Plymouth Board approves purchase of 3 new city vehicles

The Plymouth Board of Public Works and Safety approved the purchase of three new vehicles for city departments this week, totaling approximately $190,000 in expenditure.

Utility Superintendent Donnie Davidson presented his recommendation for a new Water Department dump truck. Four quotes were received, but two were incomplete from McCormick Motors and Auto Park Dodge Ram. A third bid from Lochmandy Motors was complete but failed to meet specifications and offered no alternative.

The quote from Oliver Ford, totaling $102,780, met all specifications. Davidson recommended accepting Oliver's bid, which the board unanimously approved.

City Engineer Dan Sellers recommended purchasing a new SUV for his department. After receiving quotes from Oliver Ford and Auto Park, he advised against trading in the current pickup truck due to the low trade-in values—Auto Park offered $5,000 while Oliver Ford valued it at $6,500.

Instead, Sellers suggested keeping the existing vehicle for use by the engineering tech and purchasing the new SUV outright.

Auto Park's base price was $36,538 compared to Oliver Ford's $36,911. While Oliver's quote was $363 higher, Sellers noted that the Ford Explorer's superior fuel economy would offset the price difference within 15,000 to 20,000 miles, and he included fuel specifications in the quote request.

The board approved Sellers' recommendation to award the contract to Oliver Ford in a 5-0 vote.

Street Superintendent Jim Marquardt requested quotes for an F-450 with an option to upgrade to an F-550, which offers additional weight capacity. He noted that upgrading from the 450 to the 550 model would cost approximately $500 extra.

Two bids were received: Auto Park Bremen quoted $56,192 with trade-in, while Oliver Ford came in at $50,465 with trade-in, a savings of nearly $6,000.

Marquardt recommended accepting the lower bid from Oliver Ford, which the board approved.