Lathrop spending $500K plus to buy heavy equipment

The City of Lathrop is going to spend more than $500,000 on new construction equipment to keep up with the demands of growth.

On Monday, the Lathrop City Council approved a consent calendar item that authorized the purchase of seven new pieces of heavy equipment that will help Lathrop meet the needs of the growing city – from conducting repairs to routine maintenance.

According to the staff report, the city will pay $522,102 for equipment that includes a $111,224 dump truck, a $120,581 Caterpillar skid-steer tractor, a $109,296 Case skip loader, an $87,196 Caterpillar mini-excavator.

The city will also purchase a vibratory roller, an asphalt grinder, and a compaction wheel – for approximately $95,000.

Funding for the purchase was approved in the biannual budget, and the city sought bids from multiple vendors for multiple pieces of equipment and will end up using Holt of California for the skid-steer, compaction wheel, asphalt grinder, and mini-excavator, Sonsray for the vibratory roller and skip loader, and Big Valley Ford for the dump truck.

Two of the pieces of equipment – the skid-steer loader and the dump truck – will be used to replace aging equipment that is near the end of its lifecycle, while the addition of the mini-excavator, roller, and skip loader will allow the city to perform additional roadway and utility repairs, according to the staff report.

While the purchase price represents a sizable investment for the city, staff believes that investing in the equipment now will prevent more costly repairs down the road by allowing for more intensive maintenance on costly items like roadways and utility systems.

With River Islands, Stanford Crossing, and Mossdale Landing adding new residents to the city and industrial development moving at a breakneck pace, the number of Lathrop’s streets is expanding – as are the number of vehicles and trucks that are using those roadways.

To view the bids that were submitted by the authorized vendors or other items that were on the agenda for the Lathrop Council, visit the City of Lathrop’s website at www.ci.lathrop.ca.us.

To contact Bulletin reporter Jason Campbell email [email protected] or call 209.249.3544.