Commissioners approve Northport fit-up contract after bidder protests over ARPA forms

The Cumberland County Board of Commissioners unanimously approved awarding the fit-up construction contract for 27 Northport to the recommended bidder, Benchmark of Westbrook, after a public comment and follow-up discussion about whether federally required American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) provisions were submitted by all bidders.

The commission closed a public hearing and voted to approve the award following a staff presentation that said seven bidders responded to the solicitation and that compliance with federal requirements — specifically the Uniform Administrative Requirements codified in 2 CFR part 200 — is a pass/fail element of the procurement evaluation. "We received actually 7 bidders," Sandy Warren, the county's compliance and audit manager, told the board as she described the scoring criteria and the federal compliance requirement.

The most contested point during the hearing came from JP Schwartz, senior project manager with Allied Cook Construction, who said Allied submitted the low monetary bid but was rejected for not including the county's federally required ARPA provisions form with its bid package. "We learned last week that our bid was rejected because we miss submitting the Cumberland County Maine federally required provisions to the American Rescue Plan Act forms," Schwartz said. He told the commission Allied's low bid (which he gave as approximately $3,000,002.83 pre-alternates) and argued that the bid instructions were unclear because multiple bidders failed to submit the same federal form.

Staff and the county's consultant, WSP, told commissioners that the pre-bid mandatory walkthrough and the bid packet included the federal provisions and that technical assistance was offered. "We look to ensure that they are signed," Warren said, explaining the county's compliance check. She added that some forms can be confusing and that the county provides assistance in completing them. Warren also referenced the federal uniform guidance as part of the requirement.

Commissioners debated whether the omission represented bidder error or unclear instructions. One commissioner said the procurement rules and federal regulations are "pretty tight" and expressed disappointment that bidders missed required material. The board ultimately voted unanimously to award the contract to the recommended bidder. Transcript statements referenced a staff-reported recommended award amount of $3,822,908 that included the base bid and six alternates; the low-bid figure cited by Allied Cook in public comment was about $3,000,002.83 (pre-alternates). The record shows the motion to award was moved and seconded and passed without recorded dissent.

The hearing record includes the county's explanation that federal forms are mandatory for federally assisted contracts under ARPA/CDBG programs and that failure to submit those forms can disqualify a bid. Commissioners asked staff to consider process improvements and review bid packet clarity for future solicitations.

The board did not announce further remedial action in the public record at the meeting; the decision was recorded as an award to the recommended bidder and the public portion of the item concluded with the unanimous vote.