The Adams administration is seeking bids on two emergency contracts for a slew of migrant services — days after The Post revealed DocGo was being paid nearly $41 million to run a Queens mega-site.
The filing for competitive offers was sent to the Big Apple’s comptroller Tuesday as part of the city’s shift away from the no-bid contracts, which have historically come in higher than the market rate but the administration had heavily relied upon to deal with the crush of asylum-seekers since the spring of 2022.
“The [Request For Proposal] we’re putting out today will help us find even more savings, making sure we get the most out of every taxpayer dollar,” Adams said.
The news comes a week after The Post revealed details of the nearly $41 million deal for DocGo to manage one of the city’s largest migrant shelter sites at Austell Place in Long Island City, Queens, since last September.
That no-bid deal ends in October and is up for grabs in the official RFP — along with the company’s other controversial $432 million contract.
Overall, the contracts currently cover 13 makeshift shelters with 2,400 migrants in the Big Apple and another 2,600 in 13 hotels upstate.
City Comptroller Brad Lander, who has held up the sizable DocGo deal as a key problem with the Adams administration’s emergency contracting and leveraged it to roll back the powers, hailed the decision as a move to “better prices, better oversight, and better vendors.
“After two years, it is good to finally see the Adams Administration move toward replacing expiring emergency contracts for asylum seeker services with vendors selected through a competitive bid process,” his office said in a statement.
It was unclear if DocGo would try its hand again at running the asylum seeker services in and around the Big Apple after being accused of mistreatment and food waste during a political firestorm over the migrant crisis.
“We will review the RFP and determine whether to re-bid,” a rep for the company said, adding, “Welcome a competitive bidding process.
“We have competed for many contracts under a competitive process, and our track record and competitive pricing are key factors in our ability to win these assignments.”
