Archaeological Consulting Services 2026 Addendum #1

Location:	Vermont
Posted:	Apr 9, 2026
Due:	Apr 22, 2026
Agency:	State of Vermont - Agency of Transportation
Type of Government:	State & Local
Category:	B - Special Studies and Analyses - Not R&D R - Professional, Administrative and Management Support Services
Publication URL:	To access bid details, please log in.

Attachment Preview

State of Vermont

Agency of Transportation

Barre City Place

219 North Main Street, Suite 105

Barre VT 05641

Administration Division

Contract Administration

http://vtrans.vermont.gov/

March 25, 2026

Request for Proposals (RFP): Archaeological Consulting Services 2026

The Project Delivery Bureau of the Policy, Planning and Intermodal Development

Division of the Vermont Agency of Transportation, hereinafter referred to as VTrans, is

seeking contractor services to undertake any necessary archaeological work on a

variety of projects ranging from an Archaeological Resource Assessment (ARA) also

referred to as a Resource Identification, through a Phase 3 study (data recovery) as

defined in this Scope of Work (SOW) and The Vermont State Historic Preservation

Office's Guidelines for Conducting Archaeology in Vermont, updated in 2017. The

required services include historic and pre-contact (Native American) archeological

resource reviews and knowledge of related fields that may assist and/or relate to

information on archaeology. Knowledge and information related to and supporting

archaeology is commonly obtained from associated work in socio-cultural anthropology

including indigenous American populations, history, oral history, archival studies,

document research, landscape studies, botany (floral analysis), faunal analysis

including zoology and zoo archaeology, human osteology, soil science, remote sensing,

geology (structural & physical), surficial geology, geomorphology (Pleistocene &

Holocene), and geography (locational & spatial analysis).

This RFP will result in multiple awards.

Prequalification is not required in order to submit a proposal for this RFP.

All questions related to this RFP shall be forwarded to Caryn Pletzer, AOT Contract

Administration, in writing by email at caryn.pletzer@vermont.gov. All such questions

and requests shall be received no later than 2:00 p.m. on Wednesday, April 8, 2026.

AOT will not be bound by any oral communications. All questions or requests for

clarification received will be documented and answered after this date. Communication

with other AOT personnel regarding this RFP is prohibited and may result in the

rejection of your proposal.

Proposal Assistance. If a Contractor requires assistance in preparing their proposal,

registering with SAM.gov, or needs guidance on socioeconomic certifications, the

Contractor may contact the Vermont Agency of Commerce & Community Development

(ACCD), Department of Economic Development (DED), APEX Accelerator. The

Vermont APEX Accelerator specializes in helping small businesses navigate the

documentation associated with State and Federal procurement. There is no cost to

the Contractor for assistance provided by APEX Accelerator. Their website is:

https://accd.vermont.gov/economic-development/programs/apex

Proposers’ Conference. There will not be a mandatory or optional pre-bid meeting.

RFP Archaeological Consulting Services 2026

Page 1 of 220

Addendums(s) / Modifications. In the event that it becomes necessary to revise,

modify, clarify, or otherwise alter this RFP, including AOT’s responses to questions and

requests for clarification, such addendum(s)/ modification(s) shall be posted to the AOT

Contract Administration website.

IT IS THE PROPOSER’S RESPONSIBILITY TO OBTAIN ANY RFP MODIFICATIONS

ISSUED.

They will be posted on the AOT Contract Administration website at:

https://vtrans.vermont.gov/contract-admin/bids-requests/services

Reservation of Rights. All proposals become the property of AOT upon submission.

The cost of preparing, submitting, and presenting a proposal is the sole expense of the

Proposer. Unselected proposals shall be securely disposed of at AOT’s discretion. AOT

reserves the right to reject any and all proposals received as a result of this solicitation,

to negotiate with any qualified source, to waive any formality and any technicalities, or to

cancel this RFP in part or in its entirety if it is in the best interest of AOT. This solicitation

of proposals in no way obligates AOT to award a contract.

Exceptions to Terms and Conditions. The proposer must state in the business

proposal any exceptions taken to the terms and conditions in this RFP. For each

exception the proposer shall identify the term or condition, state the reason for the

exception, and provide any other information concerning the exception. Such

exceptions, deviations, or conditional assumptions may, however, result in rejection of

the proposal as unresponsive. Failure to note exceptions when responding to the RFP

will be deemed to be acceptance of the State contract terms and conditions. If

exceptions are not noted in the response to this RFP but raised during contract

negotiations, the State reserves the right to cancel the negotiation if deemed to be in the

best interests of the State.

Multiple Award Anticipated. AOT intends to select more than one (1) Contractor to

perform these services under a primary contract. Each contract will contain a variety of

specific services the Contractor will be awarded. AOT will enter into contracts, with an

initial term of two-years, followed by an additional one-year period, for a total maximum

of five (5) years.

Maximum Amount. The maximum amount(s) for the contract(s) will be set at a level to

permit a Contractor to be awarded all work assignments if they are judged to be the

most qualified. Qualification Based Selection will be determined by experience,

specialists’ availability, required specialized equipment, capacity, creative ideas,

technical solution, and past performance. Award of a contract does not guarantee

payment of any or all the maximum amount. Payment is based on products or services

actually delivered or performed. The maximum amount for this contract does not

guarantee that the Contractor will receive any work under the Contract.

Work Orders. AOT may use several methods for determining and distributing work

orders to contracted Contractors including but not limited to requesting technical

proposals from more than one Contractor for comparison, requesting a proposal from a

RFP Archaeological Consulting Services 2026

Page 2 of 220

single Contractor, or requesting proposals addressing more than one project. Award of

work orders will be a qualification based selection when the services are design in

nature and federal funding is involved. Award of work orders will be a best value

selection when the services are not design in nature and federal funding is involved.

Best value selection will be used for all services that are 100% state funded, regardless

of service type.

All Work Order Requests that contain federal funding other than Federal Highway

Association (FHWA) such as Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), Federal Aviation

Administration (FAA) or other federal funding may contain special provisions required

for that federal funding and/or the particular project. By returning a work order proposal

for that project, you are indicating that you understand and will abide by any additional

provisions included in the Work Order Request/Authorization.

Primary Contract holders shall not enter into joint ventures with another Primary

Contract holder in response to a second-tier solicitation (Work Order Request); nor shall

it be permissible for a Primary Contract holder to include another Primary Contract

holder as a subcontractor.

Contractors who are awarded work orders will report to the assigned AOT Project

Manager. Work will be performed primarily at project sites and municipalities throughout

Vermont, as described in the work orders, and some meetings may be held at AOT

headquarters in Barre.

For subcontractors not named in the proposal, utilization of subcontractor personnel will

require written approval by AOT prior to the subcontractor performing any work under

the contract. Please see additional information regarding this process under the

subcontractor section within the Proposal Technical Format and Content.

No work may be performed after the expiration date plus exercised extensions of the

applicable Contract. In exceptional circumstances where it might be mutually desired to

have work extend beyond the term of a Contract, written authorization will be needed,

overseen by AOT’s Contract Administration, and authorized by the Secretary of

Transportation, the Agency’s Chief Financial Officer, other State Representatives as

required and Federal oversight agencies as required. A formal amendment will be

required for any such extension.

Confidentiality. Bidders are hereby expressly directed not to include any confidential

information in their proposal submissions, except as specifically identified in this RFP.

By submitting a proposal in response to this RFP, bidders acknowledge and agree to

abide by the terms and conditions outlined in this document, including the prohibition on

submitting confidential information. This prohibition reduces the burden on the State

while preventing bidder-confidential information from entering the public record. All

Proposals received will become part of the contract file and will become a matter of

public record, and may be disclosed to the public in accordance with the Vermont Public

Records Act, 1 V.S.A. § 315 et seq. If the proposal documents include material that is

considered by the proposer to be proprietary and confidential under 1 V.S.A. § 315 et

seq., the proposer shall submit a cover letter that clearly identifies each page or section

of the proposal that it believes is proprietary and confidential. The proposer shall also

RFP Archaeological Consulting Services 2026

Page 3 of 220

provide in their cover letter a written explanation for each marked section explaining

why such material should be considered exempt from public disclosure in the event of a

public records request, pursuant to 1 V.S.A. § 317(c), including the prospective harm to

the competitive position of the proposer if the identified material were to be released.

Additionally, the proposer must include a redacted copy of its response for

portions that are considered proprietary and confidential. Redactions must be

limited so that the reviewer may understand the nature of the information being

withheld. It is typically inappropriate to redact entire pages, or to redact the

titles/captions of tables and figures. Under no circumstances can the entire response be

marked confidential, and the State reserves the right to disqualify responses so marked.

Please be aware that all contracts solicited and/or contracted through VTBuys will be

uploaded to the VTBuys Public Portal, wherein it can be viewed by any interested party.

Hourly rates and other cost proposal information included in Attachment B Payment

Provisions of the awarded contract will be viewable.

PROPOSAL INSTRUCTIONS

The quality of proposals and adherence to solicitation response requirements and/or

restrictions are considered reflective of the manner in which the proposer could be

expected to conduct business and will be given due consideration throughout the

evaluation process.

Failure to provide all required information, or indications that the proposer did not conform to

all terms as set forth in the RFP and attachments may make the offer non-responsive and

may result in the elimination of the proposer from further consideration for award.

Proposals or unsolicited revisions submitted after the specified due date and time will not

be accepted and will be securely disposed of.

Required Electronic Submittal Information

Proposals will only be received electronically via an FTP site. In order to upload your

proposal, you must obtain a user account. This account will be provided when Contract

Administration receives your request via email. If you already have credentials, you still

need to request access to this specific RFP folder or you will be unable to submit your

proposal. Please submit your request for a user account by emailing the single point of

contact listed in this RFP above. Your subject should state “FTP Account Request for

Archaeological Consulting Services 2026”.

You will then receive login credentials and guidance (in separate emails) for uploading

your proposal. Please submit your FTP account request as soon as possible and no

later than four (4) business days before the RFP due date to ensure there is ample time

to set up the user account(s). If you are unable to submit your documents by uploading

to the specified FTP site(s), please notify the sole point of contact for additional

guidance.

When submitting your proposal(s), please use the following naming convention:

RFP Archaeological Consulting Services 2026

Page 4 of 220

ProposalType_CompanyName_RFPTitle

Examples:

• TechnicalProposal_ABCConsulting_ArchaeologicalConsultingServices2026

• CostProposal_ABCConsulting_ ArchaeologicalConsultingServices2026

• FinancialInformation_ABCConsulting_ ArchaeologicalConsultingServices2026

Note: the Financial Information document will be uploaded directly to AOT

Audit Section as these documents are considered confidential. You will

receive a separate user account through AOT Audit when this document is

required, and a user account is requested.

Submit your proposals via the provided FTP site, prior to 2:00 P.M., on Wednesday,

April 22, 2026.

TECHNICAL PROPOSAL – FORMAT AND CONTENT

The proposal shall not exceed twenty (20) single sided pages. Sections that count

toward the page limit are noted below. All pages that count toward the page limit shall

be numbered consecutively. The pages shall be formatted as 8½” x 11” sheets. Font

shall be size 12.

The proposal shall include the following elements, in separately labeled sections, as

required.

A. Cover Letter. All proposers or their authorized representative shall prepare and sign

a cover letter. Submission of the letter shall constitute a representation by the

proposer that it is willing and able to perform the services described in the RFP and

their proposal response. This section counts toward the twenty (20) page limit.

B. Technical Capability/Approach. In this section, the proposer must explain the their

understanding of AOT’s intent, objectives, and how the proposer proposes to

achieve those objectives. The proposer must discuss their experience, capabilities,

and plan for providing the described services, including any proposed approach to

project management, strategies, tools, and safeguards for ensuring performance of

all required services, and any additional factors for AOT’s consideration. This

section counts toward the twenty (20) page limit.

C. Business and Management Structure. Provide a description of the bidding

organization’s size, background, and structure, and a list of management personnel

by name and title. Indicate which management personnel will be responsible for the

delivery of services under the contract and a description of how the organization’s

resources will be applied. This section should provide clear information as to the

lines of communication and how the Business ensures Quality Control & Quality

Assurance. Include information as to how Local, Regional, and National Offices will

coordinate to provide successful services. This section counts toward the twenty

(20) page limit.

RFP Archaeological Consulting Services 2026

Page 5 of 220

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

RFI, RFP & RFQ	VTBuys Solicitation?	QUESTIONS DUE PRIOR TO 2:00 P.M.	ADDENDUM(S)	PROPOSALS DUE PRIOR TO 2:00 P.M.
Archaeological Consulting Services 2026		04/08/2026	Addendum #1	04/22/2026

Archaeological Consulting Services 2026 Addendum #1

Attachment Preview

See also