In an auction, the highest bid wins. In competitive bidding, it’s usually the other way around — which is why Gina Boyleston is upset.
Her company, Louis Boyleston Realty & Auction, has been conducting the City of Pensacola’s surplus auctions for the last 35 years. This year, the auction contract went out for bid in a private RFQ (request for quotation) to four firms. While Boyleston has charged a 10% commission in the past, she lowered it to 8% for their bid to be competitive with any challengers. Last month, she learned that the contract was awarded to Garth’s Antiques and Auction Gallery (the only other company to respond to the RFQ) even though their bid was higher, at 10%.
Boyleston took her grievance to the Pensacola City Council this week. She shared a string of emails between city staff (obtained through a public records request) that, she believes, shows the decision to give Garth’s the contract had already been made before the RFQ process was finished.
Last October, Rita Lee, Mayor Hayward’s executive assistant, emailed Purchasing Director George Maiberger saying that Winston Garth had called and expressed an interest in his company providing auction services for the city. Maiberger began putting together a request for quotes in March, approved by City Administrator Bill Reynolds, and the RFQ packet went out to vendors on April 2.
On April 19, Reynolds emailed Maiberger saying, “The Mayor would like to use Mr. Winston Garth as our auctioneer for surplus city equipment. … Please coordinate with him.”
Maiberger reminded Reynolds about the RFQ, which was still out and had a closing date of May 2.
“[G]ot it,” replied Reynolds, “didn’t recall.”
On May 3, Maiberger emailed Reynolds that there were two respondents to the RFQ, Boyleston and Garth’s, and that Boyleston had a lower bid that, based on previous year’s gross sales, would save the city over $2,000.
“[City Fleet Manager] Doug [Resmondo] is recommending that the City contract with Boyleston, providing the lowest quoted fee, for Auction Services for 2012,” Maiberger wrote. “I concur. Please advise.”
Ten days later, Reynolds responded: “The Mayor is interested in giving others the opportunity to participate in contracts with the city. Please move forward with Mr. Garth per his direction.”
Maiberger warned that “this decision may hurt the City in obtaining competitive pricing in the future if vendors submit their price as part of an open competition and then are not awarded the contract based on price or some other stated factor. If vendors ‘perceive’ that the process is not fair and open, they may not respond to future solicitations. As the Purchasing Manager, I wanted to share my concerns.”
“The Mayor specifically is looking to expand those who have opportunities with the city,” Reynolds replied. “Had the review determined these firms were of different caliber, the result would have been different. We should always look for opportunity to bring new blood and thought processes into our operations and not simply rely upon past practices.”
In her email to council members, Gina Boyleston said the decision to award to a higher bidder “reeks of favoritism and the same good ole boy tactics that citizens despise.”
“The only conclusion that I can come to, since his decision wasn’t based upon proper comparison of the bids, is that it is obvious that the Mayor had promised the auction to Garth,” she said. “This is grossly unjust.”
In a phone conversation, Boyleston said she had gotten the impression of a relationship between Hayward and Garth.
“I read the newspaper, and I see their names from time to time,” Boyleston said. For example, in a January “Page 3 Mingle” article by Dee Dee Davis, Garth was listed as one of two dozen guests at a City Hall surprise party celebrating the mayor’s first year in office.
Gina Boyleston addresses the city council
Boyleston brought up the dispute at the open forum segment of Thursday’s council meeting, saying she had received no further response from the mayor’s office.
“As my daddy always said, there ain’t no half-fresh egg,” she said. “It’s either fresh or it’s rotten, and in my opinion, this one is rotten.”
Councilwoman Sherri Myers made a motion to hold a special council meeting to investigate the matter.
“I think that this is a perfect situation where this council should exercise its powers under the charter to investigate this situation, to call a special meeting, and if we need to, to subpoena the mayor to come before us and explain to us how this came to be,” Myers said.
Councilwoman Maren DeWeese seconded the motion, but after a lengthy discussion, offered a “friendly amendment” that, in lieu of a special meeting, the council should simply request full documentation related to the bidding process to discuss at next month’s regular meeting. She said the city owed Boyleston an official response “at a minimum.”
“I would almost beg support of council on this,” DeWeese said. “This is our job.”
Bill Reynolds characterized the 35-year arrangement with Boyleston a “sweetheart deal with no open process, not even a contract, being decided between a member of the public who had a firm and a member of staff.” He said that the mayor’s intention was to inject more competition into the process. After all, another company may have different methods that could yield better results for the city — beyond a few thousand dollars’ difference in commission — which might not have been tried otherwise.
“He has the authority — without an RFQ, without anything — to just have said, ‘Mr. Garth, you get the contract.’” Reynolds told the council. “If you’re looking to change the rules, that’s a different matter, but we should play by the rules that are actually in place now.”
“Surely, the mayor had the legal right to choose whoever he wanted to,” Boyleston responded. “But he didn’t do that. He sent out a request for quote.”
She said that by sending out a request for quotes, the city should be bound by the rules in the RFQ, which stated that the award of bids would be “based on the lowest and best responsible respondent meeting all conditions and requirements of the specifications.” Boyleston also said that, because of the specialized and complex nature of auctioning titled vehicles, her firm was the only respondent who met the qualifications of the RFQ, and that the city’s potential losses could be much bigger than the commission in question.
“You’re not just going to lose 2%. You’re going to lose tens of thousands of dollars,” she said. “These are apples and oranges. These are not the same kind of company. This is like telling the dental hygienist to run on in there and do that root canal.”
Ultimately, the substitute motion by DeWeese failed on a 4-4 vote. Councilmen Hall, Johnson, Spencer and Wu voted against it, and Councilman Townsend was absent.
Reached for comment, Winston Garth disagreed with Boyleston’s claim that his company does not have experience in selling titled vehicles.
“We do the same things at the college auctions,” Garth said, “when people buy vehicles from Pensacola State College or UWF.”
He added that there was nothing improper about the mayor awarding the contract to him.
“I could say the same thing if he gave it to her,” he said. “We’re in a competitive business. I never complained when she had it.”
31 comments
Dan Fugate says:
Jun 15, 2012
So, a strong mayor weakens the public? I need to read up on his powers – find out what’s in his pay grade?
There are valid points on both sides of this argument, as presented, but what it comes down to is; there shouldn’t have been an RFQ if the process was going to be ignored. Good piece. Thanks for the info.
Diane Mack says:
Jun 15, 2012
The Code of Ethics of the City of Pensacola, which is an ordinance (that means it’s law), states, “An official or employee of the City of Pensacola may not, directly or indirectly, treat anyone…preferentially or in any other manner that is not generally accorded to city residents.”
I stand by my statement of yesterday evening that the Mayor of the City of Pensacola violated the Code of Ethics. This has been yet another example showing that if friends of Ashton want the business, no one else need apply.
Dale Parker says:
Jun 15, 2012
This is another glaring example of Mayor Wayward Hayward putting it to the Citizens of Pensacola. This maniac is out of control. We did not elect a “Dictatorial” form of Government. In fact, we did not elect a “Strong Mayor” form of Government as Mayor Zoolander interpreted it.
This man has to go and we have to amend our Charter as to NEVER have this kind of mess happen again.
Shelby Brewer says:
Jun 15, 2012
I’m with you on amending the charter. We were warned about this new charter by Jewel Canada-Wynn but the money the machine put behind Spencer defeated her.
This egg is rotten! says:
Jun 15, 2012
The city put out a request and the final result was to ignore that competitive bid process and choose the HIGHEST bid that didn’t meet the requirements of the request, even after the purchasing manager warned that this would hurt the comptitive bid process?
Mr. Reynolds, who appeared to be a stand up guy now finds himself in a position that has compromised his integrity and he must go along to get along. He left a job to come to work in a cesspool of dysfunction.
Many of the council members refuse to acknowledge any problems .
Nevertheless the public sees clearly that this city has many rotten eggs…………on it’s face.
Voice of Reason says:
Jun 15, 2012
I don’t understand why this woman feels so entitled… Seems like she had a no-bid sweetheart deal for 35 years!! I for one can’t believe that nobody at city hall ever thought to look into it. I voted for the charter and for Hayward because I don’t believe in doing the same old bs just because that’s the way its always been done. That kind of mentality got us into the mess we’re in…!
Xochitl says:
Jun 15, 2012
‘
If the Code of Ethics of the City of Pensacola states that “An official or employee of the City of Pensacola may not, directly or indirectly, treat anyone…preferentially or in any other manner that is not generally accorded to city residents,” then every city official and employee involved with the Studer Stadium scam needs to stand trial! Thirty acres of public waterfront land, $47 million in a structure for a private individual’s business, and another $45 million in financing costs were awarded to a non-resident without ANY BIDS whatsoever! It was a “done deal” way before the public even heard about it.
DIANE MACK – why didn’t you stand up against this gross abuse of the rights of the citizens of Pensacola? Why did you join the parade of officials who turned a blind eye to what has got to be the worst give-away of public money and land in the sordid history of this city? Weren’t you receiving campaign contributions from the individuals who were benefitting from this “deal”?
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Shelby Brewer says:
Jun 15, 2012
Touche’
This egg is rotten! says:
Jun 15, 2012
Voice is right past is past,
but today, how does disregarding a rfq that the city issues and choosing a friend for the job, who didn’t meet the requirements of that rfq help the city receive competitive bids and the most qualified applicants???
I didn’t notice a sense of entitlement, but I did notice that an applicant who submitted a bid reasonably expected that bid to be awarded based on the rules and requirements that the city set forth in its rfq.
It wasn’t.
Gina Boyleston says:
Jun 15, 2012
Voice of Reason should withhold judgment until reviewing the bids submitted. I am the bidder who was rejected and I have documentary evidence that the process was unfair and that the award went to a company without the required experience. Entitlement is the wrong word as I have never sought or received any entitlements. I work very hard and have performed “outstandingly”, according to the City staff I was fortunate enough to work with. The last time I checked, longevity in business is applauded, not penalized. I am 100% for competitiveness, if it is open and fair, which this process was not. Anyone who wants to be copied on the Request for Quote, City E-mails and my bid and the other bid, email me. Read it, then judge for yourself. P.S. As I told City Administrator Bill Reynolds last night when he was spewing venom my way, I am highly offended by the term “sweetheart” when referring to me or my business practices. I’m a female minority owned business and such incendiary remarks reflect only on the speaker, not the recipient. ginaboyleston@att.net, if you want documentary proof. P.S. Use your real name instead of hiding behind a pseudonym. After all, we are trying to become transparent, right? Get it out into the SUNSHINE.
Mark Taylor says:
Jun 15, 2012
Hey Gina, I’d love to see the documentation and I will certainly write my councilman and both at large council members. Sorry this happened, from everything that is being presented here you certainly deserved to of been awarded this contract. Please email documents to mark@pensacolainsuranceinspections.com. Thanks.
CJ Lewis says:
Jun 15, 2012
It is difficult to understand why Hayward wants to ship jobs outside city limits spending more of our hard-earned taxpayer dollars to a less qualified, non-city company. It strikes me as, “Do Less For More.” Last night, a befuddled Reynolds, clearly having trouble keeping up with his string of lies and false accusations, was unwittingly correct when he said that the 35-year working relationship between Boyleston and the City was “a sweetheart deal.” The City sure made out pretty good with Boyleston working so hard on the City’s behalf for so long. Other than being a city business, I guess Boyleston’s other crime was just being too good at its job and being willing to do it for less that the pre-determined, non-completive bid process winner Garth’s.
It seems blindingly obvious that Boyleston was the “lowest and best responsible bidder.” The Mayor has the right to reject all bids and advertise again but nowhere in the Code of Ordinances does it grant him the power, on behalf of the governing body the City Council that controls all of the city’s money, to reject the “lowest and best responsible bidder” in favor of the “highest and least responsible bidder” on the Mayor’s Christmas card list. The appropriate response for the Council if it was a real vice “faux,” rubber stamp legislative body would be to amend the Code stripping this Mayor of all authority to make contracts without the express approval of the Council. When Hayward, Asmar, Reynolds and the rest of the campaign staff are out of office in 893 days, the Council can give the power back to a non-corrupt, non-dishonest Mayor.
The pro-Charter “Believe in Pensacola” political committee put out a list of Frequently Asked Questions as part of their political persuasion effort to sucker voters into voting for the Charter. One question asks, “Will the Mayor be able to make side deals and back room deals?” The answer was, “As part of the checks and balances, all deals must be approved by the City Council.” That was one of many lies to include claiming that the Mayor would be subject to recall by voters under State law. Too bad the City Council members are afraid to amend the Charter to fix the open flaws inserted on purpose.
Last night, Reynolds spoke about Pensacola as a city with “one degree of separation.” He may have been onto something. Little Ashton’s father Ashton Hayward, Jr. was a classmate of Kay Garth, wife of Winston Garth, at Pensacola High School (1959). Robert Garth was present at Florida State University in the same timeframe (1987-1989) as Hayward well before the long arm of the law caught up with Hayward in his traumatic triple-felony 1990 arrest that caused him to drop out of college and drop his trousers in Miami to enter the exciting world of underwear modeling. Garth and Hayward may have been pals at FSU enjoying their free time shopping for or shoplifting antiques, collectables and other “dust collectors” like those for auction or sale at Garth’s.
Galapagos says:
Jun 15, 2012
Oh I didn’t realize we were playing the game where it’s OK to slander people as long as you put MAY in front of it.
In that case, CJ Lewis MAY be a bipolar disgruntled loser who was kicked out of the Marine Corps. He MAY have had slumber parties with Charles Bare where they underwear modeled for each other in between discussing their trash talk tactics.
Who knows, CJ’s obsession with Hayward MAY have deeper, more homoerotic roots than we know.
What a Joke says:
Jun 15, 2012
Gulapagos — the facts are clear. The Mayor made the decision to grant the higher bidder the contract. In my memory, the City has never done that & I don’t know how it can be defended. CJ may or may not be right about the reasons that the Mayor picked the high bidder, but the Mayor’s motivation really doesn’t matter. The Mayor’s decision is undefensible & the tax payers would be outraged if they knew about this — but of course this issue won’t see the light of day. The PNJ won’t print it or put it on their online edition. Rick Outzen won’t publish an article in the Independent News or post a piece on his blog. Derek Cosson was bought & paid for when he was given a job with the city — with slim & none experience/education & without competition.
So absent your rant against CJ, how do you defend the Mayor’s actions?
Xochitl says:
Jun 16, 2012
‘
Actually, “What a Joke”, the city HAS previously granted indefensible contracts to the highest bidder. There is a $120 million baseball stadium sitting right in front of city hall that was built without ANY bids whatsoever! Nothing could have been any worse for the City of Pensacola than what we got out of that deal! Millions and millions of dollars were given to friends of the previous administration, and it was done without the least bit of “competition”. These things happen because of (a.) complacent voters, (b.) greedy “insiders”, (c.) a horrible local newspaper, and (d.) a corrupt city government. The corruption in our city government has not been eliminated, it has only been reshuffled.
Ashton Hayward’s greatest contribution to this city is that he helped to rid us of Mike Wiggins. For that, I am forever grateful. I will be just as grateful once Hayward and his perpetual PR groupies are sent packing. Unfortunately, no one has stepped up to rid us of our very lazy and corrupt city council members.
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What a Joke says:
Jun 15, 2012
Power corrupts & absolute power corrupts absolutely. The question is — what is the City Council going to do about it. And, how much longer will Bill Reynolds abandon his integrity? None of this surprises me given the backgrounds of Hayward & Asmar, but I am very disappointed in Mr. Reynolds.
steve eckles says:
Jun 15, 2012
This is outrageous! I’m appalled that something so black and white can be construed in anyway as a fair practice. You put out a bid, apples to apples, and the lowest bid wins, the lowest bidder gets the job. It’s so obvious who the yes people are on this city council and who believe in a fair and honest practice. Anyone for some tennis on some beautiful new tennis courts?
What a Joke says:
Jun 15, 2012
Steve — I really hope you aren’t surprised. This is the way this administration works. The community was warned about putting the power into an elected mayor rather than a professional manager. Pensacola’s history of allowing corrupt politicians to damage the community is well known. I understand why people are now regretting their choice, but it’s too late.
If Mayor Wiggins had been elected, those who supported Mayor Hayward would be disgusted if Wiggins had pulled the stunts that we now see.
While this is one of the most obvious examples, it’s certainly not the most egregious. Imagine if Wiggins had renamed department directors so that the council had no say in who the Mayor selected. Or if he had refused to show up at city council meetings. Or if he had given the spouse of a human resource professional (who he went to college with) a no-bid contract to sell insurance to city employees. Or if he hired Asmar as his chief of staff & violated department of labor & IRS laws by classifying Asmar — and others — independent contractors rather than employees. Or if he had given a barely qualified person (Derek Cosson) a high powered job without ever advertising the position.
I can only hope that the charter will be changed, but I seriously doubt that will happen. The Mayor’s supporters have been bought & paid for. You won’t see any of this in the PNJ or Rick Outzen’s blog. Hayward is handing out goodies to his supporters so he will most likely buy the next election.
Mark Taylor says:
Jun 15, 2012
Wow, this is too much… The arrogance and “above the law” attitude grows worse and worse, I can’t imagine how bad it will be by 2014. Lets pray Mr. Hayward is a one term Mayor. Ms. Boyleston deserves an apology and deserves to be given the contract for 2012. If Mr. Garth wants to be involved he should sharpen his pencil and try again in 2013. Ms. Boyleston, I am fighting a similar local agency funded with tax payer dollars on a similar situation, I hired an attorney and it is looking good that we are going to prevail. You will likely spend a lot of money but at least justice will prevail and will show Mr. Hayward he is not above the law… Good luck and sincerest apologies from a city resident. Mark Taylor
Timmy says:
Jun 16, 2012
Why does this surprise anyone? It’s the same thing that has been happening since day one of his reign, oops, I mean administration. If the city council had any shred of a backbone, they would call for a review of all contracts/ RFP’s issued since he took office. From architecture to advertising and now auctions, the contracts don’t got to the most qualified, cost effective or experienced – they go to the Mayor’s favorite new friends.
The day will come when the infamous charter and “strong mayor” budget/contracts are challenged by a legal and financial review. That day will be interesting.
I will completely agree with “what a joke” that these practices will never be questioned in the media and that if any previous administration had behaved this way there would have been calls to gather the pitchforks and torches to march on City Hall. Almost makes you wonder if his mayorness is related to someone at the PNJ!
Voters – you elected the new bright and shiny guy to “throw-out the good ole boy network” – all you did was created GOB version 2, new and improved and stronger with less checks and balances. Millions of dollars are being wasted and sent out of town….nice job!
Mad Hatter says:
Jun 16, 2012
I watched the video of the meeting. What a circus! The most galling thing was to hear Reynolds complain about how he’s had to spend entire HOURS of his precious time responding to this issue. Poor baby! Guess what Bill: you make your $130000 city salary no matter what you spend your time on. Whether its writing contracts for the mayors buddies or going into PR mode when someone is smart enough to do a records request and find out about it. Gina Boyleston had to spend the time to put together her bid for the RFQ. That’s a very time consuming process, and now we know she should have saved her time since the contract was already in the bag for Garth. An THEN you had the nerve to insult her, a private citizen who actually has her business in the city limits instead of out on Navy, by calling her years of work a “sweetheart deal”! Why not be a little more considerate about other peoples time?
Billy age 5 says:
Jun 16, 2012
God creates man,
Man creates Mayor,
Mayor creates jobs for friends,
Friends takes jobs away from everyone else,
Everyone else pays for it end the end,
The End.
Lewis J. Christopher says:
Jun 17, 2012
I wonder how many of these comments were left by Jeff DeWeese
Occupier says:
Jun 18, 2012
Yea, and I bet all those 73 Facebook likes for the article are Deweese too! There’s no other explanation! Like Sam Hall says, Ashton is universally beloved and would win against Jesus if the election for Messiah was held today, so there can’t be more than one person making critical comments. I bet even that Boyleston lady is just Jeff Deweese in drag!
What a way to run a city says:
Jun 18, 2012
No vote here.
He’s no Mayor Joe Riley who participates personally in issues that affects his city and his love for his city shows. The comparison is no comparison.
His proponents claim he does not have to attend city council meetings or be seen or even speak to the public, but the fact that he has no interest in these mayoral functions doesn’t pass the smell test. It stinks!
do says:
Jun 20, 2012
apparently “the city” is taking it a step further and is now doing promotions for individual businesses as evidenced by today’s facebook post promoting a paid event at a downtown establishment. It is an absolutely wonderful place but there are thousands of tax paying businesses in the City Limits that could also be promoted.
Gina Boyleston says:
Jun 20, 2012
I think on this thread we are drifting towards just complaining and away from the facts that there are two serious issues: a faulty and unethical bid process, and the award of a bid at a higher percentage to a bidder whose proposal was deficient and did not meet the minimum requirements of the request for quote.
What a Joke says:
Jun 20, 2012
Gina — the 2 incidents you present are only symptoms of the problem. The Mayor, Chief of Staff Asmar & City Administrator Reynolds are the problem. Why they think that awarding the contract to the highest bidder is ethical, I do not understand. And this isn’t the only example of their unethical conduct. Just read my previous posts.
Couple their conduct with the lack of publicity — see any of this in the PNJ? Of course not. Rick Outzen’s blog had a little discussion, but when I tried to respond, Outzen refused to post my comments. This is the only place I know that doesn’t restrict comments that are critical of the Mayor. There is no transparency in this administration. That lack of transparency results in sweetheart deals and other unethical conduct.
Nothing new here says:
Jun 21, 2012
The fix was in on the ballpark proposal and the fix was in on this rfp.
Next time the city should be more specific in the requirements and add a requirement to the rfp that the contract must be awarded to an antique dealer who went to school with the mayor’s daddy.
Tired Of It says:
Jun 24, 2012
If Ginny Gpraybiel was not part of the Mayor’s family… This sort of hanky pansy would beall over the PNJ. The sad thing is when the PNJ has favorites they do not report on it. I can remember when the BOCC messed with a RFP involving Roads Inc and you would have thought the players in that scandal committed a mass murder all the press it got from the PNJ and the Chief Propagandist for the downtown set Rick Outzen.
Nothing new here says:
Jun 25, 2012
Outzen is like a party line-He hears it- he spreads it, and he decides what the the news will be.
Has anyone seen his follow up story on all the great things to be built at the multi use maritime museum classroom conference center retail restaurant walking trails park?