Rochester police seek $34K to replace totaled cruiser

Dec. 13--ROCHESTER -- The Police Department is asking the City Council to bypass the city's bid requirements and appropriate funding to replace a frontline cruiser that was totaled during a crash on Veterans Day.

A 2017 Ford Police Interceptor SUV, driven by Lt. Anthony Bossi, 42, collided with an oncoming civilian vehicle at the intersection of Columbus Avenue and Portland Street while the officer tried to respond to a high-priority call in Gonic around 10:42 a.m. Nov. 11, according to Rochester police.

State Police have determined the civilian vehicle caused the crash because it failed to yield to the cruiser, which had its lights and sirens on. The driver, Shirley Lacoss, 77, of East Rochester, was issued a warning for failing to yield, State Police said.

Rochester Police Chief Paul Toussaint appeared before City Council's Finance Committee Tuesday night to request a supplemental appropriation of $33,906.60 to immediately replace the cruiser while insurance processes are still pending.

Toussaint said the department is "hurting" without the vehicle. The department is now down to eight frontline cruisers, which he said is challenging because nine proved to be insufficient before the crash.

Ordinarily, police vehicles are replaced through the department's scheduled replacement plan, which is funded through the city's capital improvement project budget.

The purchase price for the vehicles is approved through a bid process. However, Toussaint said, the department needs to skip going out to bid because Ford has stopped production on the vehicles until next year while it "retools" the line's offerings.

Toussaint said that means Rochester is limited to whatever inventory is currently on dealership lots.

"Going out to bid would be pointless at this point," he said.

The closest the department could come to a direct replacement, according to Toussaint, is a leftover 2018 Police Interceptor model at a Ford dealership in Massachusetts. The vehicle's purchase price is $30,498.60, not including the cost to letter and light the vehicle for Rochester's use.

That base price is roughly $1,500 above the $29,053 cruiser bid the department received earlier this year, according to documentation Deputy Police Chief Gary Boudreau submitted to the Finance Committee ahead of Tuesday's meeting.

The Finance Committee voted unanimously Tuesday night to recommend the full City Council approve a $33,906.60 supplemental appropriation to replace the totaled cruiser. The council will hold a special meeting before the start of its workshop next Tuesday, Dec. 18, to vote on the expenditure.

"I think it sounds pretty reasonable," said City Councilor and Finance Committee member Elaine Lauterborn.

Finance Committee members and City Manager Blaine Cox said they recommend City Council use money in Rochester's undesignated fund balance to purchase the replacement cruiser.

The Finance Committee also recommended those surplus funds be replenished using whatever Primex, the city's insurer, pays out for the totaled cruiser. According to Boudreau, Primex hasn't yet indicated an amount for the depreciated value of the vehicle.

RPD call logs indicate one patient was transported to Frisbie Memorial Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries following the Nov. 11 cruiser crash.

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