The Demorest City Council held its regular monthly meeting Tuesday night, and among cease and desist letters, downtown development authority legalities, calls for order and SPLOST funds, the Council delayed the purchase of a new fire truck with no planned date to revisit the purchase.
After months of tabling the purchase of a new firetruck for the city, the Demorest City Council has delayed the purchase of a new firetruck with SPLOST funds for at least another six months. Councilmen John Hendrix and Nathan Davis voted to delay the purchase with Councilman Shawn Allen in opposition. The motion failed for a two-to-one vote. Allen did not make a motion to approve the purchase of the new truck. Councilman Jim Welborn abstained from voting.
The City of Demorest’s public safety SPLOST passed with overwhelming support this November, which allocated $580,000 dollars of SPLOST funds to purchase a new truck. However, the truck the city needs sits at about $650,000, which members of the council have been hesitant towards. The Demorest Fire Department currently uses a 25-year-old fire engine has been out of service for two weeks.
Hendrix continued to explain that he was concerned about the expenditures of the retaining wall on Central Avenue. When Mayor Rick Austin reminded him that the Georgia Department of Transportation will cover the cost of the repairs to the wall, which Hendrix expressed his belief that the city may need “a nicer wall.”
Hendrix believes that in six months, the city will have “cash in hand” to purchase the truck. The price of the truck is set to go up over the course of those six months. At this point, the city would not pay for the firetruck the first year.
