A contractor recommended by Coral Gables’ procurement officials to build the Art Cinema expansion has sued the city, alleging that commissioners violated competitive bidding rules when they gave the second-place bidder an opportunity to lower its price after bids had been opened.
Hycon Investments, LLC filed its lawsuit Oct. 30 in Miami-Dade Circuit Court, three days after the City Commission voted 5-0 to pursue West Construction, Inc., provided West reduced its price below Hycon’s $1,239,900 bid. West had submitted a bid of $1,245,496.63, just $5,596.63 higher.
The lawsuit names Coral Gables and West as defendants and seeks to prevent the city from accepting a revised price from West. It also asks the court to direct the city to award the contract to Hycon.
At issue is whether commissioners could depart from the procurement staff’s recommendation and allow the runner-up to revise its bid after the submission deadline, when the city’s solicitation expressly restricts post-opening price changes.
Hycon’s allegations have not been adjudicated. The complaint, verified under oath by company manager Fernando Murzi, includes the original solicitation, commission records and correspondence from the city’s procurement office.
City recommended Hycon after reviewing 14 bids
The city advertised the Art Cinema expansion contract June 29, and 14 contractors submitted proposals by the Aug. 19 opening.
The lowest submitted price, $1,023,234 from RYD Construction, was rejected after the company failed to demonstrate that it met the solicitation’s Florida certified general contractor licensing requirement.
Hycon consequently became the lowest responsive and responsible bidder, according to the procurement division’s review, with West next in line.
City Manager Peter Iglesias recommended awarding the contract to Hycon in an Oct. 16 memorandum, and the procurement office notified participating bidders Oct. 19.
That same day, the city sent Hycon a conditional notice of award instructing it to prepare a signed agreement, insurance documents and payment and performance bonds within five business days. The notice expressly stated that the recommendation remained subject to final commission approval.
But when the contract reached commissioners Oct. 27, the discussion shifted to West’s previous work for the city.
Commissioners favored West’s previous performance
Mayor Vince Lago questioned the recommended selection, pointing to West Construction’s work on Fire Station 4. He praised the contractor for completing that project on time, with relatively few change orders and unused contingency funds.
Iglesias also cited the city’s experience with West, describing the company as a “known entity” whose past performance would make construction management easier.
The approximately $5,600 difference between the two bids represented less than half of 1 percent of the contract price.
Commissioners ultimately supported a motion to pursue West if the company agreed to beat Hycon’s price. Vice Mayor Rhonda Anderson, Commissioners Melissa Castro, Ariel Fernandez and Richard Lara, and Lago voted yes.
The discussion following the roll call clarified that Hycon could receive the contract if West failed to submit a lower price. No separate vote was taken on that clarification.
The city’s chief procurement officer, Celeste Walker-Harmon, had defended the original recommendation.
Asked whether the procurement division supported the proposed change, she said the process had established rules that bidders were expected to follow.
“I follow the procurement process,” she told commissioners, explaining that the recommendation rested on “fairness and transparency” and the published bidding requirements.
She added that construction awards were based on price rather than comparative qualifications once bidders met the requirements.
“We don’t normally negotiate,” Walker-Harmon said.
Bid rules specifically restrict revised prices
Hycon’s central argument rests on Section 4.8(E) of the city’s invitation for bids.
That provision permits the city to accept voluntary price reductions “from a low Vendor after bid opening” but states that such reductions “may NOT be used to ascertain the lowest responsive Vendor.”
Hycon argues that the commission’s directive does precisely what the provision prohibits: allowing a bidder that was not the lowest qualifying bidder to submit a revised price to become the lowest bidder after the competition closed.
The complaint also cites Florida Statutes Section 255.20, which governs competitive awards for public construction projects.
Where an award is based on price, the statute generally requires selection of the lowest qualified and responsive bidder under the applicable local rules and contract documents. It also recognizes a local government’s authority to reject bids or abandon a project under specified circumstances.
Hycon argues that commissioners made no finding that the company was unqualified or that its bid failed to comply with the solicitation.
Instead, the complaint alleges, the city preferred West “simply because West had completed a prior project for the City satisfactorily.”
The complaint cites Florida court decisions holding that public bodies must exercise their discretion consistently with competitive bidding requirements and must not give favored bidders an unfair advantage.
The solicitation also reserves certain rights to the city, including consideration of conditions in its best interest. Whether those provisions permit the commission’s approach is among the questions raised by the dispute.
Procurement chief said the recommendation would be withdrawn
The lawsuit includes an Oct. 28 email from Walker-Harmon to Hycon’s attorney, Ceasar Delgado, confirming that the city intended to change its recommendation following the commission vote.
“It is our intent to rescind the original award recommendation made by the administration based on the actions and directive by the commission,” Walker-Harmon wrote.
She said the city would issue an award letter rather than another notice of intent, explaining that the commission had already acted and instructed the administration to award the project to another bidder.
The correspondence is significant because the city’s published legislative record for Resolution 2026-297 continues to describe the measure as an award to Hycon, even though the recorded commission motion conditionally favored West.
The record marks the resolution adopted Oct. 27 but does not, in its displayed title, reflect that change.
Hycon challenges the city’s protest deadline
Hycon also alleges that the city’s handling of its procurement protest left the company without a clear administrative remedy.
Under Section 2-910 of the Coral Gables Code, an aggrieved bidder generally must file a written protest and pay the required fee within three calendar days of the city manager’s written recommendation or the commission’s action, whichever occurs first.
Hycon argues that it had no reason to protest the manager’s Oct. 16 recommendation because that recommendation favored Hycon.
According to the complaint, city representatives subsequently informed the company verbally that a protest filed after the commission’s Oct. 27 vote would be untimely because the earlier recommendation had already triggered the deadline.
Hycon nevertheless filed a notice of intent and written protest Oct. 29, along with a $5,000 protest fee.
The company argues that the city’s interpretation would effectively prevent a recommended bidder from challenging a subsequent commission decision to award the same contract to a competitor.
Hycon also invokes the code’s provision for staying procurement activity while a qualifying protest is pending.
The complaint does not establish whether the city has recognized that stay or suspended negotiations with West.
Lawsuit seeks to block a contract with West
Hycon’s verified complaint contains four counts seeking declaratory judgments, a writ of mandamus and temporary and permanent injunctive relief.
Among other remedies, the company asks the court to prohibit Coral Gables from soliciting or considering a reduced bid from West, prevent West from executing a construction contract and require the city to award the project to Hycon.
The company also seeks attorneys’ fees and costs where authorized by law.
Delgado, of Delgado Vega, PLLC in Coral Gables, represents Hycon.
The copy reviewed by the Gazette bears an Oct. 30 electronic filing stamp but does not include a completed case number or identify a hearing date. The court’s disposition of the requests for immediate relief could not be established from the supplied records.
The complaint represents Hycon’s position. The city’s and West Construction’s legal responses were not included in the documents reviewed.
Long-awaited cinema expansion faces a new complication
The dispute comes as Coral Gables attempts to complete an expansion that has been planned for years.
The project would convert adjacent city-owned space at 240 Aragon Ave. into a second, 90-seat auditorium with associated facilities, allowing the nonprofit Coral Gables Cinemateque to expand programming beyond its existing theater.
The commission separately approved a lease amendment Oct. 27 extending the arrangement through September 2035, with an additional five-year renewal option.
The project’s estimated construction budget is $1,425,885, including a 15 percent contingency. The city’s contribution is capped at $450,000, while the cinema is responsible for the remaining $975,885.
The Gazette reported in May that the commission had increased its financial commitment to help close the remaining funding gap after years of delays.
The new lawsuit introduces another obstacle. Whether the expansion proceeds with West, Hycon or a different procurement outcome may now depend on the resolution of the bid protest and the circuit court proceedings.
The underlying question extends beyond the Art Cinema: whether the city followed the competitive bidding rules it established for companies seeking to perform public construction work.
Author: Coral Gables Gazette News Staff
Originally established in 1996 and relaunched as a digital publication in February 2025, the Coral Gables Gazette is an independent local news organization dedicated to factual, objective and accountable community journalism. Our newsroom reports on the people, policies, institutions and events shaping Coral Gables, Florida, providing residents with timely, informative coverage of the issues affecting their community. Our reporting includes City Hall, local government, municipal elections, public spending, real estate development, business, education, arts and culture, and neighborhood affairs throughout the City Beautiful. We follow City Commission decisions, examine public records and report on the businesses, organizations and individuals contributing to Coral Gables. We believe informed residents are essential to a healthy, engaged community. Stories published under the Coral Gables Gazette News Staff byline are prepared or compiled by the publication's editorial team. We strive for accuracy, fairness, transparency and clear distinctions between news reporting, opinion and advertising. Readers are encouraged to submit news tips, corrections, editorial inquiries and story suggestions through our Contact page and learn more about our standards through our Editorial Policy.
