Committee debates sole-source task order with Pertit Engineering to create citywide design and construction standards

City staff asked the Finance & Administration Committee to recommend that the city council authorize a task order with Pertit Engineering to compile Snoqualmie Ridge design and construction standards into a single, citywide set of development standards intended for future insertion into the Snoqualmie Municipal Code.

The staff presentation said the task order would draw on decades of project-specific knowledge tied to Snoqualmie Ridge and that the work exceeds the city administrator’s signing authority, requiring council authorization. A city staff member said, “Pertit has been the primary engineer associated with this work for the past 30 years. They have handwritten notes, the best of the best of all of Snoqualmie Ridge at their fingertips.”

Why Pertit was proposed as a sole-source provider drew questions from committee members. Councilmember Kara Christensen asked why the city had not issued a request for qualifications or opened bidding, noting concern that much of the Ridge work dates to the 1980s and that newer bidders might not have the same historical knowledge. A city staff member and the city attorney confirmed that an RFQ remained an option but said staff’s rationale was to retain unique institutional knowledge that could be lost if the work were rebid.

Several members pressed whether the item should be handled by the Community Development Committee rather than Finance & Administration. The committee chair said the item was presented to F&A because it is a budgetary expense that exceeds administrative signing limits and proposed advancing the agenda bill to full council off consent (non-consent) while staff consults with the Community Development Committee chair. The chair added that if the CDC chair raises concerns, the council can pull the item at the full meeting.

Committee members also asked about technical scope, including whether public works, community development staff and city arborists would be consulted for topics such as storm drainage, sanitary sewers, pavement types and tree species. Staff replied that the task order would be a combined effort involving public works and community development staff working with Pertit.

No formal committee vote to approve the task order or to award a contract was recorded in the committee meeting. Committee direction was to forward the agenda bill to the full council as a non-consent item and to have staff consult the Community Development Committee chair prior to the council meeting.

The committee discussion will be part of the record when the item returns to the full council for authorization and for any subsequent legislative steps required to adopt code changes.