[{"_1":2,"_99":-5,"_100":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6428392,"mediaKeyId","5862200-12cf5d3df87a69db07ad7998dc8a25c2","parentId",5862200,"title","Subcommittee reviews alternative delivery methods, cites Newport Corridor and other projects","audioSeconds",1964,"startMs",1744000,"endMs",3708000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=5862200-12cf5d3df87a69db07ad7998dc8a25c2&start=1744&end=3708","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5862200-12cf5d3df87a69db07ad7998dc8a25c2/thumbnail_1744000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6428392/Bend/Deschutes-County/Oregon/Subcommittee-reviews-alternative-delivery-methods-cites-Newport-Corridor-and-other-projects","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6428392-d752442756e38fc7c8420ef26adb1abc/orig.mp4?Expires=1770507800&Signature=Oony9bLJkj8Yng3IRU7iitikDMCN6uOgeiZNiY2t~JFBSNEH5p7UZpWAemi1gu5w2JvskilnoDUy3exW0yb9im-ozLTAvjxtY4O0ogoelWT4MBpW~Gkfii76CoGYhcsENLkJUMLcsXdYhcQkyschOHyAk2yEztSG2BG3t3UMzU4AR5zVqDihBJg2uteF6ncQyradjXqIMfgyShrzeVnelmjTPvYFfa3eStvlTkP3lScfTO0AjvyaWnQMG5cpaVi6JQC2B8dSYW~nUYQIwna647fvTb-jzdxefnE-Ddur~KAO8XpyxgZWYUh99-jr32qK9Ry6OhxsHc0~FpgG~prraQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","City of Bend, OR","date","2025-10-01T06:27:08Z","article","City of Bend staff described to the Procurement Subcommittee why the city sometimes uses alternative project-delivery methods for public-improvement projects and reviewed recent project outcomes to show the tradeoffs.

Justin Sweet and Ryan Oster described alternative delivery options—construction manager/general contractor (CMGC), design-bid-build, design-build and progressive design-build—and the statutory default that public-improvement work generally uses an Invitation to Bid (ITB) and low-price award. Sweet said exemptions from low-bid processes require state-law findings, and staff briefed the subcommittee on their plan to bring draft findings to the subcommittee before seeking council approval to use alternative delivery on particular projects.

Sweet highlighted the Newport Corridor project as a recent CMGC delivery. He said the procurement produced “3 proposals” and that the final delivered cost was within 1.6% of the original estimate, despite the project having 11 change orders. Sweet said that result indicated CMGC did not diminish competition and that, on balance, the method helped the city manage complexity and scheduling.

On a separate project delivered as a progressive design-build, staff said the procurement produced three proposals and the project had only one change order; staff described that outcome as evidence that design-build methods can reduce change orders when design and construction are more tightly integrated. Sweet told the subcommittee the progressive design-build project delivered “with minimal impact to community, to the surrounding neighborhoods, to the transportation system.”

Staff said reasons to select an alternative delivery method include schedule savings, early contractor engagement for constructability reviews, and complex coordination where private development and public improvements must be sequenced together (Sweet cited timing coordination with concurrent private development as an example). Staff said the city negotiates contingencies in guaranteed maximum-price (GMP) agreements, and contingency buckets—builder contingency and city contingency—are used to allocate risk for unforeseen conditions.

The subcommittee heard that staff plan to return in the fall with draft findings for three candidate projects: a four‑intersection package in the Revere/Fourth–Eighth Street area (the “4‑pack”), the Newport Corridor components (including Butler and Purcell bridge elements and roundabouts), and an Outback expansion (pretreatment and hydro/pretreatment facilities). Staff said the Outback project likely would use CMGC because of constructability and technical complexity; the 4‑pack and corridor projects are candidates for progressive design-build, depending on final findings and outreach.

Staff also described procurement practices for alternative deliveries: selection typically emphasizes qualifications and demonstrated past performance and includes a pricing component so proposals can be compared; staff said they are moving away from using a simple markup-percentage as the price element and instead are asking proposers for priced early work or preconstruction elements that can be evaluated during selection.

Subcommittee members discussed oversight, the need to protect competition, and the safeguards staff use—independent cost estimators, contract contingencies and negotiation steps—to review pricing and manage project delivery.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Public Contracts Subcommittee Meeting - 09/30/2025 - 9:00 AM","oneSentenceSummary","Staff explained when Bend uses CMGC and design-build methods, reviewed results from Newport Corridor and a progressive design-build project, and said three upcoming projects may be proposed for alternative delivery.","taxTitle","Bend, Deschutes County, Oregon","taxId",2850,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6428395,"Bend subcommittee reviews procurement activity and spending patterns",274,921000,1195000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5862200-12cf5d3df87a69db07ad7998dc8a25c2&start=921&end=1195","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5862200-12cf5d3df87a69db07ad7998dc8a25c2/thumbnail_921000.jpg","/articles/6428395/Bend/Deschutes-County/Oregon/Bend-subcommittee-reviews-procurement-activity-and-spending-patterns","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6428395-1a7b1a8220d3f3d15ccc2332ade26f29/orig.mp4?Expires=1770507800&Signature=AbQ7b56gS~WANeja4npPTBW71p-ksMFcqPVOgC6D-JZ1nJUvVeHeLQYFVceBcvYY8QPlhDmYN5wPomp787MvkqQkqr8F28DDC64jTB-epPtZGTIBj3GMJlSrP3vf6e6ryIj4OtrWUlto7sTUAdT3akeZit8R80MK-papHRS6ZCeP2fAC3xY3XIL0z2rF~4SvBaluV479q67GJxF0Sy8sSCzFq5x7Hb3tJGmBKOGveWstThOsTDP7Y9Z95BbU90zIPPe1UmG6zAQR5EaG-1Bh6y0zrV9y1XYkcsen8f7w-8HalR7eLNAcw4UOtE5WUq~N-whoH0P-0s2Irnl0OCvftg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The City of Bend Procurement Subcommittee heard staff describe how the city’s purchasing is concentrated in many low-dollar transactions while a comparatively small number of formal contracts account for the largest dollar values.

Subcommittee members met to discuss procurement thresholds, how departments use delegated purchase authority, and the consequences for vendor outreach and supplier-diversity efforts. Justin Sweet, a procurement staff member, led the presentation and provided the spending and transaction breakdowns.

Sweet said the city “spent over $50,000,000 on purchases that individually were valued at less than $25,000.” He told the subcommittee those small direct-award transactions are handled at the department level without a formal competitive requirement under state or city code. Sweet also said that, combined with purchase orders and procurement-card transactions, “over 21 and a half thousand transactions were done in that below $25,000 threshold,” which he described as an area with opportunity for centralized outreach to diversify the supplier pool.

By contrast, Sweet reported that roughly $171,000,000 of spend during the same biennium was in contracts that exceed the city’s formal threshold and therefore require formal solicitation and council approval. He also said the intermediate category (informal competition) amounted to just over $33,500,000 across 477 transactions, and that the city recorded 124 formal-threshold transactions in the period he showed.

Staff emphasized that the city’s procurement work is a mix of decentralized direct awards, hybrid “three-quote” informal procurements and fully formal solicitations. Ryan Oster, a public-works staff member who participated in the discussion, and other staff explained that departments may conduct direct awards below the delegated threshold but are asked to coordinate with central procurement when work is likely to generate a contract that legal must draft.

The subcommittee heard additional context: staff said the city paid vendors across more than 1,700 distinct vendors in that period, and that the enterprise resource planning (ERP) system contains more than 3,100 active vendor records (some inactive in practice). Members discussed how unbundling small purchases, outreach at lower dollar thresholds, and central advising could expand competition and improve supplier-diversity outreach.

The meeting included a brief procedural action: the subcommittee approved the March 11 meeting minutes by voice vote during roll call.

Staff said they will return with follow-up material showing where supplier-diversity levers can be applied across the different procurement tiers and with proposals to improve vendor outreach for the many below-$25,000 transactions.","City staff told the Procurement Subcommittee that over a recent biennium the city processed tens of thousands of small purchases and that most high-dollar contracting work is concentrated in a small number of formal solicitations.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6428389,"City staff outline supplier‑diversity work, disparity study and bonding/insurance hurdles",370,4306000,4676000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5862200-12cf5d3df87a69db07ad7998dc8a25c2&start=4306&end=4676","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5862200-12cf5d3df87a69db07ad7998dc8a25c2/thumbnail_4306000.jpg","/articles/6428389/Bend/Deschutes-County/Oregon/City-staff-outline-supplierdiversity-work-disparity-study-and-bondinginsurance-hurdles","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6428389-166e6f6c4abbe44e88051b69f7e10dc5/orig.mp4?Expires=1770507800&Signature=HBK8hTfs-rLy7~nJEKTXRv1mjHK137vCM-Rggg4kJEv9R3wAlL-z5B5VaW3tJh0W~CSTp-p6dmXlBVRn7FWR6JxU53~UAjanSPrntcKdSqwWdqm3LhCyMXLNRQhrimbEzG5HsinxxeVIjyxM0RQZCoK-DpkSUIFaW~L2wwa6gi7bgu-nKEa3PjnMd2YjpRMUinGkhXw6b82Uh44MqYV5AOyAWcd1oVjKnWm8-jtobM51R2~dkm6Nyxw27jeUWNgKc54dEMFbmTnBGCOWNXEB4E3l8hNNJ632qEq4CN8e9FVRK1Bdif5Ai9ziLtiVvsz~~rFqmYNwfyFnY4Vqn5Bo~A__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","City of Bend legal and procurement staff told the Procurement Subcommittee they are tracking a state disparity study and working groups that examine barriers to diversifying the supplier pool, including bonding and insurance requirements and prompt-payment practices.

Mike Riley, an attorney, led the legal overview and said scrutiny of supplier-diversity programs has grown even though the underlying law remains the same. “The law hasn't really changed, but the scrutiny around it, the litigation saying that these programs are unconstitutional and unlawful, that has certainly increased,” Riley said. He explained that federal programs (he cited the U.S. Department of Transportation) use an aspirational DBE goal—he said Congress set a 10% aspirational DBE goal for DOT—and that agencies generally must pursue race- and gender-neutral tools before using race- or gender-conscious measures.

Riley and procurement staff outlined the state working groups examining topics such as insurance and bonding, contractor data and certification processes. Staff said bonding and insurance requirements arise from statute and contract minimums; bonds protect the city’s financial interest and subcontractor payment, while insurance addresses broader liability. Staff said they are reviewing whether particular minimums are necessary or whether alternative mechanisms—working-capital loans, bonding assistance, or revised contracting rules—could reduce barriers for small and minority-owned contractors.

Procurement staff also raised prompt-payment and invoice-processing timelines as a barrier for smaller contractors that must carry financing costs. Staff said most invoices are paid within a 30-day window and that prompt-payment timelines and documentation can affect smaller firms’ ability to participate in large public-works contracts.

Staff described outreach efforts and local-organizer activity. The subcommittee heard that local organizations have reported that prospective contractors often do not know how to find opportunities or how to complete certification, and that language and transportation barriers have limited participation in region-wide workshops. Staff said they are coordinating with state working groups and local groups to identify race- and gender-neutral actions—outreach, demystifying certification, unbundling procurements, and capacity-building—before considering tools that would require heightened legal scrutiny.

The subcommittee agreed to continue tracking the state workgroups and to return to the subcommittee with more-detailed tactical proposals the staff believes are legally defensible and likely to expand the qualified pool of vendors.","Legal and procurement staff described a state disparity study, potential race-and-gender-neutral tools and legal scrutiny around supplier-diversity programs, and discussed bonding and insurance as barriers for smaller contractors.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Subcommittee reviews alternative delivery methods, cites Newport Corridor and other projects

Bend subcommittee reviews procurement activity and spending patterns

City staff outline supplier‑diversity work, disparity study and bonding/insurance hurdles