The Olympia Police Department is exploring the leasing option to acquire 12 additional patrol vehicles, using Proposition 1 funds as a public safety measure.
The proposal presented at the city council meeting on Tuesday aims to expand the department's fleet of patrol cars to serve the community better.
According to OPD Deputy Chief Shelby Parker, the police department operates 30 pursuit-rate Ford Interceptor vehicles with cameras, computers, printers, and radios. Of those numbers, 16 vehicles are used almost 24 hours daily as they rotate between day and night shift officers.
Under the leasing plan, Parker said, the upfront costs would be lower than an outright purchase. She added that the Proposition 1 funds, which were not spent in 2024, will be used to pay for the upfront costs of leasing and equipping 12 additional patrol vehicles.
Parker provided a breakdown of the costs to purchase 12 patrol vehicles versus leasing the same 12 vehicles. She said the leasing option reduces the upfront costs by about $600,000.
The lease payment is approximately $100,000, less than the city's replacement fund payment. Maintenance expenses are expected to be about the same.
The city staff will continue to provide maintenance.
Parker announced that leasing 12 vehicles is projected to save the city approximately $1.1 million over the course of a five-year lease compared to purchasing the vehicles outright.
Jaime Mastache, Olympia Public Works Fleet Operations supervisor, discussed the city's experience with the Ford hybrid interceptor vehicles that the OPD had purchased.
Mastache explained that OPD had 13 hybrid interceptors first purchased in early 2021. However, they had issues with the hybrid batteries, and six vehicles had to have their batteries replaced. They also experienced multiple warning lights and safety concerns.
As a result, Mastache said they decided to stop ordering hybrid vehicles, as there were no satisfactory solutions to their problems. He noted that conventional gasoline-powered engines had less downtime and less maintenance, and we were on the road more to help with public safety.
Mastache also discussed OPD's plan to transition to an assigned fleet model, which would give them more room to expand the force and reduce dwell time for charging.
Regarding electric vehicles, Mastache stated that the DKS Consulting firm had recommended pursuing EVs for patrol in 2028. He mentioned that the only pursuit-rated EV option is the Chevy Blazer EV, which has a 250-mile range but faces challenges with the equipment load and battery life due to the additional devices installed. "
At this moment, those are not options," Mastache said. "Hopefully in the future, we can pursue these as technology increases, range gets better, and they have multiple choices for us to choose from."
Mastache noted that outfitting a Chevy Blazer EV for OPD's requirements would be around $100,000 per vehicle, with 12 EVs costing $1.2 million.
Councilmember Jim Cooper saw the leasing approach as advantageous, given the rapid pace of technological change.
The shorter five-year lifespan of leased vehicles, compared to the 10-year ownership model, would allow the city to more easily adapt to the latest advancements in pursuit-rate electric vehicles provided by the leasing company.
5 comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here
Honestyandrealityguy
So much cheaper to BUY. No question.
Thursday, November 21, 2024 Report this
Skywarrior-Pilot
Lease v. Buy, always more expensive. This looks like a way to paper over the budget deficit.
Thursday, November 21, 2024 Report this
bobkat
In the real emergency services world, EV's just aren't ready for prime time use.
Also - I know I'm nitpicking but . . . you may want to correct the caption under the lead picture. Police NOT Fire!
Thursday, November 21, 2024 Report this
BillString
Ah yes, just what the doctor ordered, shiny new cars that the police can use to drive by the homeless on the way to Twisters. All paid for on our dime. I'm sure they won't be crashed while performing pointless chases!
Thursday, November 21, 2024 Report this
MrCommonSense
The Jolt should have included Parker's report so we had the details and could compare the financial alternatives for ourselves.
The cost of lease vs buy is a simple calculation using a financial calculator. Presumably there are accounting folks at the City who can run them. If the City "buys" them, is the City paying 100% of the purchase or is the City using some kind of "financing option" (other than leasing) to pay for then over time? i.e. Does the City have ways to "borrow" the money. There is always an implied interest in the lease, whether it is disclosed or not. The interest rate is calculated by knowing the initial cost of the vehicle, the initial capital reduction from the cost (apparently $600,000 in this case), the length of the lease and the value of the vehicles at the end of the lease. Based on the lease terms the interest rate is easy to calculate. All these terms would be negotiable with the leasing company and should be "shopped" to see which could provide the best terms. Of course, with police cars, how long do they last, at what point should they be "turned over", how many would be in good condition at the end of the lease, how many miles would be on them, and what would be their value? In a lease there are usually limits on the mileage and requirements on "condition", but maybe they presume the value at the end of a police car lease is close to $0? Anyway, all these details would be in the proposed lease contract which the council members might want to read.
Friday, November 22, 2024 Report this