The Lander City Council is revisiting a decision it made earlier this month to remove all groundskeeping requirements from the facility manager contract for the Lander Community and Convention Center.
The decision was accompanied by a directive to pursue a separate contract solely for groundskeeping.
At the time, councilmembers said they hoped the move would result in improvements in both facility management and groundskeeping at the center, citing their own observations as well as comments from residents who have complained about cleanliness and landscaping at the property.
“I was able to go look at the grounds today, and there are some issues,” Councilmember Melinda Cox said. “There are weeds, (and) there’s some overgrown landscaping. … It’s something that I think we need to take care of.”
Councilmember Missy White pointed out that a separate groundskeeping contract would likely cost the city more money, but Councilmember Josh Hahn indicated that the additional expense might be warranted if it resulted in improved upkeep at the convention center, which “definitely could use a little more attention.”
“I’ve had a few bigger businesspeople coming to me (complaining) about the interior of the community center and the cleanliness and stuff – and actually I’ve witnessed this myself during a function there,” he said. “It might cost more, but you get what you pay for.”
Councilmember Dan Hahn noted that the city already loses money on the convention center, however, and if the price to manage the facility goes up, “(we’re) just that much more in the hole.”
“Why would we want to take a chance at costing us more money?” he asked. “Why wouldn’t we just keep it as it is?”
White referred to the groundskeeping requirements in the current facility management contract, which calls for “appropriately pruning perennials,” “pruning trees,” and other “really specialized” tasks that might be better handled by “someone who does that work professionally.”
After discussing the issue, the council voted unanimously Aug. 13 to award the facility management contract – without groundskeeping – to the current contractor, Tecia Waller, for $3,400 per month.
Waller had said she could complete both facility management and groundskeeping for $3,500 per month.
Another bid for the facility maintenance contract came from Scott Neubauer, who said he would charge $12,240 per month with groundskeeping and $10,507 per month without.
Timing, budget
During a work session this week, staff asked the council to revisit their decision about the facility maintenance contract, in large part due to a timing issue.
Waller’s new facility maintenance contract – which no longer includes groundskeeping – takes effect in September, Public Works Director Lance Hopkin explained, and the city won’t have a new groundskeeper in place by then, so there wouldn’t be “anybody taking care of the exterior at all” at that point.
“We realized that we’re kind of having this missing stop-gap between putting out a new (groundskeeping) contract and what we’re doing now,” Hopkin said. “We’re just short on people and staffing to take care of that property.”
He also brought up the “budget discussion” that will have to take place “if you’re willing to spend those extra dollars on landscaping” for a facility that already runs “short” of funds.
“The community center does not make money,” Hopkin said. “We lose a lot of money out there.”
That loss amounts to about $35,000 per year, City Treasurer Charri Lara said.
Cox acknowledged that the community center costs the city “some extra money,” but she also called it a “valuable resource” that brings “a lot of people” into town to boost the local economy.
“Think about what that means for what it’s bringing in for (our) hotels, meals, caterers,” White said, echoing Cox’s comments. “We take a little bit of a hit, but we know we’re driving income in many, many other facets of Lander.”
Councilmember John Larson wondered whether the city should consider increasing the rental fees at the community center in order to offset the financial losses there, calling the current rate “dirt cheap.”
The city raises the rental rates every year, garnering negative feedback from local residents, Lara replied, but a fee increase “would certainly stop the bleed a bit.”
The council will discuss the issue further in September.
For more information, call the City of Lander at 332-2870.