(a) When the estimated cost of supplies, equipment or contractual services is less than thirty thousand dollars ($30,000.00), the purchase shall be made in the open market, without newspaper advertisement and without observing the procedure prescribed for the award of formal contracts and shall be referred to as open market purchases. All such purchases shall be awarded by the operations manager.
(b) All open market purchases in an amount greater than one thousand five hundred dollars ($1,500.00) but less than thirty thousand dollars ($30,000.00) shall, whenever possible, be based on at least three (3) competitive bids, and shall be awarded to the "lowest responsible and responsive bidder," in accordance with the same criteria established in this article for the formal contract procedure. All such purchases shall be awarded by the operations manager.
(c) All open market purchases greater than six hundred dollars ($600.00) and not more than one thousand five hundred dollars ($1,500.00) may be acquired after solicitation of three (3) informal bids and after being assigned a purchase order by the operations manager or his or her designee. Purchases provided for under this subsection should be made from the "lowest responsible and responsive bidder," in accordance with the same criteria established in this article for the formal contract procedure.
(d) All open market purchases of six hundred dollars ($600.00) or less may be made by utilizing open monthly purchase orders or by purchasing from available sources without the necessity of a bid.
(e) The operations manager may solicit open market bids by direct mail request to prospective vendors, by public notice on the bulletin board of the city administrative offices, by telephone, by facsimile transmission, by electronic mail or other electronic means.
(f) The operations manager shall keep a record of all open market orders, and the bids submitted in competition thereon, and such records shall also be open to public inspection.
Source: Ord. No. 3078, § 11, 7-6-82; Ord. No. 3754, § 3, 11-5-90; Ord. No. 4232, § 1, 12-16-96; Ord. No. 4330, § 3, 3-16-98; Ord. No. 5021, § 1, 8-4-08; Ord. No. 5080, § 4, 7-20-09; Ord. No. 5262, § 2, 8-19-13; Ord. No. 5334, § 1, 2-2-15; Ord. No. 5879 § 1, 4-15-24)