Members reached out to WCCA in 2022 with concerns regarding the procurement of municipal projects.  To more accurately pinpoint concerns representative of the membership, WCCA sent out an anonymous survey in July that asked members their thoughts on municipal bidding processes, and where there may be concerns.  Most concerns submitted were that, although the project timelines for bidding were mostly reasonable, the issues lied more with the length of time for project completion based on varying factors  and the actual integrity and quality of the project presented.  For the City of Grand Junction, an issue with procurement from their side was that there were few or no bids received for certain projects.  On October 7, WCCA Leadership sat down with the City of Grand Junction Public Works Director Trent Prall and Engineer Director Ken Hailey to discuss concerns on both sides and create a solution between the construction community and the City.   Some of the solutions that came from the discussion were:

  • To lengthening the bidding timelines when possible to include more time between questions, answers, and the bid due date.  Often municipalities have addendas or changes to a project solicitation that leaves little time for bidders to adjust their bids.
  • Creating a Request for Review of projects at 60% of project planning open for a set amount of time where contractors may provide valuable feedback to help the municipality during planning.  This measure would help engineers account for any unforeseen issues with materials, scope, or other aspects of the project saving time and producing more complete and comprehensive projects to bid.
  • Holding a roundtable discussion open to all WCCA members with the City of Grand Junction, at least yearly, to hear from the construction industry regarding current reoccurring issues and to collaborate on possible solutions.

The survey yielded several anonymous comments from WCCA members that were critical in helping provide a voice to the Western Colorado Construction Community.  Survey comments were also presented to Mesa County Commissioners and Procurement Department to help identify best practices and to voice the concerns of WCCA Members.  These meetings showed a willingness of both sides of a project to work together toward the common goal of getting work done.    Efforts such as this one are not possible without hearing from the WCCA members.  If you have comments or concerns, you may contact WCCA director Shawna Grieger or contact one of your elected WCCA Board Members.  Another way to be heard is to join the WCCA Government Affairs Committee that meets monthly.  Ask WCCA for more information!