Editor’s note: This version clarifies that no bids were sought due to a section in Policy 6.01 that states architectural firms and construction managers are consultants, allowing the college to waive the bidding requirement.
Upcoming renovations for the H Building may look similar to previous C Building work.
The college bypassed their formal sealed bid process and hired the same firm who worked on the C Building.
The Collaborative, an architecture, design and planning firm with offices in Ann Arbor, Columbus and Toledo, is the architectural firm approved for H Building’s construction. They were the architects for the renovations to the C Building.
According to Procedure 6.01, “Purchasing Procedures” posted on the college website, sealed bids are required for purchases exceeding $20,000. Deviations from sealed bid regulations shall require the approval of the college president and/or the Board of Trustees.
When asked if President Kojo Quartey or the Board of Trustees approved the policy exemption, the Agora was not given a clear answer. Joe Verkennes, director of marketing and communications, referenced the “Purchase Requisitions” section of Procedure 6.01. This section states three quotes are needed if the item cost exceeds $1,000 or if multiples of the item exceed $5,000.
However, Verkennes said in an email they did not seek bids because architectural firms and construction managers are consultants, which is in line with Procedure 6.01 and allows the bidding process to be waived.
The decision to work again with The Collaborative was approved by former Vice President of Administration Suzanne Wetzel in the summer of 2022, when construction on C Building was wrapping up.
The Agora submitted a Freedom of Information Act request to Verkennes for a copy of the bid for the design and renovation of H Building.
“The public record being requested does not exist within the public body under the name given by the requester another name reasonably known to the public body, as the design and renovation project for the Welch Health Education Center did not go through the college’s formal sealed bid process outlined in Procedure 6.01, ‘Purchasing Procedures,’” Verkennes said in an email. “Therefore, there is no formal winning sealed bid response on file for design and/or construction.”
Jack Burns, director of campus planning and facilities, said the total cost for architects, engineers and consultants will be over $900,000.
“For the building we are estimating the total cost of the project to be between $22-25 million (that includes construction, equipment costs, and furniture),” Burns said in an email.
Curtis Creagh, vice president of finance and administration, said they don’t look at fees when approving firms for projects.
“We do not select firms based on fees, we look at their capabilities,” Creagh said.
Creagh said The Collaborative was chosen because of their success with the C Building and their experience with healthcare design.
The Agora could not contact a college spokesman in time to see if sealed bids were issued for C Building renovations.
The project will be broken down into several phases so the college can keep the H Building up and operating while undergoing renovations. There will be three phases in total.
Creagh said they want the most qualified, not the cheapest.
“We always bid out projects. There are multiple parts to a project mostly being the design portion and then the construction portion,” Creagh said. “For the design services I release an RFQ (Request for Qualifications) so we can vet out who truly has the expertise we seek. Then we look at their project costs. We don’t necessarily want the cheapest but rather we want the most qualified. For the construction portion of a project we always release an RFP (Request for Proposals) so we can see who is the most cost effective. Even then we don’t necessarily go with the cheapest, as sometimes it is evident they did not bid the project (or their portion) out correctly.”
