Work blocked on city project

A judge issued a temporary restraining order Wednesday blocking the planned Mob Museum project from going forward and set a Friday hearing to consider a lawsuit saying the city of Las Vegas awarded the bid to an unqualified contractor.

The hearing is set for 9 a.m. Friday in District Court.

On July 1, the Las Vegas City Council awarded an $11.5 million contract to APCO Construction to remodel the historic federal courthouse downtown, which is to house what's officially known as the Las Vegas Museum of Organized Crime and Law Enforcement.

It did so over the protests of second-place bidder Flagship Construction Co., which said APCO wasn't qualified and that the city had improperly thrown out an earlier set of bids that Flagship had won.

Attorneys for Flagship filed the lawsuit Tuesday and asked for a speedy hearing.

"The opportunity for the court to intervene is short," wrote attorney Leslie Godfrey in an affidavit. Without an injunction preventing the city from going forward with the project, he said, "Flagship and the public will suffer irreparable injury ... specifically, the city will execute a contract with APCO to complete the project."

In an e-mail, city spokesman David Riggleman said the city will defend its decision at the hearing.

"The city will be fully prepared at that time to argue that APCO Construction is the correct lowest responsive and responsible bidder," he wrote.

The contract called for removing hazardous materials, a seismic retrofit, interior remodeling and historic restoration. The museum had been slated to open next year.

Contact reporter Alan Choate at achoate@reviewjournal.com or 702-229-6435.