City approves purchase of new parks mower and cemetery utility vehicle amid resident concerns about costs

The City of Sydney on Oct. 28 approved purchases of a John Deere 15-75 72-inch front-deck mower and a John Deere Gator TX utility vehicle to replace older fleet equipment in parks and cemetery operations.

Parks Superintendent Chase Herricks told the council the mowerlist price is $47,647.68, with a $13,500 trade-in for the department's 2015 WAM mower, leaving a net cost of $34,147.68. "This is $852.32 less than what we had budgeted for this piece of equipment," Herricks said, adding that two of the 15-75 mowers already in the fleet have not shown the bogging-down performance the older WAM mower exhibits. He said using two 15-75 mowers reduced soccer-field mowing time from five hours to three hours and saved fuel.

Herricks said the new mower also accepts attachments for a broom, snowblower and front blade, expanding winter use beyond mowing.

Resident Brad Sherman raised concerns during public comment about replacing an eight-year mower and the timing of capital purchases, saying such replacements can drive property tax increases. "Are we buying it because it's budgeted?" he asked, and later said he worried that "luxurious purchases are indicative of the fiscal spending that's causing our city property tax heartburn." Sherman left his contact information for follow-up.

Council moved and approved the mower purchase by roll call vote.

On a separate motion the council approved a John Deere Gator TX 4x2 utility vehicle for cemetery duties. Herricks said the full price was $11,485.27 with a $1,500 trade-in, for a net impact of $9,985.27 to the capital equipment budget. Herricks described routine cemetery uses including hauling flowers, prepping funeral sites and hauling string-trimming equipment.

That motion passed in roll call votes with one recorded no vote from Councilmember Lee.

The purchases are general-fund capital expenditures and were presented as part of the city's five-year equipment planning. Alternatives noted by staff included denying the purchases or selecting different equipment.

Council and staff discussed maintenance history, expected service life and fuel/hours projections. Herricks said the mower trade-in heaviest usage piece previously had more than 3,000 hours and that he expects roughly 2,500 hours of useful life on replacements, though exact lifetime depends on operations. He said the 15-75 models should also reduce strain and operating hours on other machines.

The council did not modify the requested purchases before voting.