Bids for New South Shore Ambulance Will Include Remount Ability

Bids for the new South Shore ambulance will include the ability to remount the box, department officials confirmed Thursday.

South Shore Fire Interim Chief Mark Pierce confirmed Thursday that requests for proposals went out to 14 vendors and are expected back to the department by May 6 for a new ambulance and two remount options.

"We made sure the RFP included instructions that remounting the box in the future had to be included," he said.

Fire/EMS Oversight Committee members are moving the regularly scheduled May meeting to May 13 to review the bids and make a recommendation that would move to the boards of both Mount Pleasant and Sturtevant during a special joint meeting later that same day.

"That would make the most sense to move this process along since it can take several months to take delivery of the new rescue unit," said Sturtevant Village Adminstrator Mary Cole.

Both villages approved their 2013 budgets with the ambulance purchase.

Normal procedure in Mount Pleasant would have a recommendation from the committee move to the village board where trustees would typically vote to move the purchase to the Finance/Legal/License Committee for another recommendation. Then, the matter would move back to the board for a final approval.

Committee member and Sturtevant Trustee John Johnson confirmed for members that since the purchase has already been budgeted for and approved there are no further steps needed in that village.

"We've already approved a new ambulance in our budget so there's nothing else to do," he said. "Now, if Mount Pleasant decides to go with a remount, then the Sturtevant board would have to review our options."

Mount Pleasant Interim Administrator Tim Zarzecki thinks the joint meeting is a good idea.

"This way, everyone hears the same information at the same time so we can move this forward," he said.

The Fire/EMS Oversight Committee next meets at 3:45 p.m. May 13 at Sturtevant Village Hall.