Scottville approves purchase of new police car

SCOTTVILLE — Scottville be will be purchasing a new police car thanks in part to an $11,000 U.S. Dept. of Agriculture Rural Development grant. The city commission approved the purchase at tonight’s city commission meeting.
The new car will be replacing the blue 2007 Dodge Charger. City Manager Amy Williams said the vehicle currently has 80,000 on it and replacing it now would mean the city can sell it for a good price.
“It’s not unusual for departments to replace their cars every three years,” Williams said. “We choose to do it every five to seven years to help save money. We are doing it at this time because the grant may not be available again.”
A new Dodge Charger bought through the state purchasing program would cost $23,000. Taking the equipment from the old car and putting it in the new one would cost an additional $5,000.
“We will be buying another Charger because that allows us to put a lot of the same equipment into the new vehicle, which saves the taxpayers money,” Williams said.
“Once we sell the old car, we should only have an expense of about $10,000.”
Williams said only certain areas qualify for a rural development grant. The Mason County Rural Fire Authority has bought a lot of its equipment with the same program.
The city is expected to have the car in operation in the spring of 2013.

Story by Rob Alway, Editor-in-Chief