Steps were taken by Knox City Council members this week to finalize financial arrangements related to a pumper truck that will be purchased for the Knox-Center Township Fire Department.
An appropriation hearing was held and two ordinances were considered on final readings when members met on Tuesday.
These steps were necessary so that when officials are ready to make a payment for the truck, the General Obligation bonds that are being used to finance the purchase will be sold and then the money can be appropriated to pay the fire truck company.
In March, Board of Public Works members accepted a bid from the fire apparatus manufacturer Toyne, Inc. They submitted a base bid of approximately $579,334 and also included a pre-pay option that would result in a discounted price.
During Tuesday’s hearing, the City’s Umbaugh representative John Julien commented that financial advisors are currently weighing the available options to see if it would be worth it to sell the bonds earlier than previously planned.
Julien stated, “We’re in the process of calculating whether it’s worth taking the discount and selling the bonds early because when you sell the bonds you start paying interest on the bonds so we don’t want to pay more interest than what we would get from the discount.”
Julien noted that rising interest rates will play a factor in what is ultimately decided. He said that within the next week, they should reach a decision and bring a recommendation to the council about whether or not to take advantage of the pre-pay option.
After the hearing, members unanimously voted to accept an ordinance authorizing the sale of the G.O. bonds for the vehicle purchase as well as an ordinance that would appropriate the bond funds when the time comes to pay Toyne, Inc.
