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Residents press commissioners on county contracts, ambulance buys and college paving costs
Summary
Multiple public commenters questioned a string of county contracts, a proposed ambulance purchase and a larger-than-expected increase in health-care costs; the county manager said bids and cooperative purchasing were used and described the $5,125,000 figure as a year-end "true up."
Bruce Patterson, a Garwood resident, used the public-comment period to press the Union County Board of County Commissioners for details on several contract items on the meeting agenda, alleging a pattern of non-bid awards and noting campaign donations tied to a company he identified as CME/Altreon.
Patterson named a series of agenda entries — including a $2,400,000 playground contract, a $700,000 ambulance purchase and a proposed $10,000,000 rental arrangement for the Alfieri building — and asked the board what the county was getting for taxpayers’ money and whether cooperative purchasing had been checked.
"Did anybody look into that coop to see if they could save money?" Patterson asked, and he suggested tabling the ambulance purchase until the county checked alternate purchasing agreements.
Christopher Bassey, who identified himself as a GOP candidate for the Union County Board of Commissioners, raised alarm at what he described as a "$345,000,000 price tag" tied to a CVS Caremark contract item and asked whether commissioners were concerned about the size of the line in relation to the county budget.
County Manager (speaker 12) responded during the manager's remarks, saying the Dill Avenue work had been rolled into a Trenton Avenue contract; that ambulance procurement had been put out to bid and the apparent vendor was the lowest price; and that bundling paving work for the county college produced cost savings. On the health-care/benefits item, the manager described the figure discussed in public comment as a year-end true-up, saying "This is a $5,125,000 increase" related to higher-than-expected usage and rising health-care costs rather than a $345 million new contract.
The manager also explained that the Alfieri lease includes a $119,000 annual CAM (common area maintenance) charge and that the college paving agreement covers parking lots, walkways and lighting in addition to paving, noting the county believes those combined procurements produce savings.
Why it matters: Public skepticism at the meeting focused on procurement transparency and fiscal scale. Commenters urged the board to confirm whether cooperative purchasing or alternate contracting could lower costs and requested clearer documentation of scopes for large dollar items. The manager offered factual clarifications and said staff could provide additional details as needed.
What’s next: The board adopted a package of resolutions later in the meeting by roll call; the manager said staff could follow up on technical questions such as contract scope and procurement specifics.
