The Freeport City Council on June 2 voted 4-1 to award the environmental professional contract for the city's EPA Brownfields grant to Terracon, whose bid totaled $452,200, under a $500,000 Environmental Protection Agency award. Councilman Pena cast the lone dissent, saying he would not approve the contract until the city had performed additional vetting of the bidder's bonding and insurance.

Miss Hurst told council the $500,000 EPA grant is 100% reimbursable and that staff recommended awarding the work to Terracon based on the bids received. "This grant is 100% reimbursable, so there's no local match on our part," she said. Terracon submitted a total bid of $452,200, the low responsive bid among submissions.

Councilman Pena raised concerns about due diligence and cited a recent litigation involving a previous contractor, saying the city had previously been "burned" by insufficient bonding and insurance checks. "I can't vote in approval for it until I'm sure that that bonding has been vetted," he said. Several council members said the submitted bonds and insurance certificates were included in the bid packets; staff indicated bonding and insurance documents had been submitted but explained the city typically relies on the submitted certificates rather than contacting carriers for independent confirmation.

After discussion, the council approved the award to Terracon; the motion carried 4-1 with Councilman Pena voting no. Staff said the grant work will proceed under EPA rules and that the city would begin the contractor onboarding process after contract execution.