Aging Ambulance to be Replaced

The has ordered a new ambulance because the current one is "at the end of its life" according to Chief Bruce Vick.

Vick said the new ambulance is far superior to the old one and will likely last much longer.

The current ambulance has nearly 100,000 miles and is 10 years old.

Vick said the ambulance is out of service often and a new truck would save money in the long run and provide better service to Trenton residents.

The new ambulance will cost about $165,000 and will be paid for out of the city's motor vehicle pool.

The old ambulance will be traded in for about $7,500 dollars.

The company with the lowest bid on the new ambulance and the highest trade in value for the old ambulance was Emergency Vehicles Plus.

Initially, the city planned to finance the cost through Monroe Bank and Trust, but council members thought it better to take the money from the pool to avoid paying interest.

The city avoided paying 2.65 percent over three years and saved about $6,200.

The city has budgeted three payments over the next three years to pay back the pool in full.

There is about $140,000 remaining in the motor vehicle pool, according to City Administrator Bob Cady.

Cady said he liked the idea of borrowing the money from the motor vehicle pool.

"It’s a great idea unless you have other immediate needs for that money, but we have funds to handle an emergency," Cady said. "We've been able to discipline ourselves in the past, and I have no reason to believe that we won't budget those payments."