Mitchell J. Silver, FAICP T 212.360.1305 E [email protected] City of Commissioner F 212.360.1345 Parks & Recreation

The Arsenal Central Park New York, NY 10065 www.nyc.gov/parks MEMORANDUM

TO: All Prospective Proposers

FROM: Lizbeth Sanchez, Project Manager

SUBJECT: Addendum to Request for Expression of Interest (“RFEI”) for Tremont Park, (X010A-EX)

DATE: November 8, 2017

This addendum is being issued to include information regarding questions raised during the October 16, 2017 Site Tour/Proposer Meeting for the above-referenced RFEI.

1. Available Plans: Plans for the comfort station located on the corner of East and may be viewed and downloaded on the NYC Parks (“Parks”) website by visiting: https://www.nycgovparks.org/opportunities/business/tremont-park-comfort- station. Parks makes no representations as to the availability, accuracy, or completeness of these documents.

Proposers should note that any additional information not included in this addendum and/or any further changes to the RFEI will be communicated in the form of a written addendum from Parks. An addendum from Parks is the only official form of communication regarding additional or clarifying information pertaining to the RFEI. Proposers should acknowledge the receipt of this addendum and any additional addenda that may be issued by Parks for this solicitation in their proposal submissions. All other terms and conditions of the RFEI are unchanged by this addendum and shall remain in full force and effect.

Please contact me with any questions you may have at (212) 360-1376 or [email protected].

Thank you.

Request for E x p r e s s i o n o f I n t e r e s t

TREMONT PARK THE BRONX

ISSUE DATE: September 25, 2017 SOLICITATION # X010A-EX

City of New York Parks & Recreation www.nyc.gov/parks Bill de Blasio, Mayor Mitchell J. Silver, FAICP, Commissioner Alyssa Cobb-Konon, Assistant Commissioner for Planning and Development Iris Rodriguez-Rosa, Borough Commissioner for Bronx Parks

REQUEST FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST (RFEI)

The City of New York Department of Parks & Recreation (“Parks”) is seeking responses to this Request for Expressions of Interest (“RFEI”) for proposals to better activate sites located in Tremont Park, the Bronx, NY.

PROJECT MANAGER The Project Manager for this RFEI is Lizbeth Sanchez. All RFEI questions and/or inquiries should be directed to her. She may be reached at: Phone: (212) 360-1376 Email: [email protected] Fax: (212) 360-3434

If you have a hearing impairment, please call the following toll-free number and leave a message on the Telecommunication Device for the Deaf (TDD). The TDD number is 212-504- 4115.

RFEI TIMETABLE

The following schedule has been established for this Request for Expressions of Interest.

RFEI Release Date: Monday, September 25, 2017

Site Tour/Proposer Meeting: Monday, October 16, 2017 at 11:00a.m. (EST)

Expressions of Interest Due: Monday, November 13, 2017 at or before 3:00p.m. (EST)

If you have a physical disability and cannot deliver your proposal to the Arsenal, please contact the Project Manager(s) at least 48 hours prior to the deadline and special arrangements will be made for you.

RECOMMENDED

There will be a site tour on Monday, October 16, 2017 at 11:00a.m (EST). We will be meeting at the Tremont Park entrance on the corner of East Tremont Avenue and Third Avenue. If you are considering responding to this RFEI, please make every effort to attend this recommended meeting.

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I. PROJECT BACKGROUND

A. TREMONT PARK BACKGROUND

Tremont Park is named for the neighborhood in which it resides. This area was known as Upper Morrisania until the 1850s, when local postmaster Hiram Tarbox realized his mail was getting mixed up with that of nearby Morrisania. Legend has it that he renamed the town “Tremont” for the three nearby hills—Fairmount, Mount Eden, and Mount Hope.

This park was once named Old Borough Hall Park, because Borough Hall stood on this property. George B. Post (1837-1913) designed Bronx Borough Hall with yellow brick and brown terra-cotta trim. Post’s most famous accomplishments include the New York Stock Exchange and the now demolished Western Union Building, which stood at and Dey Street in . Bronx Borough Hall was completed in 1897, and Louis F. Haffen, the first Bronx Borough President, was inaugurated in a second floor office in 1898. (A park named for Haffen is located on the blocks between Burke, Ely, Hammersley, and Gunther Avenues.) In 1899, a grand stairway was constructed along the steep slope down to Third Avenue, connecting Borough Hall to the bustling Bronx.

After World War I, Victory Park, a formal garden with paths radiating from a large circular fountain, was created near Borough Hall to celebrate the Allied victory over Germany. Borough Hall served as the borough’s administrative headquarters until a new Bronx administration building was constructed along the near Yankee Stadium in 1935. Government services gradually left the old Borough Hall, and by 1964, the only office left in the building was a marriage license bureau. Despite efforts by the Bronx County Historical Society and others to renovate the hall for civic use, the building was deemed structurally unsafe and demolished on January 12, 1969.

This parkland, bounded by Third, East Tremont, and Arthur Avenues, and the Cross-Bronx Expressway, was once part of nearby , the largest park in the South Bronx and the sixth largest in the borough. The City of New York acquired the property for Crotona Park from the Andrew Bathgate estate as part of the consolidation of the Bronx park system in 1888. Known at the time as “Bathgate Woods,” the park was already famous for its views, its trees, and its pond. Although the city planned to name the park for the Bathgates, a dispute with the family led a Parks engineer to name it after Croton, an ancient Greek colony famed for its Olympic athletes.

Crotona Park once encompassed 155 acres (today it covers 127.5 acres), including this site and Victory Park. In 1945, the construction of the Cross-Bronx Expressway separated this 15 acre site from Crotona Park and swallowed up several acres for the highway project. This section continued to be called Crotona Park from 1945 until 1987, when Parks named it Highland Park. In February 1999, Commissioner Stern renamed it Tremont Park.

The Park underwent extensive renovations in 1995 made possible by $585,000 in funding from Council Member Jose Rivera. These renovations included the addition of new chess and checkers game tables, spray showers, basketball courts, a baseball diamond, and many trees.

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B. HISTORIC IMAGES

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C. AERIAL VIEW & PROJECT AREA

Project area outlined in yellow. Satellite image provided by Google earth.

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D. EXISTING CONDITIONS

Tremont Park is located in the borough of the Bronx. The park is bounded by Third, East Tremont, and Arthur Avenues, as well as the Cross-Bronx Expressway. Recent playground improvements have brought vitality to the park. In the summer of 2017, the City Parks Foundation hosted a Summer Stage concert in the park.

Parks envisions Tremont Park as an area of community prominence and a focal point of cultural and community gatherings. Further information on Tremont Park and its existing conditions can be found here: https://www.nycgovparks.org/planning-and-building/planning/conceptual-plans/crotona-and-tremont-park- master-plan

E. PROJECT CONCEPTS

Proposed events, services, programming and concessions should appeal to a wide variety of audiences (e.g., families, residents, tourists), though individual events may be targeted at specific audiences. A partial list of possible programming and activation strategies is below. This list is simply meant to provide general concepts and is in no way exhaustive or restrictive:

 Eating and Drinking Establishments  Rentals: o Cafes, restaurants, snack bars, catering o Pop-up, seasonal, permanent halls o Bicycles, bike repair, skates o Pop-up, seasonal, permanent concessions o Food trucks

 Festivals, Concerts and Performances o Arts, music, film series o Bandshell o Food Festivals o Concert Series

 Recreational Facilities and Programs  Markets, Fairs, Events o Adventure Playground o Markets o Soccer Field o Field Days/Book Fairs for Youth o Basketball Court o Large scale fairs o Skate parks o Craft fairs o Mini-golf o Farmers markets o Archery o Weekend Clean the Park Days o Running or foot races o Holiday markets o Climbing gym/Rock wall o County fairs o Art fairs

 Amusements  Public Art Activations o Public Plays o Fountains o Public Performances o Sculpture Garden o Puppet show theater o Lighting and projection, temporary o Learning center galleries, light shows o Water Shows

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II. EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST

Parks is interested in receiving expressions of interest that include plans for the implementation of programming, amenities, events and development that will enhance Tremont Park’s open spaces as well as activity that will also improve the quality of life for the surrounding residential and business communities, visitors, tourists, along with the residents of the City of New York.

Expressions of Interest should include:

 Mission, goals, and qualifications of proposer  Budget proposal: potential revenue and expense charts and fee structure  Potential timelines  Proposed staffing model/organizational charts  Community outreach plan  Marketing plan  ADA compliance plan  Capital equipment acquisition, and maintenance plan

Parks reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to withdraw the RFEI, to negotiate with applicants (including applicants not responding to this RFEI), and to use ideas or proposals submitted in any manner deemed to be in the best interest of the City of New York, including, but not limited to soliciting competitive submissions relating to such ideas or proposals.

Interviews may be held with Respondents following Parks receipt of submissions. Parks will review all RFEI submissions. If upon review by Parks the new concession idea appears to be feasible, appropriate, and advantageous to the City, Parks will then consider beginning the solicitation concession process. This involves the creation of a Request for Proposals (“RFP”) document. RFP are publicly solicited and a concession is awarded to a proposer whose proposal is determined to be responsive, taking into consideration the revenue to the City, operational background, and other factors or criteria set forth in the RFP.

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III. THE RFEI SUBMISSION PROCEDURE

A. PROPOSAL SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS

All proposals must be submitted in a sealed envelope and received in the office of the Revenue Division, City of New York Parks, The Arsenal-Central Park, 830 Fifth Avenue, Room 407, New York, New York 10065.

The submission should be typed on both sides of 8 ½" X 11” paper. Pages should be paginated. The City of New York requests that all proposals be submitted on paper with no less than 30% post-consumer material content, i.e., the minimum recovered fiber content level for reprographic papers recommended by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (for any changes to that standard please consult: https://www.epa.gov/smm/comprehensive-procurement-guidelines-paper-and-paper-products). The proposer should state whether its response is printed on recycled paper containing the minimum percentage of recovered fiber content as requested by the City in these instructions. Failure to comply with any of the instructions set forth in this paragraph will not be considered non-responsive.

No proposals should be submitted in plastic sleeves or spiral binders. Illustrations may be included. All plans are subject to Parks’ approval. Oversized drawings may be submitted, but should be accompanied by 8 ½" x 11" sectionals or reductions to 8 ½" x 11". No telegraphic or facsimile proposals will be accepted. The proposal will be evaluated on the basis of its content, not length.

Please submit four (4) copies of your submission (including four copies of all required attachments). The following information should be printed on the outside of the envelope:

I. Proposer’s Name and Address II. Solicitation # X010A-EX III. Due: November 13 , 2017 at or before 3:00p.m. (EST)

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Attachment I: Photographs

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