Judge upholds use of no-bid contracts in Los Alamitos (Calif.) district

A judge has upheld the Los Alamitos (Calif.) Unified School District's practice of awarding no-bid construction contracts. The Orange County Breeze says Judge Randell L. Wilkinson rejected a lawsuit brought by a company, Howard Contracting, that challenges the use of the "lease-leaseback" method of awarding contracts. The district says the lease-leaseback method, a design-build methodology that provides a guaranteed maximum price, has enabled it to complete multiple projects in a short time and take advantage of millions of dollars in state matching funds. Over the past five years, the district has utilized the Lease-Leaseback method of contracting, to complete the construction projects at McGaugh Elementary School, McAuliffe Middle School, Los Alamitos Elementary School, Hopkinson Elementary School, Roosmoor Elementary School, Lee Elementary School, and the gymnasdium at Los Alamitos High School.