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Council accepts HR Green recommendation, rejects contractor's bid protest on Ford and Huber sewer project
Summary
The council approved awarding the Ford and Huber sanitary sewer replacement project based on HR Green's recommendation after a contractor disputed the rejection of his firm’s bid for failing to acknowledge an addendum. HR Green cited Iowa public-bidding rules; the council voted to follow that recommendation.
The Anamosa City Council on May 27 voted to award the Ford and Huber sanitary sewer replacement contract based on HR Green’s recommendation after hearing a contractor’s protest.
Justin Holland of Shift General Contracting told the council his company had been the low bidder and argued the city should calculate payment by unit prices rather than the total shown on a bid form. "We did not recognize the addendum," Holland said, but added, "if they had used our unit prices, our bid would have come in $646,198.55," approximately $1,000 lower than the announced total.
Haley Gingerich, the project engineer with HR Green who opened and reviewed the bids, told the council she read all six proposals at bid opening and that her recommendation to reject the contested bid was based on chapter 26 of the Iowa Administrative Code governing public bidding. "Failure to acknowledge an addendum means they are considered unresponsive," Gingerich said, adding that while the engineer can waive minor irregularities, changes to quantities that alter contract cost are not minor under the code.
Councilors questioned the practical cost difference and legal risk of accepting the contested bid, including whether accepting an imperfectly completed form could expose the city to later challenges. The city attorney advised the council not to make an exception. After debate, the council moved to accept HR Green’s recommendation and proceed with awarding the contract; the motion carried on a roll call consistent with HR Green’s recommendation.
The engineer told the public the project should start about one month after the contract award and that sewer replacement and paving are scheduled to be completed by Dec. 31, 2025, with final completion and final seeding by March 31, 2026. The council’s action allows the city to issue a notice to proceed and begin construction work under the approved plans and specifications.
