Dispute over bids could delay Marion water projects, mayor says

A dispute between the Marion City Council and the city’s mayor about how the city handles sealed bids could delay critical water system repairs.  

The disagreement unfolded during the March 2 meeting as the Marion City Council reviewed bids for several water system projects. Councilman Stanley Kennie repeatedly pressed city staff on why the council had not personally opened the sealed bids when the bids were unsealed on Feb. 17. 

“All the sealed bids should have (gone) around the council table so the five council members could have viewed the bids before anybody else,” Kennie said during the meeting. He argued that the council “had the right to see all bids before anybody else did.” 

City Clerk Laura Hinton and Mayor Dexter Hinton countered that the bid opening was publicly advertised, held at the posted time and conducted by the city’s engineer as set out in state and federal rules. The clerk noted that notices of the meeting were emailed to council members, posted on Facebook and published in a local newspaper. 

“If you had come to the 17th meeting, it would have been open in front of you guys,” Laura Hinton told the council.  

Kennie argued that the council should have opened the bids themselves, while the mayor and city attorney warned that re-advertising the bid could create legal complications because the contractors have seen each other’s prices. 

The council ultimately voted to enter a 15-minute executive session for legal advice, after which the meeting was abruptly adjourned.  

In a phone interview, Dexter Hinton said the council didn’t understand state procurement rules. 

“They said we broke the law, but it was a public bid opening,” Hinton said. “We posted it in the newspaper. I sent it to (the council) by email. I gave them hard copies of it.” 

Hinton said the engineer conducted the bid opening because federal funding requires a formal, publicly advertised process, and the council’s role begins after the bids are opened and tabulated.  

The council did not vote on the bid awards Monday night. After receiving legal advice in the executive session, the city council is expected to revisit whether to proceed with the existing bid results or re-advertise the projects. Hinton said re-advertising the project could delay water system repairs and jeopardize millions of dollars in state water system funding. 

Reached by phone Tuesday, Kennie stood by his objections. 

“The city council had the right to see all bids before anybody else did,” he said. “That’s how the process normally works.” 

Kennie said he did not believe council members were properly notified of the Feb. 17 bid opening, and he argued that even if the bid opening was advertised, the sealed bids should have been brought to the council before being opened. 

The entire handbook on bids is available from the League of Municipalities at www.almonline.org and from the state of Alabama at www.adeca.alabama.gov.