One of the perks of being president of the Santa Barbara Friends of the Library is that I’m learning a great deal about how local government works. On the positive side, I’ve been impressed with how the City Council and the mayor are open to input, but on the negative side, I’m appalled that a bid for city construction projects goes to the lowest bidder, which is how the Department of Public works decides on a contract.
Defaulting to the cheapest proposal has its shortfalls. For one thing, price is not always synonymous with value. The construction at the Central Library, which is being done by a company from Los Angeles, has been riddled with problems, including the release of asbestos into the air. It is unclear to me if contracts are only awarded to unionized contractors. If that’s true, not only does it drive up costs, but it eliminates many local construction companies.
If we stay local, it is easier to reach management of the company, we can see firsthand the work that has previously been done by the company, the money is spent in our local community, and local contractors know the requirements of the city. Schipper Construction Company for example, has 35 years of award-winning projects and an extensive base of clients including the Lobero Theatre.
I would like to see the policy changed so that when the city does construction projects, they use someone local that cares about their reputation and the future of Santa Barbara.