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Palmyra Borough Council unanimously approved two 10-ton dump and plow truck purchases for a total of over $500,000 at the Feb. 11 meeting.
The bill will be paid for out of the capital reserve fund when the crew receives the vehicles.
The trucks will replace two currently being used by borough crews. Borough manager Roger Powl said their scheduled replacements were coming up, but approving the purchase early will save money.
“We’ll probably save about $20,000 per truck because if we go to the following model year and the aluminum and steel prices and all that increase, since we are going to replace these, it would be smart to do it sooner than what we had originally planned,” he said.
Several council members agreed and said they would rather make the purchase now than wait and spend more money as prices continue their upward trajectory.
“Who knows? There could be a steel embargo,” Powl said after the meeting.
Ordering the trucks now would allow them to be ordered and outfitted by early next year — around March — and the borough will pay for them then, he said.
Council member Marcus Riddell said he would make some calls to see if there are any grant opportunities the borough could apply for. It might not cover the entire amount, but could lead to some savings.
Powl said this purchase will bring the capital reserve fund down to around $350,000.
Once the new trucks arrive, he said the borough will sell the old ones. Money from the sale will go toward the fund.
The new trucks are expected to last at least 20 years.
In other business:
- Council decided not to move forward with submitting a grant to help cover the $25,000 the borough will have to pay to fix the stormwater management concerns near the Melrose development. Powl said it is a competitive grant, and Palmyra’s project barely checked the application’s boxes. Residents also want the issues addressed as soon as the weather allows for construction, and a grant application could take upwards of a year. The borough must wait for permit approval from PennDOT because of a pipe crossing under the road.
- They also unanimously approved several road closures necessary for the Palmyra Memorial Day Parade on Monday, May 26 from 8:30 a.m. for the staging areas and 10 a.m. for the parade route until 12:30 p.m. The path will begin at the intersection of West Cherry and South Mark streets, continue in front of the Palmyra Area Middle School on West Cherry Street, go east on East Cherry, north on South Green, west on East Main, south on South Locust, and end at the Palmyra Area Middle School.
- Powl also announced the borough is back up to four public works employees and is interviewing several candidates for the fifth and final open position.
The Palmyra Borough Council will meet next at 325 S. Railroad St. on Feb. 25 at 7 p.m. Meetings are also streamed on the Palmyra Borough, Lebanon County Pennsylvania YouTube page.
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