Finance committee authorizes application for CTDOT 5310 grant to buy a wheelchair-accessible minibus

The Meriden Finance Committee on Feb. 2 authorized city staff to apply for a Connecticut Department of Transportation Section 5310 capital grant to cover 80% of the cost of a wheelchair-accessible 20-passenger minibus, with the city responsible for the remaining 20% not to exceed $35,000.

Leah Crowe, director of health and human services, told the committee the department operates four minibuses (model years 2021–2026) plus a 2016 backup vehicle. She said the new grant would help replace aging vehicles and support the senior center transportation program.

Crowe said the fleet includes both 20-passenger vehicles without wheelchair lifts and 16-seat configurations that accommodate two wheelchairs; the requested grant would specifically subsidize a 20-passenger minibus. She outlined that the backup vehicle is a 2016 model and that disposition of that vehicle would be handled by the city garage, which may sell it.

Mayor Kevin Scarpitti asked about driver staffing after past shortages; Crowe said the transportation team includes one dispatcher with a commercial driver license and has three of four full-time minibus drivers filled, with one vacancy. She described ongoing recruitment efforts, interviews and conditional offers that had not yet been accepted.

A motion to authorize the application was made and seconded, and the committee approved the resolution. The public-comment period included a resident who thanked Crowe for her work and raised separate ADA access concerns at city facilities.

The committee’s authorization allows staff to submit the 5310 application; any award and the city match would be subject to later appropriation and budget processes.