7/22/2009 2:48:00 PM Chamber: choose local contractor for library City selects Minnesota firm
Ryan Dostalek ConnectFitchburg.com
Some local business leaders are questioning the city's selection of a Minnesota firm as construction manager for the new library instead of Fitchburg-based Tri-North Builders.
The Fitchburg Chamber of Commerce has recommended the Common Council reconsider the matter, and asked that future evaluations include criteria that "measure the value of keeping these jobs local."
Several members of the Library Board urged Mayor Jay Allen to support the subcommittee's recommendation, warning that failure to do so would undermine the integrity of the process and further muddy a process that has already been characterized by delays and uncertainty.
Allen said he did not have enough information to make a decision.
Tom Thayer, president of Tri-North Builders, has been actively urging reconsideration of the matter, leading to charges that the firm was lobbying, which is prohibited during the selection process.
In a July 20 letter, Thayer said reconsideration was warranted because his firm had misinterpreted the original proposal and included fees that could be removed.
After the subcommittee made its recommendation, Tri-North merely resubmitted figures to clarify its offer, Thayer said.
He said the firm had no control over Fitchburg residents who had contacted the city urging reconsideration of the matter.
"We keep hearing local political leaders talk about the importance of investing in local businesses, so it's very frustrating when local government goes out of state to select a firm," Thayer said.
The subcommittee that reviewed applications defended its decision as impartial and unbiased. Members of the subcommittee are John Freiburger, John Sturges, Debra Johnson, interim library director, Tom Hovel, city planner, and Paul Woodard, director of public works. Woodard said the entire review committee was kept apprised of the subcommittee's actions.
A July 13 memo from Woodard questioned Tri-North's criticism of the process and implied that the firm had attempted to lobby for its proposal, which should have disqualified it from consideration.
Allen said he had received several calls and e-mails from local business leaders urging the city to reconsider its decision.
Thayer spoke at the Common Council meeting on July 13, and said his firm and his family had a "vested interest" in Fitchburg. His family moved to the city in 1986 and Tri North relocated to the city three years ago.
Thayer said Mortenson is a good firm, but noted that Tri-North would remain to stand behind its work long after the project has been completed. He said about 12 of the firm's employees lived in Fitchburg and 125 - 150 employees lived in Dane County.
Steve Harms, the firm's director of pre-construction services, said there had been "some confusion" in the selection process. He said Tri- North's bid included a full consulting service for LEED accreditation and management of 35 aspects of construction instead of five, Harms said.
"We've invested heavily in Fitchburg," Thayer said in an interview. "Many of our employees live in Fitchburg and were looking forward to working on the project."
Thayer said he had heard the decision to select Minneapolis-based Mortenson reflected the firm's "flashier marketing approach," which he said reflected Mortenson's large marketing department, Thayer said.
Thayer said the use of construction managers was increasingly common in the industry, and about 75 percent of Tri North's business involved this type of work. The role involves duties similar to those of a general contractor; the firm acting as construction manager usually doesn't perform any of the work itself, Thayer said.
Thayer also questioned the assertion that Tri North had not met a 4 p.m. deadline for submitting its proposal and said the proposal had been hand-delivered to City Hall at 2:30 p.m.
In his July 13 memo, Woodard said Tri-North submitted a revised proposal of $340,000, which "just happens, interestingly enough, to be below Mortenson Construction's cost proposal which they (Tri North) found out after being told of the Subcommittee's recommendation.
According to Woodard, Tri- North said the lower fee reflected the removal of LEED-related services, even though Woodard said the firm hadn't previously indicated they had included these costs in their estimate.
Woodard also noted that the amount attributed to LEED-related services was higher than the architects had proposed, "which probably reflects more than just taking the LEED cost out of their fees."
Woodard's memo, which is posted on the city's Web site, also noted that the subcommittee's recommendation was not based on cost alone, and that Mortenson would have been selected even if the firms had submitted identical cost estimates. He also noted that Mortenson's representative in the area is a resident of Fitchburg.
The council has the final say on the matter when it meets on July 28. The matter was considered by the Library Board when it met July 16. It will also be considered by Board of Public Works on July 20 and by the Finance Committee on July 28. The council is not bound by the recommendations of other bodies.
• The issue of using local services and goods was also a factor in the council's decision to purchase equipment for a plow truck from Madison Truck Equipment instead of Appleton-based Casper's Truck Equipment, even though Casper's bid was $90 lower. Those supporting the purchase from the Madison-area firm cited lower travel costs for repairs and maintenance, in addition to the need to support local businesses
•The council decided not to alter plans for the reconstruction of South Fish Hatchery Road to address the concerns of residents of Hillside Heights, who said it was dangerous to make a left turn from Shamrock Lane.
Woodard said the necessary alterations to increase the line-of-sight distance would cost between $100,000 to $150,000, and that alterations involved much more than just reducing the height of the hill to the south.
He said the county planned to reconstruct Fish Hatchery Road south of Whalen Road in 2012, and that alterations to address the concerns of Hillside Heights residents could be made at that time. Woodard said the city couldn't lower the speed limit, which was determined by the county, and doubted whether doing so would affect actual travel speeds since motorists tended to drive at a road's design speed anyway.
•The council rejected a request by Scott Norton to rezone property at South Syene Road and Curry Court from agricultural use to residential low-density to allow the construction of four single-family homes.
The Board of Public Works, the Resource Conservation Commission and the Plan Commission had recommended denying the request because it involved an unsewered development in a rural area.
There were also concerns that additional houses would exacerbate problems related to high groundwater and stormwater runoff, and about the the adequacy of a common septic system. Several residents urged the Plan Commission to reject the request and submitted petitions signed by most neighborhood residents opposing the development.
The Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee had approved the request since it did not affect agricultural land but expressed similar concerns.
Jim Anderson with the Plan Commission said the developer should not be blamed for pre-existing problems in the area and doubted whether the additional houses would significantly contribute to problems with groundwater and stormwater.
Posted: Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Article comment by:
Anna Stern
If factors other than cost were considered, as noted by Mr. Woodard, what were those factors? It appears as though the process was flawed from the beginning and Mr. Woodard is now trying to put the blame on Tri-North with his assumptions and implications, which amount to little more than slander. Is it really necessary to tarnish a company's name merely because they question the bidding process?
