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Those were mighty pricey bricks

The Bakersfield Californian | Monday, Oct 6 2008 6:37 PM

Last Updated: Tuesday, Oct 7 2008 8:31 AM

Richard Jennings should be angry. The rest of us should be scared. What happened to Jennings could happen to any of us.

Jennings lives on Mesa Verde Way. His backyard brick wall runs along Stockdale Highway, west of El Rio Drive in southwest Bakersfield.

When Jennings returned home from vacation, he found that a limb from his tree had fallen on the wall, knocking out about eight bricks.

Jennings was told the wall belonged to the city, and that he could not hire a contractor to fix the damage. Instead, the city would handle the repair and send Jennings the bill.

Instead of the $500 Jennings estimated it would have cost him to hire a mason to repair the wall, his bill from the city was $4,142. That's $3,437 for the city's contractor, $83 for city equipment and labor, and $622 to cover the city's "administrative costs."

The work was done by a firm contracted by the city under a financial agreement that falls under the amount requiring City Council approval. The company does not provide the city with a "rate card" for its work. Rather, it sends the city a bid on a repair — mostly holes left in walls after drivers hit them — and does the work after the city approves the quote.

City staff acknowledged to a Californian reporter who asked about Jennings' wall repair that the mason's prices were kind of expensive. But a parks superintendent insisted it was "the going rate."

A front page story in The Californian last weekend about Jennings' pricey wall repair caught City Councilman Harold Hanson's attention. Jennings' home is in Hanson's Ward 5.

Jennings reports that the councilman called him and expressed concern. Shortly after Hanson called, Jennings said he received a call from a city staffer, who also was following up on his complaint.

Jennings said he has found almost everyone at the city to be friendly and polite. He just doesn't think he should have to pay around $450 a square foot to repair such a small break.

Hanson promised Jennings he would bring the dispute to the City Council's attention. Good for Hanson.

And when Hanson does, he should insist all the city's small contracts — for repair of city property, as well as code enforcement work — receive greater oversight and accountability.

The city and its contractors should not be allowed to gouge anyone — individual property owners or large insurance companies.

Contractors should provide rate cards and detailed bills that break down costs, requiring contractors to justify their charges and assure the city's residents that they are being treated fairly.

And while Hanson is at it, he should ask city officials to explain the $622 "administrative costs" they tacked onto this man's already excessive bill.