Emails Nov-Dec 2005 (2)Menendez,Maria
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Davis,Maria
Thursday,December 08,2005 10:19 AM
Mayors &Comm
Figueredo,Luis;Menendez,Maria;Rothstein,Susan
FW:[BULK]Request for Procurment ofTowing Services tobe Placed on Commission
Agenda
Low
Non Collusion
AffidavitofPri...,.
Although Mr.Andrade's emailwaswellwritten,he had several
inaccuracies (particularly thatI recommended awarding thebid,which
never happened),the bottom lineisthatthis company does not meet the
minimum requirements forthetypeofequipment required todothejob.
Secondly,ifwe choose togobackouttobid,thereis another company that
submitted itsbid,butitwas rejected because itwas submitted toolate.
This company hasallofthe equipment required andis within the2mile
boundary.We may not even have to expand our boundaries.By theway,he
has already called 2 times this AM prior to 9:15 AM.
Commission,Iassureyouthatstaffisactingappropriately,andinthe
bestinterestoftheCity.Ourwholepurposefor putting outthebidto
begin with was to obtain more than onecompany.It would be highly
inappropriate to change our specifications to award a bid toa company that
doesn't meet our needs,just because hehasa business inthe City and
believes that we should modify our requirements to accommodate him.
If you have any questions,concerns or need any clarification regarding
this issue,I would hope that you would call me to discuss it.
Original Message
From:raml970@bellsouth.net [mailto:raml970@bellsouth.net]
Sent:Thursday,December 08,2005 9:00 AM
To:msrl@bellsouth.net;demran55@aol.com;cmbc@be11south.net;
czs@czslaw.com;velpal2000@bellsouth.net;Menendez@bellsouth.net;
Michelle@bellsouth.net
Cc:srothstein@cityofsouthmiami.net;mdavis@cityofsouthmiami.net;
rfdantas@bellsouth.net;randrade@stu.edu
Subject:[BULK]Request for Procurment of Towing Services tobe Placed on
Commission Agenda
Importance:Low
Dear Madam Mayor and City Commissioners:
Initially,Iwouldliketothankyouallfortakingthetimetoconsider
thismatter.IamnotsurethatIwasableto articulate myconcernson
Tuesday night,soIam writing tomakethemclear.On May 20,2005the
City advertised RFPNo.TOW5-20-2005.Only two vendors responded,our
entity,and Southwest Transport Inc.,d/b/a/Westbrook Motors,Inc.
("Southwest").OnSeptember 20,2005theCityManagerrecommendedthe
awarding of the contract to Westbrook Motors,Inc.(uWestbrook"),and
rejected our proposal because we did not meet the minimum equipment
requirements.On September 26,2005 we submitted a protest to the
recommended awarding of the contract to Westbrook predicated upon the fact
that Westbrook never submitted a proposal.On November 22,2005the City
rescinded its recommended awarding to Westbrook and rejected both proposals
after finding that that the true proposer was Southwest and not Westbrook.
It should be noted that the detailed findings of the November 22,2005
correspondence could lead a reasonable person to conclude that Southwest
and Westbrook colluded to submit a sham proposal.Ofcourse,ifthiswere
true,it would be a violation of the sworn affidavit submitted by Mr.Peter
Hernandez (seeattached),and pursuant to Section 10-38ofthe Miami-Dade
CountyCode,would givetheCitycausetoinstitutedebarmentproceedings
againstsaidentitiesand/oranyentitieswhichsharecommonofficerswith
Southwest and/or Westbrook.Although theCityManagerisoftheopinion
that "all bidder's lieon their proposals,"andthatthe rejection ofa
tainted proposal isa sufficient way of preserving the integrity ofthe
City's procurement process,Iforcefullydisagreeandbelievethatitcan
createa perception of protectionism andcasta cloud of suspicion overthe
City administration.
Inexplicably,andnotwithstandingthe above,theCityManagerbelievesit
isintheCity'sbestinteresttocontinuedoingbusinesswithWestbrook.
Thisisan absurd conclusion andspeaksfor itself.Currently,theCity
continues to exclusively usetheservicesofWestbrook.The City Manager
has also informed me that she believes itisin the City's best interest to
seek another towing provider thatmeetstherequirementsofthe City's
advertised RFF with one exception:the provider isnot required tobe
located within a2 mile radius of City limits.Clearly,ifthe City
Manager hasthe authority to waive the advertised location requirement,she
alsohasthe authority to waive the advertised equipment requirement.In
fact,the City Manager informed meshedoes have the authority to waive the
equipment requirement,but that sheis exercising her discretion not to
because she does not feel itis in the City's best interest.
Itis my firm belief that the City Manager isnotthe ultimate arbiter of
what is in the City's best interest.The citizens of South Miami did not
elect Maria V.Davis to represent their best interests;they elected the
Mayor and the City Commission.The City Manager should not be allowed to
make unilateral and arbitrary decisions over a matter which so obviously
implicates the public's health,safety,andwelfare.Itis vital tonote
that the percentage of City requested tows that require the advertised
equipment,which wedonotown,and for which our proposal wasrejected,is
negligible.From our perspective,it would beinthe City's best interest
to allow our entity to participate inthe towing program predicated upon
our location within City limits,andthefactthatwe own the necessary
equipment to handle over95%oftheCity'scalls.
Inotherwords,itseemslogicalthattheCitywouldwaivearequirement
thatonlyhasaminimaleffectontheCity (i.e.requirementofheavy-duty
equipment),andnotwaivea requirement thathasa significant effect on
the City,aswellasits citizens,businesses,andpasserby's (i.e.
location ofa storage facility within a2mileradius).Moreover,Ifail
toseethe difficulty inallowingour participation ina program that
2
permits the City tocall another participant ifwe cannot handle thecall.
There is no harm and there is no foul.
Unfortunately,it appears that the City Manager has injected her personal
likes and dislikes into the City's affairs.Infact,yesterday,she
characterized my involvement in this matter as the "harassment of her and
herstaff,and ofthe Mayor and the City Commission."She also advised me
to stop "running to the commission"because the City Charter precludes the
involvement of the Mayor and City Commission in this matter.Surely,the
City can pass legislation,like the City of Miami Beach has,prohibiting
non-consent towing (public orprivate)unless the company maintains a
storage facility within City limits.Although Iamnota legislative
expert,I find it hard to believe thatthe City's elected officials can be
heldhostage by the City Manager.Byreasonofalloftheforegoing,itis
crystalline thatthe City Manager doesnot possess the requisite knowledge
or objectivity to act in the City's best interest.
Inclosing,itis respectfully requested thatthis matter be placed onthe
commission agenda in order thatitbe properly addressed and,sothatthat
the public andthe citizens ofSouthMiamiare afforded the opportunity to
voice what they believe to be in their best interests.
If you have any questions or comments,please feel free to contact me at
your earliest convenience.
Very truly yours,
Rafael E.Andrade
Account Executive
Jade Towing &Recovery,Inc.
5885 Commerce lane
South Miami,Fl 33143
Tel:(305)674-8667
Mobile:(305)216-2028
Fax:(305)674-8965
E-mail:RAndrade@stu.edu
Payne,Nkenga
From:
Sent:
To:
Subject:
Davis,Maria
Thursday,December 08,2005 9:41AM
Payne,Nkenga;Menendez,Maria
FW:Ralph Andrade -Jade Towing
Please handle.She is talking about the towing bids.
Original Message
From:velpal2000@bellsouth.net [mailto:velpal2000@bellsouth.net]
Sent:Wednesday,December 07,2005 8:30 PM
To:Davi s,Maria
Subject:Re:Ralph Andrade -Jade Towing
Maria
Please ask Nikki to save the two company packages on this matter,I left it on the dias.
Well after reading both packages there arelotsof unanswered questions.I would like to
point outa few areas to you and I think maybeinhisfavor.This ongoing calling is
unprofessional.Velma
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>From:"Davis,Maria"<Mdavis@cityofsouthmiami.net>
>Date:2005/12/07 Wed AM 11:47:25 EST
>To:Mayors &Comm
><IMCEAEX-_0=CITY+20OF+20SOUTH+20MIAMI_OU=CSM_CN=RECIPIENTS_CN=Mayor+20+26 +
20Comm@cityofsouthmiami.net>
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limits.
"Figueredo,Luis"<lfigueredo@ngf-law.com>,
"Julio Robaina (Julio.Robaina@myfloridahouse.gov)"
<Julio.Robaina@myfloridahouse.gov>,"Balogun,Aj ibola"
<ABalogun@cityofsouthmiami.net>,"Martinez,Orlando"
<OMartinez@cityofsouthmiami.net>,"Vazquez,Kathy"
<KVazquez@cityofsouthmiami.net>
Subject:Ralph Andrade -Jade Towing
Please be advised that my office received four calls prior to 10AM
this morning from Mr.Andrade.This gentlemen cannot understand why
the City will not change its towing equipment requirements to
accommodate his company.He stated that he will continue to contact
the commission to have the commission dictate to staff that itis in
the best interest ofthe city to utilize his firm because his firm is within the city
He also believes that the City should not utilize Westbrook Towing
because of his interpretation that they fraudulently submitted their
bid.Westbrook isa certified vendor for Miami-Dade County and we are
currently utilizing
(piggybacking)that bid to carry us until we make a determination asto
whether we rebid or not.Thus far,our survey of other cities reveals that
the smaller cities utilize (piggyback)Miami-Dade County and State of Fla.
Bids.
Mr.Andrade has called my office repeatedly approximately 3-4 times
daily for the past 90 days,at least.I advised him in writing that I
could not speak to him because he submitted a bid and subsequently a formal bid
protest.He continued to call my office repeatedly even after I put itin
writing to him that I could not take his calls.
This is an extremely unfortunate situation where a company does not
>meet the minimum qualifications todo our business.I would like to
>givepreferencetoalocal vendor;however,itwouldbehighly
>improperformetomodifytheCity'sequipmentspecificationsto
>accommodate a specific vendor.
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>Maria
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