Okaloosa County BOCC — July 21, 2015 — Recommendation Letter

July 8, 2015 Jim Trifilio Coastal Management Coordinator Okaloosa County Tourist Development Council 1540 Miracle Strip Parkway SE Fort Walton Beach, FL 32548 Re: Okaloosa County RFB No. TDD 47-15, Okaloosa County Artificial Reef Construction Project Dear Mr. Trifilio, On June 10, 2015, Okaloosa County opened bid packages for the Okaloosa County Artificial Reef Construction Project. A total of three competitive bids were received. Coleen Marine, Inc. (Coleen), based in Virginia Beach, Virginia, was the apparent low bidder. Per Taylor Engineering’s Scope of Services for the above-referenced project, we have reviewed Coleen’s bid package. Of note, our review and recommendations are limited to engineering and technical issues. Taylor Engineering is not responsible for the review and evaluation of contractor’s financial condition, business licenses or authorizations, bonding, contractual requirements, and any other non-engineering or non-technical information. Two Coleen representatives attended the recommended pre-bid meeting and site visit held on May 18, 2015 and the bid package includes the required submittals (Bid Form, Addenda Acknowledgement, Bid Bond or Check, Equipment List, Deployment Plan, Schedule and Description of Previous Artificial Reef Experience) and forms (Drug-Free Workplace, Conflict of Interest, Federal E-Verify Certification, No Contact Clause, Indemnification and Hold Harmless, Company Data, Anti-Collusion Statement, Certification Regarding Lobbying, and Eglin Access Affidavits). Coleen also provided proof of authorization to transact business in the State of Florida within their RFB response package. Our review also included the following information: 1. Qualifications and past work experience in the field of artificial reef construction. Taylor Engineering Review: Coleen has been in business since May, 2014; however, their targeted key personnel have vast artificial reef building and deployment experience, including 20,000 tons of repurposed concrete materials in the mid-Atlantic and the deployment of dozens of vessels. The company is currently the Artificial Reef Contractor for the State of Delaware Division of Fish and Wildlife and have completed two repurposed concrete reef deployments totaling 5,145 tons in the past year. Similarly, Coleen has completed two deployments for Virginia Marine Resources in the past 6 months totaling approximately 3,850 tons of repurposed concrete (e.g., concrete pipe, culverts, and junction boxes). Coleen also completed the sinking of the Shirley Brown for Alabama Gulf Coast Reef and Restoration Foundation on June 2, 2015 off Orange Beach, Alabama. Most recently, Taylor County, FL has awarded a contract to deploy 224 reef cubes in the Gulf of Mexico – also a Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) sponsored project. 1221 AIRPORT ROAD, SUITE 210 DESTIN, FL 32541 TEL 850.460.7040 WWW.TAYLORENGINEERING.COM WWW.TAYLORENGINEERING.COM Jim Trifilio July 8, 2015 Page 2 of 3 2. Project work plan and schedule. Taylor Engineering Review: The work plan provided by Coleen details numerous, large deck barges (140 – 260 ft in length), loaders, cranes, excavators, and hauling equipment. Coleen has indicated their understanding and approach to the project from their attendance at the pre-bid meeting and site visits, as well as through the submitted deployment plan. Taylor Engineering contacted Mr. Tim Mullane, Coleen’s Vice President of Operations, on June 22 and 23, 2015 to verify the proposed equipment resources discuss details of the deployment plan. Coleen anticipates commencing the required coordination and s