City of Perry council authorizes negotiations for CDBG-DR engineering on grant-funded projects

The City of Perry council voted to authorize staff to enter contract negotiations with the top-ranked firm for Community Development Block Grant—Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) engineering services, clearing the way to move forward on three grant-funded projects the city described as a roughly $2425 million portfolio.

Council opened sealed RFQs and bids at the meeting. Staff read sealed bids for Warner lift station improvements and summarized vendor line items; those sealed bids will be returned to the purchasing agent and the relevant department for review. Council members emphasized that the city reserves the right to reject any or all bids and to accept the proposal deemed in the city's best interest.

On the CDBG-DR RFQ, staff said the solicitation would be forwarded to purchasing and the department for evaluation. Council then voted to allow staff to negotiate a contract with the recommended engineering firm so work can begin on the CDBG-DR projects. Staff said the CDBG-DR funding will cover the work; one speaker described the three projects as totaling in the mid-20 millions but did not provide a fully verified figure.

The action was taken by voice vote with council members expressing assent. Staff will return with negotiated contract terms for formal approval and to begin the grant-required procurement steps.

What happens next: Staff will complete negotiations and bring the negotiated agreement to council for final contract approval and execution before work funded by the CDBG-DR grant begins.