A consortium says it wants to save the city at least $200,000 in architect fees to design the new four-phase sports complex here.
But the city has already let the contract to a Salt Lake landscape design firm for a maximum of $389,800 for the design fee and a construction management fee of $179,900. That represents 6.5 percent for the design and 3 percent for construction management, said City Manager David Oyler.But that apparently doesn't faze Provo architect Ken Harris, John Mass Sr., or Roy Pederman, a landscape architect for Brigham Young University. Maas is the father of John Maas Jr., one of the team of architects for Allred, Soffe, Wilkinson and Nichols, the firm awarded the contract last week.
The consortium wants the council to re-evaluate its award and instead award it to them.
Councilman Matt Barber cast the lone dissenting vote when the council awarded the bid Oct. 14. Barber said he hadn't studied the contract enough because the council just received it that day. He said he doubted other members had read it before they voted on it.
During the meeting, local resident Gordon Jones recommended the consortium, saying it could save the city at least $200,000 on the contract. But the council, which had already been working with the Salt Lake firm, approved the contract anyway.
Councilman Clyde Swenson said a new home developer "sicked them on to us." Barber said if the costs were reduced, developers would save money on park impact fees estimated now at $1,100 per house.
"We've been working on this for several months and knew pretty much what was in (the contract)," said Swenson. "The recreation committee was working on it for five or six months. They cut the list (of landscape architects) down to four from seven. This didn't just happen overnight. I read most of it. That's why we hire legal people to go over it in detail."
The council sent out requests for proposals May 4, 1995 with a response due back May 18, 1995.
Swenson said it was unfair for a group to come in after the bid was known and claim they could do it for less. But the council may "take another look at it Tuesday night.
If it's different we can negotiate," he said. "But (the consortium) has never done a ballpark like that," Swenson added.
Councilman Sherman Huff said he read the contract over before voting. Councilman Rex Woodhouse said he went on the recommendation of the recreation committee.
"We had discussed it a great deal and I have to rely on expertise of staff and the committee," said Councilwoman Thora Shaw. "It's a straight forward contract with an escape clause," she said.
Oyler said the group has been talking to the council members individually to persuade them to take another look at the contract.
"We would be liable for damages (if we backed out of the contract)," City Attorney Junior Baker told the Deseret News. But he said it would be hard to say now just what it would cost.