The Town of Collingwood made 33 non-standard or emergency purchases in 2019 that did not include a multi-bid process.
Non-standard and emergency purchases are reported annually to council if they are at or more than $2,500.
This year, the town’s new accountability officer, Jocelyn McAuley, delivered the report with input from the town’s purchasing officer Rose Hewitson.
The 33 purchases amounted to approximately $745,000.
“Non-competitive purchases are a fact of efficient and effective programs and procurement at all levels of government,” said McAuley, during her report at the Strategic Initiatives Standing Committee meeting on May 6. “Under the definitions and governance set out in Collingwood’s bylaw, there are legitimate reasons to proceed with non-competitive purchases, and these are used judiciously.”
There were 14 instances of non-standard purchases, including two that were put out to tender, but did not result in the receipt of any bids. Four of the non-standard purchases were more than $25,000.
Among those four purchases was new extrication equipment for the Collingwood Fire Department. According to the report, one old set of extrication equipment was taken out of service in 2019 and needed to be replaced. The fire department uses standardized rescue equipment made by Hurst, and there is only one authorized dealer for that brand in Ontario. The new tools cost $60,820.
The largest non-standard purchase on the list was $230,000 for a switchboard, and manual and automatic transfer switch equipment as part of the generator replacement project for the town’s wastewater treatment plant. The equipment, purchased by Jeviso Construction, is listed as a non-standard purchase due to compatibility and exclusive rights.
The town did issue an open-market request for proposals searching for bar and catering services for the Collingwood Elvis Festival 25th anniversary after party, but the procurement report delivered yesterday indicates there was only a single bidder: Moguls. The town paid $11,017 for the service.
The town’s purchasing bylaw includes nine reasons for non-standard procurements, and they include: standard process received no bids received, only one supplier can ensure compatibility or maintenance, absence of competition for technical reasons or no alternative supplier, procurement involves confidential matters, purchase is goods and services from a public body or non-profit, purchase uses the Ontario Government’s Vendor of Record Program, exceptionally advantageous circumstances, procurement of a prototype, purchase financed primarily through donations. All of the non-standard purchases reported by the town in 2019 listed the first two reasons as justification for the sole-source procurement.
There were 19 instances of emergency purchases in 2019, compared to seven reported in 2018.
Of the total emergency purchase, five were related to emergency shoreline repairs at Sunset Point, four others were related to extra work that popped up while scheduled maintenance was underway.
Emergency purchases are services or construction required in an unforseen situation or event that is a threat to public health or safety, to maintain essential service, protect the welfare of people or public property, and preserve the security of the town’s interest.
For example, at Centennial Aquatic Centre, the town was undergoing scheduled tile repair when crews discovered further problems requiring the drains in the building to be replaced.
Council approved spending $32,500 to install the drains and the actual cost was $52,563.
“About $21,000 … came from the (facilities) department existing budget,” explained McAuley in response to a question about the purchase from Coun. Deb Doherty. “The $32,500 approved by council was for additional work.”
McAuley explained there was no further council approval required because the money was already approved in the department’s budget.
Sunset Point repairs reported on the 2019 emergency purchases list amounted to approximately $32,800.
There were no council-approved non-standard purchases reported this year. Last year, there were two – the Collingwood Judicial Inquiry, and the Awen Gathering Circle. According to treasurer Marjory Leonard, the inquiry cost $5.155 million in 2019, and there will be further expenses associated with the inquiry in 2020.
The final cost of the Gathering Circle was $748,896, minus a cash contribution from the United Steelworkers totalling $42,739 for a net cost of $706,156.
According to McAuley, the town spent about $19 million on purchases in 2019, and non-standard or emergency purchases account for about four per cent of that.
This was McAuley’s first report to council. She started as the town’s new accountability officer in late-March.
Her career has included work as a committee clerk at the Legislative Assembly of Ontario where she “provided non-partisan, procedural, and administrative support to members of provincial parliament, ministries, offices of the assembly, and the general public.”
McAuley will also finish her masters degree this June in public policy and administrative law at York University. Her thesis focused on developing a framework for evaluating the effectiveness of parliamentary officers in Canada.
To read the full report on the town’s non-standard and emergency purchases, including a list of the purchases, click here.
