Cameron v. City of Escondido

GRIFFIN, J.

Respondents, city of Escondido, the city council, and the mayor thereof, proceeding under the Improvement Act of 1911 (Stats. 1911, chap. 397, p. 730) and Streets and Highways Code, section 5240 et seq., advertised for bids for construction of certain sewer work in that city. The bid proposal stated, among other things, that pursuant to section 5242 of the Streets and Highways Code, said bid should be accompanied by “a certified cheek payable to the city” or a bond in the amount of 10 per cent of the aggregate of the proposal, and that bids would be opened at 7:30 p.m. on August 3, 1955. At that time five bids were opened and it was shown

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that respondent Corzine and Tumor’s (contractors) bid was the lowest, and that it was accompanied by a personal cheek in the sum of 10 per cent of their bid rather than a certified check. The petitioners here were next lowest bidders and accompanied their bid by a proper bond. Immediately after the opening of the bids, as was the custom, the city council ordered that all bids and security furnished therewith be referred to the engineer of work for examination and report on August 10, 1955 “on the bidding and the lowest responsible bidder.” On August 4, respondent contractors deposited with the city clerk their certified check in the proper amount to accompany their bid, and on August 10th, the city council, at a regular meeting, by resolution made a finding that the certified cheek was on deposit with the city clerk; that it was in the proper amount; and that the city council, on behalf of the city, waived the informality in said bid. Thereafter the engineer of work recommended that respondent contractors’ bid be accepted and by resolution that bid was accepted and all others were rejected. On August 31, 1955, respondents, under separate bond, entered into a contract with the city for, and thereafter actually commenced, construction of the sewer work. All checks and securities which were received with the bids were returned to the respective bidders. On August 22, 1955, petitioners obtained an alternative writ of mandate and on September 7,1955, after hearing in the superior court, the writ was denied and the alternative writ discharged. The prayer of the petition was that the city council “rescind this resolution of award of contract . . . wherein it was determined that the contract should be awarded to the defendants E. L. Corzine and E. L. Tumor”; and to command the city to “receive and accept the bid of petitioners as being the lowest and best responsible bid, and to award them the contract as bid.”