MOUNT VERNON — Concern about who approves future lease agreements for police vehicles caused city council members to delay a third-reading vote on a program with Enterprise Fleet Management.
The measure shifts its public works, engineering and public utilities vehicles, and possibly administrative vehicles in the fire department, from a traditional purchase model to a leasing arrangement with Enterprise.
Fire trucks, ambulances and police cruisers are not included under the current proposal.
However, Enterprise has programs specifically for police vehicles the city could consider.
Enterprise handles each leased vehicle individually. The city can choose at any point to purchase a vehicle outright and take full title and equity in it.
Brett Yutzy of Enterprise Fleet Management said leasing helps with cash flow, reduces maintenance costs, ensures a healthier fleet and provides savings over the 10-year period.
The bill’s language does not prevent the administration from adding cruisers or other emergency vehicles without bringing it back to council for a vote.
Councilman Dale Miller said he remained concerned about bringing in what he called a “for-profit” middleman for a function the city currently handles itself, saying he has not yet seen clear evidence of cost savings.
Council agreed to revise the bill’s language and schedule another committee session before voting at the Sept. 28 meeting.
Council approves adding additional firefighters
Council approved hiring three additional firefighters. The ordinance also establishes the community risk reduction inspector as a separate position.
In July 2025, council approved hiring an additional firefighter to be the CCRI, bringing the total number of firefighters to 34.
CCRI Ross Wind will now move from the firefighter ranks to the inspector position, reducing the firefighter ranks to 33. Monday’s ordinance enables the city to hire three firefighters, one per shift, bringing the total to 36.
“This is part of our strategic plan that we’re going to incrementally increase our staffing for preparations of our East Side station, or Station 3. We wanted to get our staff trained up by the time that Station 3 opens up; that way there’s no gap in coverage of our trained personnel,” Assistant Fire Chief Nate Hines said at council’s Aug. 24 meeting.
“We actually budgeted and appropriated funds for this, but we were watching the revenue streams for an appropriate time to come to council with this.”
Councilman John Ruckman said in August the plan is to bring staff online gradually.
“This is allowing us to absorb that much more easily than it would be to wait until the last minute to try and bring a bunch of people on board,” he said.
Annexation request triggers a timeline
Council members suspended the rules and approved the Knox County Board of Commissioners’ request to annex a 1.59-acre parcel into the city.
It is surrounded by parcels already in the city.
Law Director Rob Broeren said the request triggered a 20-day timeline for the city to specify what services it will provide to the parcel if it comes into the city.
The parcel already receives city water and wastewater services because of its location. It also receives fire services through the city’s contract with Monroe Township.
“So in reality, the only thing that we’re doing is adding the police services,” Broeren said.
The request now goes to the county commissioners for approval. Once the commissioners approve it, the request comes back to city council.
“At that point, the council will make the decision whether or not we actually want to bring this into the city,” Broeren said.
City council members will give the legislation three readings and hold a public hearing before deciding.
The annexation is a Type 2 annexation, meaning property tax stays in the township and the municipality receives income tax.
Because the county is tax exempt, it does not pay property tax.
Supplemental appropriations include funds to finish lime hauling
Council members approved supplemental appropriations and fund transfers. Measures include:
• Capital improvement fund: $70,000 in unappropriated funds, a state grant reimbursement of $60,309, and $8,050 from the sale of city assets.
• Stormwater fund: $60,000 in unappropriated funds for the Norton Street project, $6,000 for materials and $6,000 for repairs.
• Excess funds: releases $340,536.24 tied up in closed-out purchase orders from 2025.
• Water fund: $200,000 in unappropriated funds to complete lime-hauling work.
• Water and wastewater funds: $79,010 unappropriated funds tied to change orders on the Burgess and Hamtramck project.
Other legislative action
Other legislative actions council took on Monday include:
• Appointing Maxwell Leaning as alternate to the Civil Service Commission.
• Approving a lease for Holistically Yourz LLC at 46 Public Square.
• Approved disposing of police vehicles no longer needed.
• Allowing a contract with Fleet Safety to expire and instituting a 12-month moratorium on automated license plate reader technology.
• Gave a first reading to legislation establishing the number of personnel in public works and repealing Chapter 511 of city code.
• Gave a second reading to legislation amending Chapter 1305 of city code.
Council adopted on third reading a tax increment financing (TIF) district for the Arista Villas subdivision on Vernonview Drive. Council members removed the emergency clause from the legislation at their Aug. 10 meeting.
Mount Vernon City Schools and the Knox County Career Center will still receive the amount they would have received had the TIF not been enacted.
Councilman Taylor Jacklin said he contacted the county organizations that would lose money under the TIF, primarily the Veterans Service Organization.
He said VSO officials said the TIF will not affect their current budget. However, they expressed concerns if the city continues creating TIFs.
Mayor Matt Star said city officials like the economic tool because they do not want to repeat the pattern of the general fund absorbing the cost of new growth.
However, he noted each proposal is different and other options are available.
