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Board splits awards for Grama Junction lateral improvements after bid math errors; $1.98M package approved
Summary
Engineers recommended 1‑inch HDPE pipe for capacity and cost; the Board accepted low bids for two lateral contracts and directed contracts be prepared. The award drew discussion about unit‑price rules and road crossing methods.
Kossuth County accepted low bids for major tile improvements in the Grama Junction drainage project after engineers recommended using a 1‑inch drainage coefficient in HDPE plastic pipe as the most economical option.
Tyler Connolly, a professional engineer who tabulated bids for the project, told supervisors the department received multiple bids with alternate materials and sizes. Connolly said unit prices govern and identified calculation errors in some contractor submissions; one bidder confirmed in writing it would honor the lower tabulated values. After reviewing the options and unit‑price totals, Connolly recommended awarding the larger‑capacity lateral packages using 1‑inch‑coefficient HDPE pipe.
Doug, the county’s secondary roads foreman, recommended the board require boring with a casing — rather than open‑cut trenching — for the paved road crossing in the project to reduce long‑term pavement disruption. He said previous open‑cut repairs had required later patching and yielded ongoing maintenance costs.
Board members discussed the procedural implications of accepting bids where a contractor’s unit prices did not match a submitted total. Supervisors noted the specifications state that unit prices govern and debated whether to reopen bidding or accept the bidders’ written intent to honor the apparent lower numbers. After discussion, a motion to accept the recommended low bidders carried by roll call.
The board authorized staff to prepare contracts for the awarded packages and directed County staff and the engineer to coordinate construction timing with property owners and the secondary roads department. The project specification referenced unit‑price rules (proposal attachment and specification section 00410‑3) and left road crossing method selection to the secondary roads department for paved sections.
Contract awards (as read into the record): - Award of the primary large lateral package (1‑inch coefficient HDPE and steel casing for road crossings) to the low bidder shown in the bid tabulation (tabulated total around $1,800,159.75). - Award of the lateral 42 (1‑inch coefficient HDPE option) to the low bidder shown in the tabulation (tabulated total $177,946.50).
The board asked engineering staff to prepare contract documents consistent with the tabulated unit prices and to return contracts for signature. Construction timing is expected to be coordinated to limit crop season disruptions; the contract completion date in the bid documents is December 1, 2025.
