Knowing that they will likely have a need to supplement a portion of the Township’s snow removal services this coming winter, Lakewood's Township Committee is set today to award a contract to an outside vendor for snow removal services.
This contract award raises quite some puzzling questions which deserve to be answered.
Back on July 2, 2024 the Township published a request for proposals for their snow removal services. The form asked the companies to list their equipment and hourly rate.
On July 18, 2024, the Township received just 1 bid from C&J Property Management Services.
On August 15, 2024, the Township Committee adopted Resolution 2024-0315 rejecting the bid they received for the following reason:
WHEREAS, after reviewing the bid, the Public Works Director has determined that the vendor who submitted the proposal does not have sufficient equipment needed for the said service, thereby failing to meet the specifications of the bid as a responsive and responsible bidder, and has, therefore, recommended to the Purchasing Agent that the bid be rejected.
Subsequently, on August 27, 2024, the Township published a second request for proposals for their snow removal services.
On September 10, 2024, the Township received 2 bids; C and J Property Management, and ANS Property Management.
On September 12, 2024, the Township Committee adopted Resolution 2024-0349 rejecting these 2 bids for same reason they rejected C and J Property Management's first bid.
N.J.S.A. 40A:11-5(3) authorizes the Township to negotiate contracts after the bidding process has been rejected at least two times.
Accordingly, following the two rejections of the bidding process, the Township negotiated contracts outside the bidding process.
On November 14, 2024, the Township Committee adopted Resolution 2024-0403 awarding contracts to Champion Contracting Services, C and J Property Management Services, LLC, JRC and Sons, and JR Scapes.
Today, under Resolution 2024-0451, the Township Committee is set to add ANS Property Management, LLC as an additional vendor for snow removal services.
Huh??
"The Public Works Director has" previously "determined that" C and J Property Management, and ANS Property Management do "not have sufficient equipment needed for the said service."
Did they suddenly acquire "sufficient equipment?"
Is something else weird going on?
Is the Township purposely claiming that they have sufficient cause to reject all the bids just so they can then include certain companies while trying to exclude certain other companies?
The people deserve to know!
P.S. The coolest part is that the Township Committee is now offering the snow removal vendors an optional two year contract extension. Seems the Township is pulling out all the stakes to keep prying eyes as far away as possible, for as long as possible.
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2 comments:
I'm far from a genius, but wouldn't it seem logical that the original bidders did not have sufficient equipment to handle the snow removal on their own. After the denied bids the township negotiated with multiple vendors and awarded bids to a few of them, who individually had insufficient equipment but collectively can handle it.
Seems pretty clear to me too
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