Portales cancels bid for substation

PORTALES — After receiving just one bid that came in over 40 percent higher than the city had budgeted, the Portales City Council cancelled a bid for the construction of a new fire substation during Tuesday's meeting.

City Manager Sammy Standefer said he believed the city only received one response because the scope of work was not significantly different from the last time the city elicited bids for the projects, noting that there is a large cost to contractors to submit bids.

Standefer said the city will continue its efforts to build a new fire substation, but presently the city has more time than it does money.

"But we're certainly not throwing in the towel," Standefer said.

Also at Tuesday's meeting:

• The council approved $75,000 in Local Economic Development Act funds for Nixon Enterprise to re-do the front of the 507 E. Second Street property previously occupied by Calton Furniture.

"I just wanted to add that the work that Nixon Enterprises is planning to do on the Calton building is going to make that area of the city look really good and I think it’s just going to be eye-catching once they’re all done,” Bill Hendrickson, economic director for the Roosevelt County Community Development Corporation, said.

• The council approved the city’s annual application for fire funds for the upcoming fiscal year.

Fire Chief Gary Nuckols said the minimum the city would receive for fiscal year 2020 is $154,169. Nuckols said for the current fiscal year Portales received $212,931.

• City Clerk Joan Martinez-Terry provided an update on the April 4 special mail ballot election where voters approved adding additional projects to be eligible for Local Economic Development Act funding.

Asked by Mayor Pro-Tem Mike Miller about the cost of the mail ballot election, Martinez-Terry said it was around $20,000, compared to around $10,000 for a standard election.