Blackshear will get new wheels under a vehicle leasing agreement with Enterprise Fleet Management.
The Blackshear City Council unanimously approved a resolution at their April 14 council meeting to enter into a vehicle leasing agreement with Enterprise Fleet Management.
Enterprise presented a proposed vehicle acquisition plan to the city which includes the purchase and financing of three (3) 2026 Ford Police Interceptor Utility vehicles for an estimated annual cost of $34,044.48.
This agreement serves as a test run for leasing vehicles from Enterprise rather than purchasing them outright. For now, the program would be confined to police vehicles. Blackshear Police Department (BPD) Chief Chris Wright said there is currently no plan to lease other city worker vehicles, such as trucks for public works, but explained some of the potential advantages of the new program.
“They have better availability of vehicles and we can get them exactly the way we need them,” says Wright. “Also we no longer have to surplus out older vehicles and sell them on the GovDeals website. Enterprise handles reselling the vehicles when we are done with them.”
The lease arrangement comes with a dedicated account manager from Enterprise who can monitor the years and mileage of vehicles currently in the city’s possession and warn of any impending issues found in same year and model vehicles owned by Enterprise. If the leased vehicles are noted to develop a certain defect or problem after a specific number of miles, Enterprise will notify the city so the vehicles can be traded out before they require repairs or are sidelined for weeks waiting on parts.
Wright also pointed out that the city would maintain equity in any vehicles leased, allowing them to be replaced sooner.
“In a worst case scenario we break even,” says Wright. “Best case, we save time and money.”
