PUBLIC NOTICE
SOQ NO. 22-016
 
Bucktown Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities
(BRIC) Scoping Grant
 
The Parish of Jefferson is hereby soliciting the submittal of a Statement of Qualifications (Technical Evaluation Committee (TEC) Questionnaire) from persons or firms interested and qualified to support an anticipated FEMA Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) Scoping award to reduce flood risk and subsidence by identifying stormwater management solutions, with an emphasis on green infrastructure, in the Bucktown neighborhood of Metairie. Proposed solutions will be developed with hydraulic and hydrologic modeling and FEMA validated benefit cost analysis. Jefferson Parish anticipates using the work as the basis for a forthcoming BRIC application to support construction, or other federal funding submission opportunity that may arise. (Council District 5)
 
(Resolution No. 139147)                                  (Submission Deadline: April 19, 2022)
 
General
 
The general scope of the project includes the following which will be further refined during contract negotiation:
Coordination with relevant Parish administrative departments and/or Council Offices, including but not limited to: Floodplain Management & Hazard Mitigation, Drainage, Ecosystem and Coastal Management, Planning, Engineering, Streets, Parkways, Environmental Affairs and Council District 5.
Advanced 2-dimensional (2D) Hydraulic and Hydrologic (H+H) Modeling to holistically evaluate the existing stormwater conditions and validate potential solutions.  The team will produce a final modeling report and methodology that justifies the selection of the preferred solution(s).
Alternatives Analysis and Solution(s) Development to identify the preferred suite of structural and/or non-structural flood risk reduction measures.
Benefit Cost Analysis (BCA) using the FEMA approved BCA tool or other methodology accepted by FEMA.  The team will be expected to produce a BCA methodology that clearly articulates the rationale for all benefits claimed.
Public Engagement with the Bucktown neighborhood and key stakeholders to inform and solicit feedback on the overall project intent and timeline, alternatives considered, and the preferred solution(s) and residual flood risk.  It is preferred that the team have visualization and communications skills to clearly communicate all H+H modeling, alternatives analysis, preferred solution, and residual risk to the public.
Project Scoping, Engineering and Cost Estimating to support the preferred solution(s) and inform the BCA.
Projects may include the following supplemental services:  surveying and geotechnical services. 
The Council, at its discretion, may choose one or more qualified firms to provide the services.
 
 
Compensation
 
Compensation for the required design services will be made on an hourly rate basis or a fixed fee basis, or a combination of both, depending on scope and complexity of the work.  The Parish reserves the right to determine the method of payment (hourly or fixed) for each individual assignment.
 
For hourly rate work, the firm shall be compensated on the basis of their certified and itemized salary costs plus a fee to cover overhead costs and profit in accordance with guidelines established in Attachment “A” to the Standard Professional Services Agreement for Jefferson Parish.  A copy of Attachment “A” may be obtained by calling the Jefferson Parish Department of Capital Projects at (504) 736-6779.
 
For fixed fee work, the fee shall be negotiated with the firm by the Jefferson Parish Department of Ecosystem and Coastal Management and shall be mutually agreeable to both parties. 
 
Compensation for supplemental services, if required, shall be in the form of a “lump sum” for each supplemental service, which shall be mutually agreeable to the Parish and the Consultant. 
 
All costs associated with this project shall be subject to Jefferson Parish review and approval.
 
A maximum cap established by Jefferson Parish based on anticipated needs for these services shall be $300,000, and the established cap shall not be increased without Council approval.  
 
Minimum Requirements for Selection 
The persons or firms under consideration shall have at least one (1) principal who is a licensed, registered architect or a professional engineer in the State of Louisiana (Section C. of TEC Professional Services Questionnaire); 
The persons or firms under consideration shall have a professional in charge of the Project who is a licensed, registered engineer or architect in the State of Louisiana with a minimum of five (5) years’ experience (Section K. “PROFESSIONAL IN CHARGE OF PROJECT:” of TEC Professional Services Questionnaire); 
The persons or firms under consideration shall have one (1) employee who is a licensed, registered architect or professional engineer in the State of Louisiana in the applicable discipline involved.  A subcontractor may meet this requirement only if the advertised Project involves more than one discipline (Section D. of TEC Professional Services Questionnaire). 
Principal is defined as the sole proprietor of the firm, or one who shares an ownership interest with other persons in the firm, including but not limited to, a partner in a partnership, a shareholder in a corporation, or a member of a limited liability corporation.
 
Desired Qualifications
 
Persons or firms with expertise and applicable credentials in federal program management, civil engineering, water resources engineering, landscape architecture and urban planning. 
Extensive experience managing compliance for federal funding resources, including but not limited to: FEMA Public Assistance (FEMA PA), FEMA Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP), FEMA Non-Disaster Hazard Mitigation Assistance (HMA) Programs, Community Development Block Grant – Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) and Community Development Block Grant – Mitigation (CDBG-MIT) funds. 
 
Extensive experience with stormwater management planning at local, parish and regional scales in Louisiana. 
Extensive experience planning, designing, and implementing green infrastructure and other stormwater BMPs in South Louisiana. 
Extensive Experience assisting communities in the design and implementation of non-structural flood risk reduction measures. 
Demonstrated history of understanding how to satisfy multiple community demands during the infrastructure planning and design process (ex: merging stormwater management with ecosystem services, recreational amenities, economic development and placemaking priorities). 
Evaluation Criteria
 
The following criteria shall be used to evaluate each firm submitting a Statement of Qualifications: 
 
Professional training and experience in relation to stormwater management including, but not limited to, planning, designing, and implementing green infrastructure and other stormwater BMPs, hydrologic and hydraulic modeling, biological and environmental assessments, design analysis and reports, technical evaluations, cost estimates, field investigations, grant writing, outreach and educational support (Maximum points awarded shall be 35).
Size of firm considering the number of professional and support personnel required to perform the type of engineering tasks, including project evaluation, project design, drafting of technical plans, development of technical specifications and construction administration (Maximum points shall be 20).
Capacity for timely completion of newly assigned work, considering the factors of type of engineering task, current unfinished workload, and person or firm’s available professional and support personnel – (Maximum points shall be 20).
Past Performance by person or firm on projects of or similar comparable size, scope, and scale.  Assertions of fault by a person or firm, which shall include time delays, cost over-runs, and or design inadequacies in prior work completed for the Parish shall be evidenced by substantiating documentation provided by the Director of Public Works for the requesting department or the Director of Engineering and received by the Chairman of the Evaluation Committee a minimum of two (2) weeks prior to the scheduled date of the Technical Evaluation Committee meeting (Maximum points awarded shall be 10).
Location of the principal office.  Preference shall be given to persons or firms with a principal business office as follows:  (1)  Jefferson Parish, including municipalities located within Jefferson Parish (15 points); (2)  Neighboring Parishes of the Greater New Orleans Metropolitan Region, which includes Orleans, Plaquemines, St. Bernard, St. Charles, St. Tammany (12 Points); (3)  Parishes other than the foregoing (10 Points); (4)  Outside the State of Louisiana (6 Points) (Maximum points awarded shall be 15).
Adversarial legal proceedings between the Parish and the person or firm performing professional services, in which the Parish prevailed or any ongoing adversarial legal proceedings between the Parish and the person of firm performing professional services, excluding those instances or cases where the person or firm was added as an indispensable party, or where the person or firm participated in or assisted the public entity in prosecution of its claim.  In the event that the person or firm fails to provide accurate and detailed information regarding legal proceedings with the Parish, including the absence of legal proceedings, the person or firm shall be deemed unresponsive with regard to this category, and zero (0) points shall be awarded (Maximum points awarded shall be 15 for the lack of any such adversarial proceedings as defined).
Prior successful completion of projects of the type and nature of the engineering services, as defined, for which firm has provided verifiable references (Maximum points awarded shall be 15). 
Each firm’s lowest and highest score shall be dropped and not count towards the firm’s score. Only those persons or firms receiving an overall cumulative score of at least seventy percent (70%) or greater, of the total possible points for all categories to be assigned by the participating Technical Evaluation Committee members shall be deemed qualified to perform engineering consulting tasks.
 
All firms must submit a Statement of Qualifications (TEC Questionnaire) and must identify all sub-consultant firms which they expect to use to provide professional services, and submit a Statement of Qualifications (TEC Questionnaire) for each sub-consultant firm. (Refer to Jefferson Parish Code Ordinance, Section 2-928).
 
All firms (including sub-consultants) must submit a Statement of Qualifications (Jefferson Parish TEC Questionnaire) by the deadline.  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.  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.   
         
No submittals will be accepted after the deadline.
 
Affidavits are not required to be submitted with the Statement of Qualifications (TEC Questionnaire) but shall be submitted prior to contract approval.
 
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: March 16, 2022