EMERSON—Following a recommendation from the police chief and chief municipal financial officer, the Borough Council agreed Jan. 16 to approve the leasing of two police cars in 2024, saving about $30,000 in the department’s annual $65,000 vehicle budget.
Although the council has approved only a temporary budget for 2024, administrator Rob Hermansen said that chief municipal financial officer Lauren Roehrer agreed with the leasing arrangement’s cost savings and could adjust the temporary budget to finance the lease.
“A lot of towns are doing this now because of the cost of cars,” said Police Chief Mark Savino.
Savino told council that the department was awaiting one new patrol car, ordered last year, and likely to be received soon. He said the department wanted to lease two cars this year, which are both currently in stock, and can be obtained soon.
He said one will be an unmarked police car for the chief and one will be a marked police car. The chief’s new vehicle will replace an 11-year-old car.
Savino said the two new police vehicles can be leased for $17,000 yearly for the unmarked car, and $19,000 annually for the marked police car, for a total of $36,000. He said there is no mileage limit on the two cars’ four-year leases. And after four years, there is a $1 buyback of the leased vehicle.
Savino said the cost of a new police car, fully equipped, was about $72,000 apiece.
He said the department would lease two new cars in 2024, one car in 2025, no cars in 2026, and revisit leasing in 2027, likely for another one car lease. Savino said two cars would be bought off lease by the borough in 2027, one in 2028, and one in 2030.
Savino said many police cars are often in for repairs in the DPW shop, noting the police car “repairs are killing the DPW” due to cars often breaking down. He said the Ford vehicles “are not what they used to be” and said the department would be switching to Chevrolet Tahoes.
He said generally police cars are “retired” after 70,000 to 80,000 miles and used for light duty, such as traffic control.
“It seems like everybody feels this is a budget-saving move on behalf of the police department,” said Mayor Danielle DiPaola.