Selection of a Construction Manager at Risk (CMAR) on a Guaranteed Maximum Price Contract

REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS FOR SELECTION OF A CONSTRUCTION MANAGER AT-RISK
(CMAR) 0N A GUARANTEED MAXIMUM PRICE CONTRACT
PART 1 COMPLETION PROCESS
1.1 GENERAL:
A. Pursuant to Iowa Code Chapter 26A, the Johnson County, IA Board of Supervisors (Owner)
intends to enter into an AIA A133 Standard Form of Agreement Between Owner and
Construction Manager as Constructor, where the basis of payment is the Cost of the
Work Plus a Fee with a Guaranteed Maximum Price, for construction of the new Johnson
County Sheriff's Office - Law Enforcement/Jail facility. The facility will be located on an
approximately 35-acre parcel at the northeast corner of Melrose Commercial Park, at the
intersection of Melrose Ave/IWV Road SW and Slothower Rd in Iowa City, IA. The notice of
intent to engage a CMAR was issued on August 14, 2026.
B. General Project Information:
* Preliminary Construction Estimated Budget: $75,000,000-$80,650,000.
* Total Project Estimated Cost: Not to Exceed $94,500,000.
* Project Square Footage: Not to exceed 118,500 SF, including approximately 110,500 SF for
the Main Building and 8,000 SF for the onsite Storage/Support Building.
* Project Scope: Complete build-out of a new Johnson County Sheriff's Office facility serving
both Sheriff's Administration/Law Enforcement and Jail functions. Program components
include Public Reception and ancillary spaces; Sheriff's Administration; Civil/Records
Divisions; Patrol; Criminal Investigations; K-9 Unit; Law Enforcement Training;
Evidence/Forensic Testing; Maintenance/Storage; 120-beds of Jail Housing with shell
space for 20 additional beds; Intake/Release/Court/Medical Support; Food
Service/Laundry/Storage; Jail/Situation Operations; and Mechanical/Electrical Building
Support. A preliminary concept diagram, subject to change, is included in Part 3.2 at the
end of this document.
* Preliminary Construction Schedule: Start of Construction July 26, 2027, Substantial
Completion targeted July 2029 and Final Completion by October 2029.
* Services Required: CMAR services will include Pre-Construction Services and will continue
through the Construction phase of the project. The scope of services will include assistance
to the Owner during the process of Pre-Construction (Schematic Design, Design
Development, and Construction Documents phases) and Construction. Owner intends to
use the AIA A133-2019 as the basis for this contract. All forms of contracts and agreements
will be provided as part of the Request for Proposal release to qualified firms. The forms of
contract, bond and insurance requirements may be subject to negotiation if mutually agreed
to by the parties.
* The County reserves the right to revise the General Project Information and to revise the
Proposal Scope of Work.
C. RFQ Contacts:
a. Any questions relating to the RFQ may be directed to the following individual:
Johnson County, IA
Attn: Melissa Robert, Special Projects Manager
Johnson County Board of Supervisors Office

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855 S Dubuque Street, Suite 314
Iowa City, IA 52240
Office: 319-688-5838
Email: mrobert@johnsoncountyiowa.gov
b. Verbal responses shall not be considered official. All questions submitted will be
compiled and addressed accordingly.
1.2 SCHEDULE
Notice of Intent to engage CMAR ISSUED 8/14/2026
Issuance of Request for Qualifications 8/31/2026
(RFQ)
RFQ, Request for Clarifications 4:00pm 9/10/2026
RFQ, Response to Clarifications 9/16/2026
RFQ Due 2:00 pm 913 S Dubuque Street, Iowa City, IA 9/24/2026
RFQ, Selection Committee Evaluations 9/25/2026-
10/16/2026
RFQ, Round Table Interviews (If (Estimated) 10/13/2026-
determined, necessary) 10/14/2026
Bond Referendum Vote (Continuation of the RFP process is 11/3/2026
contingent upon successful passage
of project funding.)
Notify firms of invitation to RFP, issue RFP 11/9/2026
RFP Due 2:00 pm 913 S Dubuque Street, Iowa City, IA 12/3/2026
RFP Evaluation Interviews (Estimated) 12/14/2026-
12/17/2026
Award Tentative 1/14/2027
1.3 REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS AND GENERAL PROCESS
A. Sealed responses for this RFQ must be received by Johnson County Auditor's Office at 913
S Dubuque Street, by 2:00 p.m. on September 24, 2026. Responses will be publicly opened
and the submitting contractors' names read aloud immediately after the closing time in
Conference Room 110 of the Johnson County Administration Building.
1. Submittal Copies:
a. 7 Hard Copies of all required documentation.
b. 1 Electronic Copy (PDF) of all required documentation on a USB Drive.
B. The Owner reserves the right to reject all RFP responses and/or to ask for additional written
information to assist in the evaluation of the RFQs.
C. The envelope shall be marked "RFQ for New Johnson County Sheriff's Office/Jail Facility -
CMAR" and addressed to the attention of "Melissa Robert, Special Projects Manager,
Johnson County Board of Supervisors Office."
D. Responses shall not exceed thirty (30) single-sided pages and must be formatted on 8.5" x
11" pages. The cover page, cover letter, divider pages, back cover, and requested appendix
information are excluded from the page count. Responses must be legible in both printed and
electronic formats without magnification.
E. The Selection Committee will evaluate and score submissions based on the technical RFQ
requirements and the process outlined in Part 2. The Owner intends to invite the highest-
scoring firms to respond to the future RFP according to the schedule above.
F. Expenses and Pre-Contract Costs: This RFQ does not obligate the Owner to reimburse costs
incurred to prepare or submit initial qualifications, subsequent proposals, or any other

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expenses incurred before a formal contract is awarded. Proceeding to the RFP stage and
contract award is contingent upon bonding referendum approval and the Owner's discretion.
G. RFQ submissions will be evaluated by a Project Evaluation Panel appointed by the Owner for
this project.
H. The Owner will retain a paper and an electronic copy of all RFQ submissions.
I. Acceptance and Rejection: The Owner reserves the right to prequalify proposers or reject
proposers as unqualified, including the right to reject nonconforming, nonresponsive, or
conditional qualifications, all in conformance with Iowa law. The Owner may reject any
proposer's qualifications if it determines that award to that proposer would not be in the
project's best interest, including due to lack of qualifications, doubtful financial ability, or
failure to meet any other applicable standards or criteria established by Johnson County, IA.
J. If a Proposer takes exception to any solicitation requirement, the Proposer must clearly
identify each exception or deviation, explain the reason for it, and describe the benefit to the
Owner. If no exceptions, deviations, or clarifications are identified in the submission, the
Owner will assume the Proposer takes no exceptions to the project requirements.
K. Addenda Prior to RFQ Due Date: Johnson County, IA reserves the right to revise or amend
the solicitation or project/performance documents as needed. Any changes will be issued by
addendum, and addenda and clarifications will be issued according to the schedule above.
L. All questions must be submitted and received by the deadline stated in the schedule above.
Email questions to Melissa Robert with the subject line "RFQ for New Johnson County
Sheriff's Office/Jail Facility - CMAR" and include your name, firm name, and question(s).
Responses to questions received before the deadline will be issued by addendum and
posted electronically on the Johnson County, IA website.
M. Pre-Proposal Conference: No pre-proposal conference (or site visit) has been scheduled
under this solicitation.
N. Licensed in Iowa: All contractors engaged in construction for Johnson County (County) shall
be licensed in the State of Iowa for the types of work (construction) included in this project.
Each Proposer must hold a current license of the appropriate category issued at the time the
Proposer submits its Proposal and throughout the contracting period.
O. Iowa (Local) Office Preference: Preference will be given to a successful Proposer with an
office in the State of Iowa. If the selected firm does not currently have an Iowa office, it must
demonstrate how it will successfully deliver the Project for Johnson County, IA. If the firm
intends to establish an Iowa presence, it must provide evidence of an Iowa office within 30
days after the County issues its letter of intent to award the contract. Evidence may include
an Iowa mailing address, telephone number, utility payments, registration with the State of
Iowa, with the appropriate business licenses.
P. Proprietary Information: If a Proposer submits information it considers proprietary, the
Proposer must clearly mark it "Proprietary Information." If Johnson County (County) concurs,
the information will not be treated as public information. The County is not liable for the
disclosure or use of unmarked information. Unless clearly identified as proprietary,
information submitted in a Proposal may be disclosed as permitted or required by applicable
Iowa Code statutes.
1.4 FORMAL SUBMITTAL FORMAT AND REQUIREMENTS
CONTENT OF SUBMITTAL
A Proposer's submitted response to this Request for Qualifications (an "RFQ Response") shall be fully
self-contained and include a response to each of the items listed in this section. The information should

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be in the order listed below and be tabbed/labeled as such in your RFQ Response. The index tabs may
contain photographs as long as there is no other identifying information contained thereon with respect to
the photographs. If any photographs are included and identifiable as to their respective project, the index
tabs will be counted as a page.
Note: The County is seeking a firm and a project team with prior experience demonstrating that the firm
and its proposed project team have the skills required for the CMAR project delivery method pre-
construction phase services and construction phase services included in this RFQ.
1. Cover Letter (0 Points)
a. Introduction to your firm, and identification of primary project leadership.
b. Statement of Qualification (SOQ) confirming conformance with minimum
requirements listed below and other relevant information for review and
consideration by the evaluation team.
c. Acknowledgement of the Addenda, if applicable, and or receipt of clarifications.
d. Provide a list of any exceptions and or deviations from the submittal requirements
and provide an explanation.
2. Prior Experience - 20 Points
Provide a project synopsis for a minimum of two and a maximum of four similar Jail
and/or Law Enforcement projects (public or private sector) in which your firm served as
Constructor for pre-design and construction phase services. If your firm has completed
other projects that you consider comparable, provide a synopsis for each, and explain how
the experience aligns with the nature of and intended project delivery for this Project. If
submission includes other comparable projects, inclusion must not exceed the maximum
of four projects.
Include the following for each project:
a) Describe size, schedule, budget, and complexity of each project.
b) Describe services provided and the benefits to the owner including, but not limited to:
1. Design phase cost estimating experience.
2. Design phase constructability reviews and systems reviews.
3. Design phase value engineering.
4. The process by which the CMAR price or Contract Amount was established.
5. The processes used to keep the project construction cost within the Owner's
Project Cost requirements.
6. How acceptable construction quality was determined and achieved.
7. Problem/challenge avoidance and early solution
c) In chart format, provide the following information for each project. They may be
combined into one chart that shows all information requested.
1. Owner's starting budget estimate.
2. The Contract Amount.
3. The final contract amount for each project.
4. Total of change orders.
5. Total of savings achieved.
6. Original completion date.
7. Final completion date.
d) Client References - For each of the projects referenced in this section, provide
reference information with client contacts, email references, and phone numbers.

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Johnson County reserves the right to contact any and all project owners for projects
submitted as a reference by a Proposer for the purpose of learning more about the
project and dynamics of the Proposer.
3. Project Team - 20 Points
Provide information on the firm's proposed project team, including each individual
assigned to the project and their role; a chart format is acceptable. Include a resume for
each team member summarizing relevant qualifications and experience. Provide
examples of similar projects, including project size, schedule, complexity, and the
individual's specific role. Describe each team member's relevant or comparable
experience, and for any comparable experience, address the evaluation elements
identified in Item 2 above.
Include the following information (chart format is preferred):
a. Provide graphical organization of proposed staff.
b. Provide graphics depicting current and projected workloads of proposed staff
members.
c. Indicate the percentage of time each assigned staff member will dedicate to this
project, including any full-time-equivalent personnel.
d. Include examples of projects where staff assigned to this project have worked
together as a team.
e. List example projects the proposed individuals of your firm and consultant firms
have completed as a team.
f. List the role of key Sub-Contractors with qualifications and experience of
individuals as referenced above.
4. Project Management Plan - 20 Points
Provide information on how your firm would propose to apply your firm's and the proposed
project team's experience and qualifications for this project. Specifically address the
following areas:
a. Describe the processes your firm proposes to use during the design phase of this
project on the following subjects:
1. Preparation of cost estimates that accurately forecast the price determination or
Contract Amount.
2. Constructability reviews, systems reviews, and value-added engineering.
3. Your subcontractor selection and subcontractor management plan
4. Communicating with the County, the design professional, the design
professional's sub-consultants, any early selected subcontractors, and
stakeholders.
5. Approach taken to determine the proposed pricing estimates with required
accompanying information and negotiating approach to determine mutually
satisfactory final price.

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5. Project Budget and Scope Management Capability - 15 Points
Provide information on how your firm would propose to apply your firm's and the proposed
project team's budget, scope, and schedule management capability for this project.
Specifically address the following areas:
a. Describe the procedures your firm, as the Constructor, proposes to use to select
subcontractors under your firm's Subcontractor Selection Plan. This plan must clearly
show the proposed subcontractor selection plan for selecting subcontractors within
the provisions established by the Iowa Code, Chapter 26A. Define the approach
procedure based on qualifications, and where applicable on a combination of
qualifications and price, and not selecting subcontractors based on price alone.
b. Describe the schedule management and control process your firm proposes to apply
to this project. Among other items, specifically address submittals, sub-contractor
management, and critical path aspects of project and material availability.
c. Describe the budget management and control process your firm proposes to apply
to this project.
6. Team Approach Capability - 15 Points
a. Describe your firm's and team members' experience working with owner project
personnel, design professionals, design consultants, subcontractors, and
stakeholders. Provide examples of successful team-based, partnering, or mutually
beneficial collaboration approaches.
7. Capability to complete the Project on an Expedited Basis - 10 Points
a. Completing the Project within the established schedule is critical to its success.
Provide examples of successful schedule management experiences, and or lessons
learned that could benefit delivery of this Project.
PART 2 REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS (RFQ) EVALUATION PROCESS
2.1 REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS SELECTION CRITERIA
A. Notice of Selection: After shortlist and successful firms are determined, a public
announcement of the successful applicants will be made.
B. Owner may conduct such other investigations as Owner deems necessary to assist in the
evaluation of any RFQ Response and to establish the responsibility, qualifications, and
financial ability of proposers, proposed design professionals, subcontractors, suppliers, and
other individuals and entities to perform the work in accordance with Contract Documents.
C. The Selection Committee will evaluate each submitted RFQ Response as previously stated
and assign up to the maximum number of points for each Evaluation Criteria listed below:
D. Proposers receiving at least 80 percent of the total available points, calculated by multiplying
the available points by the number of Selection Committee evaluators, will be deemed
qualified to advance to the Request for Proposal phase.

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Criterion Possible Points
Cover Letter 0
Prior Experience 20
Project Team 20
Project Management Plan (including schedule management) 20
Budget and Scope Management Capability 15
Team Approach Capability 15
Capability to complete the Project on an expedited basis 10
Total Points 100
2.2 OTHER APENDIX INFORMATION (BEYOND THE 30-PAGE FORMAL SUBMITTAL
LIMITATION)
Provide the following additional required proposers firm background information,
specifically addressing the following areas:
1. Provide a narrative history of the firm from its inception, including ownership, partnership,
incorporation, and other relevant organizational information. Describe the firm's growth over
time, including employee count, relocations, and significant changes to its business
organization, structure, or reorganization. Information should be limited to the current
corporate or business entity submitting qualifications for the Construction Manager at Risk
(CMAR) work, if awarded.
2. Provide the firm's annual business volume, in dollars, for each of the past five (5) fiscal
years.
3. Provide a list of all employees serving in supervisory roles, including each employee's area
of responsibility and years of experience in that role.
1. Number of years employed full time by the Company.
2. Minimum years of law enforcement and/or detention experience with the Company.
4. Submit a list of all law enforcement and detention projects completed within the past five (5)
years.
5. Submit a list of comparable projects completed within the past five (5) years by this
corporation under its current name and management. Include the following information for
each project:
1. Project name; owner; contract name; and owner contact name, address, phone
number, and email address.
2. Project manager's name, address, phone number, and email address.
3. User agency or government entity name, address, phone number, and email address.
4. Architect and engineer of record names, addresses, phone numbers, and email
addresses.
5. Project scope, including square footage and the products and services provided by
your company.

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6. Total dollar value of the Detention Equipment Contract (DEC) including Security
Electronics (ESSC).
7. Names of the company's Superintendent and Project Manager assigned to each
project.
8. Each project's leadership contact information and list of projects completed while
employed by your firm.
9. Date of final completion and occupancy.
6. Provide a complete list of all current projects and identify those using prefabricated modular
construction components installed by your firm. For each project, include the project name,
location, architect name and contact information, Construction Manager or General
Contractor name and contact information, number of modular units, if applicable, start date,
current status, number of modular units delivered or installed, and projected completion date
for the remaining prefabricated modular units.
7. Provide a letter from a qualified Best's Rated B++ surety company or higher, licensed in the
project state, confirming that your firm can provide a 100% performance and payment bond
for the project if awarded.
8. Submit a list of all projects within the past five (5) years, in which the company is or has been
involved in litigation as either plaintiff or defendant, and provide the current status of each
matter. In addition, respond to questions 1 through 8 below. For each "YES" response, attach
a separate sheet with a brief explanation of the facts, names of the parties involved, amount
claimed against your firm, and current case status. Also attach explanations for any lawsuit
alleging negligence, defective work, or breach of contract by the firm. Do not include lien
matters, automobile accident cases, or workers' compensation cases:
1. Has a court issued a judgment of $100,000 or more against the firm or any predecessor
within the past five (5) years? _____ YES _____ NO
2. Has the firm or any predecessor settled a lawsuit with a potential value of $100,000 or
more? _____ YES _____ NO
3. Is the firm or any predecessor currently involved in a pending lawsuit with a potential
value of $100,000 or more? _____ YES _____ NO
4. Within the past five (5) years, has any key person, the firm, or any predecessor defaulted
on a loan? _____ YES _____ NO
5. Has the firm, any predecessor, or any associated person ever been suspended or
debarred by a state, federal, or municipal agency? _____ YES _____ NO
6. Within the past five (5) years, has the firm or any predecessor been terminated from, or
failed to complete, any contract? _____ YES _____ NO
7. Within the past five (5) years, has the firm or any predecessor caused significant project
delays of more than four (4) weeks? _____ YES _____ NO
8. Within the past five (5) years, has the firm or any predecessor been in bankruptcy or
receivership? _____ YES _____ NO

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9. Provide a complete list of projects involving bond claims against your company for non-
performance. For each claim, include the claim amount, claim details, and contact
information-name, phone number, and email address-for the Architect, Contractor,
and Owner.
2.3 OTHER RFQ CONSIDERATIONS
The County may elect to conduct roundtable interviews during the RFQ evaluation period and before
issuing the Request for Proposal (RFP), as shown in the proposed timeline in Part 1.2.
Through this process, the Selection Committee may seek additional information about each Proposer,
including its ability to provide exceptional CMAR design-phase and construction-phase services for a
Public Government client. Each Proposer may present its credentials, comparable past work, and any
ideas it wishes to share with the Selection Committee.
If at the RFQ stage interviews are conducted, the roundtable format will generally follow the outline
below:
ROUNDTABLE DISCUSSION (Interviews):
The roundtable discussion will last up to 60 minutes for questions and discussion from the Committee
with the following format: Up to 15 minutes for Proposer presentation/introduction, followed by up to 45
minutes for questions and discussion from the Committee. This time limit will be strictly enforced. No
more than six representatives of the Proposer's team may be present.
FORMAT: The format of the presentation is at the discretion of the Proposer. In general, a series of
questions will be asked of each team. The question sets will be identical for each team except that the
committee may ask questions that clarify or follow-up upon the responses of the team or the committee
may ask questions about the specific statement of qualifications submitted by the team being
interviewed as a clarification.
The order in which the Proposers appear before the Selection Committee will be determined by
alphabetical or reverse-alphabetical order.
PART 3 TERMS AND PROCEDURES
3.1 EXAMINATION OF CONCEPTUAL DOCUMENTS AND SITE
A. Prior to submitting the RFQ Response it is the responsibility of each proposer to:
1. Examine the RFQ Documents thoroughly.
2. Visit the site to become familiar with the general, local, and site conditions that
may affect cost, progress, or performance of the work.
3. Consider federal, state, and local laws and regulations that may affect cost,
progress, and performance of the work.
4. Study and carefully correlate the proposer's knowledge and observations with the
RFQ.
5. Promptly notify the Owner of conflicts, errors, ambiguities, and discrepancies
which the proposer has discovered in the RFQ.

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3.2 SUPPORTING PRELIMINARY DESIGN INFORMATION
Supporting design documents used in presentations to the Board and the public are provided for
reference: