ADPC's contract with the city expired on Saturday after providing IT services to the city for the past 28 years
TRENTON -- Trenton is again being sued by its longtime IT provider ADPC Inc. who claims that the firm who is set to be awarded the new contract submitted a defective bid.
File photo of Trenton City Hall on E. State St. Wednesday's lawsuit follows another suit that was filed by ADPC in mid-September over the first request for proposals process.
ADPC's contract with the city expired on Saturday after providing IT services to the city for the past 28 years.
FCC Consulting Services started work on Monday, but a decision on whether to award the three-year, $2.4 million contract to the company will not be made until tonight's council meeting.
MORE: Trenton's new IT firm begins work before council approval
Earlier this week, Business Administrator Terry McEwen said the procurement process allows the city to have access to a firm pending council's approval when it necessary, as is the case with maintaining the city's hardware and software systems.
"There was no way for either firm to be extended without a contract and this is the first opportunity the city has to get approval from council," Acting Law Director Marc McKithen had said. "Was it better to go with the old firm with no contract or the new firm with no contract? That is a choice the administration had to make."
In July, the city first put out an RFP to provide technical support services for the city's information system.
ADPC, FCC and five other vendors submitted a bid.
ADPC's last contract would have expired Dec. 31, 2014, but multiple extensions were granted -- the most recent being from Sept. 1 through Oct. 31.
The city's purchasing agent told ADPC CEO Joseph Harris that the extension was needed because the administration needed to "substantially revise the specifications for the goods and services, reject the proposals received by resolution and allow time ... to re-advertise the competitive contract solicitation."
At an August council meeting, McEwen had said there was a three-way tie between the proposals and council later rejected the bids at the following meeting.
ADPC in the suit contends it was the lowest responsible bidder after submitting the only fully responsive and fully compliant bid.
"The rejection of all bids by Defendant City was arbitrary and capricious," the lawsuit said. "Plaintiff is entitled to be awarded the contract in question."
A second RFP was issued in September, drawing 12 responses.
In the lawsuit filed on Wednesday, ADPC claims that FCC's bid was defective because the document checklist was not initialed in all of the required places, the political contribution disclosure form was not signed and neither a business registration certificate nor a "non-collusion affidavit" was provided.
The suit says several RFP requirements were not addressed and it's unclear whether the staff members listed in FCC's proposal are in fact employees.
The suit also raised questions about ties between city officials and FCC and its president, Chris Carothers.
One of its listed clients is Trenton Educational Development Corporation, where City Council President Zachary Chester previously served as its director of statistical support. Carothers also donated a combined $400 to Chester's 2010 campaign, campaign finance records show.
Another client was the Housing Authority of Plainfield, the city where Mayor Eric Jackson worked before becoming mayor.
McEwen and Carothers both graduated from Rider University and serve on the school's board of trustees.
The suit also notes that Drew Procaccino, an associate professor at Rider, was brought in by the city to validate the process and review the proposals from a technical perspective.
ADPC claims once again that it was the only fully compliant bid and should be awarded the contract. It is also alleges that the city did not comply with open public records requests.
Cristina Rojas may be reached at crojas@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @CristinaRojasTT. Find The Times of Trenton on Facebook.