The National Park Service has selected Rendezvous River Sports of Jackson, Wyoming, to provide guided multi-day lake trips on Jackson Lake as a park concessioner within Grand Teton National Park. The new 10-year concession contract will begin in January 2020. The contact authorizes multi-day trips for non-motorized watercraft, typically kayaks, on Jackson Lake, requires the upkeep of three lakeshore campsites and allows for guided float trips on the Snake River as part of a multi-day lake trip on Jackson Lake.
Guided multi-day lake trips are currently provided by OARS West, Inc. through a contract which became effective Jan. 1, 2010, and will expire on Dec. 31, 2019.
“This was a very competitive prospectus, through which the National Park Service received quality offers that bolstered measures for resource protection, the quality of visitor experience, and other factors complementary to our mission," said Jennifer Parker, Chief of Commercial Services for the National Park Service Regional Office Serving Interior Regions 6,7 and 8.
Concessioners fill a vital role in helping the National Park Service carry out its mission by operating publicly owned facilities and offering high-quality commercial visitor services at reasonable rates. Grand Teton National Park has 27 concessioners and almost 120 commercial use authorization holders that provide a variety of visitor services in the park.
The National Park Service solicited proposals for this business opportunity from March 25 through Sept. 12, 2019. Submitted proposals for this contract were evaluated and selected under the provisions of the 1998 Concessions Management Improvement Act by a panel of National Park Service representatives from units other than Grand Teton National Park. Concession contracts are awarded with the intent of ensuring quality visitor services, protecting park resources, and enhancing the competitive contract process for concession contracts. Guidelines used to evaluate all proposals can be found online at https://www.nps.gov/subjects/concessions/index.htm.
Source: U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service
