Greene County Solid Waste District board approves purchase of Bobcat skid steer, financing to be decided

The Greene County Solid Waste District board voted to purchase a Bobcat skid steer, trade in the district's existing machine and authorize staff to finalize financing paperwork after review.

The board discussed two written quotes: a John Deere offer at about $69,437 and a Bobcat quote cited at roughly $52,000. A vendor representative told the board the company would apply a $12,000 trade-in allowance to lower the lease price to about $40,200 and said the machine "comes with a 2 year or 2,000 hour warranty." The representative also described several payment schedules and a balloon payment option, and said travel time for a road tech is covered only up to 500 hours of travel under the warranty.

Why it matters: the machine will be used in day-to-day solid-waste operations and the district must decide whether to buy outright or lease. Board members said they prefer trading in the old machine to reduce monthly payments; commissioners asked staff to confirm lease-payoff penalties and to have counsel review the paperwork before execution.

Board action and next steps: a board member moved that the district proceed with the purchase and trade-in and to allow either a lease or direct purchase depending on financing; another board member seconded the motion. The motion passed. The board also approved adding the Bobcat purchase to the draft 2026 budget, and the president was given authority to execute the purchase paperwork once Marvin (district reviewer) approves the documents.

Financial context: during the meeting the district's financial presenter, Matt, said April began with about $91,000 in cash and the current balance was roughly $56,000. He noted the district typically receives a first property-tax distribution in June that has been "around $120,000." Board members said those receipts could affect whether the district pays cash or leases.

Vendor details and safeguards: the Bobcat representative said the company offered to apply the $12,000 trade-in either as a down payment or as a credit on the district's account and described warranty and road-tech coverage. Board members requested written confirmation of warranty and service promises to be included on the invoice or contract before final approval.

The board directed staff to send lease paperwork to Marvin for review and gave the president authority to proceed after that review. No final financing decision was made at the meeting; the board said staff should return or report when the financing option is confirmed.