FARMINGTON — Selectmen voted 3-2 Thursday night to shop for a new tandem-axle plow truck with a sander dump body.

It would replace a 2002 Sterling that burned in February.

The vote came after Public Works Director Denis Castonguay reported a new negotiated price for a used truck, which had been discussed at the April 10 meeting.

He said the truck was $45,000, and with a new dump body, the total was $70,250. It could be paid for with the $16,500 insurance payment for the burned truck and $53,750 from the Public Works equipment reserve account, he said.

The 2005 model has 35,000 miles and could plow snow and do other roadwork the rest of the year. He and mechanic Greg Soule thought it would serve the town for 10 or more years, he said.

The lack of a warranty on it concerned some selectmen.

“No warranty — that’s an instant red flag,” Selectman Ryan Morgan said. He agreed with Selectman Andrew Hufnagel that spending more for a vehicle likely to last 20 years was better than spending $70,000 on a used one that would last 10 years. 

While not opposed to a new vehicle, Castonguay reminded selectmen of problems several area towns have had with the computerized emission systems in late-model trucks. Some have stopped in the road during snowstorms, he said.

Selectman Dennis Pike supported buying the used truck. Selectman Jessica Berry did also, saying buying new would throw a wrench in the department’s equipment purchase plan. 

“The burned vehicle, a 2002 Sterling, was expected to last 20 years. The fire already threw a wrench in the plan,” Morgan said.

The motion to buy the truck failed in a 2-2 tie vote, with Chairman Stephan Bunker abstaining.

A motion to seek bids on a new truck, perhaps a holdover from 2011 or one with all-wheel drive, passed 3-2, with Morgan, Hufnagel and Bunker in favor; Pike and Berry were opposed.

A holdover truck could arrive in October; a specially manufactured one could take until December, Castonguay said.

abryant@sunjournal.com

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