NEW CASTLE COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS Notice & Invitation to Bid NEWARK FREE LIBRARY – BID PACK 4 Audio/Visual Systems, Contract 2025-04-22, Bid #25-2522 Sealed bids are invited by the New Castle County Department of Public Works for the Newark Free Library Audio/Visual Systems. The work includes, but is not limited to installation of Audio-Visual Systems for a new 2-story, 40,000 sf library. The work is located at 750 Library Avenue, Newark, Delaware. Contractors proposing to submit a bid must acquire the Bid Package (Plans and Specifications) from Wohlsen Construction. Bidder Document Access: To obtain the bidding documents, bidders must register with Wohlsen Construction by contacting Janette Giordano (jgiordano@wohlsen.com). Once registered, Bidders will receive a notice with an access code to download the documents at no cost. Bidding documents will be available on July 30, 2026.Contact Jeff Coopersmith, Wohlsen Construction, at jcoopersmith@wohlsen.com (copy jgiordano@wohlsen.com) with any bidding related questions. Questions shall be in a written format. Bidders will be responsible for acquiring all Addenda. The last date/time for Bidder Questions will be August 31, 2026 at 3:00 p.m. Sealed bids addressed to the New Castle County Purchasing Division will be received by the Purchasing Division, New Castle County Government Center, 87 Reads Way, New Castle, DE, 19720, until 2:00 p.m. Tuesday, September 15, 2026, when they will be opened and read publicly. No bid will be accepted after that time. Bid envelopes shall carry a clear notation indicating the contract and bid numbers, for example: Newark Free Library, Audio/Visual Systems, Contract 2025-04-22, Bid #25-2522. Bids shall be accompanied by a bidder's bond or certified check in an amount equal to 10% of the bid price, payable to New Castle County and conditioned to be forfeited to said County for failure to enter into a contract, if awarded. Awards, if any, will be made to the lowest responsible bidder. The County reserves the right to reject any and/or all bids and to waive minor irregularities. Bidders are required to submit all Proposal pages with their bid. The Proposal must be signed and sealed. A original bid bond must be included with the Proposal. Any deviation from these instructions may result in the rejection of your bid. The successful Bidder will be required to give bond of a surety company, acceptable to the County, and licensed to do business in the State of Delaware, in the amount of the contract price. ALCOHOL & DRUG TESTING New Castle County Code, Section 2.05.305 requires contractors and subcontractors who work pursuant to a Public Works contract to implement a mandatory alcohol & drug testing program for their employees. Included in the specifications for this project is an affidavit for certifying compliance with the Code requirements. This affidavit must be executed and submitted with the bid. Failure to submit the affidavit by that time shall result in the County's inability to consider your bid for award. Forms submitted by facsimile will not be accepted. PREVAILING WAGES The payment of prevailing wages as determined by the State of Delaware, Department of Labor to all mechanics and laborers working on the project is required. The schedule of rates applicable to this project is included in the specification. MANDATORY PREBID MEETING There will be a pre-bid meeting at 10:00 a.m. on Monday, August 17, 2026, in the William J. Conner Building, 187-A Old Churchmans Road, New Castle DE 19720. Attendance at the meeting, in person or virtually, by all potential bidders is mandatory. Teams Link Info: Join: https://teams.microsoft.com/meet/21789810340252?p=akk898smWEs59Yty0Z Meeting ID: 217 898 103 402 52 Passcode: Uq3wG99b Dial in by phone: 1 302-467-3499,,570507069# Phone conference ID: 570 507 069# The meeting will be recorded. When joining the Teams meeting, virtual attendees should record the following details in the Chat as means of verifying their attendance: Name, Company Name, Email Address. Failure to record this information on either the in-person sign-in sheet or in the Chat will be considered non-attendance at this mandatory meeting. CONTRACTOR RESPONSIBILITY CERTIFICATION Contractors proposing to submit a bid to New Castle County for a Public Works contract expected to exceed $500,000.00 are required to complete and submit a signed original Contractor Responsibility Certification (CRC) form. The New Castle County Department of Public Works, Contracts Officer must receive this executed form no later than the advertised deadline for bid submittals. Failure to submit the form by that time shall result in the County's inability to consider your bid for award. CRC forms submitted by facsimile will not be accepted. Bidders are encouraged to submit the form in advance of the Bid. The form is included in the project specification is also available from the Contracts Officer and at: http://nccde.org/documentcenter/view/46791. Please see New Castle County Code Sect. 2.05.303(D) for additional requirements and information. MBE/WBE PARTICIPATION Minority and Women Business Enterprises (M/WBE) will be afforded full opportunity to submit bids. Bidders will not be subject to discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, disability, gender identity or sexual orientation in consideration of this award. SMALL BUSINESS ENTERPRISE PROGRAM These contracts will be awarded pursuant to New Castle County's Small Business Enterprise ("SBE") Program. All bidders must comply with the SBE Program by either (i) satisfying the Project Goal through utilization of one or more certified SBEs (inclusive of MBEs and WBEs) to perform work under the contract; or (ii) demonstrating their good faith effort to obtain SBE participation in the contract. SBE Program forms are included in the specification and are available on New Castle County's SBE website. Further information regarding the SBE Program, including guidance for compliance with the Project Goal, can be found by contacting the SBE Program Coordinator, Helen Foster, at helen.foster@newcastlede.gov or 302-395-5198. The SBE participation goal for this project has been established as: 32%. CONTRACTOR REGISTRATION On July 01, 2021, the Contractor Registration Act, as codified in 19 Del.C §§ 3601 et seq, took effect. This law requires all contractors to register with the Delaware Department of Labor before performing construction services or maintenance. The Contractor Registration Act applies to all contractors that engage in construction and maintenance within the state of Delaware. Additionally, it requires contractors to have Delaware workers' compensation insurance where required, compliance with labor laws and proof of a state business license. The Delaware Department of Labor's Office of Contractor Responsibility is responsible for enforcement of the requirements of the Contractor Registration Act. If you have any questions about the contractor registration process, please call (302) 430-7739 or email contractregistry@delaware.gov. Registration at https://onestop.delaware.gov/. Jonathan Yearly Chief of Technology and Administrative Services Bid #, 25-2522 July 22, 29 2026 LDOV0559644