Bizarre City Tendering Process
August 31, 2005

City staff have confirmed the existence of a bizarre city contracting system whereby everyone who bid on a job was given work - some for more than twice the payment of others. The system was uncovered by downtown councillor Bob Bratina and raised by him at the August 10 council meeting.

"The person who called me said his bid was second," Bratina told the councillors, "but he was advised - don't worry, everybody gets a piece of the action." Bratina's informant was surprised but got confirmation that meant the city would pay twice as much to some contractors for doing the same job as others. Bratina said there were six bids "ranging approximately from $3000 to $8000" and demanded to know "how is this system of tendering where everyone gets in on the action, a good value for the city?"

The firms were hired to remove snow, cut weeds or remove garbage from private lands where the owners had failed to comply with city-ordered cleanups. City staff have subsequently confirmed that the six companies who bid on the work were all hired and each given jobs on a rotational basis. They were paid rates ranging from $32 to $74 per hour irrespective of the type of work required.

The tender for the cleanup contracts was issued in 2003 and is apparently due to be re-tendered this fall. Staff explained that the original plan was just to hire the lowest bidder but during the tendering process it was decided one contractor was not enough to ensure quick cleanups. The purchasing department reportedly "advised that if we wanted to use a roster, we had to accept all contractors that met the criteria and to accept them at their hourly rates submitted."

Staff now say "it probably would have been a better solution" to cancel the tender process and revise it. That's what is apparently being considered for the renewal process scheduled to start later this year. One plan could be to hire several firms again, but give first dibs on available work to the lowest bidder. A second approach could determine an average rate from bids received and only agree to pay that amount to every contractor.

Bratina's informant says he was assured that "it doesn't matter because it all gets paid; it's not a loss to the taxpayer." If the private owner doesn't pay directly, the city adds the cost to their taxes. However, Bratina noted that the city is often forced to write-off unpaid taxes as not collectible, especially on properties where city-ordered cleanups are required, which means it is a loss for the taxpayers.