City officials on Friday afternoon released a series of documents related to the Bloomington Police Department’s purchase of an armored vehicle for its Critical Incident Response Team, including price quotes, invoices, vehicle specifications and training protocols.
The documents and the city’s new webpage where they can be found were made available ahead of meetings next week at City Hall on the controversial vehicle. The goal of the meetings is for officials to take public comment and provide information about the purchase of the armored vehicle.
While the money has been spent and the vehicle is on order from the manufacturer, all aspects of the truck and police policy related to it are open to review and discussion, Mayor John Hamilton said Friday evening. “It’s important to discuss its merits,” he said.
Hamilton said he will announce a decision about the armored vehicle by the end of March.
Among the documents released Friday are two different drafts of an executive report detailing the police department’s history with armored vehicles, financials for the Lenco BearCat and a timeline of requests for its purchase.
A purchase order from the City of Bloomington Controller’s Office to Lenco Industries in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, is dated June 28, 2017.
The Lenco BearCat G2 carries a price tag of $225,157 and cost the city $11,850.37 less than Lenco’s commercial prices, according to a price quote dated a few months earlier in March 2, 2017.