Architects complain to TEA

The group is asking TEA to halt any architectural work authorized under what it claims is a “void and illegal contract.”

The contract was awarded to a team of architects including PBK, a firm with San Antonio offices that frequently works for local school districts.

 

At issue is the state’s two-step procurement law for professional services, which requires government entities to choose architects based on their qualifications before negotiating price.

 

During an interview with the school board “both the architects and multiple members of the board openly discussed the firm’s offer to ‘voluntarily give back’ a portion of their architectural fees,” states the complaint, which was overnighted to the agency. It further alleges that several trustees openly stated that their votes hinged on this proposed savings.

“The people that it really hurts are all the people that comply with the law,” said Corpus Christi architect Bill Wilson, one of 107 to sign the complaint.

 

Robert Lopez of Lopez Salas Architects Inc. is the only San Antonio architect on the list.

 

Last month, a smaller group of Corpus Christi-area architects filed a similar complaint with the Texas Board of Architectural Examiners against four of the architects selected, three of whom are principals with PBK.