Starr County court approves lease nonrenewal, election contract and multiple grants; budget amendments passed

Starr County Commissioners Court approved a series of contracts, grant applications, donations and budget actions during its Jan. 20 meeting and returned from an executive session to approve a salaries order and an accident-prevention plan for 2025.

The court voted to nonrenew the county’s lease with Avance and to not renew the agreement pending renegotiation. A court member said the existing contract “was really bad,” noting the county was responsible for maintenance while receiving no payment under the contract. A motion to nonrenew the lease was moved, seconded and carried.

The court approved a permanent application from Frontier Communication that staff described as likely the last submission from that company for the current round of coverage requests. The court also approved a contract with the City of La Grulla for election services for the May 3, 2025 election; county staff said the city requested an initial estimated cost of $10,000 to run the election, including ballots and results processing. Commissioners approved going out for bids for a Yukon vehicle for the county attorney’s office and approved a grant application from the county attorney’s office for an investigator position.

The court authorized a resolution to pursue grant…