Fall Line Vision Plan: Request for Proposals

January 5, 2023

Sports Backers Request for Proposals: Fall Line Vision Plan

What is the Fall Line Vision Plan?

Sports Backers is working to make the Fall Line, a 43-mile multi-use paved trail from Ashland to Petersburg, a world-class community transportation and recreational resource.

The Fall Line Vision Plan will develop a detailed list of amenities and connections that will elevate the Fall Line beyond a ribbon of pavement and into a signature placemaking project for the Richmond region. The Fall Line Vision Plan will be used to maximize placemaking opportunities along the corridor and through extensive community engagement, strengthen community ties to the Fall Line.  We expect up to 30 different meetings will be needed to engage the public, local governments, schools, organizations, and local businesses.

The Fall Line Vision Plan will provide a clear vision for the different amenities along with bike and pedestrian connections at specific sites along the corridor. The Fall Line Vision Plan will require significant local government involvement because the vast majority of the trail is on public land and will require each local government’s tacit agreement to future amenities. These amenities may include, but not be limited to playgrounds, pump tracks, skate parks, amphitheaters, tree and garden landscaping, public art, and trail-oriented development in a variety of locales.

The plan will provide specific details about amenities and tangible components broken out by location within each locality.  Enough detail will be provided to understand the scale and scope of amenities with the understanding that additional design would be required to build the amenity in the future.

We are looking for innovation and creativity that will help to elevate the Fall Line’s potential as a world class amenity – dazzle us!

Scope of Work

• An innovative, beautiful, inspiring, and accessible plan in digital and print formats. Sharable graphics, renderings, animations, video, and other formats are a plus.
• Identification and description of critical and impactful community connections along the corridor.
• Identification and description of safety hotspots, suggestions for appropriate alternatives.
• Suggest appropriate and ambitious signature elements to make the Fall Line a top-of-its-class trail.
• Demographic and proximity analysis of the corridor:
  • – # of schools by type
  • – Population within ½ mile and 1 mile of the trail
  • – Property values within ½ mile of the trail
  • – # of parks
  • – # of businesses within ½ mile of the trail
• Compilation of partner and community input into a complete, comprehensive, and marketable vision for the Fall Line.
• Thoughtful inclusion for people of all ages and abilities.
• Establish a plan development timeline with interim deadlines

Preliminary List of Plan Chapters

• Linkages to previous Fall Line trail planning work
• Existing and potential Bike and Pedestrian connections with detailed locations and facility type
• Locations of trailheads and descriptions of amenities offered for each location
• Public art options by location
• Enhanced landscaping with garden corridors and enhanced vegetative cover sections
• Recreational sites: skate parks, pump track, fitness stations, playgrounds
• Economic impact to include local and tourist spending and increased property values along trail corridor
• Opportunities for trail design innovation or experimentation at specific sites

What this RFP is not looking for:

Details about the paved trail design, construction, naming, wayfinding and furnishings will not be included in the Fall Line Vision Plan, but rather links to the corresponding existing planning documents will be included for reference.

• Corridor Plan (VDOT 2020)
• Wayfinding Plan (CVTA, in progress)
• Engineering Design Guide (VDOT, in progress)
• Branding (Sports Backers and Dotted Line, 2020)
• Feasibility Study (VDOT 2020 and 2021)
• Typical Sections (VDOT, 2021 and ongoing)
• Substantial focus on describing various bike/ped design

Cost Range

We are expecting proposals in the range of $150,000 to $200,000.

Application and Project Timeline

• January 11 at 1 PM EST — Zoom Information Session for interested contractors
• February 6 at 5 PM EST — Responses to RFP due
• February 12-16 — Finalists interviews
• February 22 — Selection of winning bid on February 22
• March through May – first round of community and stakeholder engagement
• August 1 — First draft to be completed
• August/ September – second round of locality and stakeholder engagement for draft review
• October 1 — Final Plan Delivered

Administration

Sports Backers and the selected consultant will designate project managers through which all communications related to the plan will be exchanged and who will meet monthly for project updates during the course of the plan’s development.

Background Information on Fall Line

The Fall Line is a proposed 43-mile paved multi-use trail in Central Virginia that joins 7 localities (Ashland, Hanover, Henrico, Richmond, Chesterfield, Colonial Heights, and Petersburg) and crosses three rivers. It will be the backbone of active transportation in the region and will generate significant economic development and opportunity. Over $200 million has been raised for planning and construction from federal, state, regional, and local sources, and construction is expected to begin in various phases starting in 2023.

Sports Backers, through our Bike Walk RVA Program, is the lead organization advocating for the completion of this backbone of biking and walking in the Richmond Region and beyond.

About Sports Backers

Sports Backers, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, pursues a goal to transform greater Richmond into the most physically active community in the nation by leading the area in embracing and celebrating an active lifestyle. Our events and programs are designed to foster active lifestyles for everyone.

During the past 31 years, Sports Backers has developed programs and events that are designed to inspire people from all corners of our community to live actively. We achieve this work by focusing on a network of collaborative partnerships with other organizations, businesses and local governments. In order to have transformational change, we realize we can’t do it all alone, but rather we work to build a movement of change in our community to make active living the easy choice.

Main Contact

Brantley Tyndall
Sports Backers, Director of Bike Walk RVA
100 Avenue of Champions
Richmond, VA 23230
[email protected]

www.sportsbackers.org