Mob Museum contract draws lawsuit

Las Vegas' planned Mob Museum could face delays now that a company has sued the city, claiming city officials didn't follow state law and their own policy in awarding an $11.5 million renovation contract to a competitor.

Flagship Construction Co., which lost the bid to rival APCO Construction, wants a judge to order the city to give the project to Flagstone.

The city hasn't been served with the lawsuit, said spokesman David Riggleman, who added the city would not comment on the litigation or whether the lawsuit would delay the project.

Flagship Construction was the low bidder when the city solicited bids in September for renovating the historic federal courthouse on Stewart Avenue downtown. APCO then challenged that award, saying Flagship wasn't qualified to do historical renovations.

City staff decided to seek new bids with more clearly defined specifications.

Instead, the lawsuit alleges, the city used the same standards when it asked for bids a second time in January. APCO was the low bidder, and Flagship protested, also making the claim that APCO wasn't qualified to do the work.

APCO also didn't adequately disclose cases in which it's being sued, including a breach of contract case involving a Las Vegas park, the lawsuit states.

"The city was not properly evaluating bidders," the lawsuit alleges. "The city was creating new rules in the bidding process" and was "changing the rules midstream."

Flagship brought its concerns to city staff and the Las Vegas City Council.

City staff members told the council that the company's objections didn't have merit, and council members voted to award the bid to APCO on July 1.

The council knows about the legal case between the city and APCO, which involves work on tennis courts at the Amanda and Stacy Darling Memorial Tennis Center. The council has appropriated $2.7 million to litigate that case so far.

City Attorney Brad Jerbic told council members that APCO has taken on two city projects since the litigation started and performed well on both.

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