COMPREHENSIVE FIRE & EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES SYSTEM STUDY AND LONG-RANGE MASTER PLAN

COUNTY OF FRANKLIN, VIRGINIA - FIRE & EMS SYSTEM STUDY RFP
COUNTY OF FRANKLIN, VIRGINIA
REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS
COMPREHENSIVE FIRE & EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES
SYSTEM STUDY AND LONG-RANGE MASTER PLAN
RFP# 2026-8-#1
I. GENERAL
The County of Franklin, Virginia, hereinafter referred to as the "County," wishes to obtain proposals from
qualified consulting firms to conduct a comprehensive study of the County's Fire and Emergency Medical
Services ("EMS") system and to develop a data-driven, long-range master plan. The study shall evaluate the
existing combination career and volunteer service delivery system and provide practical, prioritized
recommendations for sustainable, efficient, and effective emergency services.
This Request for Proposals is part of a competitive procurement process intended to serve the County's best
interests while providing qualified firms a fair opportunity for their services to be considered. The process of
competitive negotiation being used in this case should not be confused with competitive sealed bidding. Price is
not required to be the determinative factor, although it may be considered, and the County may negotiate with
one or more firms to arrive at a mutually agreeable relationship.
II. GENERAL SPECIFICATIONS
See the Proposal Specifications beginning on Page 4 of this Request for Proposals.
III. ISSUANCE OF REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS AND QUESTIONS
The issuing office for this Request for Proposals is:
Franklin County Finance Office
1255 Franklin Street, Suite 111
Rocky Mount, Virginia 24151
Questions concerning this Request for Proposals should be directed in writing to Corey White, Assistant Finance
Director, at corey.white@franklincountyva.gov. Questions must be received no later than September 8, 2026.
The County will determine whether an addendum should be issued as a result of any question or other matter.
Oral explanations or instructions shall not be binding upon the County.
IV. PROPOSAL DEADLINE
All proposals must be received in the Franklin County Finance Office Attn: Corey White, Assistant Director of
Finance, 1255 Franklin Street, Suite 111, Rocky Mount, Virginia 24151, no later than 4:00 PM est on
September 22, 2026. Proposals received after the stated deadline will be returned unopened.
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COUNTY OF FRANKLIN, VIRGINIA - FIRE & EMS SYSTEM STUDY RFP
V. FORMATION OF THE AGREEMENT WITH THE SELECTED FIRM
The County will evaluate and rank proposals and may enter into contract negotiations with the offeror whose
professional qualifications, proposed approach, and services are deemed to be in the best interest of the County.
The County may negotiate with one or more offerors and may request clarification, supplemental information,
or a best and final offer.
An oral presentation or interview may be required before a selection committee. At any oral presentation, the
offeror shall include the personnel who would manage and perform the Franklin County engagement.
Evaluation factors the County will consider shall include, but not be limited to:
1. Experience and demonstrated success conducting comprehensive Fire and EMS system studies and long-
range master plans for local governments.
2. Experience evaluating combination career and volunteer systems, particularly in rural or geographically
dispersed jurisdictions experiencing residential or commercial growth.
3. Qualifications, experience, and availability of the project manager and key personnel assigned to the
engagement.
4. Understanding of the County's objectives, operational environment, and the unique challenges associated
with serving Franklin County.
5. Quality, completeness, and feasibility of the proposed methodology, stakeholder engagement process, data
analysis, and project work plan.
6. Knowledge of applicable National Fire Protection Association standards, Commission on Fire
Accreditation International best practices, EMS system planning, deployment analysis, and community
risk reduction principles.
7. Relevant references and the offeror's record of delivering similar projects on time and within budget.
8. Overall professionalism and quality of the proposal and any presentation or interview.
9. Conformity of the proposal with the requirements and specifications of this Request for Proposals.
10. Proposed schedule and demonstrated capacity to complete the engagement within the required timeframe.
VI. REJECTION OF PROPOSALS
1. The County reserves the right to reject any or all proposals, to waive informalities or irregularities in
proposals received, to cancel this solicitation, and to award a contract on a competitive negotiation basis
deemed to be in the best interest of the County.
2. Submitted proposals shall constitute an offer by the firm and shall remain open and irrevocable for ninety
(90) days from the proposal deadline unless otherwise agreed in writing.
3. The provisions of this Request for Proposals and the successful offeror's proposal, as negotiated and
accepted by the County, shall be incorporated into any resulting contract.
4. The County shall not be liable for any costs incurred by an offeror in preparing or submitting a proposal,
participating in interviews, or negotiating a contract.
VII. SUBMISSION OF PROPOSALS
Five (5) complete hard copies and one (1) electronic copy of the proposal must be received in a sealed envelope
or package with "Fire & EMS System Study RFP," the closing date, and the closing time clearly marked on the
outside.
The proposal should be organized in the order listed below and should provide sufficient detail for the County to
evaluate the offeror's qualifications and approach:
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COUNTY OF FRANKLIN, VIRGINIA - FIRE & EMS SYSTEM STUDY RFP
1. Letter of interest signed by an authorized representative of the firm.
2. Firm profile, organizational structure, and qualifications.
3. Description of relevant Fire and EMS system study experience, with emphasis on combination
career/volunteer and rural systems.
4. Identification, resumes, roles, and availability of the project manager and key personnel.
5. Detailed project methodology and work plan addressing each element of the Scope of Services.
6. Proposed stakeholder engagement and communication approach.
7. Project schedule, milestones, and estimated completion date.
8. Description of all deliverables and the form in which they will be provided.
9. At least three (3) references for comparable governmental projects, including contact name, jurisdiction,
telephone number, and email address.
10. Identification of any exceptions to the terms or requirements of this Request for Proposals.
The firm may submit any additional information it believes the County should consider in evaluating its
proposal. Proprietary information should be clearly identified in accordance with applicable Virginia law;
blanket designations of an entire proposal as proprietary will not be accepted.
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COUNTY OF FRANKLIN, VIRGINIA - FIRE & EMS SYSTEM STUDY RFP
PROPOSAL SPECIFICATIONS
COMPREHENSIVE FIRE & EMS SYSTEM STUDY
I. BACKGROUND
Franklin County operates a combination Fire and EMS system consisting of career personnel supported by an
extensive network of volunteer fire departments and rescue squads. The County serves a predominantly rural
and geographically diverse area that includes growing residential and commercial service demands, particularly
in high-demand areas such as Westlake.
Emergency call volume and service expectations continue to increase as the County grows. The County seeks an
independent, objective evaluation of its existing system and a strategic planning document to guide policy
decisions, staffing, service deployment, governance, capital investment, technology, and funding over the
coming years.
II. PROJECT OBJECTIVES
1. Evaluate the effectiveness, efficiency, capacity, and sustainability of the current Fire and EMS system.
2. Assess current and projected service demands, response performance, and community risk.
3. Identify strengths, service gaps, operational deficiencies, and opportunities for improvement.
4. Develop recommendations that strengthen both career and volunteer service delivery.
5. Establish a long-term roadmap for staffing, facilities, apparatus, communications, technology, governance,
and funding.
6. Provide practical, prioritized implementation strategies for County leadership.
III. SCOPE OF SERVICES
The selected consultant shall complete, at a minimum, the following work. Offerors may recommend additional
tasks that would materially improve the study and its usefulness to the County.
A. System Assessment and Performance
1. Evaluate the current Fire and EMS delivery system, including staffing levels, deployment models,
station coverage, facilities, apparatus, mutual aid, and operational practices.
2. Analyze historical emergency response data, call volume, response times, unit utilization, service
coverage, workload, concurrent incidents, and demand trends.
3. Identify geographic or operational coverage gaps and evaluate service reliability by time of day and
service area.
4. Compare performance with applicable national standards, recognized best practices, and comparable
jurisdictions, while accounting for Franklin County's rural geography and system structure.
5. Develop current and projected demand models using relevant demographic, development, and growth
information.
B. Staffing and Service Delivery Models
1. Evaluate the balance, deployment, and integration of career and volunteer resources.
2. Recommend appropriate staffing levels, schedules, deployment strategies, and service delivery
models.
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COUNTY OF FRANKLIN, VIRGINIA - FIRE & EMS SYSTEM STUDY RFP
3. Evaluate options for expanding or reallocating career staffing in high-demand areas.
4. Assess command coverage, supervision, specialty functions, and administrative support needs.
5. Identify phased implementation alternatives and the operational and financial implications of each
alternative.
C. Volunteer System Sustainability
1. Assess volunteer recruitment, retention, participation, training, readiness, and succession challenges.
2. Review existing volunteer incentive, support, and recognition programs.
3. Recommend strategies to strengthen volunteer participation and long-term sustainability.
4. Evaluate reasonable operational expectations, minimum performance standards, and accountability
measures for volunteer agencies.
5. Identify opportunities to improve coordination and integration between career and volunteer
personnel.
D. Organizational Structure and Governance
1. Evaluate current oversight, authority, coordination, and reporting relationships among the County,
career operations, volunteer fire departments, and rescue squads.
2. Assess the effectiveness of the existing organizational and governance structure.
3. Recommend improvements to accountability, system-wide leadership, governance, coordination, and
decision-making.
4. Review policies, procedures, training requirements, operating guidelines, and opportunities for
standardization across the system.
5. Identify implementation considerations associated with any recommended organizational changes.
E. Facilities, Apparatus, and Capital Planning
1. Evaluate the condition, functionality, capacity, and location of existing fire and EMS stations.
2. Assess apparatus condition, replacement needs, deployment, standardization, and fleet utilization.
3. Recommend future station locations, renovations, relocations, consolidations, or other facility
strategies based on demand, coverage, and growth.
4. Develop a long-range capital improvement plan identifying estimated timing, priority, and planning-
level costs for facilities, apparatus, and major equipment.
5. Consider opportunities for shared facilities, regional cooperation, and other cost-effective capital
strategies.
F. Communications, Technology, and Data
1. Evaluate emergency dispatch, communications, alerting, and interoperability among agencies.
2. Review computer-aided dispatch data, records management, reporting systems, and data quality.
3. Assess the County's ability to measure performance and support operational and policy decisions.
4. Recommend performance indicators, reporting practices, and technological improvements that
enhance efficiency, accountability, and decision-making.
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COUNTY OF FRANKLIN, VIRGINIA - FIRE & EMS SYSTEM STUDY RFP
G. Financial and Cost Efficiency Analysis
1. Evaluate current funding models for career and volunteer operations, including County support and
major revenue sources.
2. Identify operational efficiencies, cost savings, cost avoidance opportunities, and potential service
tradeoffs.
3. Provide planning-level cost estimates for major recommendations and implementation alternatives.
4. Recommend sustainable funding strategies that support long-term system viability and anticipated
growth.
5. Identify opportunities for grants, partnerships, shared services, or other supplemental funding
approaches.
H. Community Risk Reduction and Emergency Preparedness
1. Evaluate fire prevention, code-related support, public education, community paramedicine or related
programs, and other community risk reduction activities.
2. Assess major community risks and the alignment of prevention and response resources with those
risks.
3. Review relevant emergency preparedness and resilience capabilities affecting Fire and EMS
operations.
4. Recommend strategies that reduce risk, improve prevention, and enhance community resilience.
I. Stakeholder Engagement
1. Conduct interviews, meetings, surveys, or facilitated sessions with County Administration, elected
officials, Fire and EMS leadership, career personnel, volunteer agencies, dispatch representatives, and
other stakeholders identified by the County.
2. Provide an engagement process that encourages candid input while maintaining an objective and
professional study process.
3. Summarize major stakeholder themes and explain how stakeholder input informed the analysis and
recommendations.
IV. DELIVERABLES
1. Project kickoff meeting and a final project management plan identifying data needs, tasks, schedule, and
communication protocols.
2. Summary of data reviewed, stakeholder engagement completed, methodologies used, and relevant
assumptions or limitations.
3. Draft comprehensive report documenting findings, analyses, alternatives, and recommendations for
County review.
4. Final comprehensive report incorporating County comments and providing data-supported staffing,
deployment, governance, service delivery, and funding recommendations.
5. Long-range capital improvement plan for facilities, apparatus, major equipment, and technology.
6. Prioritized implementation plan identifying immediate, short-term, mid-term, and long-term
recommendations, responsible parties, dependencies, estimated costs, and suggested performance
measures.
7. Executive summary suitable for public and policy-level communication.
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COUNTY OF FRANKLIN, VIRGINIA - FIRE & EMS SYSTEM STUDY RFP
8. Electronic copies of all reports, appendices, data tables, maps, models, presentation materials, and other
supporting documentation in editable and PDF formats.
9. Formal presentation of the draft findings to County staff and a formal presentation of final findings to the
Franklin County Board of Supervisors, with additional presentations as proposed or negotiated.
V. COUNTY RESPONSIBILITIES
1. Designate a project manager and coordinate reasonable access to County staff, Fire and EMS agencies,
facilities, and relevant stakeholders.
2. Provide available data, reports, plans, policies, maps, financial information, call data, staffing information,
facility information, and other records reasonably necessary for the study.
3. Assist with scheduling interviews, meetings, site visits, and presentations.
4. Review draft materials and provide consolidated comments within mutually agreed timeframes.
VI. PROJECT SCHEDULE
Offerors shall propose a detailed project schedule identifying key milestones, deliverables, and the number of
calendar days required to complete the engagement. The County desires completion of the final report and
presentation within six (6) months of contract execution.
The selected consultant shall promptly notify the County of any circumstances that may affect the approved
project schedule and shall identify the anticipated impact and recommend appropriate corrective action.
VII. PAYMENT
The selected consultant may submit invoices monthly based upon work completed and accepted during the
preceding period. Each invoice shall identify the tasks performed, personnel involved, hours or percentage
completed, reimbursable expenses, and progress toward major deliverables. Payment terms and any retainage or
milestone payment provisions will be established in the negotiated contract. The County will not pay costs
exceeding the negotiated not-to-exceed amount without prior written authorization.
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COUNTY OF FRANKLIN, VIRGINIA - FIRE & EMS SYSTEM STUDY RFP
GENERAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS
GENERAL TERMS, CONDITIONS, AND INSTRUCTIONS TO BIDDERS/OFFERORS GENERAL
CONDITIONS AND INSTRUCTIONS FOR PROFESSIONAL SERVICE CONTRACTS
Firm: These general rules and conditions shall apply to all purchases and be a part of each solicitation and every
contract awarded by Franklin County. The term "Owner" as used herein refers to the contracting entity which is
the signatory on the contract. Offeror or their authorized representatives are expected to inform themselves fully
as to the conditions, requirements, and specifications before submitting proposals: failure to do so will be at the
offeror's own risk and except as provided by law, relief cannot be secured on the plea of error.
Subject to all Federal, State and local laws, policies, resolutions, regulations, rules, limitations and legislation,
proposals on all solicitations issued by the Owner will bind offerors to applicable conditions and requirements
herein set forth unless otherwise specified in the solicitation.
1. AUTHORITY: The County Department Contact or designee has the sole responsibility and authority
for negotiating, placing and when necessary modifying every solicitation, contract and task order issued
by the Owner. Unless specifically delegated by the Director, no other Owner officer or employee is
authorized to order supplies or services, enter into purchase negotiations or contracts, or in any way
obligate the Owner for an indebtedness. Any agreement or contract made which is contrary to these
provisions and authorities shall be of no effect and void and the Owner shall not be bound thereby.
2. COMPETITION INTENDED: It is the Owner's intent that this solicitation permit competition. It
shall be the Offeror's responsibility to advise the Director in writing if any language, requirement,
specification, etc., or any combination thereof, stifles competition or inadvertently restricts or limits the
requirements stated in this solicitation to a single source. The Director must receive such notification not
later than five (5) business days prior to the deadline set for acceptance of the proposals.
CONDITIONS OF BIDDING
3. CLARIFICATION OF TERMS: If any Offeror has questions about the specifications or other
solicitation documents, the prospective Offeror should contact the contact whose name appears on the
face of the solicitation no later than five (5) business days prior to the date set for receipt of proposals
unless otherwise indicated in the proposal. Any revisions to the solicitation will be made only by
addendum issued by the Owner. Notifications regarding specifications may not be considered if
received in less than five (5) business days of the date set for receipt of proposals unless otherwise
indicated in the proposal.
4. MANDATORY USE OF OWNER FORM AND TERMS AND CONDITIONS: Failure to submit a
proposal on the official Owner form provided for that purpose shall be a cause for rejection of the
proposal. Unauthorized modification of or additions to any portion of the Request for Proposal may be
cause for rejection of the proposal. However, the Owner reserves the right to decide, on a case by case
basis, in its sole discretion, whether to reject any proposal which has been modified.
5. LATE PROPOSALS & MODIFICATION OF PROPOSALS:
Any proposal/modification received at the office designated in the solicitation after the exact time
specified for receipt of the proposal/modification is considered a late proposal/modification.
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COUNTY OF FRANKLIN, VIRGINIA - FIRE & EMS SYSTEM STUDY RFP
The Owner is not responsible for delays in the delivery of the mail by the U.S. Postal Service, private
carriers or the inter-office mail system. It is the sole responsibility of the Bidder/Offeror to ensure their
bid/proposal reaches the Owner by the designated date and hour at the County Administration Office.
a. The official time used in the receipt of proposals is that time in the County Administration Office.
b. Late proposals/modifications will be returned to the Offeror UNOPENED, if solicitation number,
acceptance date and Offeror's return address is shown on the container.
c. If the Owner closes its offices due to inclement weather scheduled receipt of proposals will be
extended to the next business day, same time.
6. WITHDRAWAL OF BIDS/PROPOSALS:
A Bidder/Offeror for a contract other than for public construction may request withdrawal of his or her
bid/proposal under the following circumstances:
a. Bids/Proposals may be withdrawn on written request from the Bidder/Offeror received at the
address shown in the solicitation prior to the time of acceptance.
b. Requests for withdrawal of bids/proposals after opening of such bids/proposals but prior to award
shall be transmitted to the Owner, in writing, accompanied by full documentation supporting the
request. If the request is based on a claim of error, documentation must show the basis of the error.
Such documentation may take the form of supplier quotations, vendor work sheets, etc. If bid bonds
were tendered with the bid, the Owner may exercise its right of collection.
No Bid/Proposal may be withdrawn under this paragraph when the result would be the awarding of the
contract on another Bid/Proposal of the same bidder/offeror or of another bidder/offeror in which the
ownership of the withdrawing bidder/offeror is more than five percent. In the case of Invitation for
Bid's, if a bid is withdrawn under the authority of this paragraph, the lowest remaining bid shall be
deemed to be the low bid. No bidder/offeror that is permitted to withdraw a bid/proposal shall, for
compensation, supply any material or labor to or perform any subcontract or other work agreement for
the person or firm to whom the contract is awarded or otherwise benefit, directly or indirectly, from the
performance of the project for which the withdrawn bid/proposal was submitted.
7. IDENTIFICATION OF PROPOSAL ENVELOPE: The signed proposal and requested copies should
be returned in a separate envelope or package, sealed and identified with the following information:
ADDRESSED AS INDICATED ON PAGE 1; RFP NUMBER & TITLE
PROPOSAL DUE DATE AND TIME; FIRM NAME AND COMPLETE MAILING ADDRESS
(RETURN ADDRESS)
If a proposal is not addressed with the information as shown above, the Offeror takes the risk that the
envelope may be inadvertently opened and the information compromised, which may cause the proposal
to be disqualified. Proposals may be hand delivered to the designated location in the office issuing the
solicitation. No other correspondence or other proposals should be placed in the envelope.
8. ACCEPTANCE OF PROPOSALS: Unless otherwise specified, all formal proposals submitted shall
be valid for a minimum period of one hundred twenty (120) calendar days following the date established
for acceptance. At the end of the one hundred twenty (120) calendar days the proposal may be
withdrawn at the written request of the Offeror. If the proposal is not withdrawn at that time it remains
in effect until an award is made or the solicitation is canceled.
9. OFFEROR'S PRESENT: At the time fixed for the receipt of responses for Request for Proposals, only
the names of the offerors will be read and made available to the public.
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COUNTY OF FRANKLIN, VIRGINIA - FIRE & EMS SYSTEM STUDY RFP
10. RESPONSE TO SOLICITATIONS: In the event a Firm cannot submit a proposal on a solicitation,
the Firm is requested to return the solicitation cover sheet with an explanation as to why the vendor is
unable to submit a proposal.
11. DEBARMENT STATUS: By submitting their proposals, Offerors certify that they are not currently
debarred from submitting bids/proposals on contracts by the Owner, nor are they an agent of any person
or entity that is currently debarred from submitting bids or proposals on contracts by the Owner or any
agency, public entity/locality or authority of the Commonwealth of Virginia.
12. ETHICS IN PUBLIC CONTRACTING: The provisions contained in Sections 2.2-4367 through 2.2-
4377 of the Virginia Public Procurement Act as set forth in the 1950 Code of Virginia, as amended,
shall be applicable to all contracts solicited or entered into by the Owner. By submitting their
bids/proposals, all Bidders/Offerors certify that their bids/proposals are made without collusion or fraud
and that they have not offered or received any kickbacks or inducements from any other Bidder,
Offeror, supplier, manufacturer or subcontractor in connection with their bid/proposal, and that they
have not conferred on any public employee having official responsibility for this procurement
transaction any payment, loan, subscription, advance, deposit of money, services or anything of more
than nominal value, present or promised, unless consideration of substantially equal or greater value was
exchanged.
13. NO CONTACT POLICY: No Offeror shall initiate or otherwise have contact related to the solicitation
with any Owner representative or employee, other than the Director (or designee), after the date and
time established for receipt of proposals. Any contact initiated by an Offeror with any Owner
representative, other than the Director (or designee), concerning this solicitation is prohibited and may
cause the disqualification of the Offeror from this procurement process.
14. CONFLICT OF INTEREST: The Offeror certifies that to the best of its knowledge no employee of
the Owner nor any member thereof, nor any public agency or official affected by the proposal, has a
pecuniary interest in the business of the Offeror, and that no person associated with the Offeror has any
interest that would conflict in any manner with the performance of the proposal.
GENERAL POLICIES FOR ARCHITECTURAL/ENGINEERING SERVICES
15. LICENSE/REGISTRATION: Entities (e.g., individuals, partnerships, or corporations) offering to
provide architectural and/or engineering services shall be properly registered and licensed in Virginia as
required by the Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation and, if incorporated, the State
Corporation Commission. The architect or engineer in charge of each discipline shall be currently
licensed in the Commonwealth of Virginia and shall affix his or her seal to those documents for which
he or she is responsible.
16. PRIME DESIGN PROFESSIONAL: The Owner normally contracts with a single entity as "Prime
Design Professional" to provide the project architectural and/or engineering services. The Prime Design
Professional may have all necessary disciplines in-house or it may subcontract with consultants to
provide services in some disciplines. The Prime Design Professional may be an architect, engineer, or
an architect/engineer entity. For each project, the Owner determines which entity will best satisfy the
Owner's requirements for providing services. Meeting schedule and budget limitations and managing
the services to be provided on the particular project.
17. PROFESSIONAL SERVICES: The architectural, civil, structural, mechanical and electrical portions
of the project shall be planned and designed by or under the immediate supervision of a licensed
architect or engineer (A/E) who has expertise in the particular discipline involved. Where such licensed
expertise is not available within the A/E of record or where the A/E chooses to subcontract a part of the
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