LEWISTON — Councilors on Tuesday overturned a Finance Committee decision and approved a $3.1 million bid on a Lake Auburn water treatment facility that will be shared with Auburn.

The decision clears the way for the final phases of an ultraviolet water treatment facility on the banks of Lake Auburn. Councilors awarded the bid to Auburn’s T-Buck Construction, the sole bidder on the project. 

But councilors said they had concerns about the bid and about how it was handled. T-Buck’s first bid was over the $3.3 million budget. They reduced that by $230,000 after negotiating with Lewiston staff and Auburn Water District employees.

“You look at this and you wonder, why didn’t anybody else bid?” Councilor Steve Morgan said. “That part of it bothers me.”

And members of the Finance Committee stood by their votes, urging councilors to send the project back out to bid.

“In my opinion, you look at the market, you look at the economy and people are looking for work,” Finance Committee member Stavros Mendros said. “The timing on this was troubling. We can do better. We can get a better price.”

The cities began work on the first phase of the treatment facility in 2009. That work, adding a system to disinfect fresh lake water with UV light, is due to be completed in May, according to Auburn Water District Superintendent John Storer. The first $7.7 million phase was built with federal stimulus grant money. 

The final phase adds a water-testing laboratory and a chemical-treatment building to the complex. The cost is to be split evenly between the Auburn Water District and the city of Lewiston.

The Auburn Water District, an entity that is separate from the city of Auburn, voted to approve Auburn’s 50-percent share of the construction in January.

Lewiston’s water program is a department of the city and is subject to approvals from the City Council and Finance Committee. The bids didn’t pass muster with the Finance Committee, which rejected T-Buck’s bid in January and ordered it sent out for another bid. Staff asked the committee to reconsider and met with the Auburn Water District to discuss the bid, then agreed to take up the matter a second time. The committee voted again last week to reject the bid.

Mendros said there were a number of problems with the bid from the Finance Committee’s point of view. The city took bids from November to Dec. 21, a short time during a busy holiday season, he said. 

Seven contractors took out paperwork about the project, but only one submitted a bid.

If the project had been clearer and bidders had more time, Mendros said he’s confident more contractors would have submitted bids.

But Public Works Director David Jones said he had talked with other contractors and none complained about not having enough time to complete the bid.

And City Administrator Ed Barrett said rebidding could actually increase costs.

“If we go out to bid again, we know that the bid can come in higher or lower,” Barrett said. “If it’s lower, great. But that’s a decision that’s best made by the council, because if it comes in higher, I’m going to be right back here, asking you for more money.”

staylor@sunjournal.com