Council selects engineer for road project after delay over ranking system

Poplar Bluff City Council members selected Mathis and Associates on Monday as the engineering firm to work on a possible street paving grant project.

The matter originally came before the council earlier in March and failed to receive enough support to move forward with a vote.

Some council members questioned a ranking system used to select the top firm from three that submitted qualifications. Mathis and Smith & Company, both of Poplar Bluff, and Civil Engineering Associates of Jonesboro, Arkansas, had submitted information.

Mayor Susan McVey questioned how the rankings were done, saying Smith & Company normally does better.

City manager Mark Massingham and Municipal Utilities General Manager Bill Bach submitted additional rankings for Monday’s meeting, which rated the two Poplar Bluff at the same level, and above the Arkansas firm.

The previous rankings were done by city planner Matt Winters and street superintendent Jerry Lawson, who scored Mathis the highest.

“To me this is a very important project,” Massingham said Monday night.

It could pave streets in low-to-moderate income neighborhoods and could be done well by either firm, he said.

Citizen Greg West also came forward to speak on the matter, accusing some on the council of failing to support the original rankings because they did not like the outcome.

“It seems to be a vote of no confidence in the people hired to do their jobs,” West said, adding he has dealt with both Poplar Bluff firms and had good results.

West added he believed the lack of action at the last meeting was an attempt by the council to pick one vendor over another. That is not in the best interest of the citizens, he said.

McVey said she called for a vote to move the item forward and it died for lack of a second.

Massingham recommended the council accept Mathis, adding they had done an excellent job on a railroad crossing project.

The matter was approved unanimously by the council in the voting session.

An engineering study is needed for the Community Development Block Grant application, which is due in May, Winters said at the last council meeting.

When firms submit qualifications for a project, they are ranked 1-20 by city personnel on a variety of criteria.

Engineering firms for this project were ranked on six items: specialized experience and technical competence related to construction design and specification preparation; capacity to complete work within 26-month timeframe, starting March 1; past record of performance relating to cost control, quality and ability to meet schedules; proximity and familiarity with area; references from previous clients from the past two years; and documentation compliance.