06-09-1978 MinutesL�
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City of Salina, Kansas
Special Meeting of the Board
of Commissioners
June 9, 1978
The Special Meeting of the Board of Commissioners met in the Commissioners'
Room, City -County Building, on Monday, June 9, 1978, at eight o'clock A.M. for
the purpose of receiving a report from Bucher and Willis, Architect, on the bids
received June 5, 1978 for the construction of a ballfield complex in Lower
Indian Rock Park.
There were present:
Mayor Jack Weisgerber, Chairman presiding
Commissioner Keith G. Duckers
Commissioner Dan S. Geis
Commissioner Karen M. Graves
Commissioner Gerald F. Simpson
comprising a quorum of the Board, also:
L. 0. Bengtson, City Attorney
Norris D. Olson, City Manager
D. L. Harrison, City Clerk
Absent:
None
Mr. Shelby Willis, said Bucher and Willis would like to take the job
at the engineer's estimate, but after a meeting with Larry and Norris, there is
apparently no legal way to do that based on last Monday's bid opening.
Mr. Willis gave the City Commissioners five options to consider:
1. Reject all the bids and readvertise for at least 2 weeks to
attract out of town bidders.
It is my conviction that if we had had at least one out of town bidder,
this wouldn't have happened. Away from Salina, Kansas, we are accustomed to
bidding with one contractor, we do it all the time, and it was obvious, the
contractors during the bidding period call in and ask who have plans out, and
that is public information. We even send out a list if they ask for it of
everybody who has plans out. So it was obvious last Thursday or Friday that
there no out of town contractors going to bid this job. That is one option.
That won't guarantee we would get bids within the estimate, but it would guarantee
that we would get a lower set of bids.
2. Award the paving contract on June 12, Monday, and readvertise for
the remainder of the work in one contract giving 2 weeks bidding time, again to
attract new bidders.
The paving contract was what was bid as Bid #2 and the bids were
within the engineer's estimate and the contract documents were written to enable
you to elect to award a contract on that one before or without awarding a
contract on #1. Let me say you don't gain a whole lot by doing that because all
of the work in that contract is contingent upon things that are constructed in
Bid #1. It is basically the street paving and the parking lot items.
3. Reject all the bids and readvertise for a bid opening on June 16,
next Friday.
That would permit advertising Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, to
satisfy the state law and do that with our eyes open recognizing we would plan
not to change our estimate. The contractors probably wouldn't change their
bids, it would mean a second rejection. That again satisfies Kansas law. You
can quiz Larry on this point. Then after rejecting the bids next Friday, we
would recommend that you enter into a construction management contract with
Bucher and Willis and we will agree to you to build a job by hiring contractors,
not doing any of the work ourselves. We would simply serve as construction
rianagers and build the job for the Engineer's estimate that was given last
Monday. Let me say that we would use several of the contractors that bid last
Monday to do the work, and they have concurred that they would work on that
basis, because in that role we would take the responsibility for having the job
done on those dates. We would also control when they got a payday. Their
contract wouldn't be directly with the city.
4. Readvertise the job in pieces, not as one contract.
Readvertise as, I have listed the major items, and then we would make
some decisions on two or three small items as to whether to include them with
one of these contracts I will read or whether to handle them separately later on
an individual basis. Readvertise with the grading contract all the things that
are pertinent to grading, that would probably include the sewer lines and water
lines, at least those that are within the road area; Landscaping, let that
separately. There is a lot of seeding, there is a lot of tree and shrubbery
planting. The building, there is a small building and it has to be plumbed and
heated, let that as a separate contract; plumbing systems, we have a potable
water system, we have an irrigation system, we have some thinking of putting the
plumbing in the building in that contract so we would actually put together a
plumbers contract, and open these on June 16th. In other words utilize the
bidders that bid the job last week. Advertise for three successive days next
week. We would hold out of that bid the fencing and backstops, and advertise
them later. We learned at the end of the week last week that there is a manufactu
that manufactures these backstops and it has one variation from what we had on
the plans, ours on the plans showed to be 19'6" tall curved like they are and
all and that conforms to some of the recent ones the city has put in here. This
manufacturer makes it 20' tall, 6" higher, we could all accept that, so our
thinking is to hold that out and revise the plans to meet his manufactured
product, and we could attract a lower figure on that, and that one could be let
at leisure, it is not in the critical path as far as getting the ball diamonds
finished. Under that option 4 we would suggest you award the paving contract on
June 12, and leave it out of that group of contracts. That would entail then
having 5 contracts plus handling several individual items by separate contract.
We object to that for the reasons that we have always in the past, but we would
probably get that bid within the, or very near, the engineer's estimate that
was read last Monday.
Commissioner Simpson - But nobody would really be responsible for the
overall project?
Commissioner Duckers - The city would have to assume that responsibility
Mr. Willis - We wouldn't even want to. We couldn't guarz-zr.tee it. It
would be foolish for us to tell you that we would, because we have lost all of
our levers. The only levers you have are liquidated damages and withholding
contractor's pay, you know, and it is just hard to do. It doesn't say that you
wouldn't get - on time. With cooperation it could work very well, but with any
things appearing on horizon we wouldn't have any lever to turn around and move.
Steve Jennings - I think also with that many contractors even if there
is cooperation, the coordination of it gets difficult.
5. Award the paving contract on June 12th, readvertise for the
remainder of the work in three or four separate contracts.
In other words it is just a take off on the 4th one, but instead of
doing it fast, for a bid opening next Friday, we would suggest that it be done
with at least a two week advertisement period to attract other bidders. And
that alternative the city would award 5 different contracts.
Steve Jennings gave the following estimates for construction and for
inspection and Engineering:
Engineer's
Estimate
Option
1
Option
2
$469,826.00 $500,205.00+ $500,205.00-
12,000.00 11,978.00 14,669.00
$481,826.00 $512,183.00 $514,874.00
Option
3
$464,160.00
33,652.00
$497,813.00
Option
4
$500,205.00
20,210.00
$520,415.00
Option
5
$482,480.00
25,260.00
$507,74o.00
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The Commissioners and staff discussed the alternatives.
Mayor Weisgerber asked Mr. Bengtson for his interpretation of Kansas
Law regarding bidding and the power of the governing body to make the improvements
within the estimated cost.
Mr. Bengtson read from the Kansas Statutes - if no responsible
bid shall be received within the estimate the governing body shall have the
power to make said improvements within the estimated cost thereof, and shall
further have the power to purchase as necessary tools, machinery, apparatus and
employ the necessary labor, construct the necessary plants, and so forth in
order to carry out the provisions of it.
Commissioner Duckers asked Mr. Olson for his recommendation.
Mr. Olson - Our recommendation would be to reject all bids and receive
bids in packages and elect to accept any and all options.
A motion was made by Commissioner Duckers, seconded by Commissioner
Simpson to accept the recommendation of staff and reject all bids and readvertise
in the combination of three and four, as recommended this morning, with bids to
be received Friday, June 16, 1978, at 8:00 A.M. Ayes: (5). Nays: (0). Motion
carried.
A MOTION was made by Commissioner Graves, seconded by Commissioner
Simpson that the Special Meeting of the Board of Commissioners be adjourned.
Ayes: (5). Nays: (0). Motion carried. The meeting adjourned at 9:03 A.M.
D. L. Harrison, City Clerk
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