Bitter comments follow decision on beltway paving contract

A North Dakota contractor lost a second skirmish on Tuesday in its bidding war with a local contractor for a lucrative road-widening job on the Las Vegas Beltway.

In a split vote, Clark County commissioners re-affirmed its earlier decision to choose Las Vegas Paving for the project, even though Fisher Sand and Gravel Co. offered the lowest bid.

Fisher bid $112.2 million to widen the beltway between Tenaya Way and Decatur Boulevard, compared with Las Vegas Paving’s $116.8 million bid.

Las Vegas Paving can begin work as soon as the county gives the go-ahead.

The tense debate ended on a contentious note. After the vote, a Fisher supporter in the audience bellowed: “It shows how stupid you commissioners are!”

Earlier this year, Las Vegas Paving challenged Fisher’s eligibility, arguing that at least two of its subcontractors lacked proper licensing. Commissioners in April rejected Fisher based on that argument.

Last month a judge ruled that Las Vegas Paving failed to protest Fisher’s bid within a statutory five-day deadline and ordered the Commission to reconsider Fisher’s bid.

The commission gave Fisher a second look Tuesday and again rejected the contractor, though for different reasons.

Commissioner Steve Sisolak cited an array of violations against Fisher in multiple states, including pollution, job safety, tax problems and a sexual harassment complaint against a company employee.

That prompted other commissioners to question whether the company was responsible enough to work for the county.

“I think it gives us some pause,” Commissioner Chris Giunchigliani said.

Stan Parry, an attorney representing Fisher, said his client was “sandbagged.”

Parry accused opposing commissioners of having a pro-union bias against Fisher, which runs non-union crews. He pushed unsuccessfully to have those commissioners recuse themselves.

“This was disingenuous,” Parry said after the vote.

Fisher representatives said the company will consider suing the county.

During the hearing, Sisolak showed a news report from a Phoenix TV station about how Fisher Industries, a company subsidiary, racked up almost 1,400 violations for exceeding emissions limits from an asphalt plant.

Tommy Fisher, the company president, said the number was inflated because each day the complaint is unresolved is counted as a violation. Most of the violations stemmed from flawed record-keeping, he said, insisting that the company always acts promptly to address problems.

A company this size is bound to run into trouble, Fisher said. “You can find good and bad on everybody.”

That would include Las Vegas Paving, he added.

Fisher pointed to written statements of support from trade groups and high-ranking government officials.

Commissioner Larry Brown said he was uncomfortable with impugning a contractor that doesn’t have a chance to defend itself. He agreed that large contractors all having blemished records.

“If we start turning over rocks ... you’d better be ready to see some crazy things under those rocks,” Brown said.

But Commissioner Rory Reid observed that these incidents have cropped up in the past few months since the Commission last dealt with Fisher.

“This is not a cavalcade of what happened in the last decade ... but this year,” Reid said.

Contact reporter Scott Wyland at swyland@reviewjournal.com or 702-455-4519.