Excerpts from the ChicagoTribune.com:
The Franklin Park village board approved the purchase of two police SUVs at its meeting Oct. 15 and earlier in the month cleared the fire chief to apply for a state loan to buy a new ambulance.
The $157,000 loan would cover the cost of an ambulance and account for a trade-in of the ambulance currently costing the village the most in maintenance. The state fire marshal’s office isn’t scheduled to potentially approve the loan until June 2019. If granted, it would be a five-year loan with 1.84-percent interest. The village board approved the loan application during the consent agenda vote at its Oct. 1 meeting.
Franklin Park has three ambulances. They include a former demonstrator and a vehicle that was once used as a movie prop, both purchased around 2011, as well as a newer vehicle bought several years later. If the village receives the loan, it will trade in the demonstrator.
The fire department’s goal is to replace an ambulance every five years, giving each vehicle a 15-year lifespan as the department is on pace to increase call volume by about 6 percent in 2018.
