In early August, the City’s Infrastructure Solutions Team (IST) participated in the 2024 Philadelphia PAGE Real Estate and Construction Summit. PAGE, which stands for Philadelphia’s Anchors for Growth and Equity, is a partnership of major institutions collaborating to help diverse businesses. The event was organized by the Economy League of Greater Philadelphia (ELGP) with the programming focused on the early stages of the construction process.
During the event, City Council President Kenyatta Johnson joined Jeffrey J. Smith, Principal at Global Synergies LLC, and Kenyatta James, ELGP Deputy Director, for a fireside chat on how the City can encourage developers to hire more diverse firms in construction.
Coverage from the Philadelphia Business Journal reported, “If you’re a district councilperson, your leverage and your bully pulpit is if [developers] need your support,” Johnson said at the summit. “You should be leveraging that in terms of making sure that whatever project goes through your district is equitable and it provides everybody to have an opportunity to at least be at the table and discuss what opportunities are available.”
The City is removing barriers to diverse business participation in infrastructure construction projects.
In 2023, the City rolled out its first ever Procurement Forecast for Public Works projects. The City updates the forecast every six months with the current update announced at an event hosted at The Enterprise Center in April.
The City is increasing the size and number of infrastructure projects it is building in part due to increased funding from the federal government. With the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) representing the largest long-term infrastructure investment in our nation’s history, the City is utilizing the historic levels of funding to create a safer, cleaner, and greener Philadelphia with economic opportunity for all. The IST has a stated goal of increasing participation for historically underutilized businesses (HUBs) on City contracts. There is quite possibly no better time in recent history for contractors and subcontractors who specialize in infrastructure and public works projects.
At the PAGE event, the IST highlighted how the forecast provides more transparency to HUBs about upcoming projects. The presentation demonstrated how to navigate Phila.gov to find future contracting opportunities. There are more than 130 anticipated public works contract opportunities across multiple City departments, including:
- Department of Streets,
- Office of Sustainability / Philadelphia Energy Authority,
- Aviation Department (PHL/PNE), and
- Philadelphia Water Department.
The forecast’s scope of work crosses multiple trades and upcoming demand for prime contractors and subcontractors in fields such as Highway and Bridge Construction; Electrical Installation; Water and Sewer Structures; Manufacturing, Trucking and Warehousing; and General Labor and Equipment Operation.
To view the Public Works Procurement Forecast, please visit the City’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law program page. From there, navigate down the webpage to the “Get Involved” section, where you will find a link entitled, “View future contracting opportunities.” You will have the option of viewing the forecast overview document as well as the full list of opportunities.
Looking Ahead
The City will be releasing its next six-month update to the public works procurement forecast on Thursday, October 10, 2024. The IST will hold an event as part of Minority Enterprise Development Week at The Enterprise Center. The City is also partnering with SupplyPHL to provide business advisory services to assist historically underutilized businesses to engage in public works projects in Philadelphia.
For more information on SupplyPHL, please visit: https://www.supplyphl.com/.