Members of the Wellington City Council met with Police Chief Rory Bradley and Fire Chief Matt Perea during their work meeting on Wednesday for updates. Chief Perea stated that he received a new quote of the fire truck they are attempting to purchase and the price went from $482,000 to $505,000.
This rise in price was due to the cost of materials as well as the fact that the quote was over a year old. The process of attempting to obtain the money will cause the cost to go up each year. Chief Perea also stated that there are legal fees of $20,000 for a bond attorney, who is going to attend the April 2 budget meeting with the Community Impact Board with him. Chief Perea proposed to tack the $20,000 onto the grant side, which will make it a lopsided grant rather than 50/50.
The numbers were discussed by the council and Perea, who stated that there is money coming from the USDA. While the purchasing of the truck is a tedious process, he assured all present that he would make it happen.
The council then turned their focus to the upcoming annual Pioneer Days celebration. The first committee meeting is slated to be hosted March 19 and Bradley expressed his wish to have citizens attend in order to determine who wishes to be involved. He also stated that the Countdown Band truly enjoys the area and wishes to return to perform once more. This year, Pioneer Day, celebrated in Utah on July 24, will fall on the Friday of the celebrations.
Due to this, Chief Bradley and the council discussed the possibility of lighting fireworks during the celebration. The concern of doing it on city property versus private property, as well as who would light the fireworks, was voiced. No decision was finalized due to Chief Perea needing to discuss options with the fire marshal beforehand.