THE Bega Valley Shire Council has resolved to contact three local companies to offer them a second chance to bid for the $280,000 fit out of the new Bega Civic Centre after no responses were received from the original invitation to tender.
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At the general meeting on Wednesday, July 22 councillors agreed to invite offers from Grant Dowdle Building, David Lesser Building, and GJ&C Clarke Building for the work after no businesses responded to the invitation to tender for the work.
Council invited tenders from suitably qualified contractors and tenders were advertised in local media and in the Sydney Morning Herald on June 9, 2015.
At the close on July 8, 2015, 19 documents were issued, with no submissions received.
In opening the discussion, councillor Bill Taylor commented: "Having no tenders moves us into new territory."
However, the general manager, Leanne Barnes explained that in this situation council could prepare a shortlist, by council resolution, of preferred suppliers.
Asked why the local businesses had not responded to the invitation to tender, Ms Barnes said that one business owner had been away on holiday and another business had been working away from the area.
"It wasn't that the tender process was precluding them," she said.
The cost of the Civic Centre work includes $250,000 for the general fit out plus another $30,000 specifically for IT, AV and live streaming facilities.
In an online poll carried out by the Merimbula News Weekly when the fit out was first announced, 41 per cent thought it was too costly, 22 per cent thought the expense wasn't warranted while 22 per cent thought it was a good idea with a further 7 per cent agreeing it was a great idea and that costs would be covered by users.
