Santa Fe council awards bid to TECA Construction for Warpath Avenue reconstruction

The City of Santa Fe City Council voted May 15, 2025, to award the bid for reconstruction of Warpath Avenue to TECA Construction LLC in the amount of $812,570.31, and authorized staff to hold a preconstruction meeting while a formal contract is developed and returned to council for approval.

The action matters because the work affects school access, nearby businesses and a tight timeline: council members said they want the project substantially complete before students return, and staff signaled a 60-day construction window from start of work.

Council members voted to accept the low bid after staff reported eight bids were received and that TECA’s mobilization pricing made its bid competitive. Councilmembers agreed the award is for the bid only; the formal construction contract will be prepared after a preconstruction meeting with the engineer, the contractor and school representatives. Any additional work — including an expected change order to extend the project the final 45 feet to the state highway — will be considered separately.

City staff said a preconstruction meeting is planned for next week, and the contractor hopes to begin work the following Monday if that meeting and related preparations go as scheduled. Staff told council the project package included geotechnical sampling, compaction testing and specification details for concrete (six inches thickness with half-inch rebar at 16-inch centers) and that third-party inspection was included in the bid package; staff said they will also have a city inspector on the job.

Council and staff discussed a probable change order to extend the reconstruction to the highway. Staff estimated that change order could be roughly $30,000 to $40,000; they also said the state needed to confirm whether work adjacent to the highway required additional permits or special footing details, and that the extra 45 feet would be handled later as a change order. Councilmembers asked whether the Economic Development Corporation was aware of the additional billing; staff said they had not scheduled a meeting with the EDC about that yet and that some engineering costs already paid would be reimbursable through the EDC budget.

Members raised contractor performance concerns and asked that performance standards and deadline milestones be enforced. Staff said liquidated-damage or penalty provisions were part of the bid package but the exact daily amount was not provided at the meeting; staff committed to show council the relevant contract language. Council also requested that the city engineer and a TECA representative attend the next council meeting to answer questions before the contract is executed.

During discussion staff noted variability among bids was driven largely by mobilization costs, which ranged from about $40,000 to $147,000 in other bids, while material costs were similar across proposals. Staff also said the engineer had already completed drilling and geotechnical work and had recommended the low bidder after background checks.

The council moved and seconded the bid award to TECA Construction LLC for the Warpath Avenue reconstruction in the amount of $812,570.31; a roll-call vote recorded all members present voting yes and the motion passed. Councilmembers and staff reiterated that awarding the bid is not the same as executing the contract and that the contract and any change orders will come back to council for approval.