25-51 Grounds Maintenance

The Bay County Board of County Commissioners (County) seeks bids from qualified contractors to provide all labor, materials, equipment, tools, transportation, and supplies required for the performance of grounds maintenance at various Bay County locations in accordance with requirements described in the Scope of Work (Exhibit 2).

Bidder shall complete the form in Attachment 1 and submit with the bid documents.  References should be available to be contacted during normal working hours. The County will choose, at its own discretion, references to contact in order to complete the evaluation questionnaire in Attachment 1. In the event that the Bidder has performed work as a prime vendor for the County within the last five years, the County shall attempt to contact one County and one non-County reference.  The County will attempt to contact each selected reference by phone. In the event that the contact person cannot be reached, the Bidder shall receive a score of zero (0) for that reference evaluation. The County will not attempt to correct incorrectly supplied information.

Bidders who receive less than a satisfactory evaluation may not be considered a qualified bidder by the County.

A MANDATORY Pre-Bid Meeting will be held at 10:00 am (CDT) Thursday, July 24, 2025 in the Purchasing Department, at 840 W. 11 ^th Street, Suite 2500, Panama City, Florida 32401.

Note: Respondents shall attend the pre-bid meeting. Any respondent who fails to attend will be deemed non-responsive and automatically disqualified from further consideration. The purpose of this meeting is to familiarize respondents with the project and answer questions. All respondents must be present and signed in prior to the start of the Mandatory Pre-Bid Meeting. The convener of the meeting will collect the sign in sheet(s) and the meeting will “Officially” start. Anyone not signed in at the “Official” start of the meeting will be considered late and will not be allowed to propose on the project. Please allow 10 to 15 minutes to sign in prior to the start of the Mandatory Pre-Bid Meeting.

In the event that any discussions or questions at the pre-bid meeting or afterward require additional clarification the COUNTY will issue a written summary of questions and answers as an addendum to this Invitation to Bid.

ELECTRONIC OR SEALED PAPER BIDS for ITB NO: 25-51 Grounds Maintenance will be received by the BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF BAY COUNTY, FLORIDA up until 2:00 pm (CDT) Thursday, August 14, 2025. Bids will be publicly opened immediately following the deadline. ANY BID RECEIVED AFTER THE SPECIFIED TIME WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED.

Bids for this solicitation may be submitted either electronically via OPENGOV PROCUREMENT or by paper, sealed and delivered to the Board of County Commissioners Purchasing Department, at 840 W. 11 ^th Street, Suite 2500, Panama City, Florida 32401.

Bidders electing to submit paper bids should submit one (1) original bid package. Bids shall be enclosed in a sealed envelope bearing the title of the work, the name of the bidder, and the date for opening. It is the sole responsibility of the bidder to ensure that the bid is received on time.

Each bid shall be valid to Bay County for a period of ninety (90) days after the bid opening. The County will check the bids and notify the selected bidder at the earliest opportunity.

Special Accommodation:  Any person requiring a special accommodation at a Pre-Bid Conference or Bid opening because of a disability should call the Purchasing Department   at (850) 248-8270 at least five (5) workdays prior to the Pre-Bid Conference or Bid opening.   For Hearing Impaired, Dial 1-800-955-8771 (TOO), and 1-800-955-8770 (Voice).

Electronic versions of the solicitation documents are available via OpenGov Procurement https://procurement.opengov.com/portal/baycountyfl

Bid documents, plans, blueprints, or other materials may also be obtained by contacting the Bay County Purchasing Department, For security reasons, you must enable JavaScript to view this E-mail address. , 840 West 11 ^th Street, Suite 2500, Panama City, FL 32401, (850) 248-8270.

For those projects with separate plans, blueprints, or other materials that cannot be accessed through the internet, the Purchasing Department will make a good faith effort to ensure that all registered bidders (those who have been registered as receiving a bid package) receive the documents.

If any addenda are issued after the initial specifications are released, the County will post the addenda on the County website or OpenGov. It is the responsibility of the bidder prior to submission of any bid to check the above website or contact the Purchasing Department to verify any addenda issued.  The receipt of all addenda must be acknowledged on the addenda response sheet.