PRE-PROPOSAL CONFERENCE: There will not be a pre-proposal conference for this sourcing event. SERVICE DESCRIPTION, FUNDING AND CONTRACTING INFORMATION PURPOSE AND OVERVIEW Multnomah County is seeking Proposers from whom it may provide a license to use 3-acres of arable land to create a community-based farm site for the purposes of providing produce to vulnerable populations. INTRODUCTION AND PROGRAM HISTORY Community Reaps Our Produce and Shares (CROPS) is a Multnomah County initiative that began in 2009 and was established to address hunger, a growing public health concern, and its links to obesity and chronic diseases. The CROPS Farm, located on a formerly vacant, County-owned lot in Troutdale, was managed by a full-time Multnomah County staff person and tended to regularly with the help of an engaged volunteer base. Each year, approximately 15,000 pounds of fresh and organically-grown produce was donated to SnowCap Community Charities and other local organizations and groups. In addition to helping people in need, the CROPS initiative enabled people to eat healthier, provided a nurturing space for skill sharing, community service, and fostered a place to build community. The party selected will have a license to use 3-acres of arable-land for farming, with access to municipal water and electricity service. In addition, the County will provide one shipping container, and may also transfer ownership of capital assets like tractor and tractor attachments, hand tools, and other implements of farming. The license will be granted for a five-year time period with the ability to renew for an additional five-years. Outside of the license to use the land and the potential for transfer of surplus farming equipment, the County will not provide ongoing funding for programmatic support. All utility bill and other costs associated with the farming operation will be the responsibility of the vendor. GOALS, VALUES AND OTHER IMPORTANT CONSIDERATIONS Multnomah County’s Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health program (REACH) in partnership with the Office of Sustainability, will work to provide a community-based farm site (formerly the CROPS Farm) in Troutdale, Oregon, for the county’s local economically disadvantaged populations. The farm will support the Black community, providing a space for farmers to grow locally-grown culturally-specific produce and will support economic development by fostering skill building, agricultural training, and partnerships between local economically disadvantaged farmers, local business, and institutional markets. FUNDING The awarded Proposer will be provided a license to use the land. The County will not pay the Proposer nor will the Proposer pay the County. This is a non-revenue agreement. SCOPE OF SERVICES The County seeks a partner who will embrace the spirit of the CROPS program by creating a farm that invites the community to learn, teach, participate and engage with food production, connection to nature, and healing. The County believes that services should be provided utilizing a “trauma informed” approach, and values services and service providers that are culturally specific. In addition, the County also values sustainability and natural resource stewardship. A successful proposer will also embrace and demonstrate how these values will be put into action at the farm site. The County would also like to promote intergenerational, community-based farming that creates measurable and sustainable environmental, social, cultural, and economic impacts in communities. The proposer may seek to leverage this Contract with County to fund the purchase and construction of additional infrastructure, such as a greenhouse barn and farm equipment. Farm operations on the Easement Area will allow Proposer to sell food commercially to meet the needs of individual households and/or institutional buyers. An ideal partner would also embrace the training of new farmers, and work to create a robust local food economy, increase employment within the minority communities, and expand access to fresh, healthy food. Contractor will perform services in three principal areas: (a) ENHANCE HEALTHY FOOD AND PROCUREMENT SALES Food Access: Proposer's farming operations on the Easement Area will increase food access and reduce food insecurity, thereby investing in communities where access to fresh fruits and vegetables are limited. Economic Development: Proposer’s farming operations will be elevated and sustained by serving commercial markets, such as institutional contracts, and, in turn, Proposer will train new farmers, with an emphasis on people of color. Agricultural Training: Proposer will provide training through Community Educational Workshops, Summer Works, Greenhouse Management Training, and more. County Programs: Hands of Wonder will also utilize the Easement Area for training. (b) ENCOURAGE SOCIAL COHESION Community Farming: The Easement Area will provide designated spaces for community partners’ food production. Social Gathering: The Easement Area will be used for culturally-specific community events, serve as a location for community building, and will host educational tours and other pro-social activities. Farm Visits: Contractor will provide school- and community-based tours, in order to increase exposure to the agriculture industry for the Black community of Multnomah County. PERFORMANCE MEASURES Performance measures will be developed, with the awarded Proposer, during contract negotiation. CONTRACT NEGOTIATION The County will initiate contract negotiations with the responsive and responsible Proposer with the highest scoring proposal. Multnomah County may, at its option, elect to negotiate general contract terms and conditions, services, pricing, implementation schedules, and such other terms as the County determines are in the County’s best interest. If negotiations fail to result in a contract, the County reserves the right to terminate the negotiations and initiate contract negotiations with the next highest scoring responsive and responsible Proposer. This process may continue until a contract agreement is reached. CONTRACT AWARD Through this RFP process, the County is seeking to award one contract. Award, as determined by the County, will be made to the responsible Proposer whose Proposal the County determines is most advantageous to the County based on the evaluation process and evaluation factors described in this RFP. Multnomah County strongly encourages the participation of Minority-Owned, Women-Owned, and Emerging Small Businesses and Organizations in providing these services. CONTRACT TERM Fixed term with options. The contract term shall be five (5) years. The County shall have the option to renew this contract for five (5) additional one (1) year period(s). INSURANCE REQUIREMENTS Exhibit 2 of the Sample Contract reflects the minimum insurance required of a Contractor to provide this service. Additional insurance coverage may be required depending on the key features of service delivery chosen by the Contractor. Final insurance requirements will be subject to negotiation between, and mutual agreement of, the parties prior to contract execution. MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS At the time of proposal submission, Proposers must meet the following minimum requirements. Failure to provide any of the required documents or meet any of the below requirements shall result in rejection of the proposal. The Proposal response must be received by Multnomah County Purchasing no later than 4:00 P.M. local Portland time on the proposal submission deadline. The Proposer must certify that they agree to the Proposers Representation and Certification terms in the Pre-requisite page of the Sourcing Event. At the time of Contracting, Proposers must meet the following minimum requirements. Failure to provide any of the required documents or meet any of the below requirements shall result in cancellation of the contract Proposers must be legal entities, currently registered to do business in the State of Oregon (per ORS 60.701). Proposers must submit verification that all insurance requirements are met.

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