The "Next Big Thing"

West Palm Beach Downtown Development Authority
Deadline:
Friday July 15, 2022
Location: West Palm Beach, FL
Website


The "Next Big Thing" DDA RFP No. 2022-001

Ends on July 15, 2022

Request for Proposal

DDA RFP No. 2022 - 001

The West Palm Beach Downtown Development Authority is looking for the “Next Big Thing” in placemaking to showcase Downtown West Palm Beach

Request for Proposal

The West Palm Beach Downtown Development Authority (DDA), with the support from the West Palm Beach Arts & Entertainment District (A&E), 501C3 is requesting proposals from qualified vendors for public space activations and installations for an exciting opportunity in Downtown West Palm Beach. We are searching for placemakers, artists, innovators, creatives, curators, improv experts, entrepreneurs, or any multidisciplinary team, that can create a large-scale urban experience, be it an installation, performance, a hybrid, or anything else in your imagination that you may dream of that reflects the “Next Big Thing” for Downtown West Palm Beach. Your urban experience should be interactive, unique, artistic, must happen in a public space inside the downtown boundaries, and include a creative message, full of visual impact that complements the surrounding area and ignites the community’s imagination. To be completed in Winter 2022/Spring 2023.

Background

DowntownWPB is home to approximately 10,000 residents, a 30,000-person workforce, and 15,000 visitors, all with diverse backgrounds. To celebrate the energy and growth of Downtown West Palm Beach, we are opening a Request for Proposal to select an individual or a team that can create a large-scale urban experience for our theme the “Next Big Thing.” We believe that through this project we can create an opportunity to express and share something extraordinary within our community. We ask that the applicants interpret the theme in their own creative way reflecting on the idea of creating moments of fascination, wonder, and imagination.

This large-scale urban experience should add vibrancy to our streets and energize our downtown in an exceptional way. DowntownWPB is home to numerous artworks, open public spaces, and a beautiful waterfront, which may inspire and provide a wide range of opportunity sites for the project to be implemented. DowntownWPB is home to many hidden treasures which provide tokens of creativity that animate our urban landscape with moments of curiosity and fascination.

Within the process of completing this project, we encourage getting the community involved. We also would like to emphasize that the final project should have an interactive experience for everyone to enjoy. Please address in your proposal how you can use virtual, digital, in-person, and other formats of engagement with the community. There are no limits to how creative the interaction with the public can be.

Eligibility/Guidelines

Any individual or team interested in creating a large-scale urban experience, to begin in Winter 2022/Spring 2023, may submit a proposal in accordance with the guidelines provided below.

  • Individuals or teams may submit more than one proposal.
  • The project must be original to the team.
  • The final project must be positive and suitable for viewing by all ages.
  • The lead applicant must be 18 years or older.

We will not accept proposals that:

  • Are plagiarized, stolen, or copied from another source.
  • Proposals must not include language or imagery that is or could be interpreted as obscene, violent, or discriminatory.
  • If creating a visual project, it may not use any logos or text considered advertising or copyright-protected symbols or icons.

RFP Timeline

RFP Timeline

  • Pre-proposal information video will be available online on June 13, 2022, at noon through this link: DowntownWPB.com/RFP or click here.
  • Work commences as soon as possible after the announcement and executed contract.
  • The project may begin in the Winter of 2022 and must be completed by March 2023, unless otherwise rescheduled due to unforeseen circumstances. Must be mutually agreed upon.

Application Requirements

Phase 1: Proposal Application

  • No cost to apply
  • All requested items must be in the digital format submitted by the Submittable website only.
  • If you are having technical difficulties, request help directly to Submittable on their website help menu. 
  • All questions regarding the application process and/or project scope must be submitted via email to [email protected] with the subject line: Next Big Thing RFP, by 3:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST) on Friday, June 24, 2022.
  • The request for proposal closes at 3:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST) on Monday, July 15, 2022. Only complete applications will be considered.

The application will require the following:

Organization Overview/Background Information (25 pts.) – Individuals are required to submit a resume, a professional statement, visual examples of past work, a past work project list, and three (3) references. Teams will submit resumes and one (1) collective professional statement. The team's visual examples and references should not exceed a maximum of ten (10) images per team and three (3) references per team.

  • Resume(s) - Individual resumes should not be longer than two (2) pages. Teams will submit one resume per team member, for up to five (5) members.
  • Professional or Team Statement - In 500 words or less, describe the individual's or team's work and practice letting us know more about yourself or the team and what you're or the team's work is about.
  • Past Work Images – Visual examples of past work should not exceed ten (10) images. Make sure your digital images, illustrations, or graphic files are high-resolution, no less than 150 dpi, and do not exceed 5 MB of data. Please number your files to correlate with the past work project list. For example, 01_ProjectName, 02_ProjectName, etc.
  • Past Work Project List - The list should describe and correlate with the past work images submitted. Please include the past work image number, title, physical size or size of the audience, materials, total cost, locations of work, and 1-2 descriptive sentences per past work presented.
  • References - Three (3) references are required, please include their name, company phone number, email address, and project or work relationship to the individual and/or team. Teams will combine references to not exceed three references.

Project Concept (25 pts.) - Individuals and/or teams will be required to provide the project’s title, short description, a written statement describing the project, and project graphics.

  • Project Title - Title name of the project.
  • Project Short Description - In 25 words or less, add a short project description or tagline.
  • Project Written Statement – In 250 words or less, explain as concisely as possible the theme/concept of your proposed project, describe your process, and include supplemental information such as medium or technique.
  • Project Graphics (Images, Illustrations, and/or Video) – Please include up to ten (10) images, illustrations, or any type of graphics that explain the concept in digital format. Up to one video may be added and it must be limited to no more than one (1) minute maximum. Make sure your digital images, illustrations, or graphic files are high-resolution, no less than 150 dpi, and do not exceed 5 MB of data. 

Community Engagement/Interactivity (20 pts.) – In 500 words or less, please explain how you can use virtual, digital, in-person, and/or hybrid formats to engage the community or how the proposed work will interact with the public. There are no limits to how creative the interaction with the public can be. Any interactive portion or concept of the project should be described here.

Strategy and Program Development (20 pts.) - Individuals and/or teams will be required to provide a timeline and a maintenance plan for the proposed project.

  • Project Estimated Timeline – This outline should include an estimated timeline for each phase of the project. The draft schedule covers the date from the approved concept to the completion of the project.
  • Maintenance Plan – In 1,000 words or less, describe how this project will tolerate outdoor elements and provide a suitable maintenance plan. The plan should include rates for maintenance, services, and repairs. (Indicate recommended routine inspections, cleaning, etc.)

Project Estimated Budget (10 pts.) – Itemize artist(s) fee, supplies, travel-related expenses, insurance, and all costs associated with the project. The project budget is $100,000; however, if your proposed project exceeds that amount the DDA may consider alternative and/or additional funding options. If applicable, briefly explain other funding sources or financial partners you would add to this proposal. This is a competitive bid process.

Phase 2: Selected Semi-Finalists Proposal Presentation

  • Selected individuals and/or teams will have approximately six (6) weeks to further develop their proposals to reflect more information on project location, final design, and community interaction as a full presentation to the Committee via Zoom Meeting or in person.
  • The requirement is a presentation of up to fifteen (15) minutes per team, and ten (10) minutes for Q&A, on the week of August 29, 2022.
  • The committee will pick a winner and they will be notified via email the week of September 5, 2022.
  • The winner will work in partnership with the DDA, the City of West Palm Beach, and other potential stakeholders. DDA staff will be the point of contact and will manage the project. DDA will also hold the contract.

Dimensions/Location

Downtown West Palm Beach is an area with great public spaces, a waterfront, and private properties that are potential event or installation sites. This is an open-ended request for proposals. As such, the winning proposer will conduct their due diligence to investigate and research available sites. This should include public spaces, streets, and private properties within the Downtown District boundary, please see the boundary map here: Click Here for the map.

Each proposer will be responsible for determining site feasibility for their project proposal, including dimensions and physical access to the space sufficient to accommodate the project.

Selection Process

Finding the right individual or team for a project is the highest priority for the West Palm Beach DDA and the A&E District. The selection process is designed to ensure only the highest quality, skilled, and appropriate professionals are chosen. The key to the program’s success is a five-step process:

  1. The goals of the project must be clearly defined. The scoring sheet and criteria will be provided below for your reference.
  2. Request for proposals will be processed through the Submittable website in digital form. These proposals are assigned for review to a three to a five-person committee, which will review each proposal individually and score.
  3. All scores will be combined and totaled, and a meeting will be held with the committee to discuss the submissions and determine the top three semi-finalists based on points scored through the selection process. Note that the committee may waive any informalities or minor defects or reject any and all Proposals.
  4. After the top three proposals are selected, they will be contacted and paid a stipend of $1,500 to further develop their concepts. Each participant will then present their final concept to the committee.
  5. The top three (3) selected semi-finalists will present full proposals on the week of August 29, 2022, to the committee.
  6. The committee will select finalists and they will enter an agreement with the DDA to complete the project.

Scoring Sheet

The following scoring sheet will be used to score the first phase of the project, please click here. During the second phase, semi-finalists will receive the scoring sheet for presentations via email.

Policies

Applicants will retain the ownership of design ideas submitted with this application. The contract will be executed between the selected awardee and the West Palm Beach DDA. Financial compensation and insurance for the completion of the project will be made in accordance with the agreed-upon contract between the awardee and the West Palm Beach DDA.

  • Signage will be placed near the project, which credits the awardee and commemorates the generosity of the West Palm Beach DDA and the A&E District who are funding this project.
  • Applicants must certify that all statements made in the application are true to the best of their knowledge.
  • The applicant recognizes that the West Palm Beach DDA and the A&E District may make duplicates of application materials for any purpose to benefit both organizations.
  • The applicant must recognize that any liability for loss or damage is not the responsibility of the West Palm Beach DDA, the A&E District, or anyone associated with this project.
  • The DDA may waive any informalities or minor defects or reject any and all Proposals.
  • The DDA reserves the right to use any and all items in the proposal and images taken during the project to freely publish for communication, news, media, and any other publication purposes.

For questions about the project please contact [email protected] and write in the subject line Next Big Thing.

Additional Forms

The following forms will need to be downloaded to include with submission:

IRS W-9 Form: https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/fw9.pdf

About

A&E District: The West Palm Beach Arts & Entertainment District is a centralized collection of inspiring arts and entertainment venues; art and history museums; galleries; libraries; performing arts companies; and art education institutions. Situated in the heart of South Florida’s most progressive city, the District includes more than 20 distinct and distinguished cultural destinations that form a defining industry cluster. The A&E District enhances the appeal of West Palm Beach as a visitor destination, drawing attention to its status as a vibrant city illuminated by its beauty and range of creative expression.

West Palm Beach DDA: The West Palm Beach Downtown Development Authority (DDA) was created in 1967 as an independent special taxing district to promote and enhance a safe, vibrant Downtown for residents, businesses, and visitors through the strategic development of economic, social and cultural opportunities. We improve and maintain Downtown West Palm Beach by offering information and services to visitors, residents, and business owners.

Posted June 24, 2022



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