BENTONVILLE -- The City Council decided to give three out-of-service police cars to three smaller police departments.
The council met Tuesday in the city's Community Development Building.
Council action
Bentonville’s City Council met Tuesday and:
• Updated the city’s schedule of fees
• Appointed Richard Ham to the Airport Advisory Board to fill the unexpired term of Brian Baldwin
• Authorized an agreement with Ecological Design Group for the design and construction observation for improvement at Bella Vista Lake Park
• Approved the addition of one administrative assistant for the Fire Inspections Division
Source: Staff report
The city council voted to approve declaring the vehicles as surplus be given to departments in Little Flock, West Fork and Dyer.
Little Flock Police Chief Jesse Martinez said he knew Bentonville's Police Department gives their older police cars to smaller agencies. Martinez said he contacted Police Chief Jon Simpson and asked about a vehicle.
Simpson said providing surplus vehicles to other departments is something his department has done for several years. Simpson said they have donated vehicles to local police agencies and to the Arkansas Law Enforcement Training Academy.
"The cars are often used to supplement fleets, provide vehicles for part-time officers, and serve as training aids," Simpson said. "Once deemed as surplus, the cars can be transferred to another police agency, or the academy with all the lights, sirens, and related equipment in place."
Martinez said the have a 2011 Dodge Charger which is used by a part-time officer. Martinez described the car as "a money pit" because they recently had to spend $9,000 on it.
Martinez said the vehicle they get from Bentonville will replace the Charger.
"We will use it and when it is time to dispose of it then we will make sure the police lights and other insignia are stripped from the car," Martinez said.
Martinez said it costs his department between $35,000 to $40,000 to purchase and outfit each of their vehicles.
"It's a tremendous help for us and smaller agencies," Martinez said. "It's not in our budget where we can purchase a brand new car."
Simpson said it makes sense to extend the service life of a car and equipment through another agency.
"The cars are still very serviceable for part-time or training use and should be very functional for the receiving agency, even though they may not meet our full-time demands," Simpson said.
Martinez said Bentonville giving the cars shows the cohesiveness of law enforcement in the area and also the generosity of the bigger departments.
NW News on 02/14/2018