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Date: 2/16/2022
SPRINGFIELD – The City Council approved a bond authorization of $8.1 million for various city vehicles during their Feb. 7 meeting.
Department of Public Works (DPW) Director Christopher Cignoli joined the meeting and described his role as the overseer of city vehicles that are unrelated to the Police and Fire Departments. He explained that the bond would allow for the city to purchase vehicles for the first time since 2018. “We’ve been behind the curve for a while [on purchasing vehicles],” said Cignoli.
Cignoli shared that if the bond is approved, the city would purchase 93 vehicles across different departments, including 40 for the DPW and 20 for facilities. The vehicle purchases would also incorporate a range of passenger vehicles and dump trucks, with the new vehicles expected to last between 10-20 years, according to Cignoli.
“We’re purchasing 40-50 passenger style vehicles that are $25,000 and dump trucks that are up to $280,000,” said Cignoli, who shared that the city is in early talks with Eversource to acquire electric vehicles for the passenger portion.
The City Council expressed mixed sentiments about the purchase. Councilor At-Large Jesse Lederman and Ward 6 Councilor Victor Davila showed support for the bond, but expressed that the city should consider leasing the vehicles similar to the Police and Fire Department. They also questioned the timing of the purchase as the city is considering other major developments, such as a new police station.
Deputy Chief Administrative and Financial Officer Lindsay Hackett explained that the city advised the purchase because of outside factors that make the purchase more beneficial. She also explained that Springfield doesn’t want to take on more debt considering the buildup from other projects.
“We have four brand-new schools we just brought on…Based on the amount of money we knew we were going to have to issue debt for those two buildings, that’s pushed everything larger out of the picture for now. This vehicle purchase we were able to weave into our current debt service without really too much swing either way on the general fund,” said Hackett.
The council also raised concern about the timeline for the bond approval, with Cignoli stressing that approval is required immediately despite the item’s short window with the council. “We should look through finance and have further discussion of the matter. I think there’s a lot of questions that need to be answered,” said Ward 1 Councilor Maria Perez.
The council ultimately approved the vehicle bond in a unanimous vote. They also approved an 11-2 vote to further discuss the bond in a subcommittee meeting.
Returning Items
The council issued final votes on items that were discussed during recent hearing meetings, including approving two special permits for petitioner Gordon Pulsifer to implement market-rate apartments at 195 State St. and 310 State St. Lederman said both additions will bring positive change to the two previously dormant spaces.
“I think that it is going to be incredible to see these two long-vacant buildings filled with individuals and families contributing to our downtown, making it a vibrant and walkable downtown and really bringing these buildings back to life,” said Lederman.
The council approved both special permits in unanimous votes. While the council also discussed the dispensary items from prior hearing meetings, they agreed to not issue a final vote before further reviewing the city’s Host Community Agreement process.
The City Council will meet again on Feb. 28.