Local Preference FOR Anyone?
Tonight I voted, with the rest of the Council, NOT to award the construction contract for the Sammons Aquatics Center to the low bidder. Instead, we voted to award the job to a Temple-based contractor whose bid was $40,000 higher. My post last night really stirred the pot. I received considerable input from folks weighing in on both sides of the issue. Tonight’s decision proved easier than I originally thought it would be due to fact that Cheney Cox is going to use considerably more local sub-contractors on the project than Workman would have. Had this not been the case I am not sure I would have voted the same way. So how do I know which subs were going to be used you ask? I requested that each contractor submit a list of their intended subs and suppliers. Click here to view what each contractor provided.
The real issue is what happens next time? What if the non-local contractor is actually going to use more local subs and suppliers? What happens if the local contractor just has small office and is not really based in Temple? What if the amount in question is $400,000 and not $40,000? BTW, how should we define local? There are a lot of businesses in Belton that were listed as subs in Workman’s list. People from Belton shop and eat out in Temple, they buy cars in Temple, they go to Temple doctors, etc. There is whole lot more to consider on this issue. I have requested a council workshop to further discuss this issue. We have some big projects on the horizon, namely a couple of fire stations. I think it would be prudent for us to have a plan in place on how we might deal with this situation if it were to arise again.
Tags: Construction contracts, local economy, Local Preference