Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Public Safety topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Council approves remount ambulance; EMS board to match $100,000 contribution
Summary
City Council approved purchase and remounting of an ambulance to add capacity to the emergency fleet, with the local EMS board pledging $100,000 toward the cost. Officials said a remount will cost about $257,000 versus roughly $420,000 for a new unit and could be completed more quickly if approved.
City Council approved the purchase and remounting of an ambulance at its March 4, 2025 meeting, a move council members and staff said would add another operational unit to a fleet that has added three units in about two years.
The remount — a process that strips and rebuilds an ambulance box on an existing chassis — was described by Chief Lawson as a faster, less-costly alternative to buying a brand-new ambulance. “This ambulance is kind of a band aid, but it also provides us with another new unit,” Chief Lawson said during the discussion.
Council members and staff stressed the fiscal rationale. A staff member told the council a remount price for the unit under consideration would be about $257,000, while a new ambulance with a new box runs “well over” $400,000; the speaker cited a prior figure near $420,000 that did not include a stretcher. The speaker also said the remount option can effectively deliver “a brand new unit” because the box is stripped, inspected and rebuilt, with upholstery and ductwork replaced.
The council heard that the local EMS board had agreed to contribute $100,000 toward the unit. A staff member said the city has in past purchased a unit outright and been reimbursed over a multi-year term by the EMS board; in the current case the EMS board “came up with a hundred thousand dollars to match this.” Council members also noted the county would pay half of some costs, as referenced in the discussion.
Timelines and equipment life were part of the deliberation. Chief Lawson said one vendor, Pinnacle, could deliver an assist unit by March if the council approved the purchase; two other companies mentioned would deliver in July. The council and staff discussed a separate, older unit in the fleet: a 2014 chassis with roughly 230,000 miles that may be a lower-cost option for later work. Staff said ambulance boxes can be reused up to four times if not structurally damaged.
Councilman Boff moved to approve the purchase and remount; Council Veil seconded. The motion carried by majority electronic vote; individual roll-call tallies were not recorded in the meeting transcript.
Officials noted additional budget context: two ambulances purchased in February 2020 are scheduled to be paid off at the end of the EMS board’s fiscal year in June, which staff said could free funding for future remounts or replacements.
The council’s approval authorizes the purchase/remount process to proceed; staff and the EMS board will finalize financial arrangements and scheduling.
