District authorizes negotiations with HGE Architects for North Bay Elementary seismic retrofit

The North Bend School District 13 board authorized staff on Dec. 11 to negotiate a contract with HGE Architects to perform seismic retrofit work for the North Bay Elementary gym after a competitive qualifications and proposals process.

Administration explained that an RFQ was issued earlier in the year to identify up to four qualified firms and that three firms submitted proposals. After reviewing qualifications and scoring proposals, the district invited those three firms to submit RFPs and convened a scoring committee. "Our recommendation based on that scoring is to award this to HGE for the initial contract negotiation," a staff presenter said during the meeting.

A board member moved to authorize the district to negotiate and execute a contract with HGE; the motion passed by voice vote with no opposition. Staff explained that if negotiations with the top-ranked firm fail, they will return to the next firm on the list and that the district may restart procurement if necessary.

Next steps: staff will enter negotiations with HGE, return to the board for final contract approval once terms are settled, and proceed with design and permitting for the seismic retrofit if a contract is executed.