JAY — Selectmen voted Monday to buy a Ford F-550 dump truck instead of a new 10-wheel dump truck. The board plans to put the existing 2001 out to bid unless it gets a good trade-in value.

The decision came after two meetings, much discussion and two votes.

Selectmen opted in May to have town mechanics make a parts’ list and the costs associated with them to fix the 2001 truck.

The board was trying to determine if the truck should be repaired or if the town should buy a new one at the cost of about $190,000.

Highway foreman John Johnson said the cost to fix the existing truck would be $19,000 and the trade-in value was estimated at $20,000.

There is $440,000 in a reserve account for equipment purchases. Town trucks used to be traded in every eight years, but the time period has expanded to 10 or 11. More equipment needs to be replaced in coming years, Johnson said.

Board Vice Chairman Warren Bryant and Chairman Steve McCourt initially voted against downsizing to the Ford F-550, while Selectmen Tom Goding and Tim DeMillo voted in favor of it Monday.

Discussion was held on whether to spend more money on the truck that had plowed 10 winters and continuously broke down, spend nearly $200,000 on a new one or downsize to a truck that would cost an estimated $75,000 with plow equipment. The board was also faced with buying two trucks next year.

The town crew was split on downsizing. Johnson said the smaller truck could be used on a different plow route in the Riley Road area and could travel back and forth to the highway garage to get salt and sand.

If they found out the F-550 truck didn’t work, Goding said, they could then consider buying a new wheeler. There is an F-550 in the fleet that is also nearing replacement time, he said.

Bryant eventually made a motion to buy the F-550, and the vote was unanimously approved.

Bryant said it was against his better judgment. McCourt said he’d rather spend $75,000 than $200,000. Goding and DeMillo said they didn’t want to spend more money on an older truck.

DeMillo said the lesser of the three evils was to downsize.

Goding said it wasn’t an easy decision, but he didn’t like the idea of having to buy two trucks next year. He added that the resale value of the smaller truck would be better than a bigger truck in the shape of the town’s truck.

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