MANSFIELD — The Mansfield Police Department can order five new cruisers, courtesy of a unanimous City Council vote Tuesday and $375,836 from the city’s American Rescue Plan Act funds.
But manufacturing delays mean it may be up to a year before the 2022 Dodge Chargers arrive, Chief Keith Porch said.
“This is a true emergency for the police department,” Porch told council, adding this is the last year Dodge plans to manufacture Chargers for police usage, moving instead to larger Durangos for its primary police vehicle.
The chief, who said the Chargers are about $5,000 cheaper than similar Ford models, said he had been told Dodge will only make about 12,000 of the police 2022 Charger models, which will be sold on a first-come, first-served basis.
“After that, that’s it. They are cutting it off nationwide,” Porch said.
“The current fleet of what we have is about 29 patrol cars. That ranges from our specialty cars, like our traffic sergeants to the line cars to our transport van,” Porch said after the meeting.
He said the patrol cars are being run 24/7, covering all three shifts.
“Typically, on average now, we are running 140,000 to 150,000 (miles) on some of those cars,” the chief said. “There is an immediate need for eight cars, but the five are definitely appreciated and needed for the police department.”
“How we have kept ahead of that in the past is we had a rotation of buying two cars a year. We have gone numerous years now of not doing that. I appreciate the administration and council’s quick action to get this done,” Porch said.
The price of about $75,000 per vehicle provides for a completely outfitted police cruiser, including sirens and lights, in-car computer and camera, markings and a five-year, 100,000-mile warranty, the chief said.
The city, which set aside $5 million in revenue replacement from its $10.5 million ARPA funding in 2021, will tap into that to pay for the cruisers.
It’s the third expenditure the city has made from the $5 million, previously spending $70,200 on a three-year lease for a mobile security camera system and $15,000 for taxiway/taxilane drawings and cost estimates for work at Mansfield Lahm Regional Airport.
After the cruiser purchase, the revenue replacement funds set aside will be at $4,552,158.
Council approved the purchase of five Ford Explorers for the police department in 2020, using federal funds through the CARES Act.
Also on Tuesday, City Council watched as 1st Ward Councilwoman Laura Burns, who retained her seat Nov. 2, and incoming 5th Ward Councilman Aurelio Diaz were sworn in for the new term, which begins in January.
Burns took the oath of office from fellow Republican David Falquette, currently the City Council president. Diaz was sworn in by Richland County Common Pleas Court Judge Phil Naumoff, a fellow Democrat.
Both will start new four-year terms on Jan. 4.
At-large Councilwoman Stephanie Zader and incoming 3rd Ward Councilman Rev. El Akuchie will be sworn in during ceremonies planned later this month. Both are Republicans who won races in November.
In other activity Tuesday, City Council:
— approved administration requests to spend and reallocate more than $500,000 in American Rescue Plan Act funds. New requests totaling $100,812 were approved, including $20,000 for municipal court radio upgrades; $13,400 for a fire station HVAC system,; $30,000 for an HVAC system; $29,247 for furniture, both expenditures for an $305,000 indoor police training facility planned near Mansfield Lahm Regional Airport; and $8,165 for chairs and remote video equipment for the city’s engineering department.
Council also approved reallocating $460,000 in ARPA funds for the emergency replacement of the HVAC system at the airport terminal. Mayor Tim Theaker gained permission from council in September to spend $850,000 to scan more than 8,000 boxes of documents that must be kept to meet state public records law. That expenditure will be pared back to $390,000 with the reallocation.
— approved a 2022 temporary annual appropriations budget. A final budget must be approved by the end of March.
— approved a proposed four-year, 0.25-percent income tax increase for the May primary ballot for capital improvements and maintenance for the city parks and recreation department. The issue would generate about $15 million in four years, an estimated $8 million of which would be spend on a new pool/aquatics center at Liberty Park.
— approved amendments to the city’s fire prevention code.
— approved the renewal of an agreement with Richland County commissioners to pay counsel fees for indigent criminal defendants.
— approved the acceptance of a $70,374 state grant to “reduce violence in high crime areas and assist the Mansfield Police Department’s efforts to create safer neighborhoods.” There is no local match required to obtain the grant, which will be used to renew data sharing software licenses used in crime analysis.
— voted to accept a total of $62,287 in donations and grants to assist with the West End Neighborhood Plan project.
— approved the city’s participation agreement for a settlement agreement of opioid litigation with Johnson & Johnson.
