Subscribe | UPI Odd Newsletter Subscribe OCONOMOWOC , Wis., May 8 (UPI) -- Two Wisconsin firms' bids for the job of painting 900 fire hydrants in Oconomowoc, Wis., were simply too much for the city to swallow, a city official says. Oconomowoc Utilities Director Dennis Bednarski said Odling Construction of Delavan, Wis., bid $549 per hydrant, while Thomas A. Mason Co. of Milwaukee offered to complete the painting job for $465 a hydrant, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported Thursday. Advertisement "That was just astronomical," Bednarski said of such bids. Thomas A. Mason Co. President Steve Macaione insists his company was not attempting to take advantage of Oconomowoc with its bid. "Everyone looks at projects a little different," he said. "There are a lot of odd numbers out there." An Odling Construction representative echoed that sentiment, saying the firm was simply looking for work. The Journal Sentinel said Oconomowoc eventually found a bid it could approve from experienced hydrant painter Davies Water, who bid $95 per hydrant to win the city job.
