"We will endeavor to be on time and on budget," said Executive Lamont McClure. He praised the "high quality craftsmanship" of the contractors selected. He added they were chosen under a new "responsible contractor ordinance" requiring apprenticeship programs.
This ordinance has come under fire as being slanted in favor of unions, but McClure noted that two of the bidders selected are nonunion.
A federal challenge to this ordinance was rejected by United States District Judge Edward Smith, but McClure said the ruling has been appealed.
The contracts approved are as follows:
1. General Contractor - Sordoni Construction Services (Forty Fort, Pa) for $6,050,000. - Of six bids, two were rejected because they failed to provide prevailing wage.
2. Electrical Construction. - Wind Gap Electric (Wind Gap, Pa) for $737,700. - Two bids were received.
3. HVAC. - JBM Mechanical (Nazareth, Pa) for $1,011,000. - Three valid bids were received.
4. Plumbing and Fire Protection. - Myco Mechanical (Telford, Pa.) for $496,300. Five bids.
5. Solar Construction. - Wind Gap Electric (Wind Gap, Pa) for $293,770. Two bids.
6. Low Voltage Security Construction. - Wind Gap Electric (Wind Gap, Pa) for $112,976. Two valid bids were received, and a third rejected for lack of required documentation.
The term of these contracts is 18 months, indicating that the county expects to have the forensic center completed by the end of next year.
All contractors were available for questioning.
Outrageous and wasteful. The prevailing wage requirements are a payoff to Lamont's chief benefactors and will simply cost taxpayers more than the job would have otherwise. Apprenticeship requirements my ass. More barriers to entry to protect an ever shrinking special interest. The overwhelming majority of workers in this county are not union. They perform quality work and just aren't connected with the right guys to get the jobs. It's a story as old as the country. But they're going to pay extra in taxes for this job so Lamont can pay back those who bought and paid for his election. Old style government waste at its finest. Meanwhile, Gracedale is scratching for crumbs while it descends into concentration camp status. Let's buy another parking lot. Bernie will provide yet another post telling us how great this all is.
ReplyDeletePrevailing wage is mandated by the federal government and the state government, again you know so little its becoming a comedy routine
ReplyDeletePrevailing wage drives up prices between 10-25%. It's politicians using tax money to provide very expensive favors to their labor money masters. Pennsylvania is a relic of an old system of graft and corruption that hits taxpayers hard, and diverts resources to things like taking care of veterans and elderly and crumbling bridges.
ReplyDeleteLast year, Michigan repealed its prevailing wage law, now one of 24 states without such a statute. They're saving $400 million annually. What could PA provide with that kind of extra money? Just 14% of households have a union member. 86% don't. That's special interest money dictating crippling financial decisions. This project is a textbook classic example.
Prevailing wage should always be paid. I’d rather See that money go into a hard worker’s pockets than some greedy contractor who cuts corners to produce a cheap product.
ReplyDeleteWhat hard workers? Five guys standing around watching a sixth guy hammer a nail? LOLOLOL
DeleteThat's a good one bernie, this is a well needed piece of equipment. The place is right too, seeing lehigh county will need to rent space with all the lead flying around and spewing from the clouds!
ReplyDeleteThought Lehigh & Northampton Counties were going to build a joint Forensic Center
ReplyDeleteLamont is going to keep spending the taxpayers' money until families that have grown up in the County for many generations will no longer be able to afford to live hear. It will be know as Little New York and Little New Jersey. He needs to go!
ReplyDeletePlace "LAVISH LAMONT" right along side "Pocketbook Peg"! Lavish loves to blow other peoples money. 8.7 million county taxpayers dollars to be blown like nothing and the Gracedale is run like a third world country.
ReplyDeleteLAVISH DOES NOT CARE ABOUT THE TAXPAYERS only spend spend spend.... Do not worry Lavish Lamont.. you wont get reelected! You will be just like Brownstain and down the road you will go too.
Hate to break this to you, but a forensic center is decades overdue. Executive McClure is the one who made it happen, and without burdening the taxpayers. This is thanks to financing that will actually reduce the county debt service. Like it or not, he is a fiscal conservative who has managed the county’s money quite well. He is smart enough to listen to Doran Hammon and Steve Barron when it comes to money. He is also fortunate that his Director of Administration was a project manager of several major NYC jobs. They have fixed a roof that leaked for 15 years, installed generators at Gracedale after five years, are tearing down the Milides building to double parking there and is working hard to make sure NorCo gets its fair share of infrastructure money. I wish he paid more money to his workers but he balances that with the taxpayer. He has not asked them for more taxes, and I believe he will make it thru his first and possibly second term with no hike.
ReplyDeleteYou can slam him all you want, but ordinary people are delighted. The Rs on Council all voted for the construction contracts bc they recognize this is needed and met with the successful bidders.
What goofy Zrinski does is not what McClure does. It also was not his idea to hire a crony we don’t need.
We don't need "the finest forensic center in the state." Its a monument to poor decisions and it's McClures Sphinx,
ReplyDeletehis monument to himself. Bad executives do this. Prevailing wage artificially inflates prices. Bernie thinks this is cool while he rails against special interest payoffs. Even Michigan, long a union stronghold, has finally ended this wasteful dirty shit. They're saving $400 million per year. $400 million for critical services, instead of political payback covered by taxpayers. I guess this reminds Bernie of the halcyon days of old school Democrat politics he writes dreamily of. Now tell us about the crony job they're creating.
You are now just repeating yourself.
ReplyDeleteOrdinary people? I bet they like you do not pay any county real estate tax or school tax because all they own is rent receipts! There should be a disclaimer when someone writes in if or not whether they pay county and school taxes. Its the ones that don't that love this nonsense. Lehigh County and the hospitals have all we need and this is a waste and a duplicate of services.
ReplyDeleteIt is not a duplication. That’s inaccurate. We currently depend on the good will of area hospitals, and it has been increasingly difficult for the coroner to find them.
ReplyDeleteAlso, the argument about renters is nonsense. Their rent goes up when taxes go up. You apparently believe only the landed gentry have a right to speak. The Constitution says otherwise.
These politico executives love their temples. Reibman built his courthouse, Stoffa built his human services building, Brown tried to build his prison and McClure is building his morgue.
ReplyDeleteThey all want temples to themselves like the Pharaohs.
These guys are nuts.