Jake Fulkerson

Park County officials have dropped the idea of turning some of their lawn and landscaping work over to a private contractor, after it appeared they might actually lose money with a switch.

The county has been looking at various ways to save money while facing a budget crunch that will only worsen amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Back in February, Park County Buildings and Grounds Superintendent Mike Garza obtained a quote that indicated the county might be able to save as much as $40,000 a year by privatizing the lawn work at the Park County Complex, Courthouse and drug court building in Cody.

Switching to a private contractor would involve laying off a full-time county employee and eliminating a part-time, seasonal position, but the potential savings prompted Commissioner Jake Fulkerson to call the idea a “no-brainer” in February.

However, the numbers changed significantly when the county sought firm bids. Two companies — RainMakers Irrigation and Landscaping of Cody and Ike’s Lawn Care of Lovell — submitted base bids of around $68,000. That was more than the $62,890 a year the county currently spends on salaries and benefits for its employees — and beyond the seasonal yard work, the county’s full-time employee does other maintenance work the rest of the year.

“If we’re getting all that for [$62,000], then these bids aren’t even close,” said Commission Chairman Joe Tilden.

Commissioners all felt there was no reason to consider the bids further.

“This is not savings,” concurred Commissioner Lloyd Thiel. However, he noted that the county is spending more than $62,890 a year once fuel, equipment and maintenance costs are added in; Thiel asked for more number-crunching.

There was also some discussion about why the bids were so different from the quote received earlier this year.

Proffit’s Enterprises in Cody had provided an estimate of $22,040 for the yard work — though that was “a rough estimate only,” Garza had told commissioners in February. For instance, it didn’t include sprinkler repair or maintenance of the pond at the complex.

Five firms attended a March 20 walk-through of the lawn service job, but three of those companies chose not to bid. Proffit’s did not bid, either.

Garza said that, from visiting with contractors, he believes the job was bigger than some expected, that the companies — including Proffit’s Enterprises — would prefer to book such a large job earlier in the year and that the COVID-19 pandemic may have played a role. Additionally, one firm was concerned that commissioners would ultimately decide to keep the work in-house, Garza said. Earlier this year, Commissioner Thiel solicited quotes from a couple local cleaning companies for privatizing the county’s custodial work, but the board ultimately rejected the concept, believing the potential savings were not enough to overcome concerns with the switch.

“It concerns me a little bit that the contractors have the impression that we just asked this to ask this,” Commissioner Dossie Overfield said of the recent lawn care bids. “We’re asking this to save their tax dollars in the long run. I’m hoping they will provide us with good information so that we can make good decisions on how to spend those tax dollars ...”

Commissioners indicate they may revisit the issue and seek lawn care bids again for next year.

“I’m glad we went through this thing,” Fulkerson said. “We need to chase nickels like this. We’re proving that we’re efficient.”