Council to reject all bids for Lift Station Equipment Upgrades Phase 2 after procurement issue; rebid expected in January

Public Works staff recommended that council approve rejection of all bids for the Lift Station Equipment Upgrades Phase 2 project (Project 2408) after a bid protest highlighted a procurement form and state law issue. Staff said they had captured the RCW language in the contract but the bid form omitted a separate line for a contractor license; four bidders submitted proposals, all with the same subcontractor, and only one bidder included a license number.

Staff said the low responsive bidder was about $400,000 lower than the next responsive bidder but because of the procurement form issue and the lack of demonstrated license information, staff recommended rejecting all bids and rebidding in January. A draft resolution to effect the rejection is in the staff packet for the Nov. 18 consent agenda. Staff also said they would proactively reach out to bidders prior to the rebid.

Council members asked whether the forms had been updated; staff confirmed updates. The committee indicated no objection to placing the draft resolution on the Nov. 18 consent agenda.