Staff urges council to declare C2 Creative Concrete nonresponsible for Devils Glen widening; bidder offers to withdraw

Bettendorf City staff told the Committee of the Whole on March 3 that they plan to ask the City Council to declare C2 Creative Concrete a nonresponsible bidder for the Devils Glen widening project, a step that would allow the city to award the contract to the next lowest responsive, responsible bidder.

City Engineer Brent Morlock said C2 was the apparent low bidder on the Devils Glen widening project, which extends from 50 Third Avenue to Crow Lake Drive, but that a post‑bid review of three smaller 2024 contracts raised concerns about the company’s ability to perform on a project of much greater size and complexity. "We had multiple recurring issues, recurring themes that we experienced through these projects that kinda gave us pause about their ability to perform on a project of that size," Morlock said.

The committee was presented with a list of problems staff identified on C2’s prior work for the city: delays returning executed contracts, bonds and insurance; late starts that compressed schedules and led to missed completion dates; inadequate or inexperienced staffing; examples of poor workmanship; failure to follow city specifications; missed milestones; and isolated incidents staff described as unprofessional conduct. Morlock said staff also contacted other area cities and heard similar complaints.

Max Wehage, who identified himself as representing C2 Creative Concrete, disputed the characterization. He described difficult site conditions, subcontractor and utility issues, and last‑minute scheduling problems on a fall 2024 job. "A nonresponsible designation, I don't think is fair," Wehage said, adding that C2 has bonding capacity, plans to become signatory with unions and is willing to provide further documentation or to withdraw the bid to avoid delaying the procurement.

The city attorney told the committee that under Chapter 26 of the city code and applicable Iowa bidding law the city must accept the lowest "responsive, responsible" bidder unless the council determines the apparent low bidder is not responsible for the specific project. The attorney said staff’s analysis is limited to whether there is sufficient evidence that C2 can complete the Devils Glen job "in a way that is cost effective, that is on time, that doesn't have quality issues." The attorney emphasized that "responsible" has a particular legal meaning under Chapter 26.

Mayor Bob Gallagher invited Wehage to submit a written withdrawal if he chose to do so; Wehage said he would consider rescinding the bid and that C2 would provide a written notice if it did. City staff said they will follow up with the bidder the next morning to secure any written withdrawal before the council meeting.

If council designates C2 nonresponsible, staff said the city would proceed to award the contract to the next lowest responsive, responsible bidder, identified in committee as CDMI Construction. Staff indicated the difference between the low bid and CDMI’s bid was about $46,470, or less than 5 percent. No formal council vote on the Devils Glen items took place at the Committee of the Whole; the matter is scheduled for the full City Council the following day.

Background provided to the committee noted the Devils Glen widening is a larger, more complex project than the three 2024 jobs that framed staff’s review (annual sidewalk repairs; Riverfront Levee bollard replacement; Palmer Hills entrance culvert replacement), which Morlock said ranged up to about $200,000 in contract value. Morlock also flagged public‑safety and traffic impacts from work on one of the city’s busiest roadways and the proximity of a school as reasons the city is exercising caution in contractor selection.

The city attorney confirmed the committee’s role was to review the staff recommendation; any final determination about C2’s responsibility for this specific project will be made by the City Council at its formal meeting.

A council decision is expected at the next council meeting; staff will provide any written withdrawal or updated documentation from C2 to council before that vote.