BROOKVILLE — Council gave city manager Sonja Keaton permission to purchase a 2024 Ford F-350 pickup truck from Ricart Ford, located in Groveport, Ohio.

The cost of the 4×4 regular cab pickup for the city’s service department is $49,985.

“The 2024 budgeting includes a pickup truck at a cost of $65,000, so we are below our budgeted amount by almost $15,000,” Keaton noted.

Keaton said she opted to purchase the vehicle from Ricart because the dealership has a large selection of pickups on the lot.

“We’ve been pricing pickup trucks for several months and the truck at Ricart is actually below the state of Ohio pricing and since this truck is available and on the lot, we don’t have to wait for that truck to be built through the state of Ohio,” Keaton said.

Vice mayor James Zimmerlin asked if the vehicle needed any specialty equipment.

“We have it prepped for a snow plow, but the intent is not to put a snow plow on it unless it is necessary,” Keaton replied.

Keaton also said the new vehicle will not be equipped with a liftgate.

“What we are in the process of doing is converting our 2013 pickup truck into a liftgate truck, so we need to fill that spot with another pickup truck,” Keaton said.

Keaton noted a pickup truck with a liftgate is used to transport such equipment as mowers, which leads to dents and other damage to the body of the truck.

Keaton said she didn’t want to subject a new truck to that kind of damage.

Instead, Keaton said because the Ford F-350 has “a little more power under the hood,” it will be used for such tasks as towing the mini-excavator the city purchased last year.

Keaton said the 2013 pickup truck will be listed for sale on Govdeals.com, an online auction marketplace for government surplus items.

Council approved an ordinance accepting the annexation of 85.611 acres of land in Clay Township to the city.

The land is located on Upper Lewisburg-Salem Road.

‘The Montgomery County Commissioners approved the annexation on Oct. 31, 2023,” law director Rod Stephan said.

“Sixty days from the date of delivery of the record of annexation proceedings to the city clerk has now expired and city council can now act to accept the annexation,” Stephan continued.

Stephan noted last October the property is located adjacent to the property on Upper Lewisburg-Salem Road that was recently annexed to the city

That recently annexed land consisted of 58 acres located at the corner of Upper Lewisburg-Salem and Brookville-Phillipsburg roads.

“Do we have any citizen comments, emails, telephone calls or concerns on this annexation?” councilmember J.D. Fowler asked.

“I have not received any citizen comments on this annexation,” Stephan replied.

Council had approved on Oct. 3, 2023, three resolutions dealing with the proposed annexation.

One of the resolutions requires that the city will provide police, fire and emergency services to the area on a 24-hour basis.

The resolution also states the city “agrees to provide street maintenance, waste collection, water, sanitary sewer and any such other necessary public improvements as street and road improvements, sidewalks and curbs, storm sewer improvements, street lighting and any other public improvements.”

A second resolution requires a state-required buffer established by the owner of the annexed territory if the city approves zoning for the annexed area that is determined “clearly incompatible with the uses permitted under current county or township zoning regulations in the adjacent land remaining within the township from which the territory was annexed.”

The resolution states a buffer shall include:

• open space

• landscaping

• fences

• walls and other structured elements

• streets

• street right-of-ways

• bicycle and pedestrian paths

• sidewalks

The third resolution was the city’s consent to annex the territory.

Stephan also noted on Oct. 3, 2023, that even though the land will be annexed to Brookville, Clay Township will continue to receive taxes from the property.

“That includes any property taxes generated by development on the property,” Stephan said.

Reach Terry Baver at [email protected].