Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Council Agrees to Buy Police Car

Gurdon's City Council, meeting in special session Monday night, voted to purchase a new vehicle for the Gurdon Police Department.

However, the council was not unanimous in its decision. The vote was 4-1 to buy a new police car through state purchasing.

Gurdon Mayor Rick Smith informed the city's governing body he had been in contact with state purchasing and learned a new car could be bought for $18,179. The vehicle, though, will not have an inside cage to protect those in the front seat from persons in the back seat, nor will it be equipped with a light bar. These two items will cost an additional $2,000 approximately.

Smith said there is about $10,000 in the City Fines II account, but the budget for 1996 has not been approved as yet, and won't be until Jan. 1996. The problem, he said, is the vehicle must be ordered by Nov. 30.

The mayor suggested the city entering into a lease-purchase option on the car, as long as the lease does not include tax and ends in 12 months. By law, a municipality cannot enter into an extended lease-purchase agreement which includes taxes and has a contract of more than a year.

Smith said in talking with attorneys and the Municipal League he learned the law on the issue is not specific. What he will do, and a resolution passed by the council allows, is to contact a lending agency which will hold the lease for the city for the vehicle.

However, even if the vehicle is ordered by Nov. 30, it most likely will not be delivered until March or April of 1996, if at all. The cars being used are Ford Crown Victorias, as Chevrolet did not submit a bid with state purchasing. There is also a large demand for the patrol cars, which could make it difficult to get a new one anyway.

The council was informed the city is receiving a grant for more than $5,000 to pay for overtime and officer's salaries in the police department. Smith said because of this, there will be $5,000 relieved from the budget which can be used, along with the $10,000 in the fines budget, for the car.

However, Russ Hansen, while saying he is all in favor of buying a new car for the GPD, voiced his opposition because no service and maintenance plan is in place. He said if the vehicle is maintained and serviced regularly it will last longer. "I'm against buying a new car until I'm shown they can take care of the cars they have and will take care of their cars in the future."

Hansen said in working on one of the older model cars, the interior was a "pigsty" with food wrappers all over the vehicle and cigarette butts in the car as well. "It's up to the department head to maintain the equipment," he said. "It's ridiculous the way (this vehicle) was maintained. A car will wear out in a year if it's not maintained."

Currently, the GPD has three cars, a 1989 model, a 1992 model and a 1994 model.

Councilman David Williams said there are six or seven people driving the same car, and a new vehicle is badly needed.

"When six or seven drive a car, they all won't drive it right," he said, "and the car won't last as long. These cars run 14 or 15 hours a day. They just won't last."

Smith agreed there is a need for keeping the cars cleaner and better maintained.

He said a program may need to be implemented by the GPD in which each officer has a check list to go over, approve and sign off on before starting his shift.

Council member Edna Cooper voiced her opinion saying the council can't come back every year and buy a new police car, the ones the department has need to be maintained.

Hansen again said it is up to the department head to take care of the equipment. He said the city marshal should put a maintenance plan together and present it to the council for approval. "This would show he's interested in keeping the equipment up," he said. "If he don't take care of a new car, it will wear out."

He continued saying the three cars the department currently has can be maintained properly for less than $10,000 annually if done right.

Smith said the GPD budget for maintenance for 1996 is about $4,000. Hansen replied this is not enough.

Williams then moved to adopt the resolution, with all council members except Hansen voting in favor of ordering a new police car from state purchasing.