ROSSFORD – Replacement of a fourth police car in a two-year period led to a council discussion about city vehicle resource planning.

At the March 14 meeting, City Administrator Allyson Murray said three police vehicles were purchased last year. They were not delivered to the department until the end of last year, because of a national police car shortage in available new stock at dealerships, she said.

Council President Carolyn Eckel, who is also the chair of the safety committee, talked about the reasoning that has gone into the accelerated purchasing agenda.

“With the old system, we were replacing one car a year. That was just too much wear and tear,” Eckel said. “We don’t just dump perfectly good vehicles. We remove the weakest from the fleet, and it is the ones that are in the worst shape (receiving priority).”

The number of repairs necessary on the fleet were accumulating.

“To continue to make those repairs, on a vehicle three years out, didn’t make sense,” Eckel said of the economics involved.

Mayor Neil MacKinnon III said that the police department currently has two to three officers on the road at any one time.

Murray confirmed the justification for the accelerated purchase rate by the city.

“We had three vehicles in the shop at any one time, because they were always breaking down,”

She also said that the replaced cars had not been sent to auction and have all been repurposed for use by other city departments.

The new vehicle will be a 2022 Ford Interceptor SUV, purchased under the Sate of Ohio Cooperative Purchasing Contract, budgeted to be under $55,000, including warranty.

The second and third readings were suspended and it was passed on emergency, for more immediate ordering to take place with the dealership.

In other business, council authorized a change order approval for the annual paving and roadway design project. Windsor Drive will be added.

Council also approved a grant application for a transportation improvement district.

The grant would provide funds for up to $500,000 for the planning, development and right-of-way acquisition to address congestion issues in the Crossroads and the Innovation Industrial Park. The roads in question include the entrance and exit on Interstate 75, Fremont Pike, Ohio 795 and Buck Road, along Glenwood road and Lime City Road.

Kevin Weeks, the mayoral appointment to the Toledo Area Regional Transit Authority, was approved for reappointment through March 31, 2025.

The reauthorization of the housing revolving loan fund five-year administration agreement with the Ohio Department of Development was also approved.

Councilman Robert Ruse attended the meeting virtually, which was approved by council. This is the first under the new system. It had intermittent sound dropouts, which occasionally interfered with his voting, but would not have changed the approval of any legislation.