The Brownfields Assistance Center at West Virginia University (WVU)—in partnership with the WV Community Development Hub and the Woodlands Development Group—has released the following vendor Request for Qualifications (RFQ), in support of the Downtown Appalachia: Revitalizing Recreation Economies (DARRE) initiative.
The work will take place in the Mon Forest region of West Virginia.
DARRE is a three-year program supporting recreational economic development in eight WV communities surrounding the Monongahela National Forest: Cowen, Elkins, Franklin, Marlinton, Parsons, Petersburg, Richwood, and White Sulphur Springs.
DARRE will support these communities in growing the number of available buildings and businesses downtown that serve their residents and meet their increasing economic demand as gateways of the Mon National Forest.
In order to bring a high-impact service to each community, the DARRE team is contracting with both in-region and national vendors to provide the necessary support to community teams.
Some of the technical assistance services the DARRE team is actively seeking include but is not restricted to:
- Predevelopment technical assistance
- Engineering assessments for evaluation and reuse guidance
- Building condition evaluation & architectural code analysis
- Creation of “As-built” (existing form) drawings
- Environmental assessments necessary for property transactions and reuse (records search, Phase I & II, asbestos, lead-based paint, etc.)
- Historical significance (tax credit) analysis
- Feasibility analysis, cash flow financial projections, and business planning
- identification of project developers/business operators
- Energy efficiency and renewable energy assessment and planning
- Market research/demand assessment
- Development of investment prospectus
- Preparation of pro forma financial projections
Responses to the RFQ will be accepted and assessed until September of 2024.
Submit a response to the RFQ by April 15, 2022, for best consideration of the first round of projects.
DARRE Vendors will be selected based on: experience, qualifications, capacity, location, cost-effectiveness, and if women and/or minority-owned.
Contact Kaycie Stushek at k.stushek@wvhub.org with any questions.
Photo of tourist train in Elkins, WV is by Storm Cunningham.