Council refines truck specs

The three bids the city received to purchase two new pickup trucks were over the amount budgeted and the McCook City Council approved revising bid specifications at a regular meeting Monday night.

The pickups will be for the city street and recycling departments.

Bids the city received came from Wagner Ford at $21,797 per vehicle; Wagner Chevrolet at $22,377 per vehicle and Janssen And Sons Ford in Holdrege at $22,568 per vehicle.

City staff recommended rejecting all bids as they were higher than the $21,000 set aside in the budget for each vehicle and to amend the bid specifications in hopes of getting lower bids.

Councilman Aaron Kircher asked for further clarification and Public Works Director Kyle Potthoff explained that specifications were sent to local car dealerships, with the two lower bids received after the bid deadline.

Potthoff said the bid specifications were amended by eliminating the electric locks, windows and mirrors as a package and a sliding rear window, which should lower the price per vehicle by about $800.

The council unanimously approved rejecting the bids and revising the bid specifications.

On the regular agenda, the council heard an update on progress being made on the clean-up of property at 305 East 12.

Dotti Park, owner of property, told the council that she has contracted with an individual who will clean up the property, excluding trees, and tear down the existing structures, beginning Saturday.

Structures on the property include mobile home, a shed and garage.

The council also met in two closed, executive sessions. The first was a strategy session regarding pending litigation concerning the Romanoff Building -- Bison Properties LLC at 204 Norris Ave.

At the Nov. 2 council meeting, the council unanimously approved taking over Jessen's interest in the Romanoff Building for $9,372.08. The building is slated for demolition using a Community Development Block Grant the city was awarded.

The second executive session was for pending litigation regarding the Terry Jessen property at 301 E. Second.

The council did not take any action after either of the sessions.