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GOSHEN TOWNSHIP -- The board of trustees approved the purchase of a new police cruiser in a special meeting Monday.
The board voted unanimously to approve the purchase of the new cruiser, a 2023 Ford Explorer from Montrose Ford at a cost of $43,488.43.
The new cruiser is required to replace the 2021 Ford Explorer involved in a crash at the intersection of state Route 165 and U.S. Route 62 Thursday which hospitalized a Goshen Township officer and a Salem woman. Police Chief John Calko explained that the involved cruiser had been ruled a total loss, and that an insurance adjustor should evaluate the vehicle for a claim sometime this week.
"Our cruiser was rolled a couple times, and it's a total loss," said Calko.
Calko also explained that the new vehicle was slightly more expensive than the one it was replacing due to the presence of an add-on the department would not typically purchase, but it was the only cruiser Montrose had left, and if the township decided to wait, they likely would not be able to replace the cruiser until roughly the beginning of 2025.
The board also unanimously approved a resolution to approve an advance of $42,988.43, $500 less than the purchase price, from the General Fund to the Police Fund for the purchase, and to increase the police appropriations by the same amount. Trustee Teresa Stratton questioned the discrepancy between the advance and the purchase price, and Fiscal Officer Michele Barratt explained that the discrepancy came from the township's insurance deductible, which had been budgeted for within a different line item in the fund.
The board of trustees will meet next at 6 p.m. March 12.