Southold Town Police Chief Wants Fast Purchase to Five New Crown Vics

Riverhead Ford is a good avenue through which to get at least five more 2011 Ford Crown Victorias, and Chief Martin Flatley said that he wants to take advantage of purchasing a few more of the obsolete cars before switching over to a new fleet model.

Flatley approached the on Tuesday’s work session about working with Riverhead Ford to purchase five more 2011 Crown Victoria patrol vehicles in order to get one more year of use out existing equipment in the existing fleet.

But the purchasing process will have to go fairly quickly, he said.

“Riverhead Ford will make the phone calls and locate the vehicles, but we’ll have to purchase right away,” Flatley said. “So we’re looking for a commitment from the Town that we will be able to buy these cars.”

Flatley added that the purchase, which would amount to about $25,000 per car, will give the police department one more year to prepare for a new line of vehicles, but Southold Town Comptroller John Cushman said that he questioned the legality of rushing the purchase.

“I don’t know if you can just go find vehicles that haven’t been properly vetted through the process,” he said.

Town Attorney Martin Finnegan said that he would make sure that this sort of fast-track purchase from a sole provider fit in with the town’s procurement procedure.

“The fact is that no one is making the Crown Vic anymore, so we need to locate these fast,” Chief Flatley said.

Flatley added that the department is leaning toward a new line of Chevy Caprises for the future fleet.