Supporters describe a decision this week by the Pike County Economic Development District board of directors to purchase an SUV through state contract at an out-of-town dealership as a matter of getting the best value for the money.
Those who dissented in the 6-4 vote at the Tuesday meeting say the board should have bought the vehicle from a local dealership.
The board directed economic development executive director Britt Herrin to buy a 2011 Nissan Pathfinder from Estabrook Motors of Pascagoula through a state purchasing contract for $20,335. The SUV will replace the district’s 10-year-old Ford Expedition, which has nearly 250,000 miles on it.
The SUV will be used to give business and industry prospects tours of the county, and Herrin said the Pathfinder’s ground clearance will allow him to take prospects to undeveloped sites in the Metro-Pike Industrial Park.
Herrin said he has not bought the car, pending approval of the board minutes, which will be on the agenda when the board is expected to meet in the next two weeks.
The board’s decision came after reviewing proposals from local dealers Howell Motors Inc. and Rainbow Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep.
Since the economic development district is funded by the county, it is subject to state bid laws, which allow the organization to purchase items off the state contract, Herrin said. Because the price of the vehicle was less than $50,000, Herrin said he could seek requests for proposals for a new SUV from competing dealerships.
He said he sent a request for proposals for a large SUV to area dealers, but only Howell and Rainbow replied. Both dealers’ proposals exceeded the $25,000 budget for a new vehicle, he said.
“We revised the request to seek proposals on a mid-size SUV or a used SUV that had warranty coverage, something like a program car,” Herrin said.
He said Howell submitted three proposals — a 2010 Pathfinder for $25,195, a 2006 program Pathfinder with 22,000 miles for $18,515 and a 2010 GMC Yukon, which Herrin said exceeded $25,000.
Rainbow proposed a 2011 Dodge Durango SUV, which was more than the $25,000 budget, or a program 2010 Dodge Journey — a midsize SUV — for $17,500 plus the title fee, Herrin said.
“The board checked with state purchasing, which has the 2011 Pathfinder for $20,335 available from Estabrook,” Herrin said.
Board members Betsy Murrell and Jerry Malone, who opposed buying from Estabrook, said they supported buying the vehicle locally.
“From my point of view, the question was where to purchase it — whether to stay local or go with the state contract,” Malone said. “We had an option to purchase a new vehicle for less than $21,000 and another option to purchase a slightly used vehicle with some mileage for a few thousand (dollars) less (than the new vehicle).
“It was a matter of opinion,” he said. “Either way, we were being good stewards of the taxpayers’ money. I felt we should have stayed local.”
Board member James Wicker, who supported the state contract purchase, said he would have preferred to go through a local dealer, “but the difference (in price) was about 25 percent (between the 2011 and 2010 Pathfinders).
“We also have to consider the taxpayers,” he said. “These are taxpayer dollars being spent. If the difference in price (between the new vehicles) were $500 to $1,000, we would consider a local dealer. But there was so much difference in the values, that there wasn’t anything close. If a local dealer came closer to state price, I would reconsider.”
Wicker added that the decision to buy the Pathfinder off state contract “would have been a lot better if the dealer were closer to the area.”
Herrin agreed that the board would like to buy locally, “but we have to be good stewards of the public’s money, and buying from the state contract would be in the best interest of the taxpayers’ money.”
Herrin said any local proposal on a vehicle does not have to match the state contract price, but should be below the budget for the car.
The board is composed of 14 members and will be reduced to 11 in January as part of a reorganization approved by the Pike County Board of Supervisors.
Eleven members attended the meeting when the purchase was authorized.
Henry Myers and Joni Wilkinson, two board members who attended the meeting, refused to say how they voted on the issue. Board member Jim Hedges said he did not attend the meeting.
Neither board president James Brumfield nor Herrin could recall who else attended the meeting. Brumfield said he did not vote on the Pathfinder because there was not a tie vote on the issue.
Attempts to reach board members Todd Carlisle, Bill Garner, Dr. Thomas Jeffcoat, Jackie Martin, James Morris Sr., Obydee Nunnery and Paul Singleton were unsuccessful.
Brumfield and Herrin referred questions about the vote and who attended the meeting to the board minutes, which were not ready at presstime.
The board is expected to approve the minutes, which lists who attended the meeting and how they voted on the purchase, at its next meeting, which is expected to be on Dec. 14.
