ORDER-2017-4 : Appropriation in the amount of $87,176.97 From A/C # 84054-490000 Capital Stabilization Fund To: A/C # 019313-551049 (Capital Outlay Police Vehicle).

Transcript (~7 min @ 10:06)

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▶ 10:01 Peter D. Mortimer: The next order we have before us is order 2017-4. is an appropriation in the amount of $87,176.97 from account number 84054-49000, Capital Stabilization Fund to account number 019313-551049. Capital Outlay Police Vehicle. We are still on suspension and this capital outlay for a police vehicle. We have Chief Lyle, Police Chief Lyle, with us this evening. Good evening, sir.

▶ 10:42 Peter D. Mortimer: Would you introduce this order, please, and then we may proceed to questions and motions.

▶ 10:46 Speaker 9: Certainly, if I may say something beforehand. Please. I would certainly like to thank everybody in the community for the past several weeks, the cards, the gifts. People dropping by and just saying thank you to the Melrose Police Department. On behalf of the police department, I thank everybody in the community, as well as all the members of this board. Thank you.

▶ 11:05 Speaker 5: You're welcome, sir.

▶ 11:09 Speaker 9: This is to cover the replacement of six vehicles in the police department's fleet. Some of them are not even operational anymore. Currently we're running five cruisers and of the five, one, sadly it can only run during the daytime. The instrument cluster doesn't work at night, so the officer cannot see the dashboard. So some of our fleet is in dire need of replacement.

▶ 11:37 Peter D. Mortimer: That's my speech. Thank you, sir. President Khan, please.

▶ 11:40 Speaker 7: Yeah, so just so people who are watching this understand. This acquisition is going to be funded through the capital outlay and the capital stabilization fund, which I'm happy to see. In past years, we used to bond for things like this, and I always felt that it was not an appropriate thing to do. So I applaud the administration for buying things like vehicles out of our operating budget, which is the way it should be. So Chief, you're purchasing six vehicles, four cruisers, an unmarked car, and a supervisor's car, is that correct? Yes. And the purchase price is approximately $322,000 for the vehicles?

▶ 12:25 Speaker 9: 321, 688, 69 to be exact.

▶ 12:28 Speaker 7: So these vehicles are coming out at almost $54,000 a park now?

▶ 12:33 Speaker 9: Well, the sergeant's vehicle is slightly more because it's a Chevrolet Tahoe, which we use for a mobile command as well, and the other four are line vehicles.

▶ 12:43 Speaker 7: And is this going to bring you to where you need to be in terms of cruiser strength at this point?

▶ 12:51 Speaker 9: It'll support us for about two years. The vehicles that we bought three years ago are really starting to run 24 hours a day, and it racks up the miles very quickly. The rule of thumb is five years or 100,000 miles. And it's not just 100,000 miles, it's the idling time adds about another 50%. So a vehicle with 100 really has about 150,000 miles on it. These Dodge Chargers that we're replacing, they're constantly breaking down.

▶ 13:20 Speaker 7: How many cruises do you need to operate effectively?

▶ 13:24 Speaker 9: We're set up with nine vehicles, nine patrol vehicles, And we try to rest one shift in a 24-hour rotation of one vehicle per vehicle. So we run three per shift. The idea is that at least eight hours a day, one cruiser is set aside. When they run 24 hours a day, you know, the miles are really racking up.

▶ 13:47 Speaker 7: And do you know what the – this is a multi-year acquisition, and we're going to spend $87,176 this year. What is the contemplated funding source, if you know, for the years two, three, and four?

▶ 14:02 Speaker 9: I haven't heard from the auditor's office on that yet, only year one.

▶ 14:07 Speaker 7: That's all I have for now.

▶ 14:08 Peter D. Mortimer: Thank you, President Kahn. Alderman Boyce-Hell, please.

▶ 14:11 Robert A. Boisselle: With these six new vehicles coming in, are they going to be upgraded with equipment, or does the equipment just shift over to the old ones?

▶ 14:19 Speaker 9: This will be all new equipment. The old equipment is what it is, it's old equipment. In the past, they've tried to take equipment from an old cruise and put it into a new cruise where the wires become brittle. These things run in salt, rain, and everything else, so things become brittle, and as they get older, they break down. So it would be kind of an unwise decision to take old and put it into a new.

▶ 14:40 Robert A. Boisselle: All right, so the average 54,000 is fully equipped? Yes, turnkey, ready to go. And that's going to be with the latest technology and compatibility with other agencies and so forth?

▶ 14:50 Speaker 9: We will be right there with everybody, excuse me, everybody else around us.

▶ 14:54 Speaker 10: Okay, thank you, thank you very much.

▶ 14:56 Peter D. Mortimer: Thank you. Thank you, Alderman Boycelle.

▶ 14:59 Scott M. Forbes: Alderman Forbes, please. Thank you. Just a quick question. Are we doing like a one for one swap where we're taking four line vehicles and unmarked in a supervisor vehicle out of the fleet and replacing them with a new-

▶ 15:09 Speaker 9: Five of the vehicles will be. Okay. The five line cars, the existing vehicle that I'm driving now, which is three years old, will go to the patrol commander. He's been sharing a vehicle for three years. So he will take mine and I will take the new vehicle.

▶ 15:20 Scott M. Forbes: Do we trade in those vehicles off of the cost, or is this something that we just turn in almost like a lease program?

▶ 15:28 Speaker 9: I'll just give you the numbers. They gave us $6,250 for the sergeant's truck, which is eight years old. The three Dodgers combined were $4,200.

▶ 15:39 Speaker 11: Okay. Thanks, Chief.

▶ 15:40 Peter D. Mortimer: Thank you. Thank you, Alderman Forbes. Alderman Medeiros, please.

▶ 15:44 Speaker 8: Thanks.

▶ 15:48 Monica C. Medeiros: yes so this is a purchase which is it's financed over four years yes do um are we in a like a

▶ 15:57 Speaker 9: financing agreement we haven't we haven't done that yet because it hasn't been approved generally when we lease them it's a dollar buyout at the end of the lease okay thank you thank you

▶ 16:05 Peter D. Mortimer: thank you alderman Medeiros we are in want of a motion please most recommend for passage we have We have a motion to recommend for passage from Alderman Lemmerman. Duly seconded by who was that, please? Alderman Zwirko. On further discussion, Alderman Boisselle, please.

▶ 16:22 Robert A. Boisselle: It looks as though we're buying the fleet of six vehicles in one shot. Is there a way, is it cheaper to stagnate the purchase of these units to a year over so many years and so forth? not doing one big batch every six or every five every five years i have had discussions with the

▶ 16:41 Speaker 9: auditor's office relative to replacing a couple vehicles every year so that every five and a half years we turn the whole fleet over and they've opted to to utilize this plan okay and that was

▶ 16:55 Robert A. Boisselle: a go or no go or i'm sorry you said you talked to the auditor yes and and and we're not replacing

▶ 17:03 Speaker 9: them periodically we're going to replace them in batches okay thank you very much three years the vehicles we bought three years ago we're going to be ready to go all right thank you chief thank you

▶ 17:14 Peter D. Mortimer: thank you alderman boycelle uh seeing no further discussion the motion made to recommend by alderman lemmerman duly seconded by alderman Zwirko is before us all in favor please say aye aye any opposed hearing none this order will be recommended for passage at our next full board meeting on august 15th thank you for coming chief motion to adjourn second motion to adjourn from alderman