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Public works staff recommends buying rather than leasing light-duty vehicles; board backs purchasing in 2026 budget
Summary
Staff presented a one-off fleet-lease analysis and recommended purchasing replacements; the Board of Public Works voted to recommend including one vehicle each for engineering and wastewater in the 2026 budget rather than entering a lease with Enterprise.
Village of Jackson public works staff presented a fleet-financing analysis at the Board of Public Works meeting on Sept. 30 and recommended purchasing replacement vehicles rather than entering a multi-year lease.
"I don't believe a lease option is the right direction for us to go," Jack, public works staff, said while summarizing the lease quotes and internal trade-in strategy. Jack told the board staff identified an approach that would produce approximately $4,000 of equity per unit at the end of a three-year lease term but concluded that holding vehicles longer and buying outright was preferable for the village's light-duty engineering and wastewater trucks.
Jack said staff obtained a lease option tied to acquiring two 2026 pickup trucks, and that the lease model assumed offsets from existing fleet units moved into trade or auction. He said annualized payments on the lease would roughly be $13,000 in year 1 and about $18,000 in years 2 and 3, and that the $4,000 expected equity per vehicle at lease-end did not justify leasing for vehicles that typically have lighter duty cycles than emergency vehicles.
"My recommendation would be to not go with the lease option and recommend Village Board move forward with the purchasing of the two vehicles proposed for 2026," Jack said.
Board member Heckendorf moved to recommend Budget & Finance and the Village Board include purchase (new or used) of one vehicle for engineering and one for wastewater in the 2026 budget, and to auction older units to offset cost; Engelhardt seconded. The motion passed by voice vote.
The staff memo in the meeting packet said the village budgeted roughly $35,000 for each replacement vehicle and that staff could consider a late-model used vehicle from Enterprise in lieu of new if it met operational needs. Jack also noted a $2,000 upfit credit available in the lease proposals and that the village plans to continue using auction proceeds to offset capital costs.
Ending The board authorized staff to pursue purchase and to include the two vehicles in the proposed 2026 capital plan; the Village Board and Budget & Finance will consider final approval in upcoming budget meetings.
