Plainview City Council approves rezoning measures, adopts investment policy, OKs new firefighter agility test and awards Quincy Street contract

The Plainview City Council on Tuesday, Feb. 11, unanimously approved three land-use ordinances on second reading, adopted an updated investment policy required under the Public Funds Investment Act, authorized a contract to use a third‑party firefighter physical‑agility testing provider, and awarded a contract for Quincy Street reconstruction.

The actions were taken during a regularly scheduled meeting that also included a presentation of the Plainview Housing Authority's fiscal year 2024 audit and a brief executive-session recess on economic‑development incentives; council returned to open session with no action reported.

The council approved three second‑reading ordinances changing zoning or creating a special use permit. The first, Ordinance No. 25-3774, rezoned property at 110 West 12th Street (as shown on the meeting exhibit) and passed on second reading. The council also approved Ordinance No. 25-3775 to rezone certain parcels from mixed use to general commercial and Ordinance No. 25-3776, which establishes a special use permit to operate a correctional institution in a general commercial zone. All three measures were approved by voice vote on their second readings.

Joel Steed, chairman of the Plainview Housing Authority, presented the authority's fiscal year 2024 audit. Steed told the council the audit was "a clean audit, with no significant difficulties in performing the audit, and there's no corrected or uncorrected statements between us and the auditors." He summarized the authority's finances, reporting combined net position of just over $2,000,000, operating revenues for fiscal year 2024 of about $1,200,000 (up modestly from 2023), occupancy around 97 percent, and an operational loss of about $52,000. Steed said the authority is dealing with higher utility and insurance costs and aging infrastructure, and he noted the authority had finished some gas-line and roof work and planned continued electrical and window upgrades.

The council adopted the city's investment policy for the year, presented by Finance Director Mr. Johnson. Johnson said the policy is required under the Public Funds Investment Act and listed its priorities: "the safety and preservation of the principal," maintaining liquidity and that yield is secondary to safety. He noted there were no changes to the state law and no changes made to the city policy this year; staff recommended approval.

Fire Chief Bobby Gibson asked the council to approve a change in the department's entry‑level physical‑agility testing and to authorize the interim city manager to sign a contract with FireFit, a private vendor that proctors a seven‑station simulator course. Gibson said the department's prior test had been "customized specifically for certified firefighters" and was labor intensive to run; he described FireFit as a quicker, outsourced option that would not require the city to supply personal protective equipment for entry‑level candidates. Gibson said FireFit charges $125 per candidate for groups under 10 and $100 per candidate for larger groups; the council approved the request by motion.

Public Works staff briefed council on the Quincy Street reconstruction project in coordination with TxDOT. Staff recommended awarding the construction contract to Thrasher Incorporated, the lone bidder, at $601,003.54 (the engineer's opinion of probable cost had been higher). The council voted to award the bid to Thrasher and authorized the mayor to sign the contract.

The meeting recessed briefly into executive session under Texas Government Code Section 551.087 to discuss an economic development incentive; the council returned to open session at about 7:23 p.m. and reported no action from the closed session. The meeting was then adjourned.

Votes at a glance

- Consent calendar: approved (motion by Councilmember McDonough; second Mayor Pro Tem Weiss). The council moved the consent calendar and appointments without item removals. - Ordinance No. 25-3774 (rezoning: 110 W. 12th St.): approved on second reading (mover: Councilmember House; second: Councilmember McDonough). - Ordinance No. 25-3775 (rezoning from mixed use to general commercial): approved on second reading (mover: Councilmember McDonough; second: Councilmember Martinez). - Ordinance No. 25-3776 (special use permit to operate a correctional institution in a general commercial zone): approved on second reading (mover: Councilmember McDonough; second: Councilmember Dickerson). - Resolution adopting investment policy (Public Funds Investment Act compliance): approved (mover: Mayor Pro Tem Weiss; second: Councilmember McDonough). - Authorization for interim city manager to sign contract with FireFit for entry‑level physical‑agility testing: approved (mover: Councilmember House; second: Councilmember McDonough). - Quincy Street reconstruction contract awarded to Thrasher Incorporated (bid: $601,003.54; mover: Councilmember McDonough; second: Councilmember Dickerson).

No votes were recorded by individual councilmember name in the public transcript for each motion; the council indicated approval on each item and the clerk announced the outcome for each vote during the meeting.