The Town of Miami Lakes (“Town”) issued RFP No. 2017-44 to procure Disaster Debris Management Services on April 27, 2017. As minimum qualification requirements Proposers must have a minimum of seven (7) years' experience and have successfully completed a minimum of five (5) projects with three of these projects awarded by a public entity. In addition, one of the public entity projects must have had a minimum of 250,000 cubic yards of debris.

Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) Public Assistance Program requirements stipulate that for the Town to be eligible for reimbursement of costs incurred for the removal and disposal of debris resulting from a disaster event the Town must have contracts for the removal, management/reduction, and disposal of debris resulting from a federal declared disaster.

On May 22, 2017, the Town received three (3) Proposals, which were determined to be responsive to the requirements of the RFP. The RFPs were evaluated on the following seven (7) criteria:

1. Qualifications, Experience of the Proposer;
2. Qualifications of Team and Staff;
3. Knowledge of FEMA Regulations and Procedures;
4. Operations Plan;
5. Financial Stability;
6. Minority/Women Participation; and
7. Price Proposal

An Evaluation Committee (“Committee”) was appointed to evaluate the proposals and establish the ranking of the firms. The Committee was comprised of the following individuals:

1. Tony Lopez, Chief of Operations, Chairperson for the Evaluation Committee
2. Ximena Suarez, Assistant to the Town Manager
3. Eliezer Palacio, Director, Building Department
4. Germán Cure, Administrative Services Manager

The Committee met on May 25, 2017. The Committee's ranking of the firms was as follows:

1. AshBritt, Inc. – 499.68 points
2. Ceres Environmental Services, Inc. – 487.96 points
3. DRC Emergency Services – 411 points

AshBritt is a disaster response and recovery contractor with over 25 years of experience. They have served as the Town's Disaster Debris Management contractor since 2012. In that time, the Town's experience with AshBritt has been a positive one. AshBritt is receptive to the Town's needs and we have not had any issues with their performance.

The Committee was impressed with the local knowledge and presence demonstrated in AshBritt's proposal. The company has established relationships with many local vendors and utilizes subcontractors that also have contracts with the Town. Furthermore, AshBritt has extensive experience providing disaster response services in the Miami-Dade area. It is clear from their proposal that they understand the intricacies of servicing our local area. Finally, AshBritt's headquarters is located in Deerfield Beach, a mere 38 miles from the Town.

The Committee also found the company had a strong financial status. AshBritt has access to at least $10,000,000 in credit and has a bonding capacity of $650,000,000. Their strong financial stability coupled with their local knowledge and presence gave AshBritt's proposal the competitive edge it needed to be the Evaluation Committee's top ranked firm.

Following the Evaluation Committee's recommendation, it is recommended that the Town Council authorize the Town Manager to execute a contract with AshBritt, Inc. for a period of three (3) years with the option to renew the agreement for two (2) additional one year periods.