Wade
It is easy to arrange to meet with a counselor; here in Pittsburgh we have excellent counselors who can help. Simply go to http://www.scorepittsburgh.com/ and fill out the request for counseling form and the best counselor to meet your needs will be assigned to you.
You may also wish to dig into the following Pittsburgh area websites for the bid opportunities you mentioned; please bookmark these sites for opportunities change and you will need to follow up regularly:
http://www.city.pittsburgh.pa.us/finance/html/contract
bids.html
http://www.hacp.org/business/openbid.jsp
http://www.ura.org/workingwith_us/proposals.php
http://www.alleghenycounty.us/bids/
http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/info/dcnrfaq/fdcbidsfaq.aspx
http://www.paturnpike.com/contractor/tabulation.aspx
... to name a few. Most communities have their own bid systems, some online, not.
Alice, SCORE Pittsburgh
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