Officials of Lake George Fire Dept. have asked the village board to buy a new fire truck with a 100-foot ladder - apparatus that costs nearly $1 million - and the municipal leaders are now considering the request.
In a presentation to board members Aug. 15, Lake George Fire Chief Jason Berry described how the village’s present 1995 aerial tower fire truck with a 70-foot ladder had deteriorated, and a new one with a taller reach was needed.
Berry requested that the board authorize purchase of a current model that he and other fire department officers recommend: a demonstrator aerial truck that costs $955,000, or about $145,000 less than the price of a new model. The demonstrator, however, is outfitted with hoses and other firefighting equipment, unlike the factory-fresh models.
Berry detailed the deteriorated condition of the department’s 1995 tower truck, which has been out of service for about six weeks.
“There are stress fractures in its superstructure, it’s aerial lift cradle needs repair, and its fly boom needs replacement,” Berry said. “The ladder bucks and sags when fully extended, the pump input shaft leaks terribly, and the undercarriage is very rusty.”
He predicted that repairing the village’s tower truck to get it back in service would cost at least $32,000 to $41,000. He said that if it were repaired, the village’s investment in rehabilitating it would exceed $84,000.
He estimated that the 1995 truck, with minimal repairs, would have a trade-in value of $40,000 to $50,000 — but in its present condition, would garner only $10,000.
“Dumping more money into the current aerial truck would be pointless,” Berry said.
He urged that the village take action as soon as possible, as this new demonstrator truck might be sold soon. Board members talked about how while a public vote through a permissive referendum might be required for such a purchase, it could perhaps be acquired sooner through a resolution citing an emergency.
Village Mayor Robert Blais said such a procedure might delay or prevent bonding the vehicle. “Ideally, we’d put the truck out to bid,” he said. “We just bought two fire trucks last year.” Berry replied that a lease-purchase agreement might circumvent the need for a permissive referendum.