The Festus City Council recently approved more than $273,514.37 in expenditures, including $185,913 for the Police Department and $35,959.65 for the Fire Department.
The council voted unanimously Dec. 18 to pay $125,000 over five years to extend its contract with the Flock Group Inc., based in Atlanta, Ga., which provides services related to the Festus Police Department’s license-plate reading cameras.
According to the contract, the Police Department will pay $25,000 a year for five years to extend its contract with the Flock Group. Festus currently pays to have 10 Flock cameras around town at a price of $2,500 per camera, but the company recently notified the city that the price per camera will increase to $3,000 in January, Police Chief Doug Wendel said.
He told the City Council that Flock would “lock in” the current rate of $2,500 per camera if Festus agreed to a five-year contract.
Wendel said Flock cameras have become a valuable tool for the Police Department, helping it find stolen vehicles and apprehend people wanted for various crimes.
The $125,000 was the largest among the expenditures the council approved last month.
The following is a list of the rest:
■ $42,041 for the Police Department to purchase new equipment for eight Dodge Durangos the city bought in September. The contract was awarded to Public Safety Upfitters in Fenton, which submitted the lowest of two complete bids the equipment, including lighting and sirens, Wendel said.
A third company submitted a lower bid but was unable to supply several items required in the bid, he said.
Wendel estimated that the equipment would take “at least a month” to arrive.
■ $10,532 to purchase four new radar speed detection units from Stalker in Richardson, Texas, for the Police Department.
The radar units are used to enforce speed laws and will go in four of the new police vehicles the city bough, Wendel said.
He said the Police Department already uses Stalker radar units and wanted to stick with those, so it didn’t request bids for the equipment.
Wendel said he didn’t know when the radar units will arrive.
■ $8,340 to buy 10 striping packages from Southpaw Grafix in Potosi. The company submitted the lowest of two bids for the items. The striping package will be used on eight of the new police vehicles and two older ones, Wendel said.
He said Southpaw Grafix will come to the Festus Police Station to complete the striping work on the vehicles, adding that it will be at least a month before the work takes place.
■ $22,377.65 for five sets of turnout gear (firefighter uniforms and related equipment) for the Festus Fire Department. The city will buy the turnout gear from Sentinel Emergency Solutions in St. Louis through the Sourcewell bidding cooperative, Fire Chief Jeff Broombaugh said.
He said he’s not sure when the gear will arrive.
“We’ll have to get everybody measured for the sizes,” he said.
■ $13,582 for repairs to the Fire Department’s training tower near Larry G. Crites Memorial Park on the west side of town. The contract was awarded to WHP Training Towers in Grandview.
Broombaugh said the Fire Department purchased its training tower in 2006 from WHP Training Towers, so the company will have compatible parts necessary for the repairs.
He said he does not know when the work will take place.
■ $15,030.06 for a Polartek dual air-conditioning machine from Snap-On Industrial in Crystal Lake, Ill. No bids were sought because the city is buying the equipment through the Sourcewell bidding cooperative, said Matt Unrein, assistant city administrator and public works director.
City employees will use the equipment to work on air-conditioning systems in city vehicles, he said.
■ $23,980 to Schulte Supply in Edwardsville, Ill., to install EZ valves on two water lines each on Palliett and Garbarino streets. Schulte’s bid was the lowest of three, Vaughn said.
■ $7,548 to replace outdated gym equipment used by police and other staff members. The city will buy the equipment from Johnson Fitness & Wellness, which submitted the best bid, said Michelle Vaughn, the city finance director.
■ $5,083.66 to Core & Main in St. Louis to replace a portion of the water line on North Adams Street. The company submitted the second-lowest of three bids and was considered the best bid for the project, Vaughn said.
