Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge seeks to construct McGregor District Headquarters and Maintenance Facility at former Luster Heights Prison Camp location
The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, McGregor District of the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge (Refuge) is seeking to complete construction of a multipurpose building, maintenance shop, cold storage building, and maintenance yard located near Harpers Ferry in Allamakee County. The requirement is being procured in accordance with FAR Part 15, Contracting by Negotiation. This will be a Firm Fixed Priced Contract and award will be based on best value.
The complete Solicitation has been posted to https://sam.gov/ under Contract Opportunities. Interested contractors must be registered in SAM (System for Award Management, www.sam.gov) and complete Online Representations and Certifications. A pre-proposal site visit and instructions will be announced with the solicitation. The NAICS code is 236220 - Construction of Buildings and the size standard is $45 million. The project magnitude is more than $10,000,000.00.
The multi-purpose building, shop and maintenance facilities would support the McGregor District of the Refuge. The new facilities will be built at the former Luster Heights Prison Camp. This 26-acre Luster Heights site was previously owned by the Iowa Department of Corrections and purchased by the Refuge in March 2020.
The prison camp buildings have been removed in preparation for construction and construction will take place within the footprint of the former buildings. This will include the construction of an approximately 5,000-6,000 square-foot one-story multi-purpose building, widening and paving of an existing single-lane gravel road to accommodate two-way traffic, construction of a hard-surfaced parking area and grass overflow area, on-site gravity septic system and construction of trails to connect to off-site state forest trails. This facility will serve as a visitor area, staff office, and have a multi-purpose space available for educational activities, meetings, training, and volunteer events.
To provide the space necessary to secure, properly store, and maintain valuable equipment necessary for the Refuge to meet habitat and public use goals, a maintenance facility and storage buildings would also be constructed. This would include a 6,000 square foot shop and 5,000 square foot cold storage building and associated infrastructure (security fence, above ground fuel tanks, etc.).
Funding for this project is to be through Great American Outdoors Act funds. Direct questions can be sent in writing to Samantha LaGue, Samantha_LaGue@fws.gov.
The Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge is the most visited refuge in the United States. The refuge extends 261 miles along the Upper Mississippi River from Wabasha, MN to Rock Island, IL, protecting and preserving habitat for migratory birds, fish and a variety of other wildlife. This 240,000-acre refuge was established in 1924.
In addition to being the most visited refuge in the country, the “Upper Miss” Refuge has the added complexity of a major navigation system, including 11 locks and dams, within its boundary. It is also a world-class fish and wildlife area which harbors 306 species of birds; 119 species of fish; more than 300 active bald eagle nests; thousands of heron and egret nests; spectacular concentrations of canvasback ducks, tundra swans, and white pelicans; and several threatened or endangered species.
