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Everett to Reject Port Gardner Bids, Rebids Project to Meet Ecology Timeline
Summary
After contractor concerns, the City of Everett voted to reject all bids for the Port Gardner storage facility and reissue a clarified solicitation so the project can meet an agreed order deadline with the Washington Department of Ecology.
The Everett City Council voted Sept. 17 to reject all bids for the Port Gardner storage facility construction project and authorize a new, consolidated solicitation.
City staff told the council that extensive bidder questions and eight bid addenda revealed ambiguities in the supplemental responsibility criteria used to judge contractor qualifications. "It became clear that there were some ambiguities in our language for bidder qualifications," Tom Hood of Public Works said, adding that staff and outside counsel have redrafted and consolidated the materials into a clearer package.
The action follows public comment from bidders. Gordon McLaren, founder and CEO of Prospect Construction, told the council his company spent "over a $100,000" and about 1,300 man-hours preparing its bid and urged the council not to reject all bids but to let staff determine the responsible low bidder. McLaren warned that rebidding would impose additional time and expense on contractors and risk "bid shopping" if the city simply reissued the package without safeguards.
Staff and the city attorney urged rejection and rebid to avoid likely protests or litigation that could delay the project. "We are under an agreed order from the Department of Ecology" and "there's no float left in our project timeline," Hood said, arguing that a short, clarified rebid (two to three weeks) would be faster and better protect the public interest than awarding amid contested qualification interpretations.
Councilor Bogley moved to reject all bids and call for a new bid package; Councilor Ryan seconded. The clerk recorded a roll-call vote of Yes from Council members Bader, Ryan, Voguely, Fosse, Tuohy and President Schwab, and the motion passed.
The city said the rebid will consolidate prior addenda and aim for a shorter solicitation window because the project as scoped has not materially changed. City staff said the revised package was prepared with outside counsel to reduce ambiguity and that the revised process will not give preferential treatment to prior bidders.
Next steps: staff will issue the consolidated solicitation and return with award recommendations after the short bid period, with the goal of meeting the Department of Ecology agreed-order schedule.
