Evans Vista Request for Expressions of Interest (RFEI)

REQUEST FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST FOR THE

DEVELOPMENT OF THE EVANS VISTA NEIGHBORHOOD

The City of Port Townsend, Washington (City), is soliciting qualified development teams to express interest in partnering with the City to develop the Evans Vista Neighborhood, a City-owned, approximately 14-acre site located near the Rainier Street roundabout along Sims Way. The project is intended to deliver 321 units in a new mixed-income, mixed-housing neighborhood that advances the City’s long-term affordable and workforce housing goals.  

The City is conducting a two-round solicitation process. The first round consists of this Request for Expressions of Interest (RFEI), which is intended as a high-level, nonbinding, market-sounding process. In the RFEI stage, respondents are asked to submit qualifications, relevant experience, and a conceptual development approach. Detailed designs, fully engineered plans, and finalized financing commitments are not required in this first round.

Following evaluation of RFEI responses, the City anticipates shortlisting one or more development teams to proceed to the second round, which will consist of formal proposals. The second round will invite more detailed and refined proposals from the shortlisted teams, including site planning concepts, phasing strategies, funding strategies, affordability commitments, and financial feasibility for construction and long-term operational sustainability.   Selection through the RFEI first round does not constitute project award, nor does it obligate the City to convey property or enter into a development agreement. If this two-round solicitation process is successful, final firm selection in round two may result in a contractual agreement to deliver the project as proposed.  

The City seeks development firms with demonstrated experience in affordable and mixed-income housing, capacity to deliver phased projects, and the ability to work collaboratively with the City to meet applicable public funding requirements, long-term affordability obligations, and community goals. At a minimum, the project will require that at least 25% of the total residential units be restricted to households earning 80% of area median income (AMI) or below for a minimum of 25 years, consistent with state grant requirements.  

The City has developed a Master Site Plan for the Evans Vista Neighborhood that communicates the City’s vision for the project. Firms may submit expressions of interests that vary from the City’s Master Plan. 

The RFEI is scheduled to be issued on or about May 1, 2026. Responses to the RFEI are due no later than May 29, 2026, at 5:00 p.m. Pacific Time. Tentative dates for a site visit, question-and-answer session, shortlist selection, and issuance of the subsequent RFP are included in the solicitation document.

Interested parties are encouraged to register for information and updates on the City of Port Townsend’s procurement webpage at https://cityofpt.us/rfps. All addenda, updates, responses to questions, and future procurement materials will be posted on the City’s website.

This notice does not commit the City to award a contract, convey property, or reimburse any costs incurred in preparing a response. The City reserves the right to modify or cancel this solicitation, reject any or all responses, and proceed in a manner determined to be in the best interest of the City.