Local Companies Get Help In Southington On Town Contracts

SOUTHINGTON, CT — Revised rules on giving Southington-based companies a leg up on town contracts were approved last week by local leaders — but not without in-depth discussions.

With some council members questioning why such action was necessary so quickly, the Southington Town Council Oct. 10 ultimately voted 8-1 in favor of the revised preferential bidding ordinance.

According to the language change, a bidder looking for a town contract must provide evidence they're a town-based operation.

The new ordinance language then stipulates specific items that must be displayed to the town when a contractor looks to bid on a contract as a preferred local bidder.

It also states a businesses operating in town, but delinquent in taxes, will not be considered a "town-based" business.

The hearing only had two speakers, but both offered lengthy opinions on the new rules.

Resident Troy Karwowski, a local H-Vac contractor, said he believed his situation likely contributed to the rewording of the ordinance.

Karwoski then went on to explain how he was the second-lowest bidder for the H-Vac work on the ongoing Southington Public Library building project.

When it was learned the lowest bidder had erred regarding the bid, a re-bid was allowed and Karwoski still missed out on the contract, which was for an estimated $1.5 million.

According to Karwoski, he was told by local officials that, because he didn't own the actual property his operation was located on, he wasn't, technically, the lowest local bidder.

In supporting the changes, Karwoski said local contractors like himself would benefit from the new ordinance.

Former council member Cheryl Lounsbury was the other speaker at the hearing.

While supporting the move, she said it would have been better for the town to reach out to the local business community to see if it worked with them.

Council members, including those who voted "yes" to the changes, appeared to agree the revisions were "fast-tracked."

But, ultimately, council members opted to get the ordinance revised sooner rather than later to benefit local establishments as quickly as possible, noting they could always look at the ordinance based on input from businesses at any time.

The lone dissenter was Democrat Christopher Palmieri, who protested the ordinance changes last month when the hearing was scheduled.

He said last week he still doesn't understand why the ordinance changes were being changed so quickly, even motioning to table the item altogether.

That motion, though, failed, and, ultimately, the full council approved the new changes.

For the minutes of the Oct. 10 Southington Town Council meeting, click on this link.

From Oct. 8: 'Southington Aims To Tweak Preferred Bidding Rules'