Selectboard Delays Contract Award, Has Questions

Selectboard Delays Contract Award, Has Questions

By M. D. Drysdale

The Randolph selectboard Tuesday evening postponed acting on a recommendation for hiring an engineer for a wastewater planning study. Board members said they wanted more information on why a local firm was passed over for the job, even though its bid price was much less than the winning bid of an Essex Junction firm.

Potentially at stake is a role in engineering the placement of Randolph’s 40-year-old wastewater treatment plant, which could be a $4-million construction project.

The proposal being considered Tuesday evening, however, was just for a planning study "on how the sewer district should proceed."

The recommendation came from a four-person committee, including Selectman Joe Voci, who reported to the selectboard Tuesday. The recommendation was for Forcier Aldrich & Associates (FAA) of Essex Junction, for a fixed cost of $13,800.

Five firms had submitted proposals, with prices ranging up to $30,000, and the committee interviewed two of them, FAA and DuBois & King of Randolph, before recommending FAA.

That recommendation clearly came as a shock to D&K, and Senior Vice President Steven Mackenzie attended Tuesday’s meeting to urge the selectboard take another look at it.

Dubois & King’s bid was $7500, only 54% of FAA’s bid.

"We’re disappointed," Mackenzie told the board. "We felt we had a strong proposal.

"It’s very important to DuBois & King for a lot of reasons," he said. "We want to be involved in this project for the long haul. It’s a significant project, and it’s part of what we do as a firm."

The company, he pointed out, "supports the community in a number of ways … We’re always around to answer engineering questions from the town on short notice. We’re a good employer of local people.

"We made a significant contribution to the town in locating downtown; we made a financial and moral commitment for the long term."

"We respectfully request the board to take another look at this proposal," Mackenzie concluded.

Selectman Larry Townsend pressed Voci for the reasons the committee chose FAA. (The committee also included Don Maynard of the Water & Sewer Committee, zoning administrator Mardee Sanchez, and wastewater plant operator John Coffey.)

"I hate second-guessing the committee," he said, "but it’s difficult at best to accept an offer almost twice as much."

Voci responded that the committee felt that FAA simply "did a better job of making their case."

As for himself, he said, "to be honest, I felt a little different … I kind of like to keep my business at home." He was lavish with his praise of D&K’s recent work in Randolph projects: "My experience with D&K has been nothing but positive. They’ve done a good job for the town of Randolph."

On the matter of price, Voci noted that the cost of the study will be a very small piece of the overall project, yet the study will be the "whole foundation" of what is eventually done.

Townsend was not satisfied with the explanation.

"I can’t wrap my mind around paying a lot more," he said. "I need to know why the committee is recommending this."

Selectmen Ken Goss and Stephen Webster also said they’d like more information.

The recommendation, therefore, was tabled until the next meeting Oct. 21.

Committee member Sanchez told The Herald Wednesday that she and other members had been impressed with FAA’s explanation of the "scope of the proposed work," which was one of five criteria.

The other four were: qualifications and experience, references, cost, and "other intangible factors."