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Ada County upholds protest, rejects bids for courthouse entry and victim services ramp project; will rebid
Summary
The Board of Ada County Commissioners upheld a contractor protest over ambiguous handrail specifications on Bid 25070, rejected the submitted bids and directed staff to rebid the courthouse front entry stair replacement and victim services stairs and ramp project.
The Ada County Board of Commissioners on Sept. 2 upheld a protest of Bid 25070 and rejected the bids for the Ada County victim services stairs and ramp replacement and courthouse front entry stair replacement, directing staff to rebid the work.
Procurement staff told the board that bid 25070 had been issued July 30, 2025, and that bids were opened Aug. 19. The county received two bids: Optimum Build Group submitted $786,145 and Engineered Structures Incorporated (ESI) submitted $335,651. Procurement said an addendum issued Aug. 12 included specifications for the entire courthouse perimeter handrails, whereas the original solicitation and the pre-bid meeting on Aug. 8 called for replacement of the courthouse front steps only, creating ambiguity about the linear feet of handrail required.
Commissioners discussed the apparent inconsistency and concluded the protest had merit. One commissioner moved to uphold the protest and rebid the project; another requested the motion also reject all bids submitted for bid 25070. The board voted in favor; voices on the record indicated the motion carried.
Why it matters: The county’s decision pauses award of a capital maintenance contract and requires procurement staff to revise the solicitation to remove the ambiguity before seeking bids again. That will delay the contract award and project start until a new solicitation can be issued and evaluated.
Details and next steps: Procurement staff recapped the timeline to the board: solicitation issued July 30, pre-bid Aug. 8, bids opened Aug. 19, recommendation to award issued Aug. 20, and protest filed Aug. 25. The board directed staff to reject the current bids and rebid the project with clarified specifications addressing the handrail scope.
Quotations from the record: “Because of these different documents, there was confusion to how much linearity of handrails was needed,” procurement staff told the board, referring to the mismatch between the pre-bid discussion and the addendum. A commissioner summarized the board’s view: “I think we concluded that it might be better to . . . uphold the protest and . . . rebid it.”
Context and fiscal/implementation notes: The two bids on the record were substantially different in price. Procurement staff characterized the issue as stemming from an internal documentation discrepancy (pre-bid communications versus the addendum). The board’s action rejects the current bids and requires a corrected solicitation before the county can proceed with awarding a contract. No new award, amendment or spending authorization was adopted at the Sept. 2 meeting.
Ending: Procurement staff will prepare a revised solicitation and return to the board with a recommendation after a new round of bids.
