Seminole State College of Florida (SSC) is requesting qualifications and input from architectural and engineering firms on how best to transform a 10-acre parcel near its main campus in Sanford.
In February, SSC formally announced Norman and Jean Gould had donated 10 acres of land that included an 80,000-square-foot building. The property, valued at $4.1 million, at one time was the site of the family's publishing business, Gould Publishing.
The college has yet to determine how the property will be used, though John Gyllin, executive director for the Foundation of Seminole State College, told the Orlando Sentinel in March that the property most likely would not be used for academics. He suggested the property could be used for ancillary uses, like maintenance, or leased as commercial space to third parties to provide revenue for the college.
The Request For Qualifications from architectural firms (RFQ #16-17-07), first announced on Oct. 21, seeks input in determining how to use the property.
Among the services SSC expects the firm ultimately selected by the Board of Trustees to provide are a programming/onceptional plan and a scope of work statement with preliminary cost estimate.
The college also wants the successfully bidder to consider renovation of all the building systems, evaluate all structure and internal layouts, recommend site improvements, coordinate with appropriate government agencies, create design and construction drawings and specifications, assist in the bid process and evaluation of the construction contract, and provide administrative review and observation during the construction phase and the 11-month warranty review.
Firms will be evaluated on several criteria, including team composition, previous experience, services and quality control, overall quality of the submittal, and references.
At least three firms will be selected as semifinalists and will be required to make presentations. They will be critiqued on their financial statement, as well as their presentation and interview.
Firms interested in being considered for selection must submit their qualifications by 2 p.m. on Nov. 21. A non-mandatory pre-submittal meeting is scheduled for 10 a.m., Nov. 4.
A selection committee made up of staff and faculty of the college will review the submittals and announce the semifinalist at a meeting scheduled for 1 p.m., Dec. 1. Semifinalists will make presentations on Dec. 7, and the Board of Trustees will make the final selection at its Jan. 23, 2017 meeting.
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