Star council authorizes lease for a City Hall vehicle and directs fleet plan work

The Star City Council on March 18 authorized staff to lease a City Hall vehicle under a four‑year lease with a $1 buyout and directed staff to prepare a comprehensive fleet financing and rotation plan.

City staff presented options for replacing and modernizing the municipal fleet, including a multi‑year purchase plan and an alternative of multi‑year operating leases. Finance and operations staff said leasing multiple vehicles on staggered four‑year terms could allow the city to rotate vehicles more frequently, reduce maintenance costs on older units and spread payments across fiscal years. The staff presentation compared an outright purchase plan and a lease plan and highlighted that leasing could allow the city to acquire more vehicles sooner for similar near‑term cash outlay.

City staff and parks/maintenance staff said several vehicles in the existing fleet are old and expensive to maintain; identified near‑term needs included a vehicle for City Hall staff to use for outreach and interagency meetings and additional maintenance and recreation vehicles. The council asked for clearer, line‑item cost projections and a longer‑range rotation schedule for the entire fleet.

Councilor Nelson moved to approve the lease for one City Hall vehicle now and to direct staff to prepare a full fleet rotation and financing plan with schedule and cost projections; the motion was seconded and passed unanimously. The council also discussed the option of later adding additional leased vehicles once staff returns with detailed year‑by‑year costs and a proposed replacement schedule.

Staff will return with a multi‑year plan that spells out which vehicles will be leased or purchased in each budget year, projected annual lease costs, expected vehicle lifecycles and a timeline for replacing the oldest units.