While they now have the funding mechanism, city officials say replacing an aging aerial fire truck will be a more involved process than simply picking a new model off a showroom floor. On Tuesday, city voters approved a new property-tax levy targeted for fire equipment replacements.
"We're extremely grateful to the community for the overwhelming support they've shown on this mill levy," said city manager Rob Straebel. "We will do our best to spend the tax dollars wisely and get the new equipment in service as early as possible."
The new tax levy is projected to generate about $1.7 million over its five-year duration, and city officials plan to use those funds to purchase two fire trucks. Of these, they're placing the first priority on a replacement for the public safety department's 32-year-old, 100-foot ladder truck -- which has had a sketchy reliability history in recent years based on electrical and hydraulic issues, and for which a comparable new replacement is expected to cost $1 million or more.
Before deciding which truck to purchase, Straebel said public safety staff have some due diligence steps to complete. For example, they're looking into what specifications should be sought in a replacement aerial truck, and also keeping their eyes open for used trucks which could offer a cost savings. But with few previously owned aerial units on the market that don't show significant wear or age, Straebel said it's unclear whether that would be an option.
If the city decides to order a new aerial unit, Straebel said it likely would take a year or so for a manufacturer to build and deliver. All in all, he said city officials hope to have a replacement ladder truck in service sometime in 2017 or early 2018.
To expedite the replacement process, Straebel said the city potentially could pool early proceeds from the new tax levy with a short-term loan from the city's electric utility fund, which would be repaid once additional tax dollars flow in.
Once the purchase of a new aerial unit is firmed up, city officials would then look toward replacing one of their pumper trucks. Like the aerial, the pumper targeted for replacement is also 32 years old, and can be challenging to maintain because of limited replacement parts availability. It also has been showing signs of corrosion.