La Porte awards $2.16M Phase 2 raw-water main contract to H and G Underground; low bidder dismissed

La Porte City staff recommended and the Board of Public Works and Safety approved Dec. 16 awarding the Soldiers Memorial raw-water main Phase 2 contract to H and G Underground after dismissing the apparent low bidder, New Tech Corp, for insufficient demonstrated experience with the required underground directional-bore work.

Howard Jones of NICE Engineering told the board the project involves roughly 5,000 feet of 18-inch raw-water main and that New Tech27s bid lacked specific experience with that type of construction. "The apparent low bidder was New Tech Corp... they didn't present sufficient experience in the type of construction that's involved here," Jones said. The board discussed statutory requirements to accept the lowest "responsible and responsive" bidder and approved moving forward with H and G27s bid of about $2,159,879.

Members expressed concern about selecting a contractor with relevant history given the project's complexity near the Lake Street water plant and a 1.3 million-gallon clear well. Legal counsel noted factors the board may consider when deciding not to accept the lowest bidder, including whether the bidder has demonstrated the ability, capacity and experience to perform the work. The board recorded approval and the motion carried; staff said the work is within the engineer's estimate and budgeted funds were on hand.

Staff will proceed with contracting and next steps for the Phase 2 connection to the water treatment plant; the board did not adopt additional funding beyond the bid award at this meeting.