Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Public Safety topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Brookline Select Board accepts $227,000 UASI grant to buy reinforced Sprinter van despite concern over oversight
Summary
The Select Board voted 4–1 to accept a $227,000 U.S. Department of Homeland Security Urban Area Security Initiative grant to buy a reinforced 2024 Mercedes Sprinter for public‑safety use. Police Chief Pastor described the vehicle as defensive and non‑militaristic; Select Board member John Vanak voted no, saying an oversight committee had not yet reviewed it.
The Brookline Select Board voted to accept a $227,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Urban Area Security Initiative (UASI) to procure a reinforced 2024 Mercedes Sprinter van intended to provide ballistic protection for first responders.
Police Chief Pastor, appearing by video, said the vehicle is a reinforced, unmarked Sprinter intended purely for defensive protection. “In my opinion it does not appear militaristic,” he said, adding that the vehicle “is the equivalent of a ballistic shield or the ballistic vest that we wear every day—it’s just larger and on wheels.”
The department said it is the only jurisdiction in the UASI region without a vehicle providing that level of protection, and that the purchase was limited by the grant’s allowable uses. “These funds have been earmarked by the UASI specifically for the purpose of procuring this vehicle,” Pastor said.
Some Select Board members urged more review. John Vanak voted against accepting the grant, saying he was not opposing the idea of the vehicle itself but objecting to the timing. “This expression of no is not a no to the vehicle because I don't feel I have a chance to vote on the vehicle until after the committee that we appointed for the purpose of reviewing these kinds of purchases has had a chance to review it,” Vanak said.
Board discussion noted the existence of a Surveillance Technology and Military‑Type Equipment Committee created by town meeting to review equipment acquisitions. Other board members said the vehicle is civilian in appearance and that a separate committee review was not necessary before acceptance of the grant; several members said they expected continued reporting on UASI‑funded equipment.
The motion to accept the UASI award and authorize the vehicle was approved 4–1, with Vanak opposed and the record showing Michael Sandman, Paul Warren, David Perman and Chair Bernard Green voting in favor. The minutes record the vote and Vanak’s request that his dissent be noted as a procedural objection related to the committee review, not to the need for the equipment itself.
Next steps: staff will finalize grant paperwork and proceed with procurement under the UASI award. Board members asked the police department to continue regular reporting on UASI purchases and recommended the town consider how the existing advisory committee’s review role should be handled going forward.
(Reporting based on Select Board meeting transcript; attendees identified from meeting remarks.)
