The City Council approved a bid May 9 to contract Ecker’s Lawn Service, LLC, for a three-year period, from July 1, 2022, to June 30, 2025, for mowing services within the city. The contract allows for a potential total annual expenditure of $56,000. That figure could vary, however, according to City Manager James Wieprecht.

Parks within the city average one mow per week, Wieprecht said. Other areas only require one mow per month. The weather and rain or drought conditions will affect the frequency of necessary mowing, Wieprecht explained. The city will only pay for actual mowing time.

The potential expenditure for the approved contract is $2,095 more than the actual expenditure the city paid in Fiscal Year 2021. "Considering current fuel prices and labor wages, we feel this is a very modest increase and . . . that Ecker’s priced their bid very competitively," said Lorena Vaccare, Director of Parks and Recreation, in a memo to the mayor and council.

The cost for weekly mowing, based on 30 cuts per year, is budgeted at $54,000. For monthly mowing, the budgeted cost is $1,200 for eight months per year. Additional mowing, if needed, is budgeted at $800, based on $40 an hour with a potential of 20 hours.

The city requested proposals from 10 contractors for the service. Three contractors were present at a pre-bid meeting which included visits to all mowing sites. Ecker’s Lawn Service was the only provider that submitted a bid.

Police Training Completed

Officers with the Taneytown Police Department recently completed in-service trainings and continuing education units as part of ongoing staff development. All officers participated in four combined hours of training on Constitutional and Community Policing and De-Escalation and Minimizing Use-of-Force, according to Mayor Pro Tem Joe Vigliotti, who acts as liaison to the department.

Some individual officers participated in several different specialized trainings. Sr. P/O Sakadales completed 21 hours of Field Officer Certification Course. Sgt. Jessie Castellar completed 18 hours in Community Policing: Improving Efficacy and Building Trust. Police Administrative Assistant Haleigh Engels completed a course in Positive Psychology.