Request for Proposals for Tree Trimming and/or Tree Removal

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS
FOR
TREE TRIMMING AND/OR TREE
REMOVAL
RFP OPENING DATE: October 8, 2026
RFP CLOSING DATE: October 29, 2026
Land Reutilization Authority of the City of St. Louis, Missouri
1520 Market Street, Suite 2000
St. Louis, MO 63103
Phone: (314) 657-3700
Fax: (314) 613-7011
www.stlouis-mo.gov/sldc

TABLE OF CONTENTS
I. Purpose and Intent ............................................................................................................ 1
II. Scope of Work ................................................................................................................... 1
III. Respondents' Minimum Qualifications .......................................................................... 2
IV. Required Proposal Contents ............................................................................................ 2
V. Proposal Evaluation .......................................................................................................... 3
VI. Contact Person & Questions ............................................................................................ 3
VII. Submission Deadline ......................................................................................................... 4
VIII. Insurance Requirements .................................................................................................. 4
IX. Living Wage ....................................................................................................................... 5
X. Service Contract Prevailing Wage .................................................................................. 6
XI. Additional RFP Terms and Conditions .......................................................................... 6
A. Indemnification ..................................................................................................... 6
B. Amendments .......................................................................................................... 6
C. Reservations........................................................................................................... 6
D. Right to Withdraw Proposal ................................................................................ 7
E. Revisions to this RFP ............................................................................................ 7
F. Contents of Proposals ........................................................................................... 7
G. Respondents' Responsibility ................................................................................ 8
XII. Terms to be Required in Contracts ................................................................................. 8
A. Non-Discrimination Policy ................................................................................... 8
B. Public Records Law .............................................................................................. 8
C. Unauthorized Alien Affidavit .............................................................................. 8
D. Anti-Discrimination Against Israel Act .............................................................. 8
E. Independent Contractor ....................................................................................... 9
F. Indemnification ..................................................................................................... 9
G. Termination ........................................................................................................... 9
XIII. Governing Law and Venue .............................................................................................. 9
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ESTIMATED SCHEDULE (SUBJECT TO CHANGE):
Date Activity/Time
10/08/2026 Request for Proposal Released
3:00 p.m., 10/20/2026 (CDT) Deadline for Questions by Email to Designated Contact
3:00 p.m., 10/29/2026 (CDT) Due Date of Response - NO EXCEPTIONS [3:00 p.m.(CDT)]
I. Purpose and Intent
Request for Proposals
St. Louis Development Corporation ("SLDC"), on behalf of the Land Reutilization Authority of
the City of St. Louis, Missouri ("LRA") and other agencies it staffs and supports, seeks proposals
for tree trimming and/or tree removal services to create a "short list" of contractors for trimming
and/or removal of large and dangerous trees and clean-up on an emergency basis. Hereinafter,
organizations interested in submitting a proposal in response to this Request for Proposals ("RFP")
shall be referred to as "Respondents."
Background and Project Description
LRA at times requires assistance to maintain the properties it owns and manages. Other agencies
that SLDC staffs (Land Clearance for Redevelopment Authority of the City of St. Louis ("LCRA")
and the Planned Industrial Expansion Authority of the City of St. Louis ("PIEA")) on occasion
may also own properties that require maintenance. Contractors will be called on an as-needed
basis to address urgent situations.
The funding of this project, is financed in part through a grant from the Department of
Housing and Urban Development and the Community Development Administration under
the provision of Title 1 of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 (Pub. L.
93-383 42 USC 5301 et seq.) and/or HOME Title II of the National Affordable Housing Act
of 1990, as amended (Pub. L. 101-625).
Duration of Awarded Contract
Contracts will be awarded during a two-year period, from January 1, 2025 through December 31,
2026.
II. Scope of Work
The nature of the services required will be as follows:
1. Tree removal consists of the removal of the tree to ground level.
2. Tree trimming consists of trimming trees back to a safe condition.
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3. All trees will be marked with an "XC" for the removal and "TC" for trim.
The emergency bid packages will be awarded to the lowest qualified bidder who is available for
the emergency service. The time frame for the completion for an emergency tree removal or
trim will range between 1-10 days depending on the severity of the tree damage or growth and
weather conditions.
Contractor shall furnish all supervision, labor, materials, machinery, tools, equipment and
services, and performs and complete all work in an efficient and workmanlike manner.
III. Respondents' Minimum Qualifications
Responsive contractors will demonstrate experience and capacity to remove large trees and dispose
of debris appropriately. Successful Contractors will be required to obtain liability and workers'
compensation insurance, permits (if required), be able to remove and haul debris (if required),
supply all needed equipment to fulfill the contract. Successful Contractors will also be expected
to comply with all federal, state and local laws, ordinances and regulations including Executive
Orders of the Mayor of the City of St. Louis. Contractors must take affirmative action to ensure
employees and applicants for employment are not discriminated against because of race, creed,
color, national origin, age, gender or sexual orientation
IV. Required Proposal Contents
A. Transmittal Letter: Respondents shall provide a transmittal letter with authorizing
signature for the proposal. The letter must briefly summarize the Respondent's
ability and willingness to perform the services required by the RFP.
B. Organization Information, Background, and Capability: Provide a thorough
description of your organization, its contact information, and the services it is
qualified to provide to LRA. Describe the organization's strengths, capabilities and
experience in performing these services.
C. Key Personnel: Provide the name, title, telephone number and e-mail address of the
persons who will function as the primary contact and back-up contact person.
Provide brief resumes/qualifications of personnel who will be primarily involved
in this project.
D. Addressing Services: In this section, provide a description of how your organization
intends to perform the specific services requested above, including a thorough
description of the proposed approach. Identify each of the areas listed in the Scope
of Services section that the organization desires to be considered for this RFP.
Please also explain why the firm is particularly suited to meet the services required
by LRA.
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E. Acknowledgment of Prevailing Wage and Benefits. Include a statement of
acknowledgment of the minimum prevailing wage and the minimum prevailing
fringe benefits required. See Section X-XI.
F. Pricing: Include details regarding all proposed fees for the services listed in the
scope of work.
G. Business License: In this section, Respondents must produce a copy of its current
City of St. Louis Business License.
V. Proposal Evaluation
The evaluation of qualifications will be performed by a Selection Committee composed of SLDC
Staff. The Selection Committee will consider, at a minimum, the following, as related to the
selection of organizations qualified to perform the services requested above:
A. Specialized experience, qualifications and technical competence of the
organization, its principals, project manager and key staff;
B. Approach to the project and any unusual problems anticipated;
D. The capacity and capability of the organization to perform the work within the time
limitations;
E. Past record and performance of the organization with respect to schedule
compliance, cost control, and quality of work;
F. Proximity of the organization to the City of St. Louis;
G. Fees or fee structure as may be appropriate for the service to be provided;
H. Availability of financial and operating resources as required to complete the work;
I. Ability of contractor to obtain City of St. Louis Central Business Clearance and to
have a current City of St. Louis Business License; all City taxes must be current;
J. Ability of the organization to meet statutory or ordinance requirements;
LRA reserves the right to interview, or call for a presentation from, any Respondent submitting a
response. LRA also reserves the right to discuss the proposals with any or all Respondents. LRA
may request additional submission of information during the negotiations of the contract.
VI. Contact Person & Questions
Questions concerning this RFP must be submitted in writing to Tyler Arthur, Asset Management
Specialist, email arthurty@stlouis-mo.gov not later than [October 6, 2026]. No contact with other
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SLDC employees about this RFP is permitted during the RFP process, unless otherwise authorized.
Unauthorized contact regarding this RFP may result in disqualification or rejection of a proposal.
SLDC will maintain a list of all firms or individuals requesting copies of the RFP and will ensure
that copies of all questions and responses shall be made available in writing to each firm on such
list, when requested. Answers will also be publicly posted on SLDC's website:
https://www.stlouis-mo.gov/government/departments/sldc/procurement/index.cfm
Questions should be asked in consecutive order, from beginning to end, following the organization
of this RFP. Each question should begin by referencing the RFP page number and section number
to which it relates. Short procedural inquiries may be submitted to Marla Roach by email.
Contact with SLDC after the submission of responses is limited to status inquiries only and such
inquiries are only to be directed to the above-named individual. Any further contact or information
about the RFP to SLDC or any of its employees or any Selection Committee Members will be
considered an impermissible supplementation of the respondent's proposal.
VII. Submission Deadline
In order for LRA to consider proposals, Respondent's submission must be received by:
Date: October 29, 2026
Time: 3:00 p.m. (CDT)
Location: LRA c/o St. Louis Development Corporation
Attn: Dee Nickson-Harris
1520 Market Street
Suite 221
St. Louis MO 63103
Proposals received after this deadline will not be accepted.
The Proposal must be labeled on the outside of the package to clearly indicate that it is in response
to the REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS FOR TREE TRIMMING AND/OR TREE
REMOVAL. Each Respondent must submit one (1) sealed, complete, original proposals and two
(2) sealed, full, complete and exact copies of the original. Proposals must utilize a 8.5 x 11-inch
standard size, use standard 12-point font, have 1.5-2.0 spacing, and contain a Table of Contents. It
is suggested that Respondents make and retain a copy of its proposal.
VIII. Insurance Requirements
Any Respondent awarded a contract pursuant to this RFP shall procure and maintain General
Liability Coverage, Automobile/Motor Liability Coverage (including non-owned and hired
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vehicle coverage), and Worker's Compensation Insurance. Typical requirements are: General
Liability Coverage insuring property damage and injury to persons of at least $1,000,000.00 each
occurrence/$3,500,000.00 general aggregate; Automobile/Motor Vehicle Coverage (including
non-owned and hired vehicle coverage) of at least $500,000 personal injury and $500,000 property
damage; or of at least $1,000,000 combined limit. Any Respondent awarded a contract pursuant
to this RFP shall also procure Worker's Compensation Insurance as required by the State of
Missouri, and professional liability coverage in amounts acceptable to LRA, if applicable to the
scope of services.
Policy limits shall be dependent upon the scope of services, but no coverage amount listed shall
be construed to limit the liability of any Respondent. Each Respondent awarded a contract shall
provide a Certificate of Insurance to LRA prior to the execution of the contract, with "the City of
St. Louis, St. Louis Development Corporation, the Land Reutilization Authority of the City of St.
Louis, Missouri, Land Clearance for Redevelopment Authority of the City of St. Louis and the
Planned Industrial Expansion Authority of the City of St. Louis" listed as an Additional Insured to
the policy and as Certificate Holders. Certificates attesting to the coverage and naming the forgoing
entities as additional insured shall be mailed to:
St. Louis Development Corporation
Attn: Legal Department
1520 Market Street, Suite 2000
St. Louis, MO 63103
Each Respondent's Insurance provider shall be authorized to transact business in the State of
Missouri and registered with the Missouri Department of Insurance - Financial Institutions &
Professional Registration. Such Insurance company must have a financial strength of "A-" or better
and a financial class size IV or greater as indicated in A.M. Best's Key Rating Guide.
(http://www.ambest.com/home/default.aspx).
Such liability insurance coverage must also extend to damage, destruction and injury to LRA,
LCRA or PIEA owned or leased property and SLDC personnel, and caused by or resulting from
work, acts, operations, or omissions of Respondent, its officers, agents, employees, consultants,
subcontractors, licensees, invitees, and representatives, and contractual liability insurance
sufficient to cover Respondent's indemnity obligations hereunder. SLDC, LRA, LCRA and PIEA
will have no liability for any premiums charged for such coverage, and the inclusion of SLDC,
LRA, LCRA and PIEA as an Additional Insured is not intended to and will not make SLDC, LRA,
LCRA and PIEA a partner or joint venture with Respondent in its operations hereunder. Each such
insurance policy must, by endorsement, provide primary coverage to SLDC, LRA, LCRA and
PIEA when any policy issued to SLDC, LRA, LCRA and PIEA provides duplicate or similar
coverage and, in such circumstances, SLDC, LRA, LCRA and PIEA's policy will be excess over
Respondent's policy.
IX. Living Wage
Any contract entered into pursuant to this RFP may be subject to the St. Louis Living Wage
Ordinance (Ordinance No. 65597, codified at Chapter 3.99 of the Revised City Code of St. Louis
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(2020)) and its associated Regulations. Respondents hereby agree to comply with the applicable
measures thereof.
X. Service Contract Prevailing Wage
For all positions listed on the Secretary of Labor's wage and fringe benefits determination, (see
https://sam.gov/wage-determination/2015-5075/20), and as applicable, Respondents will be
required to provide the minimum prevailing wage and the minimum prevailing fringe benefits
required and abide by the terms of Ordinance No. 62124, codified at Chapter 6.20 of the Revised
Code of the City of St. Louis (2020) in any contract entered into pursuant to this RFP.
If any services for which the successful respondent is obligated under an Agreement pursuant to
this RFP is subcontracted, the successful respondent shall provide in any service subcontract (1)
provisions specifying the minimum prevailing wage and the minimum prevailing fringe benefits
to be paid to the subcontractor's service employees and (2) a representation by the subcontractor
to abide by the terms of this chapter and to pay and provide to all service employees said minimum
prevailing wage and minimum prevailing fringe benefits as noted in the service subcontract.
XI. Additional RFP Terms and Conditions
A. Indemnification
Each Respondent, in seeking, receiving, or possessing this RFP and/or in submitting a response,
does release, indemnify, and hold SLDC, LRA, LCRA and PIEA (together, the "Public Entities")
and their various directors, employees, representative and agents harmless from and against all
claims and demands of any and all loss, cost, damage, or liability of whatever nature, which may
be asserted against or imposed against the Public Entities as a result of issuing this RFP, making
any revisions thereto, conducting this selection process and subsequent negotiations, and making
a final recommendation and/or entering into a contract.
B. Amendments
Respondents may submit amended proposals before the deadline for receipt of proposals. Such
amended proposals must be complete replacements for a previous submission and must be clearly
identified as such in the transmittal letter. LRA will not merge, collate, or assemble Respondents'
materials.
C. Reservations
The intent of this RFP is to award a contract to Respondents who present a detailed proposal
conforming to this RFP that is advantageous to LRA regarding cost and other factors
considered. LRA reserves the right to award the contract(s) resulting from this RFP to one or more
respondents, as appropriate, to meet the needs of LRA. Issuing this RFP does not obligate LRA to
award a contract to any provider, nor is LRA liable for any costs incurred by the organizations in
the preparation of proposals. Nothing in this RFP nor in any proposal in response to this RFP is
intended to be, nor should anything be construed, as an offer of engagement. Nor shall the selection
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of a Respondent be construed as an offer of engagement unless and until a contract is fully
negotiated and fully executed by all parties.
LRA reserves the right to reject any and all proposals submitted and to waive any and/or all non-
material irregularities pertaining to the submission of the proposal. Additionally, any and all RFP
project elements, requirements and schedules are subject to change and modification. LRA also
reserves the right to modify, suspend, or terminate at its sole discretion any and all aspect(s) of the
RFP process to obtain further information from any and all respondents, and to waive any defects
as to form or content of the RFP or any responses by any organization/business. All submitted
materials will become the property of LRA, may become public documents at any time during the
selection process, and will become public documents at the conclusion of the selection process.
Any and all documents submitted by the Respondent may become public if and when they are
submitted to any advisory or legislative public body, or pursuant to the Missouri Sunshine Law.
By submitting a response to this RFP, each Respondent acknowledges having read this RFP in its
entirety and agrees to all terms and conditions set out in this RFP.
D. Right to Withdraw Proposal
Respondents are permitted to withdraw their submissions at any time prior to the deadline for
receipt. Respondents must submit a written withdrawal request signed by the Respondent's duly
authorized representative(s) addressed to LRA.
E. Revisions to this RFP
In the event that it becomes necessary to clarify or revise this RFP, such clarification or revision
will be by addendum.
All RFP addenda will be issued on LRA's website. To access addenda, Respondents must locate
"RFP for Tree Trimming and/or Tree Removal" at the following address:
https://www.stlouis-mo.gov/government/departments/sldc/procurement/index.cfm
There are no designated dates for release of addenda. Therefore, interested Respondents should
check LRA's website on a daily basis from time of RFP issuance through RFP deadline date. It is
the sole responsibility of Respondents to be knowledgeable of all addenda related to this RFP.
F. Contents of Proposals
All materials submitted in accordance with this RFP will become and remain the property of LRA
and will not be returned.
All Proposals shall be considered public records but may be deemed and treated as "closed" or
"exempt" by LRA, pursuant to the laws of the State of Missouri. All Proposal material may be
treated as open records. LRA cannot guarantee confidentiality of any materials during the
evaluation process or at any other time. Thus, Proposals and communications exchanged in
response to this RFP should be assumed to be subject to public disclosure.
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G. Respondents' Responsibility
Respondents assume sole responsibility for the complete effort required in this RFP. No special
consideration shall be given after proposals are opened because of a Respondent's failure to be
knowledgeable of all the requirements of this RFP. By submitting a proposal in response to this
RFP, Respondent represents that it has satisfied itself, from its own investigation, of all the
requirements of this RFP.
XII. Terms to be Required in Contracts
Any contract entered into pursuant to this RFP shall require the inclusion of the following, or
substantially similar, terms. By submitting qualifications in response to this RFP, Respondents
agree to adhere to such terms:
A. Non-Discrimination Policy
Contractor agrees that neither it nor anyone under its control will permit discrimination against
any business, employee, applicant, client or subscriber because of race, creed, color, disability,
religion, sexual orientation, national ancestry or origin. Further, Contractor shall comply with all
applicable requirements and provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
B. Public Records Law
Contractor is hereby notified that LRA is subject to the State of Missouri's Sunshine Law (the
"Act"), Revised Statute of Missouri 610.010 et seq. LRA will not give prior notice of receipt of
a request under the Act for any record that has been provided to it by Contractor, nor of any record
disclosed pursuant to the Act. Nothing in any awarded contract shall supersede, modify, or
diminish in any respect whatsoever any of LRA's rights, obligations, and exceptions under the
Act, nor will LRA be held liable for any disclosure of records, including information that LRA
determines in its sole discretion is a public record subject to disclosure under the Act.
C. Unauthorized Alien Affidavit
Contractor shall, pursuant to the provisions of Section 285.525 through 285.555 of the Revised
Statutes of Missouri, as amended, by sworn affidavit and provision of documentation, affirm its
enrollment and participation in a federal work authorization program with respect to the employees
working in connection with this Agreement. Contractor shall also affirm that it does not knowingly
employ any person who is an unauthorized alien in connection with the Agreement pursuant to the
above-stated Statutes.
D. Anti-Discrimination Against Israel Act
Contractor, shall, pursuant to the provisions of 34.600 of the Revised Statutes of Missouri, by
sworn affidavit, affirm that it is not currently engaged in and shall not, for the duration of the
contract, engage in a boycott of goods or services from the State of Israel; companies doing
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