LEGISLATURE STUFF - Been There Done That

CATSKILL - If it seemed like they had heard all this before, Greene County Legislature members had in fact done so, approving the purchase of new trucks for the highway department.

Lawmakers, at a recent meeting, gave the final okay to recommendations made by county roads chief Scott Templeton for the acquisitions.

At least everyone hopes it’s the final okay. Lawmakers authorized the same basic buys, last August, and then rescinded them four months later after a mind-numbing chain of events.

Templeton, last summer, had the noggins of county leaders spinning when he put the trucks out to bid, received multiple offers and took the unusual step of requesting that the low bids not be accepted.

He was wanting to secure one single axle, 2-wheel drive cab and chassis including snow and ice control equipment and three single axle, 4-wheel drive cab and chassis with the winter equipment.

Templeton, rather than using the low bid, recommended the sales be made through Henderson Products, based in Watertown, including $273,186 for the single axle, 2-wheel drive and a stunning $889,150 total for the trio of single axle, 4-wheel drives.

The roads chief explained that while the lone 2-wheel drive could be gotten elsewhere for $13,000 less, and $59,000 could be saved on the three 4-wheel drives, the money wasn’t the only factor.

Skulls stopped swirling when Templeton explained his seemingly illogical logic, telling lawmakers Henderson Products was guaranteeing delivery within the 4th quarter of 2024.

No such promise came from the low bidder, prompting lawmakers to nod their aching heads “affirmative” but, as it turned out, it was all for naught.

Henderson Products subsequently notified Templeton they would not be able to fulfill the order according to the agreed upon specifications.

“We were told by the manufacturer they could meet our specifications. It took a long time for us to write the specs. They didn’t meet them,” Templeton said at the time.

“The axles they wanted to give us were larger and more expensive to maintain than the ones we specified,” Templeton noted, advising lawmakers he would be submitting a new order.

That day has come and if it seems like deja’ vu , it is…again going thru Henderson Products with one notable exception…the overall expense, believe it or not, will be slightly decreasing.

The threesome of 4-wheel drives will be $888,855, not exactly a whopping drop of roughly $300, but it all counts in the long run. The 2-wheel drive, meanwhile, carries the same sticker price.

“These are the four trucks we removed,” Templeton told lawmakers. “We re-specced them. [Henderson Products] kept our slots open. They really worked with us to get this done and we can get them pretty quickly.

“If we started this today, it would be 24-27 months out before delivery. The guy says we should have them within the next six months so we’re basically where we were at the beginning.”

Since they were in a good mood - although they likely would have agreed to it anyway - Templeton requested and got a thumbs up on additional equipment purchases.

The highway department is in need of two, 4-wheel drive, half ton pickup trucks and a compact track loader with planer attachment.

Going with the lowest responsible bidder on the pickups, the county will do business with Mohawk Chevrolet in Ballston Spa for $93,496.80, the legislative resolution shows.

A suitable Bobcat compact track loader with the planer gizmo is available through a New York State contract for $86,337.03 from Clark Equipment, operating out of Chicago, Illinois.

Not stopping while he was ahead, Templeton requested and received approval to purchase a fresh Fuel Management System.

“The existing [system] used to track fuel transactions for various county departments, emergency services and supported agencies is no longer supported and needs to be upgraded,” the legislative resolution states.

“After careful consideration of the county's needs and requirements, a review of several proposals [for the new system] was conducted.”

It was determined that Simply Fuel Solutions, available through Sourcewell Contract, from EJ Ward, based in San Antonio, Texes, would fill the bill.

The necessary hardware and software including installation, hosting, training, support and maintenance for the first year will cost $117,859.08, with an annual support and maintenance fee of $18,240 for two more  years, plus up to $25,000 to redo old wiring, if necessary.

And finally, Templeton was authorized to secure a new hydraulic angle broom for use with Wheel Loaders currently on order, obtaining it for $29,949 from Milton CAT in Clifton Park.