For the second time in 13 months, a family member of City Councilman Dan Corrales has bid on a City of Midland contract.
On the agenda for Tuesday’s meeting there is a resolution rejecting all bids received for dry cleaning and laundry services for Facilities, Fire, Garage, Landfill, Police, Transportation, Vehicle Services and Water & Wastewater departments.
The city had issued a request for bids, and the lowest bid came from Snowhite Cleaners with Larry H. Carrasco, providing the authorized signature. Carrasco is Corrales’ father-in-law.
The agenda packet includes “conflict of interest reporting requirements” and a “conflict of interest questionnaire” with “Jesus D. Corrales” listed.
In May of 2022, the Midland City Council voted 5-1-1 to deny awarding a nearly $300,000 laundry contract to Pristine Organic Cleaners, owned by Michelle Corrales (Dan’s wife). John Norman voted against denial and Corrales abstained from voting.
At the time Dan Corrales said, “I don’t want to pull the bid. … If I pull it, I am saying I did something wrong. … I did nothing wrong.”
Snowhite’s bid was for $122,797.
“After consulting with the department managers associated with the departments and divisions listed in the first paragraph, staff is recommending rejecting all bids received for the dry cleaning and laundry service contract and instituting a pilot program for one year offering a stipend to the city employees who require dry cleaning and laundry services,” General Services Director Regina Stephenson wrote in a memorandum in the agenda packet. “This stipend program will help pay for the dry cleaning and laundry costs for qualified employees. The stipend amount will be determined by the type of work the employee performs and the frequency that they need to have their uniforms cleaned”
The frequency has been established by the study done from March 2022 to February 2023,” Stephenson wrote. The memorandum also stated the cost of having some employees of those departments have their uniforms laundered or dry cleaned from March 2022 to February 2023 was $72,057.”
“The stipend for (110) employees is estimated at approximately $129,000 annually,” the memorandum stated.
Councilman Corrales was provided the opportunity to comment Thursday.