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West Bend awards Regner Park parking stalls and sidewalk repairs, rejects low bidder for one zone
Summary
The Board of Public Works approved a $35,560 contract for two accessible parking stalls at Regner Park's Labyrinth Garden and awarded the annual sidewalk contract for areas 1through 6 to BMCI Construction after rejecting the apparent low bidder for competency concerns; developer will handle zone 7 sidewalk work with city reimbursement.
The West Bend Board of Public Works approved two contracts May 5: a contract to build two accessible parking stalls at Regner Park's Labyrinth Garden and an award of the city's annual sidewalk repair contract for areas 1 through 6.
Public Works staff recommended awarding the Regner Park Labyrinth Garden parking-stall contract (Contract 25-02) to BMCI Construction of Wisconsin; the bid was $34,185 with a contingency for a total project allocation of $35,560. Funding for the project was listed as $10,500 from the 2025 capital improvement program (CIP), $23,500 in carry-forward CIP funds and $1,560 from operating funds. The board voted to award the contract as recommended.
On the annual sidewalk repair contract (Contract 25-04), staff described a two-bid outcome and recommended awarding the work to BMCI Construction at a total allocation not to exceed $131,000 based on unit prices in BMCI's bid (the bid summary in the packet listed $123,990 and a contingency of about 5.65%). The apparent low bidder, Ford Contractors, was rejected after staff reviewed prior performance concerns, responsiveness issues and references indicating previous projects required heavy oversight or remedial work. The city attorney noted Wisconsin's public-construction bidding statutes allow awarding to a secondary bidder when the apparent low bidder is found not to be competent for the project (statute cited in meeting: Wis. Stat. —72.15 / public construction bidding language was discussed by city counsel).
The sidewalk contract included seven geographic zones. Area 7 (sidewalk in front of the F Street development along Water Street) will be constructed by a developer and reimbursed by the city; staff said the developer's contractor quote was lower than the bid item and that reimbursing the developer will save the city money. The board approved awarding work for Areas 1 through 6 to BMCI and rejecting the bid for Zone 7 as part of the motion.
Board members emphasized that rejecting the apparent low bidder was based on documented past performance issues, not price alone. The motion to award to BMCI and exclude Zone 7 carried on a voice vote.
Contracts awarded: - Contract 25-02 (Regner Park Labyrinth Garden parking stalls): awarded to BMCI Construction, bid $34,185; total allocation $35,560; funding: $10,500 (2025 CIP), $23,500 (carry-forward CIP), $1,560 (operating). - Contract 25-04 (Sidewalk repairs, Areas 1through 6): awarded to BMCI Construction; bid and contingency yield a not-to-exceed allocation of $131,000; Zone 7 rejected and developer will perform that work with city reimbursement (developer estimate ~$17,500; bid items averaged ~$27,290).
