The City of Birmingham
Department of Engineering / Public Services
Invitation to Bid
Master Plan for Rouge River Corridor
The City of Birmingham, Michigan, is a vibrant, prosperous community, with a
population of approximately 19,000. Covering only 4.73 square miles, the
community is able to maintain the feel of a small town, while experiencing the
benefits of an urban area. The City of Birmingham prides itself in being “A
Walkable Community”. To further this initiative, the City is seeking proposals from
qualified consultants to develop a Master Plan for the Rouge River Trail Corridor
within the city limits. Sealed proposals labeled as “Master Plan for Rouge
River Trail Corridor”, will be received until 2:00 p.m., March 8, 2005, at:
City of Birmingham
Assistant Director of Public Services
851 South Eton Road
Birmingham, Michigan 48009
After which no further bids will be accepted; and at which time the bids received
will be publicly opened and read. Faxed or emailed bid proposals will not be
accepted or considered.
Acceptance of any proposal made pursuant to this invitation shall not be binding
upon the City until a contract has been signed by both parties and a written
purchase order has been delivered to the successful bidder. All proposals shall
specify terms and show completion dates. The Birmingham City Commission
reserves the right to reject any or all proposals; to waive any informality or
irregularity in the proposals received; and to accept any proposal which it shall
deem to be most favorable to the interest of the City.
Experience in parks and recreation master planning, and specifically nonmotorized transportation/trail planning, design, and construction is required and
qualification statements, descriptions of similar project experience with
references, as well as brief staff resumes must be included with each proposal.
The City of Birmingham reserves the right to determine the acceptability of
qualifications.
The objective of this project is to develop a detailed trail master plan for the City
of Birmingham. The plan will identify specific goals and trail improvements such
as trail surface material, trail connections via bridges, stairways, ramps,
cantilevered walkways, viewing areas, signage, fern and fauna identification, and
management program. The Master Plan should identify concerns and desires for
the corridor as expressed by residents, City Commission, and Parks and
Recreation Board. Proposals must also allow for meetings with staff, appropriate
boards, City Commission, and the general public. Narrative included in the
proposal must address the consultant’s expectations for staff involvement as
well. The Rouge River Corridor Master Plan must build upon the Downtown
Birmingham 2016 Plan, and the City’s current Recreation Master Plan. A
preliminary schedule for completion along with a detailed description of the
process and associated fees must be submitted with all proposals. The fee for
services must be identified per task “not to exceed” amount in all proposals
submitted to the City and must be in the form of a detailed cost breakdown
according to the key elements of the project.
Robert J. Fox
Department of Public Services
3
General Description
A portion of the Rouge River flows through the City of Birmingham from the
northeast and northwest into Quarton Lake and continues southwest. The portion
of the river that traverses through Birmingham creates pristine views and
opportunities for public recreation. The majority of the river corridor is wooded
with segments of informal woodchip trails throughout. Over the years, the City of
Birmingham has continually looked for opportunities to purchase property along
the Rouge River corridor to establish continuous public access along the river, to
provide a buffer between development and the river for water quality purposes,
and to preserve essential ecological functions and biological diversity.
The Birmingham 2016 Plan identifies the development of a green corridor along
the Rouge River from Booth Park to Lincoln as a high priority project. The plan
recognizes the value that the publicly owned corridor provides and the
opportunity to connect neighborhoods to each other, to parks and to the
downtown. Making the corridor accessible will also provide access to natural
areas and unique recreational activities. In addition, during the development of
the City’s Recreation Master Plan in 2000, there was strong public desire for
continuous, accessible and safe pathways throughout the City. General
improvements to the Rouge corridor were proposed in the Recreation Master
Plan’s Capital Improvements Schedule.
The City is also nearing completion of a multi-year, multi-million dollar
environmental and recreation improvement project at Quarton Lake.
Improvements have included dredging, habitat creation, shoreline stabilization,
and dam renovations. In 2005, recreation and landscaping improvements will be
completed, including a non-motorized trail along the length of the park. The City
has also completed design of Phase I improvements at Booth Park, which are
expected to be constructed in 2005. These improvements include shoreline
stabilization and naturalization of the Rouge River. Additional improvements to
Booth Park have been discussed at great length and include playground
improvements, an entryway to the park, as well as non-motorized connections.
After the City’s Recreation Master Plan was adopted, residents worked
successfully to get a $25 million Recreation Bond issue passed in November
2001 to begin implementation of the City-wide Master Plan.
The general scope of work provided below is designed to give bidders a guide
from which to establish various costs for this project. The final Master Plan will be
a detailed decision-making tool and reference documenting the public
involvement process, recommendations for improvements, as well as detailed
costs for development of phasing plans, grant opportunities, and capital
expenditure forecasts.
Task One—Existing Conditions Analysis
The consultant will meet with the Public Services staff to collect existing
information including GIS data, aerials, maps, property ownership information,
4
invasive species and shoreline stabilization efforts, existing trail locations, and
related planning efforts and work completed to date. Once the existing data has
been gathered, the consultant will walk the entire corridor with City staff to gain
an understanding and document system constraints and opportunities including
prospective bridge locations and existing uses.
Task Two—Preliminary Input Meetings
The consultant will conduct two public workshop sessions with staff. The City
may exercise the option of additional meetings if necessary, to present the
Existing Conditions analysis and to gain an understanding of various issues,
concerns, and desires for the Rouge River Trail Corridor. These meetings will be
held with the Parks and Recreation Board and other appropriate city boards and
the City Commission. The meetings will be conducted at times and dates as
arranged between the consultant and the City. The consultant will prepare all
materials necessary for the meetings and provide a written summary of each
meeting to staff.
Task Three—Plan Review Graphics and Recommendations and
Recommended Uses
The consultant will utilize the results of the Existing Conditions Analysis and the
input gathered at the involvement meetings to prepare a recommended Master
Plan for the Rouge River Trial Corridor. The Master Plan will include:
 Plan view graphics illustrating
 Potential connections and routes within the Rouge River corridor
 Methods and routes to connect neighborhoods, parks, the
downtown, and adjacent communities to the river corridor such as
bridges, ramps, stairways, trail surface(s) for walking, biking,
jogging, rollerblades, etc.
 Primary entry points to the trail system
 Potential locations for trail amenities such as sitting, viewing and
educational areas
 Samples of trail signage
 Recommendations and Information regarding
 Goals for the Rouge River Trail Corridor System
 Pros and cons of various trail surface materials
 Magnitude of cost estimates for the system based on materials, etc.
 Potential solutions for areas that may be difficult to cross or connect
 Sensitive areas of the corridor and areas needing erosion control
and bank stabilization
 Trail map brochure
Task Four—Presentation of Draft Review of Master Plan for the Rouge
River Trail Corridor
5
The consultant will hold two public meetings. One in front of the Parks and
Recreation Board and one in front of the City Commission (ensuring that all those
involved in the initial input meetings are aware and invited to attend) to present
the Draft Master Plan for the Rouge River Trail Corridor. The recommendations
will be reviewed and input gathered for further refinement of the Plan.
The meeting will be conducted at a time and date as arranged between the
consultant and the City. The consultant will prepare all materials necessary for
the meeting and provide a written summary of the meeting to staff.
Task Five—Finalize Master Plan for the Rouge River Trail Corridor
Utilizing the input gathered at the Parks and Recreation Board and City
Commission meeting, the consultant will modify the plan and finalize all graphics,
recommendations and probable cost estimates. The final Master Plan
recommendations will include refined graphics, typical cross sections, supporting
materials, cost estimates, as well as recommendations for phasing, and funding
options.
Task Six—Final Deliverables
After the final plan is presented to the Parks and Recreation Board, the
consultant will put together a master plan report that will document the process,
the involvement sessions, findings, and recommendations. A summary
PowerPoint presentation of the master plan will also be assembled for use by the
City in future presentations. Final deliverables include:
 Twenty-five (25) copies of the final Master Plan report
 Copies of all meeting summaries
 PowerPoint presentation of final plan
 Two (2) display size boards of the final plan view
 Electronic .PDF version of the master plan
 Electronic File Format of SHP (GIS compatible) or DWG or DGN (CAD
File). Either version is to use the following projection: NAD 1983
StatePlane Michigan South FIPS 2113 Intlfeet
Task Seven—Final Presentation to City Commission
The consultant will attend a City Commission meeting to present the Final Master
Plan for the Rouge River Trail Corridor. The presentation will occur during a
regularly scheduled City Commission meeting at a date to be determined.
6
Additional Items
Meetings with City Staff
Beyond the meetings identified above, the consultant should anticipate meeting
with City staff to review project status, progress, as many times as necessary
during the life of the project.
Schedule
Assuming a contract award and project start date in March 2005, please provide
an anticipated schedule for project completion by task as it appears below.
Fees
The consultant is to provide fees for the following:
Project Task One
$_________________Time to complete_______________
Project Task Two
$_________________Time to complete_______________
Project Task Three $_________________Time to complete_______________
Project Task Four
$_________________Time to complete_______________
Project Task Five
$_________________Time to complete_______________
Project Task Six
$_________________Time to complete_______________
Project Task Seven $_________________Time to complete_______________
Grand Total
$___________________________
A fee for professional services must be identified as a “not to exceed” amount in
all proposals submitted to the City and must be in the form of a detailed cost
breakdown according to the key elements and tasks of the project.
Reimbursable expenses, such as additional printing/duplication of report cost, will
be billed at direct cost plus ________% administrative charge. Normal
reimbursable expenses associated with the above project tasks should be
included in the estimated fees.