JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (March 18, 2011) – The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District held a pre-proposal meeting for contractors interested in submitting proposals to build the C-44 Reservoir and Stormwater Treatment Area (RSTA) component of the Indian River Lagoon-South (IRS-S) Everglades restoration project, March 17, 9 a.m. at The Wolf High-Technology Center at Indian River State College, Chastain Campus, 2400 SE Salerno Road, Stuart, FL 34997. More than 200 contractors and business owners attended to learn more about the IRL-S, C-44 project, how to do business with the Corps, small business opportunities and the contracting process.
After presentations by the Corps' Orlando Ramos-Gines, senior project manager, Rafael Velez, engineering technical lead, Beth Myers, deputy for small business and Veronica Taylor, contract specialist, participants had an opportunity to network with staff from the Corps of Engineers and the South Florida Water Management District, the local sponsor on the project.
In the afternoon, participants were taken on a windshield tour of the project site. Corps Resident Engineer Doug Wood led a caravan through two of the major construction locations for the first phase of the project: the site of the intake canal, bridge, access road to the future reservoir, and staging area; and the site of the C-133A and C-133 Canals and eastern access road.
“The goal of this meeting was to share information with potential contractors that will help them understand the scope of the project, its benefits, federal contracting processes, and small business opportunities, so that they are well prepared to submit thorough, accurate proposals during the Request for Proposals process,” said Ramos-Gines.
There are three construction contracts. The first contract includes the construction of the intake and C-133A and C-133 Canals, access roads, a new Citrus Boulevard bridge and culverts, and construction staging area. The estimated construction period for the first contract is about 2.5 years, second contract (reservoir and pump station) about 2.5 years and third contract (stormwater treatment area) about two years. The solicitation number for the first contract is W912EP-11-R-0008 and can be found on FBO.gov. The proposal receipt date for the project is currently scheduled for April 26, 2011 with contract award scheduled for May 26, 2011 and Notice to Proceed on June 26, 2011.
The C-44 RSTA is approximately 12,000 acres that includes a 3,400-acre reservoir with a maximum storage capacity of 50,600 acre-feet and a pump station with a capacity to pump 1,100 cubic feet per second (cfs) of water. The completed C-44 RSTA project, which has a seven-year construction timeline, will capture local runoff from the C-44 basin and provide numerous benefits, including a reduction in the average annual total nutrient loads and an improved salinity regiment for the St. Lucie Estuary and southern portion of the Indian River Lagoon.