Officials from the Lumberton Board of Aldermen are expected to soon decide on the purchase of a new patrol car for Adrien Fortenberry, who serves as chief of police for the Lumberton Police Department.
The matter was discussed at the March 12 aldermen meeting, where Fortenberry said he had explored the option of purchasing a new Dodge Charger, but discovered that vehicle is no longer available via state bid. Therefore, board members will revisit the matter at the next meeting, which is scheduled for April 2.
“(The chief) had to go back and get some more information, so nothing was done on it (at the last meeting),” Ward 1 Alderman Kent Crider said. “It’ll be brought up at the first meeting, the first of next month.”
Crider said the city currently has three or four police vehicles on recall because of transmission issues, but officials are unable to bring those in for repair because of the lack of vehicles on the police force.
“We can’t bring them in for three or four weeks because we don’t have enough cars,” he said. “We’ve got five, including the chief’s.
“We’ve got four there at the station, and the chief has one (of his own).”
Crider said the cost of a new vehicle is in the range of $37,000 or so.
“(Fortenberry) bought one last year – the (Dodge) Durango that he’s driving now,” Crider said. “He bought it last year.
“The one that listed on state bid was in Memphis, and our (certified public accountant) recommended to check with some of the local dealers to see if they could match it.
“It’s always better to do a deal with a local dealership because you can get better service. So that’s why we’re going to make the decision next month, because we need to get some bids from local dealers.”
