STORMWATER UTILITY FEASIBILITY STUDY

Location:	New York
Posted:	Jun 29, 2026
Due:	Jul 24, 2026
Agency:	Poughkeepsie city
Type of Government:	State & Local
Category:	A - Research and development B - Special Studies and Analyses - Not R&D
Solicitation No:	RFP-COP-06-26-02
Publication URL:	To access bid details, please log in.

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City of Poughkeepsie, N.Y.

Request for Proposal

FOR

STORMWATER UTILITY FEASIBILITY

STUDY IN THE CITY OF

POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y.

ISSUED: 6/29/2026

QUESTION(S) DEADLINE: JULY 21, 2026 4:00 P.M

RFP SUBMITTAL DEADLINE: JULY 24, 2026 2:30 P.M

Prepared by:

City of Poughkeepsie Engineering Division

Richard L. DuPilka, P.E., City Engineer

62 Civic Center Plaza

Poughkeepsie, N.Y. 12601

Table of Contents

1. PURPOSE .........................................................................................................................................................3

2. BACKGROUND...............................................................................................................................................3

3. SCOPE OF WORK ....................................................................................................................................................3

3.1. PHASE I: PROGRAMMATIC REVIEW AND EQUITY.................................................................................................3

3.2. PHASE II: PUBLIC EDUCATION ANDRATE STRUCTURE ..........................................................................................5

3.3. PHASE III: IMPLEMENTATION PLAN..................................................................................................................6

3.4. PHASE IV: IMPLEMENTATION SUPPORT ............................................................................................................7

4. MEANS OF COMMUNICATION ...................................................................................................................8

5. QUESTIONS AND INQUIRIES................................................................................................................................8

6. SUBMISSION OF PROPOSALS .....................................................................................................................8

7. EVALUATION OF PROPOSALS....................................................................................................................9

8. PROCUREMENT SCHEDULE...............................................................................................................................10

9. ADMINISTRATIVE DISCLAIMER.......................................................................................................................10

10. INSURANCE/HOLD HARMLESS .......................................................................................................................10

EXHIBIT A – AGREEMENT OF PROFESSIONAL SERVICES .....................................................................................12

EXHIBIT B – BUSINESS REGISTRATION AND SALES AND USE TAX REQUIREMENTS......................................15

EXHIBIT C - AFFIRMATIVE ACTION............................................................................................................................16

STORMWATER UTILITY FEASIBILITY STUDY FOR

CITY OF POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y.

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS NO. RFP-COP-06-26-02 StormWater Utility Feasibility Study

I. PURPOSE

The City of Poughkeepsie, by issuance of this Request for Proposals (“RFP”), hereby solicits proposals from qualified

Professional Engineering Consultants to conduct a phased, comprehensive Stormwater Utility Feasibility Study (“Study”).

Interested firms that respond to this RFP (“Respondents”) shall have extensive experience, background, and qualifications

in conducting feasibility studies and implementing stormwater utilities for municipalities of similar size, economic

condition, infrastructure, and regulatory requirements to the City of Poughkeepsie, NY.

The successful Respondent that is selected by the City of Poughkeepsie to conduct the study (“Consultant”) will evaluate

the city’s need for, and ability to create, a fee-based Stormwater Utility (“Utility”); to propose a structure to implement

the program; to establish a rate structure; and to provide technical assistance to City of Poughkeepsie to implement

recommendations. The Study is phased so that each phase provides a useful product even if later phases are not carried

out, and so that each phase builds on the work of prior phases. Through all Study phases, the Consultant will assist the

City of Poughkeepsie in public education, outreach, and collaboratively identifying and solving problems. The Consultant

shall be responsible for ensuring compliance with all applicable environmental laws and statutes.

II. BACKGROUND

The City of Poughkeepsie, with a population of approximately 31,000, has roughly 4 square miles of land surface

area, 6 miles of natural waterways, 6151 residential parcels, and 1505 non-residential parcels. The City of

Poughkeepsie’s stormwater infrastructure includes 97 identified stormwater outfalls, 70 miles of municipal

roadways, an estimated 1279 storm catch basins, 1089 storm manholes, and an estimated 45 miles of stormwater

piping.

Stormwater runoff is conveyed through City of Poughkeepsie Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4)

authorized under General Permit No. NYR20A358. The City of Poughkeepsie MS4 includes manholes, catch basins,

drainage ditches, detention basins, retention basins, infiltration basins, discharge outlets, etc. Some stormwater

infrastructure within the City of Poughkeepsie MS4 is privately owned. These privately owned systems may discharge

into City of Poughkeepsie MS4 or directly into waters of the State.

Sanitary sewage is conveyed through a separate sanitary sewer system in most of the city. Due to the age of the

system, there are instances of combined stormwater and sanitary sewer systems that have not yet been separated.

Approximately 788 acres are served by these combined sewers in the city. There are 2,540 manholes and 211 catch

basins on the sanitary/combined sewer system. The City of Poughkeepsie Stormwater Master Plan includes

combined sewer separation projects.

The sanitary and combined sewer systems convey approximately 3.5 Million Gallons per Day (MGD-dry weather),

through approximately 74 miles of pipe, to the Poughkeepsie’s’ Water Pollution Control Plant.

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The City of Poughkeepsie Engineering Division is responsible for planning, design, permitting, and construction

oversight on capital projects for the MS4. The City of Poughkeepsie Department of Public Works is responsible for

operation and maintenance of the MS4. To ensure the successful development and implementation of this

undertaking, the Engineering Division has been working collaboratively with the Division of Public Works to develop

an effective and efficient procurement process. This process is open and competitive and will allow City of

Poughkeepsie to retain the services of the most qualified and reasonably priced Respondent to perform the services

herein.

III. SCOPE OF WORK

PHASE 1: PRELIMINARY FEASIBILITY STUDY- PROGRAM REVIEW AND DETERMINATION

OF RATEPAYER EQUITY

The preliminary feasibility study includes the evaluation of the existing stormwater infrastructure operation and

maintenance practices and costs, and recent and projected capital project needs and costs, to establish a baseline of

current stormwater management costs.

The Consultant shall provide the following services to facilitate the preliminary study:

1. Program Review – Evaluate the current levels of service and approximate costs to design, implement, operate,

and maintain the existing stormwater collection and conveyance system and stormwater treatment Best

Management Practices (BMPs) that address State and Federal requirements for stormwater management. The

specific tasks to be performed include the following:

a. In coordination with City of Poughkeepsie staff, assess City of Poughkeepsie current level and cost of

service. The analysis is to include a review of the existing stormwater management operations and

maintenance practices, infrastructure management, regulatory requirements, stormwater management

local laws and relevant aspects of redevelopment agreements.

b. Development of a stormwater program mission statement, goals, objectives, operational indicators and

metrics that encourage the application of urban stormwater BMPs throughout the City of Poughkeepsie.

c. In coordination with City of Poughkeepsie staff, determine future program needs and define alternative

enhanced levels of service. These enhanced levels of service should address capital improvement

program needs outlined in City of Poughkeepsie Stormwater Master Plan, in addition to MS4 permit

compliance and capital requirement needs.

d. In coordination with City of Poughkeepsie staff, gather and review available data and feasibility studies

on required expenditures and develop an estimate of the annual program costs (prior five years and

projected five years).

e. Based on the program review, provide a preliminary projection of the amount of revenue that can be

generated through the implementation of a stormwater utility.

2. Organizational Review - Review the existing stormwater organization, management, and staffing and define the

needs for the enhanced levels of service. The anticipated tasks to be performed include the following:

a. Meet with appropriate City of Poughkeepsie staff to determine the enhanced stormwater related services

to be provided.

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b. Propose an organizational structure and required staffing to support the enhanced levels of service.

3. Policy Development - Review various policy issues that need to be addressed in the development and

implementation of a stormwater utility.

a. Policy issues should include, but not be limited to, rate structure options, exemptions, credits, financing,

local law amendments, etc.

b. Develop a technical report that outlines key policy issues and recommendations for each issue.

4. Land Cover Analysis – Evaluate the current development and impervious surface conditions of the City of

Poughkeepsie.

a. Estimate the impervious area for various classes of properties, and the associated property taxes, using

available information; including, but not limited to, City of Poughkeepsie GIS, aerial photography data,

and City of Poughkeepsie Tax Assessor’s data.

b. Perform preliminary statistical impervious area analysis by digitizing impervious area, as may be needed,

on a quasi-random representative sample of 360 residential parcels. Sample parcels will be selected such

that the sample parcel size distribution curve is analogous to the full parcel set.

5. Equity of Current Stormwater Costs – Based on the above tasks, assess the equity of current and anticipated

stormwater costs through the current Municipal budget, taxation and fee structure to determine:

a. Which landowner categories pay more in taxes and fees than would be equitable based on their share

of impervious cover, and to what extent.

b. Which landowner categories pay less in taxes and fees than would be equitable based on their share of

impervious cover, and to what extent.

c. The extent to which use of a fee-based stormwater utility would shift costs so that a more equitable

distribution of costs is achieved.

d. The identification of the categories of landowners that would most significantly benefit or incur additional

costs, and the largest landowners in the latter group.

6. Stormwater Local Laws– In coordination with the city, the Consultant will review the existing stormwater

management local laws. In addition to preparing a new rate, modifications to other relevant stormwater

management local laws should be recommended as necessary.

7. Program and Organization Review – Evaluate the levels of service and determine the approximate costs to create

a stormwater utility with fees that are equitably imposed on property owners based on contribution to the system

and of a sufficient total amount to design, implement, operate, and maintain BMPs that address State and Federal

requirements for stormwater management.

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This is the opportunity summary page. It provides an overview of this opportunity and a preview of the attached documentation.

Bid Number:	RFP-COP-06-26-02
Bid Title:	STORMWATER UTILITY FEASIBILITY STUDY
Category:	Request for Proposals (RFP)
Status:	Open

STORMWATER UTILITY FEASIBILITY STUDY

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