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Urbana approves purchase and 10‑year financing for two new fire apparatus totaling $2.99 million
Summary
Council approved purchases of a 75' Sutphen aerial ladder truck ($1,763,738.92) and a Sutphen custom pumper ($1,231,169.34), with combined financing of ten annual payments and expected delivery timelines of three to four years.
Urbana City Council approved April 21 the purchase of two replacement fire apparatus—a Sutphen 75‑foot mid‑mount aerial ladder truck and a Sutphen custom pumper—totaling $2,994,908.26 and to be financed over ten years.
Fire Chief Dean Ortlieb told council the vehicles were the result of multi‑year specification work. The aerial unit, budgeted at $1,763,738.92, will be a versatile 75‑foot mid‑mount expected in about four years; it replaces a 1997 ladder. The pumper, at $1,231,169.34, will replace a 2004 engine with an expected delivery in roughly three years. Chief Ortlieb said the goal is to achieve roughly 20 years of service life—about ten years front line and ten years in reserve.
Director of Finance Matt Wellbaum said paying up front reduces interest costs and that financing estimates put annual payments at about $219,730 for the aerial and $153,238 for the pumper; the two purchases will be combined into a single bond. Council voted in separate roll calls to approve each purchase; both measures passed unanimously.
Councilmembers asked about the disposition of older vehicles; Chief Ortlieb said the 1997 ladder likely will be sold on GovDeals and has limited resale value. The council’s action authorizes the purchases and the financing approach; the bond documentation will return to council for final approval.
