×

Pomfret gets ball rolling on new truck purchase

Pomfret officials finally began the process of replacing the town’s aging and crumbling fleet of trucks.

Highway Superintendent Daniel Bigelow received informal permission to purchase a Freightliner 10-wheeler/snowplow off a bid through Onondaga County during a recent town board meeting. Board members asked Bigelow and Town Attorney Jeffrey Passafaro to formulate a bond resolution to finance the truck’s purchase, which could be voted on as early as this month.

“The plow equipment is $95,000,” Bigelow told the board. “This is a hard number.”

Supervisor Donald Steger asked Bigelow if the snowplow will have salting equipment included, to which Bigelow replied in the affirmative.

“How do we extend the life of a $216,000 vehicle more with the salt involved?” Steger asked.

“This equipment I’m looking at is a stainless steel box, rather than steel,” Bigelow explained. “That’s what we deal with now is steel. We all know what happens with salt and steel. This will be our first stainless steel piece of equipment.”

Bigelow added for the last several years, he has tried to spray the town’s trucks with a rust inhibitor to help prevent further breakdown.

Councilman John Sedota asked if the potential purchase is a 2017 truck. Bigelow replied it is actually a 2018 truck. Steger elaborated by saying it will take a minimum of six months to have it ordered.

The town’s 2016 budget included a roughly 35 percent hike in the outside-the-village tax rate to begin building a capital reserve account for the desperately needed highway equipment.

Also during the meeting, the board approved a Lily Dale Fire Protection District contract extension for the year 2017 at a cost of $30,000. That price tag constitutes no change in the amount for 2016.

Forest Hill Cemetery Sexton Brad Dietzen was appointed sexton of the six additional cemeteries in the town at his current rate of pay. A separate sexton previously oversaw the six cemeteries, thus Dietzen’s appointment consolidates all of the town’s cemetery services in one office.

The board will hold its reorganizational meeting today at 6:15 p.m. in the town hall. The next regular meeting is Jan. 11 at 6:30 p.m.

Email: gfox@observertoday.com. Twitter: @gfoxnews

Newsletter

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper? *
   

Starting at $4.62/week.

Subscribe Today