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Newport council outlines $75,000 bond ask to complete previously approved fire truck purchase
Summary
Council and fire department officials told residents the city ordered a fire truck in 2022 and must seek up to $75,000 in additional borrowing to complete the purchase; the department plans to sell the old engine to offset costs.
A special meeting of the Newport City Council on Aug. 11 focused in part on Article 1 of a ballot voters will decide Aug. 12: whether to issue general-obligation bonds or notes not to exceed $75,000 to fund, together with previously approved bonds, the purchase and equipping of a fire truck for the Newport Fire Department. Mayor Rick Alfred Chase said the truck was ordered after voter approval in March 2022 and that the city will “only seek the loan … to cover the actual amount of that purchase.”
The measure would add up to $75,000 to bonds previously approved in 2022, bringing the total authorized amount for the truck to $875,000. The council and Fire Chief Kevin Lacoste told residents the department expects to recoup some funds by selling the city’s existing 1998 engine. Chief Lacoste said, “we are absolutely going to sell a 1998 … engine 1 pumper to try to recoup some of the money,” and that many tools on the older truck will be reused on the new apparatus.
Why it matters: If voters reject Article 1, the council said it would still be responsible for completing payment for the vehicle and would need to find $70,000 in savings elsewhere. If Article 1 passes, the city will borrow only the actual shortfall and apply proceeds toward the delivered truck.
Council members and citizens asked how the city would sell the old truck and whether sales would cover the shortfall. Chief Lacoste said the vendor that supplied the new truck—named in the meeting as the Spartan dealer—has agreed to list the older apparatus on an equipment dealer site at no charge. Mayor Chase said he suspected the final price of the new truck “will actually come in slightly under that number,” and that the city would borrow only what was needed.
Discussion vs. decision: The meeting did not include a council vote on Article 1; the ballot measure was scheduled for the Aug. 12 special town meeting. The council’s statements were explanations to inform voters, and the only formal votes taken at the Aug. 11 meeting concerned procedural items earlier in the agenda (consent agenda and scheduling), not the bond articles.
Ending: Residents were directed to follow the sale process and watch for updates; no additional formal actions on the fire-truck financing were taken at the Aug. 11 special meeting.
