation of commercial, educational, and/or similar facilities, with size, scale and complexity of projects comparable to this Project. Such projects must have had activity within the past ten (10) years. Completed projects or projects in-progress are acceptable.
Proposers shall demonstrate satisfactory experience in the delivery of similar projects using the Construction Management at Risk delivery method and/or other collaborative alternative project delivery methods.
Proposers shall certify that the legal entity executing any contract emanating from this RFQ is a duly-licensed General Contractor as required by the State of Louisiana. If the Proposer is a joint-venture or other combination of two or more companies, each of the companies must hold the proper license for the required minimum duration of five (5) years. 
EVALUATION CRITERIA
 
The following general criteria will be used in evaluating Requests for Qualifications:
 
Qualifications and Experience (70 points)

Location of General Contractor’s Office and Distance to Project Site (5 points);
Business Organization and History of the Proposer (5 points);
Professional Training and Experience of Key Personnel Assigned to the Project, Including Resumes and Lists of Projects (30 points); and
Past Performance on Projects of a Similar Nature to the Project (30 points). 
General Construction Team (50 points)

Workload of General Contractor, Including Number of Current Projects, Value, and Available Staff (30 points); and
Preconstruction Phase Staffing and Construction Phase Staffing Plans (20 points). 
Methodology and Approach (80 points)

Preconstruction Phase Management and Construction Phase Management Plan Approach (17 points);
Cost, Schedule, and Quality Controls Plan (17 points);
Capabilities and Resources for Implementation (17 points);
Safety Management Plan Approach and Implementation (17 points); and
Cost Mitigation Strategies due to Potential Supply Chain Interruptions (12 points). 
The highest possible score is two hundred (200) points. The Evaluation Committee may elect, at their discretion, to hold interviews with the top three (3) scored respondents.
 
A MANDATORY Pre-Proposal Conference will be held at 2:00 pm on Wednesday, June 15, 2022 in the Joseph S. Yenni Building, located at 1221 Elmwood Park Blvd., Suite 405, Jefferson, LA70123.All interested parties are invited to attend.   All proposers must attend the Mandatory pre-proposal conference and will be required to sign in and out as evidence of attendance. In accordance with LA R.S. 38:2212(I), all prospective proposers shall be present at the beginning of the Mandatory pre-proposal conference and shall remain in attendance for the duration of the conference.  Any prospective proposers who fails to attend the conference or remain for the duration shall be prohibited from submitting a proposal for the project.
A General Professional Services Questionnaire, including professional license information, must accompany Request for Qualifications.  Please obtain the latest questionnaire form by contacting the Purchasing Department by telephone at (504) 364-2678 or via the Jefferson Parish website at www.jeffparish.net.  The submitting individual(s) or firms must identify all subcontractors who would assist in providing professional services for the project. Each subcontractor shall submit all documents and information included in the questionnaire. (Refer to Jefferson Parish Code Ordinance, Section 2-928).
 
All firms (including sub-consultants) must submit a Request for Qualifications (General Professional Services Questionnaire) by the deadline.  Submissions shall be submitted electronically only through Jefferson Parish’s e-Procurement site, Central Bidding, at www.jeffparishbids.net or www.centralauctionhouse.com.  Registration is required and free for Jefferson Parish vendors at www.centralauctionhouse.com/registration.php.
 
No RFQ submittals will be accepted after the deadline of July 1, 2022 at 3:30 p.m.
 
Affidavits are not required to be submitted with the Request for Qualifications (General Professional Services Questionnaire) but shall be submitted prior to contract approval.
 
In accordance with Louisiana Revised Statute 38:2225.2.4, there shall be no challenge by any legal process to the choice of the successful PCM/CMAR except for fraud, bias for pecuniary or personal reasons not related to the taxpayers' interest, or arbitrary and capricious selection by the owner.
 
Disputes/protests relating to the decisions by the evaluation committee or by the Jefferson Parish Council shall be brought before the 24th Judicial Court.
 
ADV: The New Orleans Advocate: June 1, 8, and 15, 2022