Donner council approves vehicle leasing deal for police and fire, citing better service and ownership option

Donner — The Donner City Council voted on March 6 to proceed with a commercial vehicle leasing program through D and M Commercial Leasing to add and replace police and fire vehicles.

Council authorized the administration to move forward with leasing three vehicles initially through D and M and to work with local upfitter Halo 36 for equipment installation. City staff and department leaders told the council that D and M’s program allows upfitting costs to be rolled into the lease, and that title to vehicles would transfer to the city once principal and interest were paid — a key distinction staff cited compared with the city's current provider, which retains title after the lease term.

Police and fire officials described operational benefits: reduced engine idling from vehicles kept off “hot seats,” improved fleet availability for take-home programs used in recruitment and retention, and a path to build a local motor pool. Staff said the selected deal uses a cooperative purchasing board to secure competitive pricing and that Halo 36 — identified as the chosen upfitter — had vehicles in inventory that could be upfitted faster than waiting for new production runs.

Council discussion covered costs and financing: staff estimated that incorporating upfitting into the lease would raise the monthly payment on the new vehicles compared with the city’s current leases (staff cited figures that moved monthly cost from roughly $1,100–$1,200 per vehicle to about $1,600 with upfitting rolled in), but council members and staff said the tradeoff — improved service, title transfer at lease end, and local customer service — justified the change.

Representatives from D and M Commercial Leasing and Halo 36 attended the meeting and answered council questions about terms, interest-rate estimates and maintenance options. Staff said interest-rate estimates used conservative assumptions to avoid budget shortfalls. Council approved the staff recommendation unanimously and directed staff to finalize contract terms and return with any final financing paperwork.

The council vote authorizes moving current and future eligible vehicle acquisitions into the D and M program pending final contract execution; existing vehicles under the city’s prior lease arrangements will be retired according to their lease terms.