Tuscumbia Council makes surprise fire truck purchase in final meeting of 5 members

The final meeting of the soon-to-be outgoing members of the Tuscumbia City Council came and went on Oct. 20, and not without some memorable moments.

Council members discussing a retirement plan for city employees.

City employees in the audience arguing back and forth about said plan with the Council.

Residents from a Tuscumbia subdivision yelling at Council members about commercial vehicles speeding through their area and making it unsafe for children and others.

A resident putting forth a message of unity in the hope the outgoing and new Council members can work along and transition as best as possible for the sake of the city.

A surprise purchase of a new fire truck much needed by the city fire department.

Even with the unhappy residents showing their displeasure, the latter item is probably what drew the most contention between Council and meeting attendees.

Tuscumbia Fire Chief J.T. Fox has been requesting funds for a new fire truck for several months.

He had his sights set on one freshly off the production line that would cost $684,900 but would be exactly what his department needs.

He asked the Council for multiple meetings to find the funds to purchase the equipment, saying his “front line” trucks were aging out of use, with the “newest” one built in 2007 breaking down and being put in the shop frequently.

The fire truck issue was on the agenda for multiple meetings, but discussion always seemed to break down when it came to findings the means to make the purchase, either through a bond or financing.

Fox had previously made one final plea to the Council during the Sept. 15 meeting that the date the truck he requested was being held specifically for Tuscumbia had passed at the end of July, but the vehicle was still available.

According to Fox, the vehicle remained available as of Oct. 20 much to his surprise, though anyone could claim it at any time, as the city’s hold had passed.

Fox had also pointed out that if the City missed this chance, the next vehicle available for purchase would be over $100,000 more expensive and would not be as closely aligned to the department’s needs.

The issue of the fire truck was not even on the Oct. 20 meeting agenda, but Len Gregory, the Council member-elect to represent District 4, brought it up during the portion of the meeting that is opened to discussion from the audience.

He said the truck could be financed for what he described as favorable terms with just an initial payment of $67,138.39.

Gregory said the Council would have a year to pay that amount and should be able to find the money.

Mayor William Foster reminded the audience one major reason the current Council had chosen not to make the purchase already, such as during the Sept. 15 meeting when the issue was on the agenda, was the unknown state of the current and future budgets.

During the Sept. 15 meeting, Foster said the current budget was being finalized and the numbers compiled, and so any exact amount on available funds was unknown.

Likewise, Foster said the budget that would be passed by the next Council had yet to be put together, but he thought expected revenue could be less than the current fiscal year.

After much deliberation between the current Council and the new members, each of whom were in the audience for the meeting, the fire truck purchase was added to the agenda for a potential vote during the work session.

When the item came up for vote during the regular session, Council member Mike Isom said he felt like there should be enough money for the down payment since two projects earlier this year came in under budget, including the landfill purchase that ended up costing around $40,000 less than expected.

Council-elect members Gregory, Sidney Nall and Mayor-elect T.W. Billings seemed to be in favor of the purchase even without seeing the figures for the next fiscal year’s budget, with no opposition given by the other members.

After much consideration, Council member Katie Logan made a motion to make the purchase using funds from the general fund, as any more specific location the funds might come from was unknown at the time.

Isom gave a second to the motion.

Once the vote was called for, Council member Geraldine Thompkins paused in contemplation before ultimately voting yes.

Foster voted yes, saying “Without me looking, I’m guessing we have it. With that, we are hoping and praying your budget works.”

“Me too,” Billings said in the audience.

The vote ended up being passed unanimously after Jennifer Bennetch, Christopher King and Isom agreed, and a loud round of applause rang out in the audience.

“You have a Council that purchased something without knowing where the money is coming from and put a $600,000 burden on a budget next year no one has even looked at yet,” Foster said after the meeting. “They (the next Council) agreed without looking at the financials. They think they can get it done. I voted yes because of their confidence.”

With that, the current Tuscumbia City Council voted to adjourn for the last time during a regularly scheduled meeting.

Fox said he called the company first thing the next morning to verify the fire truck was still available and signed a purchase agreement.

He said the truck will be financed for 15 years at 5.26% interest with annual payments of the aforementioned $67,138.39.

The payments are deferred for a year, with the first not being due until next October at the earliest.

“I was in shock last night,” Fox said after finalizing the purchase of the truck. “I had no idea they were going to bring up the truck. It was very surprising, but I’m glad the Council was talked into a vote. If we had waited until Nov. 3 (when the new Council swears in), that truck wouldn’t have been there.”

Fox said delivery of the truck will take 30 days at minimum, with the end of November being his expected time frame.

He said the main reasons why he fought so hard on the truck purchase were the relatively short wait period to take delivery and the number of modern features.

“This truck is coming off the line immediately,” Fox said. “With other manufacturers there’s a 2-3 year wait time. This one has ladders inside, a low hose bed, 1,000 gallons of water and everything we need to do our job. The low hose bed allows us to quickly attack things like grass or car fires. Being brand new, it has all the new safety features like a 360-degree camera view and headsets in the cab so we can talk to each other and 911 without having to yell.

“I give the biggest thank you I can to the Mayor and Council for making this decision.”