09-06-68SpMtg SEPTEMBER 6, 1968.
A special meeting of the City Council of the City of Delray Beach,
Florida, was held in the Council Chambers at 2:00 P.M., Friday,
September 6, 1968, with Mayor J. L. Saunders in the Chair, City Manager
David M. Gatchel, and Councilmen James H. Jurney, LeRoy W. Merritt,
James B. Wilson and O. F. Youngblood being present.
An opening prayer was delivered by City Clerk R. D. Worthing, follow-
ed by the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag of the United States of
America.
Mayor Saunders called the meeting to order and said that same had
been called for the purpose of further consideration of Bids fo~ con-
struction of a Law Enforcement Complex, as well as Jail Equipment for
the Building, and for any other business that '~ay. come before the meet-
ing.
The City Manager reported as'follows: "On August 7th, Council met
in special session for the purpose of receiving bids on two separate
contracts on the construction of the Law Enforcement Complex. ! think
all of you on that particular date were rather amazed, as all others
were, as to the amounts involved in the bids, and you did instruct
the Architect and the Administration tO get with the low bidder in this
instance and see if some of these monetary values that seemed to be
much higher than we expected.could be worked out.
I would like to report that Mr, James Gamble Rogers, and Mr. Roy
Simon, the Associate Architect, have been working very diligently on
this matter, but unfortUnately it seems that.they have not been able
to resolve this figure to a level that would be within the budget of
the City for the construction of this facility. This total figurecame
.in at well over the $500,000 figure and we have it down by $48,000. As
of this time the $515,000 bid of a prime contractor has been reduced by
$48,000 but I think that even then a $467,000 balance plus a $58,000
Jail Equipment balance leaves the total of around $525,000 which is out
of the monetary budget of the Council."
The City Manager asked for comments from the Associate Architect,
Mr. Roy Simon, who recommended that all the bids be rejected.
The City Manager eXPlained that at the.suggestion of Mr. Rogers and
Mr. Simon, the City Attorney had asked for an opinion of the Attorney
General of the State as to the possibility of the legality of negoti-
ating a contract which would be in the best interests of the City.
City Attorney Adams read his letter of August 16th, 1968, addressed
to wilson Wright, Office of the Attorney General, as follows; and also
theanswer to said letter from Attorney General Earl Faircloth, dated
August 21, 1968:
"Re: Advisory Opinion - Legality of waiving competitive bids.
The City Manager, on instructions from the City Council, has
requested me to correspond with you as to whether it is legal.for
the City to negotiate a cost plus contract with a top limit for
the construction of a proposed police complex.
The City has recently advertised for public bids for such con-
struction and the lowest bid was approximately fifty per cent over
the estimated cost. i presume the architect will recommend the
City reject all of the bids.
The architect is from Winter Park, Florida, and is probably the
foremost authority on jail construction in thi's State. He has in-
dicated to the City that if legally possible, the City would save
considerably by selecting a well known construction firm in South
Florida and negotiate for the construction with an upperlimit.
Sp. 9-6-68
1.74
I am familiar with Section 180.24 of the FlOrida Statutes which
seemingly requires competitive bidding for contracts for construc-
tion of certain utilities mentioned in.ChaPter 80, including jails.
However, the special act Creating the City of Delray Beach contains
a provision that the City Council may authorize the City Manager to
negotiate prices without~secUring competitive bids if, in the opin-
ion of the City Council, the interest of the City may thus be bet-
ter served.
I am enclosing a copy of Section 78 of the City Charter, as well
as the ordinances applicable to purchasing procedures in the' City.
Your opinion on the legality of a negotiated bid in this case would
be helpful and most appreciated."
(Reply)
"Re: Compliance with competitive bidding statute on cost
plus contract.
This is in response to your letter wherein you inquire as to
the authority of the City of Delray Beach to negotiate a contract
on a cost plus basis for construction of a proposed police complex.
Normally where a citycharter contains competitive bidding re-
quirements contract negotiations on a cost plus basis are not au-
thorized. In this case, however, SeCtion 78 of the City Charter
enclosed with yourletter contains provisions under which' the' City
purchasing agent may, in certain cases, avoid the necessity of com-
petitive bids and negotiate a contract upon approval of the city
council.
Accordingly, it would appear that the city does, under the
procedure outlined in the charter, ~have the authority to enter
into a cost plus contract.
TruSting you will find these observations helpful."
The City Attorney explained that the City Council' if it decides the
City's best interests would be served, can authorize the City Manager
to negotiate a contract, which would of course be subject to the ap-
proval 6f the City Council before it is executed.
FollOwing discussion, Mr, Wilson moved to regect all bids, the motion
being seconded by Mr. ~oungblood, and unanimously carried.
Following a question by Mayor Saunders, Mr. Simon informed Council
of the areas in which reductions had been made in the bid. He said
there would be changes'~'applied to the drawings and specifications but
they would not affect the lOoks'~or operation of the building,
Following disCUssion, Mr. Merritt moved that the City Administration
be authorized to negotiate for the building of the Law Enforcement Com-.
plex, the motion being 'secOnded by Mt. Wilson and unanimously carried.
Mr. Jurney gave the City Manager a letter from Mr. L. J. Plym con-
cerning the proposed boat show.
The meeting adjourned at 2:25 P.M.
City' Clerk
APPROVED:
-2- SD. 9-6-68