Finance Committee approves contract amendment to keep Pallet shelter option available through June 2026

The City of Santa Fe Finance Committee on March 10 voted unanimously to approve Amendment No. 1 to General Services Contract item 203-350 with Pallet PBC. The amendment extends the contract through June 30, 2026 and establishes a revised unit-price schedule so the city may purchase additional Pallet shelter units if it chooses; the vote did not authorize any immediate purchases.

Director Henry Hammond Paul, director of community health and safety, and Julie Sanchez, youth and family services division director, introduced the item and answered committee questions about scope, design changes and pricing. The amendment was described as a mechanism to keep the contract available to purchase more units without reissuing a procurement in a volatile market.

Hammond Paul said the amendment was intended as a contingency: the city locked in a prior purchase under an earlier price, but Pallet later announced a price increase for newer-design units. "These units were purchased at the older price," Hammond Paul said. "This amendment keeps the contract valid so in the event we decide that the hundred units is great and we want to do another 30, we could do that without having considerable process delays."

Staff explained differences between the earlier and newer unit designs: the earlier model was roughly 62–64 square feet; the new unit listed in the amendment is about 70 square feet and includes higher-insulation materials, upgraded interior fixtures, more durable hardware and HVAC component changes. Committee members noted the higher per-unit costs in the new design and questioned whether the city had evaluated alternative suppliers; staff said an ITB issued previously received four responses and Pallet was the lowest-cost respondent at that time.

Councilors emphasized that approving the amendment does not obligate the city to buy more units immediately. Councilor Lee Garcia and others asked when additional purchases would be activated; staff responded the amendment simply preserves the option through the extended term and that deployment decisions would follow additional governing-body engagement and site planning.

A roll-call vote recorded the following: Councilor Cassatt, yes; Councilor Lindell, yes; Councilor Faulkner, yes; Councilor Lee Garcia, yes; Mayor Romero Worth, yes. The motion passed.

The amendment summary in the meeting packet described the requested change as "amendment number 1 to General Services contract item 203-350 with Pallet PBC to provide shelter units and facilities with safe outdoor space in the total amount of $1,466,100 to adjust for price increases with no change in total compensation and extended term to 06/30/2026." Staff clarified during discussion that the amendment preserves purchasing authority at the new prices for the contract term but does not require immediate additional spending.