In a special meeting on Wednesday, Bartlesville City Council unanimously voted to approve a $1.3 million bid award for a 100-foot aerial platform fire truck.
City Council member Trevor Dorsey said Bartlesville has an excellent fire crew and wants to make sure they have whatever equipment they need to ensure the safety of citizens.
Voters approved using the funds in the $16.4 million General Obligation Bond Election in August 2020.
With inflation and rising supply costs, the vehicle is over budget by $246,687. The council voted to cover the deficit by unallocated Half-cent Capital Improvement Project Sales Tax funds.
Bartlesville Fire Department Chief David Topping received only two bids, one for $1.3 million and the other for $1.5 million; Daco Fire Equipment, the lower bidder, was awarded the contract.
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The new truck has a delivery time of 45 days and will replace the fire department's aging 85-foot snorkel aerial platform truck from 1975.
Topping explained the vehicle is a combination truck; it can serve as a platform for firefighters to work from 100 feet in the air and as a ladder truck. The truck it's replacing was a boom truck with a bucket on the end that didn't have ladder capabilities.
Not only will the truck improve the department's capabilities, but it may help improve Bartlesville ISO (Insurance Services Office) classification.
ISO classification rates cities on fire suppression quality. Class 1 indicates an exemplary fire suppression program, and Class 10 does not meet the minimal fire suppression requirements.
Bartlesville currently holds a Class 2 ISO rating, which Topping says is quite an achievement for a city of Bartlesville's size. The newer, more capable fire truck could help the department move closer to a Class 2 ISO rating.
City council members discussed possibilities for the retiring truck, such as selling or donating to a smaller fire department. For now, they plan to move it into surplus after the new truck is in operation.
Council member Paul Stuart mentioned the other bid had a delivery time of 700 days as opposed to 45 from the winning bid and discussed ways to mitigate foreseeable pitfalls due to delivery times in replacing other equipment.
Stuart worried if the city continues to purchase fire equipment with bonds that are needed now, it could take four to five years for that new truck to be in operation. He feels that city plans for needed upgrades should account for any delays in when funds are available or significant delays in the supply chain.
