Availability Payments

Regular payments made to the concessionaire for providing vehicle access through the POMT.  A maximum availability payment subject to inflation indexing will be determined but the actual amount paid can be reduced if agreed performance measures are not met.

Boring method

There are two primary methods for completing an underground tunneling project of this scope; through 1) the immersed tube method or 2) the boring method.  Boring equipment will be designed specifically for the project and provides the most feasible option based on preliminary environmental and geological test results.

Concession

It will be the contract entered into by FDOT and the winning private sector proposer selected in a competitive bidding process.

Concessionaire

The private-sector firm (or firms) that will design, finance, build, operate and maintain the Port of Miami Tunnel in conjunction with FDOT.

Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT)

On the Port of Miami Tunnel project, FDOT is the project’s Grantor and will be entering into a concession agreement throughout an undetermined (approximately 30-50 years) amount of time.

Grantor

The grantor is the public entity responsible for the project (in this case, FDOT) that will enter into a concessionary agreement to grant the Concession, make payments, and supervise the project’s design, construction, operations and maintenance.

Maintenance of Traffic (MOT)

An MOT plan is designed by the concessionaire to implement the various phases of construction and its effects on the regular flow of traffic.

Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO)

The MPO for the Miami Urbanized Areas guides the transportation planning process in Miami-Dade County and approves all federally required plans for the development of highways, mass transit, and other surface transportation facilities and services.

Procurement

The term refers to the selection process supervised by the project’s sponsor.  In this case, the submission of the SOQ to narrow the list of prospective bidders capable of completing the project and upholding the terms of the concession agreement.

Proposer

Those entities or collection of firms that are considering or will actually submit a Statement of Qualifications.   A “short-list” of no more than four Proposers will be determined by April, 2006.

Public/Private Partnership (PPP)

A PPP is a contractual agreement between a public agency, in this case the Florida Department of Transportation, and a private sector Proposer.  PPPs transfer some of the responsibilities, risks and/or rewards of ownership from the public sector to a private entity for a fixed period of time.  Typical rationales for pursuing include: sharing risks, gaining access to additional skills, increasing the pool of available financial resources and/or improving efficiency.

Project Information Memorandum (PIM)

The PIM describes the Project as currently planned and provides information for the use of entities considering submission of a Statement of Qualifications in response to the RFQ. 

Request for Qualifications (RFQ)

Posted as of February 17, 2006, the RFQ provides the guidelines and detailed information necessary for submission of the SOQ. It is a request by the sponsor to bidders that have expressed an interest in delivering a certain service or product to meet certain criteria.

Request for Proposals (RFP)

The solicitation document that is being used to evaluate bidders on the basis of their qualifications as well as their price. The RFP describes the qualification requirements, performance specifications, time frames, and other requirements and asks bidders to describe how they would accomplish the services and at what price.

Right-of-Way

Refers to the acquisition of any areas owned by anyone other than the sponsor and which may be affected by the project’s construction.

Statement of Qualifications (SOQ)

The SOQ is submitted by Proposer teams competing for the opportunity to design, finance, build, operate and maintain the POM Tunnel.