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Council approves lease for 82 golf carts, discusses future shift to electric fleet
Summary
The council authorized a 48‑month lease-purchase for 82 EZ GO gas carts and one beverage cart (total contract $566,237.76) after staff said leasing was the most cost‑effective option; members asked staff to plan a future transition path to electric carts and necessary infrastructure.
The City of Ocala approved a lease-purchase plan for 82 golf carts and one beverage cart to be used at the city‑owned Ocala Golf Club, and councilmembers directed staff to begin planning for an eventual electric cart transition.
Julie Johnson, the recreation and parks director, said Indigo Sports LLC (the club operator) obtained competitive quotes and recommended EZ GO as the lowest-cost manufacturer. Johnson said the procurement authorizes manufacturing of the carts for a total contract amount of $566,237.76 and recommended a 48‑month lease-purchase to meet operational needs.
Assistant City Manager Ken Whitehead outlined five options staff evaluated — including outright purchase, Sourcewell cooperative procurement and several lease structures — and recommended the Troon lease option as the least expensive for the city when factoring maintenance and lifecycle costs. Whitehead told council an equivalent cash retail price for a single gas cart would be “almost $16,000” and that some lease alternatives would cost several thousand dollars per unit up front.
Council discussed the end‑of‑lease balloon payment ($207,000) and the requirement in the buyer commitment letter that carts be in “above average condition” to receive the repurchase payment. Staff said the city has not had problems in the past with the repurchase commitment. Several councilmembers said they hoped to move to an electric fleet in the future and asked staff to plan infrastructure improvements early so the city can evaluate an electric transition before the next contract ends.
The council approved a resolution authorizing city staff to negotiate and execute the lease-purchase agreements, subject to legal review.
Next steps: staff will execute the lease‑purchase terms within the approved expenditure threshold, monitor the balloon‑payment commitment, and return to council with plans and cost projections for a potential electric cart transition ahead of future procurement.
