1. REQUEST

The Town of Virgin, in partnership with the Zion Regional Collaborative, is soliciting proposals from qualified firms to complete an update and extension of the Zion Scenic Byway Corridor Management Plan.

2. PROJECT BACKGROUND

In 1990, the Utah State Legislature designated the entirety of State Route 9 (SR-9) as a State Scenic Byway. The Zion Park Scenic Byway covers approximately 57 miles, spanning the distance between I-15 in Hurricane, UT and I-89 in Mt. Carmel Junction, UT.

In 2008, a group of committed stakeholders from the Zion Region began meeting to discuss pursuit of National Scenic Byway designation for SR-9. The Zion Canyon Corridor Council (ZC3), as the group came to be known, assembled funding for a Corridor Management Plan (as required by the FHWA for designation). At the time of the plan's development, Kane County and Hurricane City opted out of the CMP process. For that reason, the Zion Scenic Byway Corridor Management Plan covers only the portion of SR-9 between La Verkin City and the East Entrance of Zion National Park. The Corridor Management Plan was completed in 2011 and received approval through a joint resolution of Utah's Senate and House of Representatives that year.

The Zion Scenic Byway was officially recognized as a National Scenic Byway in 2021, receiving federal designation for the portion of SR-9 between La Verkin and the East Entrance of the Park, with a gap in the Town of the Virgin. While the Town of Virgin was part of the initial CMP, they elected to forgo designation in 2021. The Town intends to apply for designation during the next cycle and is thrilled to be participating in this project as its official sponsor.

Immediately following this designation, the ZRC convened a Scenic Byway Committee to discuss next steps. Recognizing the significant length of time that had passed since the CMP was initially developed, this group prioritized an update of the document. The Scenic Byway Committee also recognized an opportunity to invite Kane County and Hurricane back into this process.

This year, the ZRC and the Town of Virgin applied to the Utah Department of Transportation for Technical Planning Assistance funds to support this project and received an award, which will be matched by local funds. As a non-legal entity, the ZRC requires a fiscal agent and is appreciative to the Town of Virgin for serving in this capacity for the CMP project.

3. PROJECT AREA

The Project will encompass the entire length of State Route 9 between I-15 in Hurricane and US-89 in Kane County. The CMP will cover not only the exact Byway corridor, but any assets, opportunities, or issues that are identified as having significant connection to the Byway (with varying distance from the precise route).

4. CMP UPDATE AND EXTENSION SCOPE OF WORK

Using the existing Corridor Management Plan (2011), new research and data aggregation, guidance from the Scenic Byway Committee, public feedback, and other resources, the consultant will develop an updated Corridor Management Plan for the Zion Scenic Byway, which extends the scope of the document along the full-length of State Route 9. Preparation of this document should include the below tasks and responsibilities:

1. Project Management
2. Stakeholder Engagement
3. Public Outreach
4. Background Research and Review
5. Corridor Research and Data Aggregation
6. Development of Draft Document
7. Preparation of Final Document
8. Legislative Session Support

Task 1 – Project Management (All Tasks):

The consultant will provide monthly invoices to the Town of Virgin for approval and timely payment. Along with invoices, the consultant will prepare and submit monthly progress reports to the ZRC Scenic Byway Committee. The consultant shall meet with the ZRC Scenic Byway Committee as-needed and provide project progress reports throughout the life of the project.

Task 2 - Stakeholder Engagement

The consultant will coordinate with the Scenic Byway Committee and other key stakeholders throughout the CMP development process. Upon awarding a contract, the Scenic Byway Committee will convene for a project kick-off with the selected consultant to establish a schedule for ongoing meetings. The consultant will help develop meeting agendas, facilitate as-needed, and document essential takeaways/decisions.

Task deliverables: Attendance at Scenic Byway Committee meetings

Task 3 - Public Outreach

The consultant will develop a public outreach strategy, in conjunction with the Scenic Byway Committee and other key stakeholders, that seeks to engage members of the public through a variety of methods and means. Elements of this strategy are likely to include: public surveys, news media articles, social media posts (to be disseminated by project partners), in-person meetings, and virtual gatherings.

Task Deliverables: Public outreach strategy, minimum of 4 CMP Workshops/Meetings

Task 4 - Background Research and Review

The consultant will conduct a review of the existing Corridor Management Plan (2011), Interpretive Plan (2015), and other essential documents related to this project; following this review, the consultant will identify key areas to be addressed. The consultant will also conduct research into parallel planning processes to prevent duplicating efforts. Using that background, the consultant will identify unique focus areas for this plan and areas of redundancy where limited effort is sufficient.

Task Deliverables: Brief summary of past and present planning efforts for review by the Scenic Byway Committee.

Task 5 - Corridor Research and Data Aggregation

The consultant will conduct research and accumulate data related to the Corridor Management Plan, as-needed. This research is likely to include an inventory of Byway assets in Hurricane and Kane County, updated information related to Byway assets elsewhere along the Corridor, etc. The Scenic Byway Committee and other key stakeholders will work with the consultant to guide this research and data aggregation towards the development of a draft CMP.

Task Deliverables: Brief report summarizing corridor research and data aggregation

Task 6 - Development of Draft Document

The consultant will use stakeholder input, public feedback, background research, data aggregation, and other essential resources to draft an updated Corridor Management Plan. The CMP will encompass the entire project area, from Hurricane to Mt. Carmel Junction. It will contain all elements required by the Federal Highway Administration for National Scenic Byway Designation; per Task 2, the draft document may also contain the elements required for All-American Road Designation.

The Scenic Byway Committee has also requested that the document not only list potential projects as part of the plan, but should also use feedback from communities and stakeholders to prioritize these recommendations. The Committee is also interested in a CMP that contains elements which can be adapted into usable ordinances for local communities.

Task Deliverables: Draft Corridor Management Plan, in accordance with FHWA requirements

Task 7 - Preparation of Final Document

The consultant will use feedback provided during review of the draft document to prepare a final Corridor Management Plan. The consultant will work with the Byway Committee and other key stakeholders to determine the preferred format(s) for this document. Following the revision process, the consultant will work with the Scenic Byway Committee to present the updated CMP to municipal governments. The intended outcome of this process will be resolutions by councils approving the CMP that may be attached to the final document. The consultant may be called upon to help prepare these resolutions, as needed.

Task 6 Deliverables: Final Corridor Management Plan, with attached resolutions from each of the municipalities and local government entities approving the Plan

Task 8 - Legislative Session Support

Utah Code Section 72-4-301.5 states that, "Except as provided in Section 72-4-304, a highway or state scenic byway may not be nominated for designation as a National Scenic Byway or All-American Road unless the corridor management plan that will be submitted [...] is approved by the Legislature by concurrent resolution." The ZRC and the Town of Virgin anticipate undergoing this approval process with the updated Corridor Management Plan and seek consultant support throughout that effort. The consultant may be asked to conduct outreach to legislative officials, draft materials in support of the resolution, monitor key dates and deadlines, etc.

Task deliverables: Joint Resolution of the Utah House and Senate providing approval for the updated Corridor Management Plan

5. CONSULTANT QUALIFICATIONS

The Town of Virgin and the ZRC desire the following skills and capabilities in the consultant:

1. Experience with the National Scenic Byway Program, Federal Highway Administration, and/or Corridor Management Plan development.
2. Familiarity with the Zion Region and southwest Utah.
3. Proven ability to effectively respond to and resolve concerns.
4. Good working relationships with local and federal land management agencies, local, State and federal Departments of Transportation, municipal governments, and/or state legislatures.
5. Proven ability to engage communities effectively and successfully conduct public outreach.

6. BUDGET

The Town of Virgin and the ZRC anticipate the Corridor Management Plan Update and Extension will cost approximately $60,000. Consultants will be selected based on the best value and services provided within this budget.

7. SUBMITTAL REQUIREMENTS

Consultants interested in providing the services listed above should prepare and submit proposals pursuant to the details listed below. Submittals should be prepared economically and be as concise as possible. The preferred submittal length is under 10 pages. Submittals will be evaluated on quality of content, not on quality of presentation. Failure to include any of the required information is grounds for rejecting the proposal, regardless of the consultant's qualifications.

• Format:
• Proposals must be submitted in PDF format.
• Each page of the proposal must be numbered and must contain the consultant's name in the footer.
• Content: Proposals should contain all the information listed below. The proposal should present the information in the order it is listed below.
  • Letter of Transmittal. This letter must contain:
• The consultant's name, address, and contact information.
• A brief summary of the consultant's key qualifications.

Proposed Project Plan. Include a detailed description of how the consultant plans to provide the services listed in the “Scope of Work” section of this RFP. Include proposed project deliverables and a project timeline. Include any other services or products the consultant proposes.

Statement of Proposed Fees. Include the total compensation the consultant is seeking for the services listed in the “Scope of Work” section of this RFP.

• Statement of Qualifications.
  1. Relevant Experience.
  2. Key personnel involved in the project. List the name and relevant experience of the lead personnel that will be involved in the project.
  3. Sub-consultants. List any sub-consultants that will be involved in the project, along with their experience and qualifications.
  4. Additional Information (optional). This section should be limited to information not covered elsewhere in the proposal that is directly related to the consultant's qualifications to provide the services listed above.
• References. Provide name and phone contact information for three individuals who can provide a reference regarding the consultant's professional abilities.

Consultants must submit their proposals electronically in PDF format. The electronic submittal may be submitted via USB drive, or email to zioncollab@gmail.com with the subject line: Zion Scenic Byway CMP Update Proposal.

8. SELECTION PROCESS

Evaluation of submittals shall be on the following criteria:

• Consultant's professional experience and expertise (based on Section 5: Consultant Qualifications).
• Consultant's experience with Corridor Management Plans similar in scope, nature and complexity
• References
• Completeness / Quality of submission
• After consideration of all the criteria listed above, costs and value for services.

After an initial review the Selection Committee (ZRC Scenic Byway Committee) may elect to select a successful proposal. Alternatively, the Selection Committee may elect to contact proposers to ask for final and best offers, pursuant to the Town of Virgin procurement policy. After scoring all proposals (and all final and best offers, if applicable), the selection committee will make a recommendation to the Virgin Town Council regarding the successful proposal. The Virgin Town Council will formally award the work and enter into a contract with the consultant. The Consultant will prepare a draft contract and forward it via email to zioncollab@gmail.com no later than 10 days after the Town Council formally selects a consultant.

9. SCHEDULE

The selection process for the consultant will follow the schedule listed below.

• Request for Proposals Issued — August 7th 2024
• Deadline for submissions of Proposals — September 6th, 2024
• Selection Committee Recommendation to Town Council — September 17th, 2024
• Work begins Upon execution of contract

The Town reserves the right to modify the schedule at its sole discretion in order to best facilitate the selection and review process.

Requests for Information

All inquiries regarding this Request for Proposals should be directed to:

Emily Friedman
Zion Regional Collaborative Coordinator
203-451-9920
zioncollab@gmail.com

Note: This RFP has been abbreviated from its original version - the complete document is available on the ZRC Website.