Board approves landscape contracts and routine payroll/claims totaling over $1.6 million

At its Feb. 18 meeting the City of La Porte Board of Public Works and Safety approved routine payroll and vendor claims and signed off on three landscape contracts for city‑owned properties.

Clerk Treasurer Parthen reported civil city payroll of $545,056.71; the board approved the payroll and several claims by voice vote (SEG 176–186). The board also approved civil claims of $659,590.55, sewage claims of $762,271.75 and water claims of $149,546.08 (SEG 185–204).

Craig Phillips presented three recommended landscape contracts for the year. For Newport Landing he recommended continuing with Lakeshore Landscaping at $25,022 because of the contractor’s familiarity with the site (SEG 485–505). For Plaza 618 and the adjacent 609 Lincoln Way parking area Phillips recommended continuing with Mofield Property Services (estimated ~$6,500 in this meeting discussion) because of prior work on irrigation and on‑call responsiveness (SEG 565–601). For Beechwood Lakes staff recommended MP Lawn Care at roughly $18,334 and requested authority to sign the contract, with work to begin in April as needed (SEG 658–671; SEG 678–681). The board approved the contracts and delegated signature authority to staff (SEG 624–657; SEG 672–690).

Other routine items approved included conflicts‑of‑interest forms for three council members, a $35,754 prisoner‑partition payment for the police department, and a small Napa bill for the fire department (SEG 205–231; SEG 222–236; SEG 327–346). Several items were tabled for additional information, including a Wellfield pay request (SEG 809–825).

Next steps: Public‑works and finance staff will finalize contracts and issue purchase orders; department heads will implement the contracts and monitor service performance.