Freeport council approves grants, contracts and board appointments; real-estate engagement tabled

The Freeport City Council approved a package of administrative and procurement actions during its regular meeting.

Grants: Council authorized staff to apply for a state/local cybersecurity grant (requires roughly 30% match; potential FY27 expenditure), and approved applications to the governor’s criminal-justice grant program for a portable radio upgrade (100% grant; 20 radios requested) and a server modernization project (100% grant; FY27). Staff said awards, if made, would apply in the next fiscal year and some grants (cybersecurity) require a city match that would be budgeted in FY27.

Contracts: After evaluating bids, staff recommended—and council approved—awarding the annual fuel and alternative-fuel services contract (RFP 2025-20) to Synergy Petroleum LLC; staff estimated approximate annual savings of $50,000 compared with the prior provider, Midtex Oil, but noted some contract details and variable pricing elements would be finalized in the contract phase. Council also awarded the annual janitorial services contract (RFP 2025-19) to Marston South LLC; staff said insurance and bonding will be verified before contract execution and discussion included standardizing contractor vetting such as background checks and badge access in sensitive facilities.

Personnel and appointments: Council adopted a resolution amending the personnel policy to clarify flex time as an alternative to overtime (use within a single pay period; applies to hourly and salaried staff) and passed a housekeeping amendment to reflect the current Texas Municipal Retirement System contribution rate. Council appointed Carol Nunez Parker and Diane (Di) Parker to the Senior Citizens Commission and Lisa Gerard to the beautification/parks and recreation board; all appointments carried unanimously.

Other business: Council discussed and unanimously approved repaying a state comptroller sales/use tax overpayment ($139,671.50 total; city share $93,114.34) by one-time payment to capture a 2% discount. The council also considered engaging The Guess Group Inc. as a real-estate representative but tabled that item for more detailed scope and cost discussions.