Plymouth Police Chief David Bacon approached the Plymouth Board of Public Works and Safety members Monday night with a special purchasing request for a squad car for the Police Department.
During the last meeting, Chief Bacon informed the board that the department was down two vehicles due to accidents. One was totaled and the other will be able to be repaired.
Chief Bacon said the K9 vehicle was the one sustaining enough damage to be totaled. He found a dealership south of Atlanta, Georgia with Ford utility vehicles with police packages in stock. He made contact with the representatives there and a vehicle could be delivered to Plymouth for $900, on top of the cost of the vehicle at $44,400.
A resolution for the special purchase was presented to the Plymouth Board of Public Works and Safety that identified special purchasing methods outside the regular quote process. City Attorney Sean Surrisi explained the circumstance surrounding the resolution and Indiana Code 5-22-10.
Surrisi commented, “Two provisions that we’re relying on here are Section 4 of that Chapter for emergency conditions, and Section 9 where the normal procedure would seriously impair the functioning of the Police Department. So, the wait that we would have to have to order a car through the normal processes and the need for the vehicle because of the crash is what justifies this.”
Chief Bacon further explained that the K9 unit is using his car until a replacement can be found and it is not equipped to allow the K9 to ride properly in a police vehicle. Therefore, the need exists to get the vehicle as soon as possible. If it wasn’t for this special purchase resolution, the regular order for a replacement vehicle is 16 to 20 weeks.
The resolution was unanimously approved. Money will be transferred within the proper funds to take care of the purchase. The city will receive just over $10,000 from the insurance company for the vehicle that was totaled.
The date for delivery of the vehicle from Georgia had not been determined at the time of the meeting, but a date would be determined upon the board’s approval.
