CHARTER ORDINANCE NO. 38

 

A CHARTER ORDINANCE REPEALING CHARTER ORDINANCE NO. 19 OF THE CITY OF LAWRENCE, KANSAS, RELATING TO CITY PURCHASING PRACTICES FOR CERTAIN CITY IMPROVEMENTS; AND EXEMPTING THE CITY OF LAWRENCE, KANSAS, FROM SECTION 13-1017 OF THE KANSAS STATUTES ANNOTATED AND PROVIDING SUBSTITUTE PROVISIONS ON THE SAME SUBJECT.

 

Section 1.  The City of Lawrence, Kansas, a Commission-Manager City of the first class, by the power invested in it by Article 12, Section 5, of the constitution of the State of Kansas, hereby elects to and exempts itself from and makes inapplicable to it Section 13-1017 of the Kansas Statutes Annotated, said section applying only to cities of the first class, and provides substitute and additional provisions as hereinafter indicated.

 

Section 2.  Estimate of Cost of Improvements; Contracts; Bids; Bond Issue; When. 

Before the City of Lawrence undertakes the construction or reconstruction of any public improvement, including but not limited to, sidewalks, curbs, gutters, sewers, bridges, pavements, streets, highways, public grounds, public buildings and public facilities, a detailed estimate of the cost of the improvements shall be made under oath by the city engineer, any department director or some other competent person, appointed for such purposes by the City Manager.

 

In all cases where the estimated cost of the contemplated public improvement amounts to more than $15,000.00, sealed proposals for the public improvement, shall be invited by advertisement, as required by law, and the Governing Body may let all such work by contract to the lowest and best responsible bidder.  Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Governing Body reserves the right to refuse all or any part of any bid when it is felt that such action is in the best interest of the City.

 

If no qualified responsible person shall propose to enter into the contract at a price not exceeding the estimated cost, all bids may be rejected and the same proceedings as before repeated.  In the alternative, if all bids exceed the estimated cost, the Governing Body may accept the bid and let the work by contract to the lowest and best responsible bidder; but if that cost is greater than seven percent over the estimated cost, the department director of the department letting the bids or his/her designee shall give a full explanation to the Governing Body of the reason for the discrepancy.  In no case shall the City be liable for anything beyond the original contract price for doing the work or making the improvement.

 

Before any type of public improvement shall be commenced, the money to pay for the same must be available in the City treasury as provided by law; or provision may be made for the issuance of internal improvement bonds to pay for any such improvement as provided by law. 

 

The bidding process herein set forth in this Charter Ordinance may be waived by an affirmative vote of a majority of the Governing Body, if the best interest of the City would be so served.

 

This section shall not apply to:

 

a.                  any repair or maintenance work not amounting to substantial alteration, addition or change in any public improvement. 

b.                  the construction, reconstruction, repair or maintenance of any public improvement by employees of the City.

c.                  improvements financed by economic development bonds issued pursuant to K.S.A. 12-1740, et seq.

 

Section 3. That any future modification to the $15,000.00 cost provision stated in Section 2 of this Charter Ordinance can be made by simple ordinance.

 

Section 4. That Charter Ordinance No. 19 of the City of Lawrence, Kansas, shall be repealed and of no further force and effect upon the effective date of this Charter Ordinance.

 

Section 5. This Charter Ordinance shall be published once each week for two consecutive weeks in the Official City Newspaper.

 

Section 6. This is a Charter Ordinance and shall take effect sixty-one (61) days after final publication unless a sufficient petition for a referendum is filed and a referendum held on the Ordinance as provided in Article 12, Section 5, Subdivision (c), (3) of the Constitution of Kansas, in which case the Ordinance shall become effective if approved by a majority of the electors voting thereon.

 

Adopted by the governing body of the City of Lawrence, Kansas, not less than two-thirds of the members-elect voting in favor thereof, the ______ day of __________, 2006.

 

 

 

 

                                                                        __________________________________

                                                                        Mike Amyx, Mayor

 

ATTEST:

 

 

 

 

 

_______________________________

Frank S. Reeb, City Clerk