County officials question bidding process

Adrienne Packer

Wednesday, March 27, 2002 | 9:51 a.m.

With their largest-ever project over-budget and late, Clark County officials said they will use the Regional Justice Center as an example to show state legislators that bidding laws should be changed.

Commissioner Yvonne Atkinson Gates said Monday that state law requires government bodies to award contracts to the lowest responsive bidder, but the lowest bidder isn't necessarily the best buy, she said.

"The lowest bidder doesn't mean it's the best bidder," Atkinson Gates said. "This is a classic example of that."

Commissioners accepted AF Construction Co.'s bid of $123 million to become the general contractor in charge of building the Regional Justice Center in 1999. The 25-year-old Las Vegas company also won the Detention Center expansion job.

Both projects have been plagued by delays and overrun expenses that are expected to cost the county significant sums of money, said Finance Director George Stevens.

Exactly how much money has not been determined.

Commissioners on Tuesday are scheduled to receive a rundown of the projects' progress. The board is also expected to appropriate additional funding for the construction of the two facilities.

Clark County Manager Thom Reilly, who was hired about five years after the inception of the projects, said he suspects problems that led to delays are a "shared responsibility," and he plans to determine what happened.

"We're in the process of a five-year retrospective review," Reilly said. "I will go before the board and the community when the report is final."

Questions have surfaced about whether the county budgeted enough money for the facilities, whether the county was fully prepared to start the project when construction began and whether A.F. Construction was fit for the job.

Both county officials and contractors were leery of discussing the project's problems because of anticipated lawsuits when the projects are completed.

Terry Murphy, a Las Vegas consultant representing A.F. Construction, defended her company against a barrage of attacks. She said A.F. Construction built large hotel-casinos, including Primm's Buffalo Bills, and was qualified to build the jail and courthouse.

"Their bonding company would never have bonded them for a project like this if they didn't have the experience," Murphy said. "The majority of the problems were out of A.F. Construction's hands; they were entirely out of their control."

Stevens was not in charge of the finance division when the projects were plotted but said Monday that, in retrospect, the $170 million allotted for the Regional Justice Center was not enough.

The Justice Center was delayed from the beginning because it had not been decided exactly where to locate the building.

"One problem they got into right away was the time-frame," Stevens said. "A lot of stuff was supposed to be done, so there were delays right off the bat."

The 1,300-bed expansion to the Detention Center was initially budgeted in the mid-$40 millions. The cost has swelled to $85.7 million, which some of the money coming from the justice center's coffers, county officials said.

In February, Reilly assigned Aviation Director Randy Walker to oversee the projects because of the large-scale additions Walker successfully monitored at McCarran International Airport. Walker brought members of his Bechtel team, who helped with the airport expansion, with him.

Marty Solomon, a consultant commissioners hired for $12,000 a month in April 2001 to help with the projects' progress, is now working under Walker, Reilly said.

Commissioner Bruce Woodbury said he has been frustrated by the never-ending cost overruns and delays. No matter who is responsible, he said, he supports Atkinson Gates' proposal to lobby the Legislature for an amended law.

"I wish there was more flexibility with the law to let you know you're picking someone with track records you can feel good about," Woodbury said.