CITY OF SUMNER, WASHINGTON REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (RFP) FOR REDEVELOPMENT & MANAGEMENT PARTNERSHIP FOR CITY-OWNED ATHLETIC FACILITY
The City of Sumner is inviting proposals from qualified persons or firms (Respondents) to
redevelop, maintain, manage and operate the baseball field and surrounding City-owned properties
known collectively as the Bill Heath Sports Complex (BHSC) for organized youth and adult athletic
activities. The City’s intent in requesting partnership proposals is to provide high quality
athletic field services to the public while contributing to the sustainable management of these
valuable City assets. Proposals shall be submitted electronically in .pdf format to Community
Services Manager Derek Barry via e-mail at: derekb@sumnerwa.gov or delivered to the following
address:
City of Sumner
Attn: Derek Barry, Community Services Manager
1104 Maple Street
Sumner, WA 98390
Issue Date: October 8, 2025.
Submission Deadline: November 6, 2025, by 4:00pm
The City has complete discretion in the evaluation of the proposals, reserving the right to reject
any or all proposals for any reason or no reason. This RFP does not obligate the City to pay any
costs incurred by respondents in the preparation and submission of a proposal. Furthermore, the RFP
does not obligate the City to accept or contract for any expressed or implied services.
The City is an equal opportunity employer and requires all proposers to comply with the City of
Sumner’s equal opportunity policies and regulations. Any successful proposer hired to provide
services to the City hereunder, agrees to refrain from any discriminatory conduct in its
performance under a contract with the City or in the hiring or employment of any employee or
subcontractor/consultant, if applicable, based upon race, color, religion or creed, national
origin, ancestry, sex, pregnancy, marital status, sexual orientation or gender identity, gender,
age, disability – sensory, mental or physical, the use of a trained guide or service animal by a
person with a disability, honorably discharged veteran or military status, or other protected
status.
INTRODUCTION
The City of Sumner is in north central Pierce County, approximately 40 miles south of Seattle and
15 miles east of Tacoma, at the intersection of the Puyallup and White Rivers. Sumner is a
non-charter code city, operating under a Mayor/Council form of local government.
The City of Sumner, established in 1891, has grown from 531 residents in the year 1900 (US Census)
to 11,080 residents as of 2025. Sumner’s commercial and industrial districts currently support over
16,000 daily jobs. The city encompasses 4,600 acres or 7.2 square miles. It has a designated urban
service area/urban growth area of approximately 2,000 acres or 3.1 square miles. The City operates
under a 2025-2026 biennial budget totaling $224,382,896 and 2025 Pierce County Certification of
Assessed Property Values totaling $5,615,870,940.
The city recognizes the importance of providing quality facilities for the community. The grass
baseball field at the Bill Heath Sports Complex is now 27 years old and in need of improvements to
increase access and year-round usability. The field was originally built to replicate the
dimensions of, then, Safeco Field, which has proven too large for the average youth player. Field
space is limited in the South Puget sound and providing access to artificial turf is crucial to
increasing opportunity for community recreation.
SCOPE OF SERVICES
The City requests proposals from interested groups with expertise in redevelopment and management
of athletic facilities and programing to leverage partnerships and provide services to help fund,
manage and utilize the field.
The proposal should specifically address:
- Overview of interest and experience in providing quality recreational programming
- Approach to redevelopment for maximizing use of the field by converting the grass field to
artificial turf - Improvements proposed for the facility beyond the artificial turf to increase access and
usability - Funding approach
- Partnership proposal
- How the field will be programmed for use; including public rentals, school district athletics,
and free/open use to the public when not scheduled
In this RFP, the city seeks proposals for partnership in redevelopment, improvement, operation and
management of the athletic facilities at the BHSC and, we are open to proposals for
alternative/additional scope of services, provided a detailed explanation is given. The city is
looking forward to reviewing proposals received from this process.
BUDGET/CONTRACT
The City of Sumner wishes to negotiate an agreement with a clearly defined scope of work. It should
be noted that the selected group(s) will be required to enter into an agreement that will outline
the roles and responsibilities of each party.
PROPOSAL INSTRUCTIONS
The proposal must include the following elements:
- A detailed explanation of the proposed project team.
- A work plan describing methodologies, approaches, and roles and responsibilities for how the
redevelopment, management, programming, and funding will be accomplished. - Detailed description of proposed deliverables and outcomes.
- Timeline for each proposed deliverable.
- Estimated costs and pricing methodology.
- Experience working with government agencies.
- Include short bios of the proposed team members clearly outlining their roles in the proposed
work.
The proposal description shall be provided in a concise and clear format, with the opportunity for
additional pages where more details are necessary.
SELECTION PROCESS
The following factors will be considered in evaluating proposals:
- Team’s experience in redevelopment, management and programming of athletic fields, with
preference given to firms or Respondents with experience on municipal owned facilities. - Prior relevant projects or experience in organizations of similar or greater size
- Previous civic or governmental work experience
- Knowledge and expertise of individuals comprising project team
- Readiness and availability of the project team, and familiarity with the needs of the BHSC and
Sumner community - A proven track record of providing quality facilities and sustainable financial
programming - Proposed timeline required to accomplish the design, construction and programming
requested. - Funding approach
The City reserves the right to reject all proposals, waive any minor informalities or
irregularities contained in any proposal, accept any proposal deemed to be in the best interest of
the City, or to request and obtain, from one or more of the consulting firms submitting proposals, supplementary information as may be necessary for City staff to analyze the proposals pursuant to the consultant selection criteria listed above.
Materials submitted in response to this RFP are public records, subject to release pursuant to the
provisions of the Public Records Act (Chapter 42.56 RCW).
Submittal Contact Information
Proposals shall be submitted electronically in .pdf format to Community Services Manager Derek
Barry derekb@sumnerwa.gov or delivered to the following address:
City of Sumner
Attn: Derek Barry, Community Services Manager
1104 Maple Street, Suite 200
Sumner, WA 98390
Proposals must be received by the city by 4:00 p.m. on November 6, 2025. The proposer is
responsible for ensuring and confirming the completeness of the delivery.
Any questions regarding this Request for Proposal should be directed to Derek Barry at the
above email address or by calling 253-299-5714.
