The first three requests for proposals (RFPs) for Participatory Budgeting Grand Rapids (PBGR) selected projects are now on the street. The City is looking for individuals, organizations, companies or agencies to conduct a Democracy Skills Program, Community Reading Initiative, and Supporting Victims of Domestic Violence program aimed at residents in the First Ward.
RFP Education & Training Workshops Available
Requested Proposals
Democracy Skills Program
The City of Grand Rapids, as part of its Participatory Budgeting initiative, seeks a qualified person, organization, or firm to carry out a “democracy skills” program focused on residents, organizations, and businesses in the First Ward. The goal of the program is to ensure community members who have been marginalized are equipped with the knowledge and skills needed to effectively participate in, and contribute to, political processes. The program will focus on building resident skills to advocate for impacted communities and industries around community resilience and recovery in the wake of the pandemic.
Read full RFP for the Democracy Skills Program(PDF, 495KB)
Community Reading Initiative
The City of Grand Rapids seeks a qualified person(s), organization, or firm to engage partners in the First Ward in a reading initiative focused on protecting young people (pre-K through high school) from gender-based violence (gender-based violence is defined as harmful acts directed at an individual based on their gender). The initiative would use books and reading guides to promote social norms that prepare and guide young people and caregivers to better understand and engage in conversations about violence prevention, gender norms/stereotypes, sexual consent, violence prevention, and empowerment in an age-appropriate format. The initiative will utilize local reading score data to improve participant reading scores affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Read the full RFP for the Community Reading Initiative(PDF, 481KB)
Supporting Victims of Domestic Violence
The City of Grand Rapids seeks a qualified person, organization, or firm to develop a program that will focus on the empowerment of victims of domestic violence and human trafficking in the First Ward due to the increase of domestic violence incidents following the Pandemic stay-at-home orders. The program will support vulnerable residents and provide them with pathways to self-sufficiency and empower them to make healthy choices and live free from violence.
Read the full RFP for services Supporting Victims of Domestic Violence(PDF, 484KB)
Application Process
Proposal submissions need to be received by the City’s Purchasing Department no later than 11:59 P.M. on March 31, 2023.
The City requires that all responses to these RFPs be submitted by either uploading the complete response through the BidNet Direct solution, OR by submittal of the complete response in a digital media format (on flash drive or other media) OR by hard copy/paper form to the address provided in the RFP instructions, by the submittal due date.
Please read each RFP carefully and follow the instructions exactly. The City of Grand Rapids is required by law to use a very specific purchasing process.