Many of Wrightsville Beach’s emergency vehicles spend some time on the beach strand, which shortens their lifespan with rusting and corrosion. Deciding which of those vehicles are in most need of replacement was addressed during Wrightsville Beach’s April 12 budget workshop.
The town’s projected annual revenue is $15 million and for the next month leaders and staff will work to cut the 2016-17 fiscal year budget down to complement that amount. Much of that process is prioritizing what must be purchased this year and what can wait.
This year, the town faces several mandatory purchases, like replacing portable radios across all departments. That will cost the town $20,000 for the police department, $20,000 for the fire department and $5,000 for the ocean rescue division.
It must be done, though, because the technology is outdated, town manager Tim Owens said.
“Every few years, new technology comes out, and we have to get on board with it or they no longer maintain those radios,” he said.
Town leaders did prioritize replacing several emergency vehicles in the police department over a nearly $100,000 front-end loader in the sanitation division. Emergency vehicles that are driven on the beach strand “are literally rusting from the bottom up,” police chief Dan House said.
Owens recommended the town develop a system of replacing two police vehicles a year. Replacing vehicles frequently actually saves the town money, House said, because maintenance costs are lower. He estimated the town would save as much as $1 million in 10 years by replacing the vehicles more frequently.
email [email protected]
