APS procurement: $1.6M design contract recommended for Westside Special Education Facility; Whittier design also advanced

The Albuquerque Public Schools Finance Committee on Jan. 29 reviewed district procurement items for professional design services and recommended both be placed on the Feb. 4 consent agenda for board action.

Procurement staff reported that APS issued a request for qualifications for the Westside Special Education Facility and recommended Design Plus LLC as the awarded vendor for professional design services. Staff said the design contract is expected to total $1,600,000 and that the project is located on the Chaparral Campus. "The awarded vendor would be design plus LLC," said Adrienne Sanchez, executive director of procurement; staff noted the evaluation criteria and proposer rankings are included in the board packet and conform to New Mexico procurement code.

On the Whittier Elementary item, staff described the requested approval for professional design services for a new classroom block and administration building, and said the RFP and evaluation summary are in the packet for review. Members asked for more detail about the bidding process for large procurements and how many firms submitted; staff said a summary sheet in the packet lists proposals received and that the evaluation criteria are set by state statute.

Board members urged staff to consider ways to make procurement summaries and proposal counts more visible to the public; procurement and finance staff replied that contract summaries and pending or recently awarded bids already appear on the district website and in the board reports section but that the committee could discuss further transparency measures outside the meeting.

The committee recommended these procurement items be placed on the Feb. 4 Board of Education consent agenda for formal board approval.