Council upgrades CCPD’s request for patrol vessel
City Council had an answer to the Cape Coral Police Department’s request for a new patrol enforcement vessel: You’re gonna need a bigger boat.
The consent agenda item was pulled by Mayor John Gunter as the recommended Silver Ship AM700 patrol enforcement vessel from Silver Ships, Inc., which was 23-feet in length, was somewhat of a concern for him. He said the difference in responding to a call is comparing a “Volkswagen to a full-size SUV.”
Gunter said there is a difference of $23,213 between the two boats. He said when you look at the impact of the size of the vessels, the $23,000 is dollars well spent to go to the 27-foot boat based on the information provided by the vendor.
Council unanimously approved an amendment to the resolution from the AM700 to AM800 patrol enforcement vessel, with a not to exceed amount changing to $325,000.
Before the vote was taken, Councilmember Dr. Derrick Donnell asked why the larger boat was not proposed by the CCPD.
Police Chief Anthony Sizemore said it was due to fiscal prudence, as it is not the only item he is buying.
“I can’t spend it all on one vessel,” he said. “Ultimately, we would like the biggest and the best. I have a lot of chips to a lot of tables.”
Sizemore said there are two different funding components for the vessel. He said they have been a recipient of a grant for almost 20 years, which historically goes towards staff hours for the marine unit. Due to their past performance, the grant can go towards funding capital for the vessel.
“We are trying not to exceed that,” he said, adding that anything that exceeds that amount will come out of the State Forfeiture Funds, which is a renewable resource.