Pennsauken going to court to defend contractor choice for new library, municipal building
PENNSAUKEN TWP. — Job 1 in delivering residents their new public library and municipal building turns out to be persuading a state judge that the $27 million-plus contract went to the correct builder, under admittedly unusual terms.
At stake for residents is $205,000, at least before legal costs are billed. That is how much extra Pennsauken will pay for the Township Committee choosing the second-lowest bidder to receive the contract.
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Camden County Superior Court Judge Michael Kassell may decide at the end of the month whether to freeze the contract award before work starts. Kassell also might confirm the contract approval, rescind it, or give it to another firm.
The situation is outlined in a complaint filed on June 30 against Pennsauken and the bid-winner, Terminal Construction Corp. of Wood-Ridge. The plaintiffs are two major contractors, Ernest Bock & Sons of Philadelphia and Dobco Inc. of Wayne, who teamed up to bid on the project but lost out on a legal technicality.
Public project bidding is heavily regulated in New Jersey. What gummed up this otherwise unremarkable project is a debate over interpreting one state law, the Public Works Contractor Registration Act.
That law, boiled down, says that if you bid on government work you need to register with the N.J. Department of Labor and be certified as qualified.
The Bock-Dobco joint venture this spring entered the lowest of four bids on the library/municipal complex. Its offer was $27.285 million. Terminal Construction was a very close second, at $27.49 million.
All things being equal, Bock-Dobco should have received the job. The Township Committee, at its June 15 meeting, went with Terminal Construction on the strength of advice from the labor department.
Terminal Construction was properly registered with the state to bid. Bock and Dobco also had registration certificates, as individual companies. Their joint venture had not sought to be registered, relying on each company’s independent registrations.
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Just ahead of the Township Committee meeting, a labor department official had advised Pennsauken that “joint venture” Bock-Dobco should have its own registration certificate. Since it did not, the department said, Bock-Dobco was ineligible to bid or to do work if awarded the project.
The committee voted 4-0 to choose Terminal Construction. The resolution cites the Labor department advice for excluding Bock-Dobco.
Attorney John Palladino, who represents Bock-Dobco, said his clients did not form a legally separate company to do the Pennsauken work. Bock-Dobco, therefore, believed it was not necessary to seek a joint registration.
Palladino said the joint venture finally did get a state certification after the contract was awarded, but the township is sticking with its original vote.
Attorney Richard W. Hunt, who is representing the township, said Pennsauken declines to comment on the case while it is before a judge. “All actions by Pennsauken Township have been consistent with the requirements of applicable state law,” he said.
An attorney for Terminal Construction did not respond to a request for comment.
The committee members voting last month were Mayor Vince Martinez, Deputy Mayor Patrick Olivo, Marie McKenna, and Jessica Rafeh. A fifth member, Marco DiBattista, was absent.
Joe Smith is a N.E. Philly native transplanted to South Jersey 36 years ago, keeping an eye now on government in South Jersey. He is a former editor and current senior staff writer for The Daily Journal in Vineland, Courier-Post in Cherry Hill, and the Burlington County Times.
Have a tip? Reach out at jsmith@thedailyjournal.com. Support local journalism with a subscription.
This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: NJ law knocks out low bid on Pennsauken $27M project, heads to court
