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Nacogdoches City Council awards Drainage Project No. 1 to Crockett Construction after identifying arithmetic errors in low bid
Summary
Council awarded Drainage Project No. 1 to Crockett Construction after staff identified unit-rate arithmetic errors in the apparent low bid from Lakey; council approved the award unanimously and staff will bring a budget amendment in August to move ARPA-designated funds to pay for the work.
The Nacogdoches City Council voted unanimously July 18 to award Drainage Project No. 1 to Crockett Construction after staff determined the apparent low bidder's submission contained arithmetic errors that made its written unit rates unreliable.
Assistant Director of Public Works Michael told the council that bids opened July 11 produced two responsive offers: an apparent low bid from Lakey at roughly $1.8 million and a second bid from Crockett Construction at about $1.95 million. During the council meeting staff said Lakey's bid sheet placed a total cost where a unit rate belonged, an error that—if interpreted literally—would have resulted in an implausibly large total. "He placed his total cost in the unit rate," Michael said, describing why the written bid could not be corrected after opening.
Why it matters: staff said the errors left the city exposed if it had simply accepted the written totals without review. Council members also emphasized urgency: several of the locations in the contract, including the Old Lin Road failure, require immediate attention to avoid lane closures and further deterioration.
Michael told the council Crockett Construction had indicated it could prepare a contract in time for the next regular council meeting and could mobilize immediately to begin emergency repair work at Old Lin Road. "They said yes," he said when asked whether Crockett could mobilize without delay. Councilmember Chad Huckleby, whose ward includes most of the listed projects, said staff had been "very responsive" and urged the council to move forward.
Funding and next steps: staff said the work will be paid with ARPA-designated funds currently recorded in the Water and Sewer Utility account; a budget amendment to transfer the money to drainage will be brought to council in August. Because only two contractors submitted bids despite more than 20 plan holders downloading documents from CivCast, staff warned that rebidding could produce the same results and would likely delay necessary repairs.
Motion and outcome: a member moved to accept Crockett Construction's bid, the motion was seconded, and the council voted unanimously to award the contract. The council members named on the meeting roll were Brad Maul, Randy Johnson, Kathleen Bellinger, Chad Huckleby and Blain Williams.
The council adjourned after the vote; staff will return in August with a budget amendment to authorize the transfer of ARPA-designated funds into the drainage budget so work can proceed.
