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Directors seek more transparency in bidding process

Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD) directors have asked staff to include more information when presenting bidding results, mimicking conventions they say are common with municipalities on the Sunshine Coast.
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Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD) directors have asked staff to include more information when presenting bidding results, mimicking conventions they say are common with municipalities on the Sunshine Coast.

Gibsons director Bill Beamish noted the discrepancy at a Nov. 19 infrastructure services committee meeting after directors voted in favour of awarding a contract for green waste container and hauling services, worth approximately $257,000.

Staff indicated three compliant proposals were reviewed but only the name of the winning bidder was included in the report.

“If we were looking at this at the municipal level we would see the numbers for all three bidders, and so we would understand the relationship, and partially why the decision was made,” said Beamish. He also acknowledged it’s not common practice for the SCRD to name all bidders.

Director Leonard Lee of Area A also asked for the information prior to voting on future contract awards, “so you can be comfortable with the decision.”

CAO Dean McKinley said staff would need to “investigate how we bring that information forward,” and noted staff follow a procurement policy, including a bid review.

Mark Hiltz, director for West Howe Sound, also said he’d like to see more information. “What we’re trying is to increase the board’s oversight on contracts over $100,000,” he said.

Sechelt director Darnelda Siegers made a motion for staff to provide a report on the process required for the SCRD to include more details on the evaluation and outcome of tendering processes.

Staff had initially recommended looking into the feasibility of including the names of bidders and amounts proposed, but Siegers asked that it be more direct. “I’m not looking at the feasibility, I want to see how to make it happen, because I know it can happen,” she said.

Directors voted unanimously in favour of the motion