Gateway Welcome Center

Location:	Ohio
Posted:	Apr 27, 2026
Due:	May 8, 2026
Agency:	Ohio Facility Construction Commission
Type of Government:	State & Local
Category:	99 - Miscellaneous
Solicitation No:	UCN-26067A
Publication URL:	To access bid details, please log in.

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Request for Qualifications (Criteria Architect/Engineer*)

State of Ohio Standard Forms and Documents

Administration of Project: Local Higher Education

Project Name Gateway Welcome Center

Response Deadline May 8, 2026

2:00pm local time

Project Location Uptown Campus West

Project Number

UCN - 26067A

City / County Cincinnati / Hamilton

Project Manager

Joe Bodkin

Owner

University of Cincinnati

Contracting Authority Local Higher Education

Delivery Method Design-Build

Prevailing Wages State

Publish Date 4/10/2026

No. of paper copies requested (stapled, not bound)

No. of electronic copies requested (PDF)

* Criteria Architect/Engineer includes “any architect holding a certificate issued under section 4703.10 of the Revised Code,

any landscape architect holding a certificate issued under section 4703.36 of the Revised Code, or any engineer holding a

certificate issued under section 4733.14 of the Revised Code.” (Ohio Building Code section 4101:1-2-01 Definitions)

Submit the requested number of Statements of Qualifications (Form F110-330) directly to 26067A@docs.e-builder.net. See

Section J of this RFQ for additional submittal instructions.

Submit all questions regarding this RFQ in writing to Joe Bodkin at bodkinj@ucmail.uc.edu with the project number included in

the subject line (no phone calls please). Questions will be answered and posted to the Opportunities page on the OFCC

website at http://ofcc.ohio.gov on a regular basis until one week before the response deadline. The name of the party

submitting a question will not be included on the Q&A document.

Project Overview

A. Project Description

The University of Cincinnati invites design proposals for a new Welcome Center and Gateway Building of approximately

200,000 gross square feet building with a below grade parking garage for 400 cars at the corner of Calhoun Street and Clifton

Avenue. The building will serve as the primary point of entry for prospective students and their families and as a public-facing

showcase of UC’s academic, creative, and technological identity. The program integrates three principal threads — visual

culture, performance, and technology — and the project presents both significant design challenges and significant design

opportunities.

Site and Context

The site occupies a prominent corner at the urban edge of campus, where two distinct conditions converge. Along Calhoun

Street, two-story commercial development defines a street-level scale that is intimate and city-facing. Along Clifton Avenue,

Hughes High School — a landmark of civic and architectural significance — establishes a very different scale and institutional

presence. The building must negotiate these two conditions simultaneously: holding its own at a prominent urban intersection

while remaining calibrated to neighbors of unequal scale and character.

This is a site that demands a response, not a gesture. The design should be contextually grounded — scaled and proportioned

to belong at this particular intersection of campus and city, respectful of its historic neighbor, and expressive of the institution it

will represent. UC is seeking a building that organically grows from its roots

Design Challenges and Opportunities

The project presents two primary design challenges, each of which contains a corresponding opportunity.

The first is contextual. The site’s corner condition — two-story commercial fabric on one side, a prominent historic civic

building on the other — creates a complex scale problem. A building of 200,000 square feet must be massed and articulated in

a way that is neither overwhelmed by its neighbors nor overwhelming to them. The opportunity lies in that complexity: a design

that resolves this condition with intelligence and specificity will make a distinctive and lasting contribution to this corner of the

city.

F110-53-2026-JAN

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Request for Qualifications (Criteria Architect/Engineer) continued

The second is programmatic. The building must choreograph a sequenced visitor experience — from arrival in the parking

structure below grade through the lobby and into the building’s major spaces — in which students work while the art collection,

and UC’s academic and research identity are encountered directly by the visitors. Art, performance, and technology should be

present and legible throughout a sequence, not concentrated in a single zone. At the same time, the three major programmatic

elements — the auditorium, the gallery complex, and the welcome and engagement center — should each carry a distinct

architectural identity, capable of being understood and experienced as individual components within the whole. This distinction

is both an organizational and a philanthropic requirement: each element should be sufficiently defined to support a named gift

opportunity while remaining integrated into a coherent overall visitor experience. The program will Include a 1000-1200-seat

“tunable” auditorium, black box theater, curated art gallery(s), interactive learning classrooms, event venues, public

engagement spaces, café, retail shop, and parking.

The successful design will hold these two imperatives in productive tension: a building that reads as a unified whole from the

street and from the campus, while offering, to those who move through it, a sequence of distinct and memorable spaces.

Design Intent

UC is seeking a design that is ambitious in its response to a genuinely complex site and program, and disciplined in its

relationship to place. The building should strengthen this corner of campus without dominating it, serve the institution, express

its identity, and deliver an experience of UC’s creative and intellectual life that is vivid, specific, and earned through the

architecture itself.

B. Scope of Services

Pursuant to ORC 153.694, professional design firms selected to provide C-A/E services shall not provide any A/E

of Record services for the project for which the professional design firm was selected as the C-A/E.

This project will consist of a direct Criteria Architect/Engineer (“C-A/E”) contract for Schematic Design with the goal of

conceiving a unique and provocative design that fulfills the building’s extensive program and leverages the site’s assets

while working within the available budget. Criteria Architect/Engineer (“C-A/E”) will be retained as design consultant for

the Owner after SD submission.

The selected Criteria Architect/Engineer (“C-A/E”), as a portion of its required Scope of Services and prior to submitting its

proposals, will discuss and clarify with the Owner and/or the Contracting Authority, the cost breakdown of the A/E.

Refer to the Ohio Facilities Construction Manual for additional information about the type and extent of services required

for each. A copy of the standard Agreement can be obtained at the OFCC website at https://ofcc.ohio.gov.

During the construction period, provide not less than 0 hours (excluding travel time) on-site construction administration

services each week, including (1) attendance at progress meetings, (2) a written field report of each site visit, (3) on-site

representation comprised of the A/E and its consultant staff involved in the primary design of the project, all having

relevant and appropriate types of construction administration experience.

For purposes of completing the Relevant Project Experience Matrix in Section F of the Statement of Qualifications (Form

F110-330), below is a list of relevant scope of work requirements for this RFQ:

1. Urban Campus Infill

2. Support of Existing Campus Master Plan

3. Performing Arts Venues

4. Art Museum/Galleries

5. Classrooms

6. Parking structure design experience

7. Site Landscaping

8. LEED credential design experience at silver award level or higher

9. Previous experience working with the State of Ohio

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Request for Qualifications (Criteria Architect/Engineer*)

State of Ohio Standard Forms and Documents

C. Estimated Budget / Funding

State Funding:

Other Funding:

$200,000,000

Construction Cost: $160,000,000

Total Project Cost: $200,000,000

D. Anticipated Schedule

Professional Services Start:

Construction Notice to Proceed:

Substantial Completion of all Work:

Professional Services Completed:

06 / 26

10 / 26

01 / 29

12 / 29

E. Estimated Basic Fee Range (see note below)

1.5% to 1.75%

F. EDGE Participation Goal

Percent of initial Total A/E Fee:

0.0%

NOTE: Basic Services include: (1) Concept and Design Criteria, (2) Best Value Selection, (3) Preconstruction, and (4) Construction and

Closeout services. The Basic Fee includes all registered design professional services and consultant services necessary for proper

completion of the Basic Services, including validation of existing conditions (but not subsurface or hidden conditions) and preparation of cost

estimates and design schedules for the project. The Estimated Basic Fee Range is calculated as a percentage of the Estimated Budget for

Construction Cost above, including the Owner’s contingency. The Basic Fee excludes any Additional Services required for the project.

G. Basic Service Providers Required (see note below)

Lead Criteria A/E

Discipline:

Architecture

Secondary

Landscape Architecture

Disciplines:

Civil Engineering

Structural Engineering

Mechanical-Electrical-Plumbing Eng.

Fire Protection Engineering

Select Secondary DisciplineSurveying

Select Secondary Discipline

Enter Secondary Discipline

H. Additional Service Providers Required

Acoustic Consultant

AV Consultant

Cost Estimator

Traffic Consultant

NOTE: The lead Criteria A/E shall be (1) any architect holding a certificate issued under section 4703.10 of the Revised Code, (2) any

landscape architect holding a certificate issued under section 4703.36 of the Revised Code, or (3) any engineer holding a certificate issued

under section 4733.14 of the Revised Code.

I. Evaluation Criteria for Selection

• Demonstrated ability to meet Owner’s programmed project vision, scope, budget, and schedule on previous

projects.

• Previous experience compatible with the proposed project (e.g., type, size).

• Relevant past work of prospective firm’s proposed consultants.

• Experience with design of critically acclaimed multifunctional buildings in general.

• Experience with high efficiency building design such as LEED Silver or higher.

• Experience with complex site constraints (and opportunities) of dense urban settings.

J. Submittal Instructions

Firms are required to submit the current version of Statement of Qualifications (Form F110-330) available via the OFCC

website at https://ofcc.ohio.gov.

Electronic submittals, if requested, should be combined into one PDF file named with the project number listed on the

RFQ and your firm’s name, followed by “SOQ”. Use the “print” feature of Adobe Acrobat or similar software for creating a

PDF rather than using a scanner. If possible, please reduce the file size of the PDF. In Acrobat, go to Advanced, then

PDF Optimizer. Electronic submittals are limited to a maximum file size of 25 MB.

Paper copies of the Statement of Qualifications, if requested, should be stapled only. Do not use special bindings or

coverings of any type. Cover letters and transmittals are not necessary.

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Request for Qualifications (Criteria Architect/Engineer) continued

CD/DVD copies of the Statement of Qualifications, if requested, should have the sleeve labeled with the project number

and firm name, followed by “SOQ”.

Facsimile copies of the Statement of Qualifications will not be accepted.

Firms are requested to identify professional registrations, memberships and credentials including: LEED GA, LEED AP,

LEED AP+, CCCA, CCM, CCS, CDT, CPE, DBIA, and any other appropriate design and construction industry credentials.

Identify that information on the resume page for individual in Block 22, Section E of the F110-330 form.

F110-53-2026-JAN

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Criteria Architect/Engineer Selection Rating Form

State of Ohio Standard Forms and Documents

Project Name Gateway Welcome Center

Project Number UCN - 26067A

Proposer Firm

City, State, Zip

Selection Criteria

1. Primary Firm Location, Workload and Size (Maximum 10 points)

a. Proximity of firm to project site

b. Amount of fees awarded by Contracting Authority in

previous 24 months

c. Number of licensed professionals

Less than 150 miles

150 miles to 300 miles

More than 300 miles

Less than $1,000,000

$1,000,000 to $2,000,000

More than $2,000,000

Less than 10 professionals

10 to 20 professionals

More than 20 professionals

2. Primary Firm Qualifications (Maximum 30 points)

a. Project management lead

b. Project criteria design lead

c. Technical staff

Experience / ability of project manager to

manage scope / budget / schedule / quality

Experience / creativity of project designer to

achieve owner’s vision and requirements

Experience / ability of technical staff to create

accurate and complete design criteria

3. Key Consultant Qualifications (Maximum 20 points)

a. Key discipline leads

b. Proposed EDGE-certified Consultant participation*

Experience / ability of key consultants to

perform effectively and collaboratively

One point for every 2 percent increase in

professional services over the EDGE

participation goal

4. Overall Team Qualifications (Maximum 10 points)

a. Previous team collaboration

b. Team organization

Less than 2 sample projects

2 to 4 sample projects

More than 4 sample projects

Clarity of responsibility / communication

demonstrated by table of organization

5. Overall Team Experience (Maximum 30 points)

a. Previous team performance

b. Experience with similar projects / delivery method

c. Budget and schedule management

d. Knowledge of Ohio Capital Improvements process

Past performance as indicated by

evaluations and letters of reference

Less than 2 projects

2 to 4 projects

More than 4 projects

Performance in completing projects within

original construction budget and schedule

Less than 2 projects

2 to 4 projects

More than 4 projects

Value

Score

Max

0 - 10

0 - 15

0-5

0 - 10

0-3

4-6

7 - 10

0-5

0-1

2-3

4-5

* Must be comprised of registered professional design consulting firms and NOT the lead firm - For more

information on scoring this and other criteria refer to Document F199-01 - PS Selection Rating Rubric.

Notes:

Evaluator:

Name

Subtotal

Signature

Date

F110-53-2026-JAN

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

Publish Date	Due Date	Number	Owner	Contractring Authority	Project Name	Primary Service	Estimated Project Cost	Q&A	Short List	Notes
2026/04/10	5/8/2026	UCN-26067A	University of Cincinnati	Local Higher Education	Gateway Welcome Center	C-A/E	$200,000,000	Q&A	TBD

Gateway Welcome Center

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See also