Photo: Chris Lisinski/SHNS
BOSTON (State House News Service) —Seventeen Republican lawmakers sent a letter Wednesday to a top state investigator calling for a full-scale investigation into the Department of Transportation’s handling of a billion-dollar contract to redevelop and operate the state’s highway service plazas.
The lawmakers raised concerns to Inspector General Jeffrey Shapiro over the "integrity and transparency" of the process after the winning bidder, Applegreen, abruptly pulled out of negotiations with the state.
"Serious concerns have been raised regarding the integrity and transparency of this process, undermining the public's already shaky confidence in the state's procurement system" the letter says.
The lawmakers, led by Rep. Joseph McKenna of Sutton, are demanding a probe into how the contract was solicited, evaluated, and ultimately awarded to Applegreen, a company they describe as "foreign-based," for a 35-year lease of 18 highway plazas.
Applegreen on Sept. 23 announced it was ending lease discussions with MassDOT, citing "significant implications for the commercial viability of the concession award" and "costly and continued litigation threats from an opposing bidder."
The decision came the night before a scheduled oversight hearing in the Senate Committee on Post Audit and Oversight, which is chaired by Sen. Mark Montigny, a Democrat.
"The suddenness and timing of this decision, following the failure of both Applegreen and MassDOT officials to produce the full records of communications requested by the Committee, raise significant questions about what they were trying to hide from the Committee and the public," the letter says.
The lawmakers are asking Shapiro to investigate whether MassDOT followed state procurement laws and regulations, how the proposals were scored, and why Applegreen’s offer was selected over others that, according to the letter, may have been "substantially more favorable to Massachusetts taxpayers and consumers."
Rival bidder Global Partners vehemently contested the MassDOT bid award, claiming its offer was superior. Global on Sept. 15 filed a lawsuit in Suffolk Superior Court seeking to stop MassDOT from executing its lease.
A key part of Global's argument was that it is a local company — based in Waltham — compared to Ireland-based Applegreen.
Global President and CEO Eric Slifka claimed Applegreen’s proposal would leave the state’s budget "short from day one," pointing to an independent review by KPMG that suggested a "staggering loss to taxpayers."
Applegreen founder Bob Etchingham has slammed what he's described as "baseless public relations stunts" by the losing bidder, and said Global had engaged in a "campaign of misinformation... in an attempt to reverse a process that was fair, supported by third party experts and aligned with the Commonwealth’s goals for a world-class service plaza operation."
In their letter the lawmakers raised concerns about "conflicts of interest or undue influence" and "record compliance."
"Beyond the simple accounting of the more than $1Billion in taxpayer dollars involved,” they wrote, "this contract and process is emblematic of the fiduciary responsibility that the Commonwealth and its agencies have to the residents thereof."
Transportation Secretary Monica Tibbits-Nutt said following Applegreen’s withdrawal that the agency would "move forward" but hasn't outlined a preferred course of action. "It is now clear that Applegreen is no longer the right partner to deliver on this project," she said in a statement.
Asked to respond to the Republicans' request for an investigation, MassDOT reiterated their position that the bid process was "thorough, fair and transparent."
"Applegreen, teamed with Suffolk Construction, proposed doing significant and much needed revitalization work at the service plazas. Applegreen has decided not to move forward with executing the contract. Right now, we are evaluating next steps to ensure we deliver the highest quality service plazas that the people of Massachusetts deserve," MassDOT spokesperson Marshall Hook said in a statement.
Carrie Kimball, a spokesperson for the Inspector General, said the office had received the letter and is reviewing it, but did not comment further.
In their letter, the Republican lawmakers called for accountability.
"Should it be discovered that any individual(s) or agencies acted nefariously for their own self-interest, we call upon the Administration to take swift action to ensure accountability," they wrote.
There are 25 Republicans in the 160-member House. Of the five members of the House minority leadership teams, Second Assistant Minority Leader Paul Frost is the only Republican who signed the letter.
Written By Sam Drysdale/ State House News Service