SAMPLE DOCUMENT. The City of Harlow Creek, Tollman County, the developer and every person named here are fictional. Created to demonstrate RFP Response Studio. CITY OF HARLOW CREEK, GEORGIA REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS NO. HC-2026-014 INDEPENDENT ADVISORY SERVICES: DATA CENTER NEGOTIATION, FISCAL IMPACT AND INFRASTRUCTURE REVIEW Release date: October 12, 2026 Proposals due: Thursday, December 3, 2026, 2:00 PM Eastern Time SECTION 1. INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND 1.1 Purpose. The City of Harlow Creek (the "City") seeks proposals from qualified firms to provide independent advisory services to the City Council and City staff regarding a proposed data center campus within and adjacent to City limits. The selected firm will advise the City on negotiating a development agreement, will assess the fiscal and infrastructure effects of the project, and will help the City explain its decisions to residents. 1.2 The City. Harlow Creek is a municipality of approximately 18,400 residents in Tollman County, Georgia. The City operates its own water and sewer utilities. Electric service in the area is provided by a membership cooperative and not by the City. 1.3 The Project. Larkin Digital Infrastructure, LLC (the "Developer") has submitted a rezoning and annexation application for a campus called Cedar Fork Data Campus. The application describes approximately 940 acres, up to nine buildings, and up to 5.4 million square feet at full build-out over a period of about ten years. The Developer's public materials state an investment of $6.2 billion. The City has not verified this figure. 1.4 Status. The Planning Commission reviewed the application on September 9, 2026 and voted 4 to 2 to recommend approval with conditions. The City Council tabled the matter on September 21, 2026 and directed staff to retain outside advisors before taking further action. The Council has not made a decision on the application. 1.5 Why the City needs advice. Public figures about water use, power demand and tax revenue differ between the Developer's application, the regional water authority's comments and local press reports. The City needs an advisor who is independent of the Developer and who can reconcile these figures into a form the Council and residents can follow. SECTION 2. SCOPE OF SERVICES The City expects the selected firm to perform the following tasks. Respondents may propose additional or alternative tasks and should explain why. Task 1. Project intake and document review. Review the Developer's application, site plans, utility letters and public statements. Prepare a plain-language summary and a list of open questions for the Developer. Task 2. Fiscal impact assessment. Estimate City and County revenues and costs over a 20-year period, including property tax, any abatements or payments in lieu of taxes, and City service costs. State assumptions and show a low, expected and high case. Task 3. Water, sewer and electric infrastructure review. Evaluate whether existing and planned water and sewer capacity can serve the project, what upgrades would be needed and who would pay. Identify what is known and not known about electric service, including the provider's ability to serve the load and whether other customers could bear costs. Task 4. Community and environmental effects. Assess effects on traffic, noise, lighting, stormwater and nearby residents. The firm may use subcontractors for specialized studies and must identify them. Task 5. Negotiation support. Advise the City Attorney and City Manager on the terms of a development agreement, including payments, infrastructure cost sharing, performance guarantees, water use limits, noise limits, local hiring commitments and remedies. The firm will attend negotiation sessions as requested. The firm will not provide legal advice and will not act as the City's attorney. Task 6. Public communication. Prepare up to three Council briefings and up to two public meeting presentations, plus a written summary for residents in plain language. SECTION 3. MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS To be considered responsive, a respondent must meet all of the following: 3.1 At least five years of experience providing financial, economic or infrastructure advisory services to local governments. 3.2 Completion of at least two engagements in the last seven years involving fiscal impact analysis for a single project valued at more than $100 million. 3.3 Independence from the Developer and its affiliates, as described in Section 6. 3.4 Authorization to do business in Georgia. SECTION 4. SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS 4.1 Delivery. Submit one original and five paper copies, plus one electronic copy on a USB drive, in a sealed envelope marked "RFP HC-2026-014" to: City of Harlow Creek, Office of Procurement, Attn: Marisol Teague, 140 Mill Street, Harlow Creek, GA 30999. Late proposals will not be accepted. Email submissions will not be accepted. 4.2 Format. Proposals must be on 8.5 by 11 inch paper, at least 11 point type, and must not exceed 25 pages, not counting required forms and resumes. 4.3 Required contents, in this order: (a) Cover letter signed by an authorized representative. (b) Firm qualifications and experience, including at least three comparable engagements with client contact information. (c) Proposed team, with a resume for each key person and the hours each will commit. (d) Technical approach and work plan addressing each task in Section 2. (e) Independence statement and conflict of interest disclosure (Form B). (f) Schedule of deliverables. (g) Price proposal (Form C), submitted in a separate sealed envelope. (h) Required forms: Form A (Proposal Cover Form), Form D (Non-Collusion Affidavit) and Form E (Georgia Security and Immigration Compliance Act affidavit). 4.4 Questions. Written questions must be sent by email to the Procurement Officer no later than October 28, 2026. Answers will be issued as addenda. Respondents must not contact Council members or other City staff about this RFP. 4.5 Pre-proposal meeting. A non-mandatory meeting will be held on October 22, 2026 at 10:00 AM at City Hall, 140 Mill Street. SECTION 5. EVALUATION 5.1 A committee of five will score responsive proposals out of 100 points: - Relevant experience and past performance: 30 points - Technical approach and understanding of the City's needs: 25 points - Qualifications and availability of the proposed team: 20 points - Independence and quality of the conflict disclosure: 15 points - Price: 10 points 5.2 The City may interview the top-ranked firms. Interviews, if held, may adjust scores. 5.3 Preference may be given to firms with a presence within 60 miles of the City. The City will not reject a proposal solely because a firm lacks a local presence. 5.4 The City reserves the right to negotiate scope and price with the highest-ranked firm, to reject any or all proposals, and to waive minor irregularities. Award is subject to Council approval. SECTION 6. INDEPENDENCE AND CONFLICT OF INTEREST 6.1 The selected firm must be independent of the Developer, its affiliates, its contractors and any electric provider or hyperscale customer associated with the Project. 6.2 Each respondent must disclose, on Form B, any engagement, payment or business relationship with a data center developer, a hyperscale technology company, or an electric or water utility within the last 36 months, whether or not related to this Project. 6.3 No fee may depend on whether the Project is approved, denied or built. Contingent fees will disqualify a proposal. 6.4 The City may require a respondent to withdraw a team member who has a disclosed conflict. SECTION 7. PRICE PROPOSAL 7.1 Respondents must submit a not-to-exceed price for the full scope and hourly rates by role. Travel must be separately itemized and will be reimbursed at actual cost without markup. 7.2 Respondents may propose phases. The City may authorize phases separately. SECTION 8. CONTRACT TERMS 8.1 Term. Twelve months from notice to proceed, with one optional six-month extension. 8.2 Insurance. Professional liability of at least $1,000,000 and general liability of at least $1,000,000. Certificates are due before contract signing. 8.3 Public records. Proposals become public records under the Georgia Open Records Act after award. A respondent that believes part of its proposal is a protected trade secret must mark that part clearly when it submits it and must follow the City's trade secret procedure. The City does not guarantee that marked material will remain confidential. 8.4 Ownership. Work product belongs to the City. The firm may keep its general methods and tools. 8.5 Indemnity. The firm will indemnify the City against claims arising from the firm's negligent acts. SECTION 9. SCHEDULE Release of RFP: October 12, 2026 Pre-proposal meeting: October 22, 2026, 10:00 AM Written questions due: October 28, 2026 Proposals due: December 3, 2026, 2:00 PM Eastern Interviews, if held: week of December 14, 2026 Council award consideration: January 12, 2027 Anticipated start: January 19, 2027 SECTION 10. CONTACT Marisol Teague, Procurement Officer, City of Harlow Creek Telephone: (555) 010-0142 Email: procurement@harlowcreek-ga.example ATTACHMENTS Form A: Proposal Cover Form Form B: Conflict of Interest Disclosure Form C: Price Proposal Form Form D: Non-Collusion Affidavit Form E: Georgia Security and Immigration Compliance Act Affidavit