Ching's Nursery Inc. is weighing whether to appeal a decision dismissing its protest of a contract awarded to resurface the former Cooke Field at the University of Hawaii at Manoa.

Hearing officer Sheryl Nagata dismissed the protest Tuesday because Ching's Nursery, doing business as Service Contracting, did not submit its protest within five working days of the contract award.

A hearing on a motion to dismiss the protest was held last Thursday at the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs.

University of Hawaii spokesman Gregg Takayama said the dismissal of the protest means the university can proceed with the contract.

However, the decision can still be appealed to Circuit Court.

“;I think the university is still in violation of various contract laws, so we're looking into it to see if it's worth pursuing,”; said Gifford Chang, a vice president of Hoonai Subcontracting, a company that would assist Ching's Nursery with installing the synthetic playing surface. Chang represented Ching's Nursery, the fourth-lowest bidder, at the hearing.

The $826,381 contract to resurface the field at the former Cooke Field, now known as the Clarence T.C. Ching Athletic Complex, was awarded on Aug. 13 to RMY Construction Inc.

The second-lowest bidder, CO-HA Builders Inc., doing business as Applied Surface Technology, also filed a protest but withdrew it last week.

The protesting companies alleged that the contract was awarded even though RMY Construction Inc. and subcontractor Sports Turf Hawaii do not have a license to install synthetic turf, a qualification that is recommended by the Contractors License Board.

The Legislature this session appropriated $1.2 million for the turf replacement project, and the Ching Foundation is providing $5 million for the athletic complex.

The university had hoped to finish the project before the UH football season opened earlier this month.