During Tuesday morning’s meeting, the Brownwood City Council authorized the development of specifications for the future purchase of a new fire engine that would be ordered in budget year 2023-24 with delivery in fiscal year 2025-26.

Fire Chief Eric Hicks addressed the City Council and informed that historically the City has been able to specify, purchase, and take possession of a new piece of apparatus in the same year. Due to demand and supply chain issues that have occurred since COVID the time frame for the specification and purchase of a new custom fire engine has been extended from approximately one year to approximately 500-900 days depending on which manufacturer the apparatus is purchased from.

Over the last four years, the Fire Department has designed a 20-year Fleet replacement plan that leaves an engine in front-line service for 15 years and then would go into reserve for five years. This plan may require adjustment from time to time.

The apparatus being considered for replacement is a 2000 Spartan Fire Engine that has been having numerous maintenance issues. This apparatus is currently a reserve apparatus and used only when a front-line apparatus is out of service. If a new fire engine is approved, the 2009 Pierce fire engine would then move into reserve and the 2000 model would be submitted for disposal.

In 2022, with purchase of the last new engine, the long-standing response model of responding to all calls with the ladder truck was changed to cross staffing a ladder truck and a fire engine with the same personnel. This practice has proved very beneficial with the ladder truck responding to only 85 calls in 2023. Although this response model drastically extended the life of the ladder truck, it does cause the need to have reliable front line and reserve fire apparatus to make it work.

With the rising costs of apparatus construction materials and the new vehicle emissions standards, the cost of fire apparatus is rising quickly. Since the city’s last purchase there has been an approximate 20% increase in the apparatus cost each year. New vehicle emission standards are currently adding approximately $8,000 dollars per year and with apparatus ordered after 2025, emissions will increase that amount approximately $50,000 for 2026. With the recent material increases, the cost of a new fire engine in 2025 will be approximately $850,000 to $950,000 dollars.

If the fire engine purchase approval is granted at a future meeting the funding for this apparatus would be included in the 2025 fleet capital lease with the first payment due in the fourth quarter of 2025. Some apparatus manufacturers have realized the budget problem the delayed delivery time causes for a city and will write into their contract a clause that for catastrophic financial reasons they will let the city out of the contract at no cost to the city prior to the time of delivery.

Once the specifications and final price are determined, the fire engine purchase will return to the City Council for final approval.

Other possible options include:

* Delay the purchase until 2025 and try to locate a demo or stock vehicle. There will not be a cost savings, and it will not match the current City of Brownwood Fire Department Fleet

* Send the 2000 model Spartan Fire Engine to the factory for refurbishment. Cost estimate would be about $300,000

* In 2025 search for a used apparatus