Resort will move ahead before that with RFPs for W. 17th St. study
By DAVID NAHAN/Sentinel staff
OCEAN CITY – Ocean City Council approved, on first reading, a new ordinance that will create a pool of qualified engineers from which the city will be able to choose future engineering contracts.
The administration, with support from council, won’t wait for that new pool to get RFPs (requests for proposals) for an engineering study on flooding in the West 17th Street area of Ocean City. At the prior meeting, the council tabled a no-bid $55,000 contract for ACT Engineers on that project because they want more competition.
City Business Administrator and engineer George Savastano said to be in accord with council’s wishes, the city is going to ask a few city firms it already uses, including ACT, Michael Baker International and Maser Consulting, along with a few preapproved engineers in the Cape May County government pool, to send RFPs. That way, the West 17th Street project would not be delayed. He said if it timing works out, the city would be ready to award that contract in April.
Second Ward Councilman Tomaso Rotondi brought the proposal for a pool of engineers to the administration and council. The ordinance title was approved at the Feb. 11 meeting and fleshed out for approval at the Feb. 25 meeting.
The ordinance states the council “would like” the administration to seek proposals from engineering firms interested in working on the city’s capital project to “foster competition and ensure competitive pricing and to review the proposals and select those that qualify into the pool.”
The “firms and engineers so selected would form a pool of pre-qualified engineer from which the administration could draw during the following three years when issuing requests for proposals or pricing on a project ….”
Rotondi said this type of plan has been successful in the county and in other towns. The administration would not have the “undue burden” of bidding each project, but could go to the pool to pick one for a project or choose a few in the pool to bid for a job. He said the firms that have worked with Ocean City along with firms that have worked for the county would be invited to submit proposals to be in the pool.
Rotondi said the new ordinance takes into consideration the concerns of citizens, council members and the administration.
Savastano said when the county did this, 19 firms submitted proposals and seven were chosen to be in the pool.
He said after talking to Rotondi, the city decided not to wait for the pool to get an engineering study on the West 17th Street neighborhood, but would ask multiple firms to submit proposals to get the work going.
“As for the pool,” Savastano said, the city should take its time, advertise, go through the interview and vetting process that ultimately selects the firms.
Council member Karen Bergman asked if the city would be seeking diversity in the engineering firms by specialty, such as flooding or paving, and what would be done with a firm in the pool if the city wasn’t satisfied with the work.
Savastano said the city would be looking at general engineering services for roads and drainage and that if the city didn’t like a firm’s work, it wouldn’t use them in the future.
Acknowledging the fact the council wanted to go in a different direction after the city has regularly used some of the same firms, Savastano said there were arguments for going with singular firms that have specific expertise and are familiar with the city’s issues, and arguments for having competition.
He said when the city has firms bidding for work, they can get multiple proposals and get the best price. Councilman Keith Hartzell said price doesn’t have to be the deciding factor, but one of the factors, and the administration would have latitude in making choices.
He said he appreciated the administration moving quickly on the proposal and on West 17th Street.
Council President Bob Barr joined Hartzell in commending Rotondi for “bringing the best of both worlds” and he cited the whole council and administration. “This is an example of good government,” he said.