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Council questions selection of five firms for on-call engineering contracts; staff cites qualifications-based law
Summary
A council member pressed staff on whether picking five firms from about 25 applicants could disadvantage the city; staff explained engineering on-call lists are selected by qualifications and the city negotiates scope and fee with the top-qualified firm, moving to the next firm if price is unreasonable.
A council member asked how the city ensures it is getting the best deal if it limits an on-call engineering roster to five firms out of about 25 applicants.
A city staff member (identified in the discussion as Mr. Carter) defended the qualifications-based process used for engineering professional services. He said state law requires the city to select firms based on qualifications rather than the low-bid method used for construction contracts and described the practical steps: the city preselects qualified firms for an on-call list, then negotiates scope and price with the most qualified firm when a project arises; if the negotiated price is unreasonable the city rejects that firm and moves to the next qualified firm or, for larger projects, puts the work out to a broader RFQ process.
The staff member said the five firms were chosen because they best met the city’s criteria and that all 25 submissions had different strengths. He also committed to provide the specific state citation that governs the selection process.
The exchange emphasized that qualifications — particularly for civil site and transportation engineering — guide the on-call selection and that the prequalification process is intended to expedite project starts while preserving the right to reject unreasonable pricing and re-solicit as needed.
