ARTICLE FROM THE DAILY SLEEPY HOLLOW
BY MEREDITH SHAMBURGER

SLEEPY HOLLOW, N.Y. – A new fire truck is on its way to Sleepy Hollow.

The Sleepy Hollow Board of Trustees unanimously awarded a $629,438 bid to Pierce Manufacturing Inc. for a new pumper fire apparatus on Tuesday night.

"The public should know that this decision was not made by the board overnight," Fire Chief John Korzelius said. "We've been going back and forth with Dave and Tommy and Karin on the public safety committee for six, eight months. So it wasn't just something that was handed to us. We also had to prove a need for everything we did."

The Sleepy Hollow Fire Department requested the village look at buying a new pumper apparatus in August 2011. The pumper pumps water and is used in car accidents. Members of the fire department's truck committee working with consultants hired by the village worked out specifications for a new truck for several months.

Korzelius noted that firefighters spent hundreds and hundreds of hours on researching fire trucks and the manufacturing process. The process, he said, really began two years ago.

"We just didn't walk into a lot and pick a pretty colored truck," Korzelius said. "We had to prove our case."

The village received three bids on the project. Pierce Manufacturing's bid was the highest, but village officials noted in their resolution to award the bid that "it was determined that the bid submitted by Pierce Manufacturing Inc. by Firematic Supply Co. Inc. was the only bidder meeting the specifications required by the village."

Rosenbauer LLC of Wyoming, Minn. submitted a bid of $596,930. Crimson Fire Inc. of Brandon, S.D. submitted a bid of $519,783.

Village officials noted some examples where Rosenbauer and Crimson Fire did not meet specifications for the bid, such as not providing the required alternator and instead suggesting another amp alternator that was not "an acceptable alternative."

Both companies also proposed including a compression braking system instead of the requested auxiliary braking system. Officials further noted that both companies' bids did not meet requirements on emergency lighting, headlights, air bags and the auxiliary fuel pump.

Village officials noted that Rosenbauer and Crimson Fire both suggested a larger engine than was requested, which "would lead to adverse consequences for other critical components of the apparatus."

Columbia Hose Company No. 3 Captain Carlos Romero read a letter to the village board on behalf of village firefighters stating "We understand that decisions made on this magnitude of expenditure are challenging during difficult fiscal times like now."

"This apparatus will not only enhance our ability to protect life and property, it will also enhance our own safety by employing modern safety features not found on present or previous years," Romero read.