Saying the plaintiff Tip Top Construction "is likely to succeed in its claim" that its bid for the St. Thomas Main Street Enhancement Project was improperly rejected, the V.I. Supreme Court reversed a Superior Court’s denial of a temporary restraining order on the project in a Friday opinion. [Tip Top Main Street Supreme Court Opinion]
Tip Top Construction sued after its $8 million bid for the work was rejected in favor of a $10.4 million bid from Island Roads. The government argued in part that Tip Top’s bid was rejected because it was "mathematically unbalanced," meaning its estimates did not line up well with the government’s engineers’ estimates.
The Superior Court initially granted a temporary restraining order but dropped the restraining order in January, ruling that Tip Top was unlikely to succeed on the merits.
In its opinion Friday, the Supreme Court reversed the Superior Court decision, saying that court applied too strict a standard of review. The Superior Court determined that the bid process would need to be arbitrary and irrational to be overturned by the court, but the Supreme Court disagreed, saying the government "is not entitled to any special deference with respect to legal questions, such as whether it complied with pertinent statutes and regulations."
While the government said the bid was unbalanced, federal regulations require "a careful evaluation" of unbalance bids, and the law requires a careful evaluation and a detailed written justification of why the bid was rejected, according to the Supreme Court opinion. But the court has not seen either a careful evaluation or a sufficiently detailed written justification, the justices concluded.
It reversed the Superior Court order ending the preliminary injunction and remanded the matter "so that Superior Court may grant Tip Top’s motion for a preliminary injunction while it considers Tip Top’s claims on the merits," the justices wrote in their unanimous opinion.
Public Works Commissioner Darryl Smalls said Sunday it is vitally important this matter is resolved through the judicial system as expeditiously as possible. “We are at a critical crossroad in our continued economic development and the timely start of this project will solidify both our position and our market share within the competitive regional tourism industry,” Smalls said.
“All one has to do is look closely at our neighboring islands to observe the significant capital investments taking place at tourist destinations throughout the region,” he said.
Smalls and Property and Procurement Commissioner Lynn Millin Maduro said they will consult with attorneys of the Department of Justice to determine the government’s next steps following this court decision.
