Fire chief asks committee to waive city bid process to buy demo ambulance; request forwarded to full council

Fire Chief Jeff Low told the Bangor City Finance Committee on April 6 that the Fire Department had an opportunity to buy a demonstration ambulance that meets department specifications and would be available in about eight months — substantially sooner than the two- to three-year build time for a new unit. Chief Low asked the committee to waive the city’s formal bid process and forward the purchase to the full council so the department could secure the vehicle.

“We are looking at replacing an ambulance a little bit sooner than we had planned on,” Chief Low said, describing a demo model the vendor was ready to deliver. He said the purchase would increase the fleet from five to six ambulances and described the decision as tied to operational needs and previous cost-saving practices.

Eric (finance/fleet staff) provided the committee with historical context on the department’s practice of remounting ambulance boxes onto new chassis as a cost-saving strategy. He said a remount budget had been approximately $211,000 in prior planning but that costs vary by vehicle and lead times have lengthened; he said the current demo ambulance price is about $471,000. He also explained the procurement approach: the vendor participates in a national cooperative bid group, which staff said meets specifications and offers administrative efficiencies compared with drafting a city-specific RFP.

Council members pressed staff for details about which reserve accounts would fund the purchase and from what budget years the carryovers originated. Staff said the purchase would use amounts in a reserve account (described in committee materials) and that more detailed year-by-year carrying entries would be provided when staff Stephanie returned. The committee moved to waive the city bid process and forward the request to the full council for final authorization.

The committee’s referral means the full council will consider whether to appropriate reserve funds and approve the waiver. No final appropriation was completed at the committee level.