Madera Council rescinds award, rejects bids for downtown water main project W43

The Madera City Council voted unanimously at a Feb. 2025 special meeting to rescind the contract award for the downtown Water Main Replacement Project, city project number W43, and to reject all bids so staff can revise and rebid the work.

Senior Engineer Camaro, who presented the project to council, said the work covers sections of State Route 145 in the downtown area, including Yosemite Avenue (Story to Gateway), Gateway (Yosemite to Madera Avenue), portions of Madera Avenue south of El Dorado, and a segment of Lake Street north of Yosemite Avenue. "This project's objective was to replace all water utilities within the State Route 145 in the downtown area," Camaro said. He said the timing is intended to precede a Caltrans Capital Preventive Maintenance "road diet" scheduled for January 2026.

Camaro summarized the procurement history: "We received 5 bids on August 6, and we awarded the project to Midcal pipelines on, August 20." He told council that Midcal later notified the city it wanted to rescind the award, citing "concerns about ability to effectively complete the project and meet the required timeline." Because of that notice, staff recommended adopting a resolution rescinding resolution "25 1 72," rejecting all bids for city project W43, and ratifying the city manager's agreement with Midcal so the city can revise the bid package and rebid with updated terms to accelerate construction.

The council opened and closed public comment with no speakers. A council motion to adopt staff's recommendation was moved and seconded; the chair recorded the voice vote as unanimous. An unidentified council member noted the rescission/lease agreement with Midcal Pipeline Utilities had been provided to council and that a copy is available to the public.

The action directs staff to update the bid documents to address schedule and procurement conditions, then reissue the solicitation so the city can try to secure a contractor able to meet the accelerated timeline ahead of the Caltrans project. The meeting adjourned at 5:58 p.m.; the chair announced the next meeting date as Wednesday, Sept. 17.

Details recorded in the council presentation that were not specified elsewhere in the meeting include the exact dates for rebidding and the precise changes planned for the bid package; staff said those updates would be made before the next solicitation.