Introduction:

The City of Bowling Green, Ohio, is seeking proposals from qualified firms with work with the Planning Department and Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) to design and produce bronze plaques for historical structures. The City has budgeted for a historical plaque program to share the cost of a plaque with owners who have locally designated their historical buildings. The plaques would be designed by the firm and produced by the firm. The City would collect the orders during a designated time period annually and send the order to the firm for production and issue payment accordingly.

Scope of Work:

The City of Bowling Green's Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) has budgeted for a historical plaque program to share the cost of a plaque with owners who have locally designated their historical buildings. This work would include working with the Planning Department and HPC to provide an initial plaque design (example to the right), then work within the budget to determine a plaque cost (bronze preferred, size of 8" by 8" preferred), and then the City would offer plaques to be ordered one time annually to building owners. This would be a long-term contract and the number of plaques each year would be determined by the interest of building owners and the budget.

Budget and Funding:

Provide a "not to exceed" cost for the one-time design and long-term production of plaques, with consideration of a possible 3-5 year timeframe with a contract to test the program. This can be listed in the proposed approach, if desired. The City has budgeted $400 per plaque.

Qualifications:

Demonstrated experience with design and production of historical plaques.

Proposal Requirements:

• Cover Letter: Brief description of the proposed approach, including a general timeline, cost estimate, with the business/consultant name, address, phone number, name and e-mail for the primary contact. If the proposal includes other partners, please identify the name(s) and contact information.
• Qualifications and Experience: Provide the following information to demonstrate qualifications of the consultant and personnel
• Examples: Provide at least 3 examples of similar work samples recently completely (within last 5 years) by the firm that exhibits the team's ability to successfully complete the proposed project. Include location, date, scope, contract amount, project team, and client contact information for each work example. Project samples can be digital.
• References: Provide at least 3 references of municipal clients where similar professional services were recently provided by the firm. Include the name, email, and phone number of each reference listed.
• Payment Terms: Provide payment schedules, accepted methods, late fees, deposits or installment requirements and non-payment clause as applicable.
• Submission Packet: The entire response needs to be submitted in a sealed envelope marked "City of Bowling Green, Ohio, Historic Plaque Project" on the front and one digital copy on a flash drive.

Deliverables:

The selected firm will be expected to prepare recommendations for the designs and size of bronze plaques with a general timeline, along with post-construct support ("how to install" information for owners) and if there is any warranty information.

Evaluation Criteria:

Proposals will be valuated based on experience with the design and production on historical bronze plaques, years of experience, references with similar projects, cost-effectiveness and value.

Timeline:

The proposal submission deadline is Tuesday, February 17, 2026 by 4:00 p.m. The vendor selection/contract award will be completed by Monday, March 9, 2026, with the project start date anticipated in early April of 2026.

Responses to this RFP are due no later than 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday, February 17, 2026 and need to be delivered to:

Lori Tretter, Municipal Administrator
City of Bowling Green
305 North Main Street
Bowling Green, Ohio 43402

Questions regarding the RFP may be addressed to Heather Sayler, Planning Director, at (419) 354-6218 or hsayler@bgohio.gov.

The City is not obligated to accept the lowest priced proposal, but will make an award in the best interest of the project. Following the evaluation, the City of Bowling Green will enter into contract negotiations with the most highly qualified firm.