Losing Bidder Sues City Over Pier Plaza Job

A losing bidder for the Pier Plaza project has filed a lawsuit against Huntington Beach, alleging that the city violated the bid process when it awarded the job to another company.

The company filing suit, Roman ECD of Los Angeles, had the lowest base bid for the job, at $5.2 million. The project will create a mile-long esplanade at the entrance to the municipal pier, with an amphitheater, a restaurant, grassy areas and improved parking and beach access.

All 10 base bids were above the city’s budget, however, so the city scaled back the project by two items.

That change made Valley Crest Landscape Inc. of Santa Ana the low bidder at $4.9 million, said Ron Hagan, community services director.

Roman protested, but a hearing officer found in favor of the city, and Valley Crest was awarded the contract April 14. Roman filed its lawsuit late last week.

“The bid procedure used by the city didn’t comply with the competitive bidding laws,” said Armenak Kavcioglu, the attorney for Roman. “It could manipulate who wins the contract.”

He cited a similar case he won against the city of Pasadena in March. But in that case, Hagan said, Pasadena arbitrarily deducted various items from the project to reach its figure. A court ruled that the practice violated blind-bid procedures because the city could pick which bidder it wanted to win by making certain deductions.

That was not the case with Huntington Beach, Hagan said, because the city went in sequence and deducted the top two options from its list of what the project would include.

“We feel that our legal basis is rock-solid,” Hagan said.

He said he expects the dispute to be resolved before May 27, when construction is scheduled to begin.