Questions on Airway Heights truck purchase

Purchasing a truck has likely never generated as much scrutiny as it did at the Airway Heights City Council’s Dec. 7 meeting.

Community Development Director Derrick Braaten told the council that delaying a hiring consideration within the department had created enough savings to purchase a 2011 Chevy Colorado Extended Cab 4x4 pickup truck. The truck was identified as a need of the Building Department during budget talks, replacing an older, more used vehicle.

Council packet information indicated the truck, priced at just under $20,952, is currently owned by Parker Subaru in Coeur d’Alene. A Carfax report also indicated the vehicle had one previous owner, an odometer reading of 36,129 miles and was valued at $1,060 above the listed price from Parker.

“It’s a smokin’ deal,” Braaten said. “Thirty-six thousand on a four-year-old truck is pretty good.”

Braaten added senior building inspector Cindy Reddekopp checked the vehicle over and said it met the department’s needs.

Before the council could vote, city attorney Stanley Schwartz indicated a desire to table the resolution until later in the meeting over concerns about the bidding process the city had taken. Braaten provided clarification by saying they had looked around, first considering purchasing the vehicle off the state bid list.

A comparable vehicle on the list came in at over $28,000, however, and Braaten said they also received pricing on three other comparable trucks, listed in the packet as NW Motorsports, Taylor and Sons Chevrolet and Barton Chrysler/Jeep. All three listed prices near $20,000, not including taxes and fees, which are included in the Parker price.

Council eventually approved the purchase.

In other resolutions the council approved the city’s legislative agenda for 2016. City Manager Albert Tripp pointed to three specific items the city is looking to lobby for in the coming session, the first being acquisition of $700,000 in state funding to hook up the Department of Corrections Airway Heights Center to the city’s reclaimed water system.

Airway Heights also hopes to dissuade the Department of Transportation from transferring maintenance duties of some of its highways to cities these roadways pass through. Finally, the city is looking for state funding for its proposed recreation complex on Deno Road to compliment hoped for funding from a Spokane County ballot measure.

The council approved the second reading of an ordinance adopting the city’s $16 million overall 2016 budget, as well as ordinances setting the positions, salaries and compensation for city employees and amending the 2015 budget. Council also held the first read ing of an ordinance rezoning a one-acre parcel of land from Industrial to R-3 residential multifamily, with Braaten explaining to them the Planning Commission had recently approved amending the rezone to R-2 duplex residential.

The council also made several appointments, approving the appointment of Sal Teresi III to the park advisory board, Braaten and Parks and Recreation Director J.C. Kennedy to the lodging tax advisory committee and Nicholas Messing to the Planning Commission.

John McCallum can be reached at [email protected].