Herndon's Town Council will issue a second request for proposals for a new day labor site operator that would check for worker authorization status by the end of the week.
The revised proposal, drafted with staff at a May 15 work session, includes the spending of as much as $17,000 to renovate a municipal building at 1481 Sterling Road to attract a new private or non-profit operator. If a request is made and an offer is accepted, the cost would be shared by the town and a potential new operator.
Under the draft request, the Town of Herndon will pay for the renovation and remodeling costs of a section of the former Herndon Police Department on Sterling Road. After council members expressed a desire to spend "minimal" town funds on the site, staff was directed to draft a proposal that would require any new operator to help cover the renovations.
A potential operator would pay off approximately $8,000 of that cost to cover those alterations that are directly attributable to use for a day labor site. That money would be paid back to the town over the length of the lease through $175 monthly payments in lieu of rent to the Town of Herndon.
According to a proposed timeline, the town could release a request for proposals for a new operator by May 25, with a new contract awarded as early as Aug. 14.
The town received no bids for its first request for proposals for a new day labor site operator in January, after potential operators listed a lack of perceived financial viability.
The current day labor site, operated by non-profit organization Project Hope & Harmony, is located in a Herndon municipal parking lot behind the old Police Department on Sterling Road and is run primarily with an approximately $175,000 contract with Fairfax County.