News

By Jane Smith

    Boynton Beach’s Community Redevelopment Agency picked the highest bidder, The Collage Cos. of Lake Mary, to do the third phase at the city marina.
    CRA Assistant Director Michael Simon explained that the three companies were ranked on their qualifications and responses to the request for proposals. “Rankings were based on the RFP,” he said. “It was not a low-bid situation.”
    The lowest bidder was Lunacon Construction Group of Miami, at $545,795. The second lowest bidder was West Construction Inc. of Lake Worth, at $650,991.80. Collage Cos. came in at $785,612.
    Collage also built the harbor master building and fuel docks at the marina, completed in February 2015 at a cost of $974,545.
    “A few years ago for the harbor master building, we were the low bidder. The same firm that’s ranked No. 1 now got the bid,” said Matthew West, vice president of West Construction. “For us, due to what appears to be something very clear going on, we are no longer going to participate in procurement opportunities for the Boynton Beach CRA — should the board decide to move forward with this and take staff’s recommendation.”
    CRA board member Mack McCray asked Simon whether there was anything going on.
Simon said, “No, nothing.”
    The project includes a new marina boardwalk entrance with a seat wall, lighting, landscaping, existing roadway realignment and improvement. The total project cost will be $943,704, which covers Collage’s bid of $785,612, $35,000 for new hardwood to match the wood used in the project’s finished phases and a 15 percent contingency fee.
    The CRA board, composed of five city commissioners, voted 3-2 in favor of the staff’s proposal.
    Board member Justin Katz voted no. “I’m not in favor of green space just for the sake of having green space,” he said. He wanted to see more active uses to draw people to the marina.
    “We need something more attention-grabbing to put the marina on the map, even more so than it is already,” he said.
    He admitted that he did not have a business idea in mind.
    Board member Joe Casello also voted no. He was against demolishing the old dive shop, which needed county approval. The county gave a $2 million grant in 2006 to preserve the marina and keep it open to the public.
    “We didn’t explore enough what could be done with that building,” Casello said. “I’m not in favor of a plain vanilla plan that doesn’t show any imagination.”