Kitchen Hood Suppression System Exceeds Bid Threshold
Dear Buena Borough Fire District #2,
This is a request for public records made under OPRA and the common law right of access. I am not required to fill out an official form. Please acknowledge receipt of this message.
Records requested:
According to the NJ Division of Local Government Services (DLGS), the Minimum Bid Threshold for fire department purchases without a QPA (Qualified Purchasing Agent) is $17,500. The estimate/proposal listed in your 2023 budget and provided to me via a previous OPRA request lists the cost of a kitchen hood suppression system at $20,850.
Due to this state requirement, you need to have obtained 3 bids prior to selecting a bid to complete a kitchen hood suppression system. Please provide me with the two (2) additional bids besides the estimate you previously provided to me from DPH Mechanical Inc.
The information regarding bid thresholds was obtained from the DCA website.
Yours faithfully,
Susan Romeo
Susan,
The estimate/proposal that was provided to you in response to your previous request was the initial estimate/proposal that was requested and received by the board. Based on the amount of the system provided in that estimate, we started the public bidding process. A bid package was put together for the kitchen hood replacement, complete with engineered drawings, specs, and scope of work, which was then advertised. The first bid opening was held on 8/13/2022, with no bids being received. The second bid was advertised with a bid opening being held on 11/3/2022. Again, no bids were received. A third bid was advertised, and that bid opening was held on 11/29/2022, with no bids received for the opening. At this point, after having three advertised bids, the bid process has been exhausted. We can now hire the contractor that supplied that initial quote, or any other capable contractor as long as the scope of work is unchanged. The bid openings were discussed at the 8/23 and 11/8 meetings and are in the meeting minutes. We forgot to mention the last bid opening having no bidders at the 12/6 meeting. We will mention it at the 1/10 meeting to officially document at a regular meeting.
I hope this answered any questions you may have had about the kitchen hood bid process. This request shall be considered complete at this time.
Justin Lilla
Borough of Buena Fire Commissioner, District 2