Greenlee County accepts bidder rescission, awards public works building contract to Ward Brothers

Greenlee County officials on Oct. 7 accepted Focus Industries' rescission of its bid to erect a Mueller‑supplied metal building for a new public works facility at the county airport and voted to award the contract to the next-lowest bidder, Ward Brothers Enterprise LLC.

Reed Larson, the county engineer, told the meeting that Focus Industries informed the county it could not meet the schedule laid out in its proposal. "He had stated in his proposal ... that he had 3 weeks," Larson said, and that the contractor had indicated a hoped-for start in late January but ultimately could not meet the county's timeline. Larson said he discussed options with the contractor and then contacted the next-highest bidder.

"They agreed to do the work at their corporate price, and they committed to finishing the work by December 31, by the end of the year," Larson said. Based on that commitment, Larson recommended the county accept the rescission and re-award the contract to Ward Brothers under the same price and terms as in the original solicitation.

An unidentified member moved "that we accept Focus Industries [rescision] of the bid awarded to it on 10/07/2025 to erect a Mueller supplied metal building to serve as a public works facility and to award the contract ... to Ward Brothers Enterprise LLC, at the same price and terms Ward Brothers proposed ... in the amount of $64,650.00." Another member seconded the motion.

The board approved the motion by voice vote; officials responded "aye," and the chair declared, "Ayes have it." Meeting remarks following the vote thanked Larson for arranging the replacement bidder and expressed confidence the project would proceed on the revised schedule.

The action replaces the previously awarded contract after the original contractor said it could not meet the county's required schedule. The record shows the re-award was made at the same dollar amount cited in the original solicitation. The meeting adjourned after the vote.

What happens next: The county will proceed with the contract award to Ward Brothers Enterprise LLC and move forward with construction scheduling based on Ward Brothers' commitment to complete the work by Dec. 31. The transcript does not specify contract start dates, mobilization details, or whether any amended contract document was signed at the meeting.