Bangor Finance Committee approves equipment bids, airport security project

[0:30] Susan Deane: You're alive. Good evening. Welcome to the regular scheduled finance committee meeting. It is Monday, October 19th, 2026. It is 5:41. I am the chair of finance, Counselor Dean. We're on the table on committee is Council Beck, Council Carson, Counselor Balloon, and Counselor Mallor. We're also joined by Council and Counselor Leonard and Council Walker, Counselor Fish, and we will have Assistant Manager Courtney O'Donnell sitting in this evening, and we will be patient. Thank you. We have a couple of items on the agenda. First up is a three-quarter ton truck, the parks and [1:22] Carollynn Lear: our creation yes so this we did put it out to bid we received three bids ranging from 110 173 dollars to 118 thousand five hundred and seventy dollars darlings ford had the lowest bid at the 110 and so we are requesting permission to award to darlings ford in that amount of 110 173. [1:52] Susan Deane: Any questions regarding the three-quarter ton purchase from Darling's? [1:56] Wayne Mallar: 110,173. Council Mallard, just a general, excuse me, just a general question. I thought in the past we asked to see the details, the details. I didn't see it, but I could have missed it. Oh, you want the responses. Yes. Oh, okay. Yeah, because I don't know what you, I don't know what you're buying, what kind of, what the truck is. I know nothing about it. Oh, so my question is, yep, to parks and rent, can you wait three months for it? Why would we wait three months? Because it's not going [2:27] Carollynn Lear: to be delivered for 12 weeks. Oh, I think that's honestly a pretty standard lead time, but well, the [2:33] Wayne Mallar: quirk work is deliverable in 21 days, so there's a big difference. You want to spend six thousand of dollars more? No, but I, yes, if we, the equipment they have is not going to last. [2:45] Carollynn Lear: All right, I'm going to defer to Fleet Director Mike Moran. [2:50] Wayne Mallar: I mean, if we have trucks that are both broken down, yeah, I do like [2:58] Susan Deane: more than Fleet Director. [3:01] Joseph Leonard: We're okay to wait because these are used more during the spring. [3:19] Wayne Mallar: We wouldn't pay much if we had two trucks that were disabled. Yeah. [3:27] Susan Deane: We have a motion, we have a second. Do we have any concern? We will move on with staff recommendations. Just needs committee approval, so we will approve it. Thank you. Next up we have a hydroceder, public works, hydrographs corporation for fifty seven. [3:50] Carollynn Lear: Thousand nine hundred and eighty four dollars. This was another request for bids that we put out, and Director Mourn staying at the table because he was the point person for this, and so it turns out that the low bidder was not responsive and didn't meet the spec requirements, so and then the other, the second lowest bidder doesn't have a dealer in Maine, so getting warranty work would have to be performed out of state, and that's why we are recommending Hydrographs Court for the 57. Nine. Question. [4:33] Wayne Mallar: In reading what I have, it looks to me like both of them are Hydrographs. [4:42] Carollynn Lear: Now they submitted two separate bids. [4:44] Wayne Mallar: What was the difference, just because of the man age? But it's difficult to see that when we don't see holiday [4:52] Carollynn Lear: period. Yeah, I will make sure that we include [4:54] Susan Deane: We've mentioned this several times before. I hear you, that was my exact question, clearing that up, and I do agree it would be nice to see the specs. We have any other concerns or questions? We have motion, we have a second. This requires committee approval. If there are no challenges, we can go on staff recommendation for the hand receder from Hydrographs Corporation. Next up, a compressor, again Public Works, Technology International Incorporated, for twenty five thousand one hundred and seventy nine dollars. Yes [5:47] Carollynn Lear: This was put up to bid, we received three in response, they ranged from the twenty five 179 up to forty two thousand six forty five. Technology International is the lowest bidder. That's so that is staff recommendation. [6:08] Susan Deane: Any questions regarding the compressor for Public Works? [6:14] Michael Beck: There's a question again, what delivery time is it, the same situation? The other thing is, we don't need it before then. Sure, [6:28] Susan Deane: we don't want to feed anything before the winter. We're getting a lot of rain though. [6:34] Michael Beck: It might be good decorative lighting when I know the paint. Oh okay, that's okay [6:47] Susan Deane: I exchange a motion, second, you have a motion, we have a second, any concerns, seeing none, we will excuse me proceed with staff recommendation on the Technology International Inc. for $25,179. Next up, decorative light fixtures, Public Works, Coastal Traffic Inc. for $67,886. [7:17] Carollynn Lear: Yeah, so we put out a bid and actually received 13, or no, four 13 decorative light fixtures to replace the aging units. Three bids were received, they ranged from 67.8 up to 71.6. Coastal Traffic is the lowest bidder and there is funding in the budget available for this [7:42] Susan Deane: These are the same style as what we have, I believe so, yeah [7:48] Carollynn Lear: Are these just like all over the city? Are these in any particular place? I think that they're located primarily in the downtown area, but I'll be honest, I'm not entirely sure. And I'm just curious, like, are we replacing them with what exists now? Just, yeah, they are replacing, yes, the aging units. Yes, yeah, I'll get the location. So much I don't need to [8:13] Susan Deane: know specifics. I just wondered if it was like a particular area, like down to shore. Yeah, sort of [8:19] Carollynn Lear: I'm pretty sure it is, but I'll double check. Any [8:24] Susan Deane: other questions? And a motion, staff recommendation, second to go, and staff recommendation for the decorative light fixtures for public works, Coastal Traffic Inc, for sixty seven thousand eight hundred eighty six dollars. That is committee approval. We will proceed. Next up we have a tin axle plow truck for public works, Freightliner of Maine, two hundred and seventy three thousand nine hundred and two dollars. This will be a committee recommendation to full council. [9:02] Carollynn Lear: Yes, this went on to bid. We received six bids in response. They ranged from 272,301 up to 444,899. Freightliners was not the lowest bid, but they offered what appears to be a better warranty. And so had the lowest bidder added the same level of warranty, it would have brought their bid up by forty six hundred dollars. And so staff is recommending approval to award to Freightliner our main for the 273 902 [9:41] Susan Deane: questions regarding the tandem axle We will move that recommendation to move this to full council funding. One additional item in is a TSA checkpoint at the airport, Sheridan, for 12 million nine thousand nine hundred sixty seven dollars. Obviously we'll need to have recommendation from full council. Yeah, so this was put out [10:37] Carollynn Lear: to bid and they were, Sheridan Corp was the low bidder and they are qualified. We have a good past experience with them. And as noted in the documentation, the airport staff and design team reviewed all of the proposals and did deem Sheridan's to be complete and responsive. And so the funding for this project comes from the passenger facility charges, or it's commonly referred to as PFC charges, and the amount of that 12 million 281 179. And there are budgeted airport funds in the in the amount of 650, sure [11:17] Daniel Carson: instead of a question on the passenger facility charges, is that in addition to what is already being charged, or is that just being [11:28] Carollynn Lear: reallocated from the PFC to this? I'm gonna look to the assistant airport director Francis to that's [11:38] Joseph Leonard: Next question, Francis Robbins, Assistant Airport Director. The passenger facility charge is charged the same level. There's two ways that we can do it. We can either bank the amount and then pay it, or we can do what's called a pay-as-we-go. This application is a pay-as-we-go method. So we have some of the funds already. We don't have the full note, full amount banked, but we do have enough local funds to cover the full project with local funds and then pay ourselves back over time out of [12:08] Daniel Carson: that. And just a follow-up question, if I may. Certainly, dude. Just for the folks at home, are they going to see an increase in their air traffic passenger tickets after this? No, [12:20] Joseph Leonard: we already charged the, maximum PFC, and so that's built in with fair that people see advertised online. Okay, thank you for that declaration, appreciate it. Yeah, good point, thank [12:33] Wayne Mallar: thank you any other questions we've got another question what's how long are we going to have [12:40] Joseph Leonard: to wait to get it paid back? That's a great question. I believe the return is a few years, maybe it was three or four. Any [Susan Deane: other questions? We'll] have that number when we come back. [13:10] Daniel Carson: I don't have a question, I'll just comment for also for people following along at home, at the airport is an enterprise fund. It's not to be shocked by these large amounts because they also don't hit your tax bill. And I'll move staff recommendation to full council. Thank you. We have [13:29] Susan Deane: a motion, we have a second. Does anyone dispute this? Let's move on for full council July 26. That [13:43] Carollynn Lear: is our last item. I just want to ask in terms of the, thank you very much Director Robin, the, I did want to ask, we have like the bid documents and stuff available online. Would you like a link to that, or do you want to actually see the documents in your packet? Because it will make it very lengthy. Just wondering if there's a preference and how you get that information. If you put them on, I [14:11] Wayne Mallar: don't care, I just don't need to have the ability to look at them without hunting. [14:14] Carollynn Lear: Problem. Okay, so like if it was in like the memo and you could click on a link [14:18] Michael Beck: that would take you to a site that had that would work sure yeah thank you that brings up [14:35] Wayne Mallar: another question. Okay, the first thing, the new city manager, she's not here, so we can pick on the first thing she was going to do is revise all the, our update on the bid process says, is how do we stand on that? [14:50] Carollynn Lear: Well, interestingly, Councilor Malheur, I have been filling in for bids and proposals, so I am very familiar with this process. And actually, I am in active conversations with her and the interim finance director to see how we can better streamline this process. And in line with that is also updating our purchasing policy, which is very outdated, as you know. So we are actively working on that. OK, thank you. Yeah. As [15:17] Susan Deane: soon as we don't have any updates. No, sorry, thank you for filling in. Does anyone have any questions for Assistant City Manager? Will we adjourn with that? We will adjourn at 5:56 p.m. And up next is Benedict Business and Economic Development. Stay tuned.