ThisWeek CW 07/03/2014
http://www.thisweeknews.com/content/stories/canalwinchester/news/2014/06/30/canal-winchester-council-approves-purchase-of-new-plow-truck.html
Winter may seem like a distant memory now but it left behind plenty of broken equipment, including Canal Winchester’s 1991 Chevrolet plow truck.
Public Works Director Matt Peoples told city council at its June 16 meeting the truck’s engine blew while it was being used to clean roads last winter. He asked council to approve replacing the truck and also said he wants to establish a schedule for future purchases.
“We’ve been talking about this since January when the 1991 Chevy went down with a blown-up engine,” Peoples said. “We’d done a lot of repairs to the old one over the years and repainted it three times because of how hard the salt is on it.
“We’d like to get on a schedule for a new truck every five years and then we can sell back the truck and get some money for it, unlike the scrap value we’re getting for the Chevy.”
City council voted unanimously to pass an emergency ordinance to buy the new truck in order to get in line for delivery as soon as possible.
Peoples said the city received three quotes for vehicles: $125,198 for a Ford F-750 from Ricart; $133,500 for a Freightliner through a state purchase contract that municipalities can use; and $149,541 for a Western Star from Buckeye Western Star in Plain City.
“We’re suggesting the Ford, which is very similar to what we have now,” Peoples said.
The city will finance the purchase over five years through Huntington National Bank at a 2.2-percent interest rate.
Besides handling winter duties using an integrated plow and enhanced salt and brine delivery systems, the truck will be outfitted to handle leaf pickup during fall and any dump-truck hauling needed by the city throughout the year.
Peoples said he wanted to get the purchase approved now because the waiting period for delivery is between 20 and 22 weeks. Due to council’s summer recess, waiting until August for an approval could push delivery to late winter, leaving the city without a plow truck during its busiest period.