Staff recommends that the City Council adopt a resolution declaring as surplus Fire Engine 529 and authorizing its sale to the Alameda County Fire Department (ACFD) for training purposes.  Applicable equipment from Engine 529 will be transferred to Engine 531, which will be removed from service and placed in reserve at Fire Station No. 31 until new apparatuses are acquired.    

There is no specific alignment with the Strategic Plan.

Union City contracts with ACFD for fire protection services.  ACFD provides 24/7 staffing for all of the fire stations; the City is responsible for the fire station facilities and fire equipment, including all fire apparatuses (fire engines and trucks).  ACFD provides all maintenance and repair services for the fire apparatuses as part of the fire service contract. 

Staff works with ACFD to identify the future needs for fire equipment and apparatuses.  Two fire engines have exceeded their useful life – Engine 531 and Engine 529.   With the closure of Fire Station 30, the City is able to remove these two engines from service without any immediate impact to the Union City fleet of fire apparatus.  However, there are three more apparatuses that are at, or over, 20 years of service and will need to be addressed in the next few years.  These apparatuses include Engine 32, Engine 332, and Engine 333. Attachment 1 is a memo from ACFD that identifies the City’s needs for fire apparatuses and includes a list of the fleet with information about the age, mileage, and expected retirement of each unit.  The cost to replace the three apparatuses is expected to be approximately $2 million. These expenses have not been budgeted at this time.

Working with ACFD staff, fire apparatuses are evaluated for ongoing use. As part of the City’s vehicle and equipment replacement program, staff determined that the equipment listed below is no longer practical for daily, municipal use.  Both fire engines are over 20 years old and have high mileage.

Given the age and mileage of the fire engines, their continued utilization in the City’s fleet is not recommended.  Older equipment typically has higher maintenance costs and reliability issues. Union City Municipal Code Section 2.32.250 provides the means and method for disposal of surplus equipment. 

In consultation with ACFD, staff recommends that Fire Engine 529 be identified as surplus and sold to ACFD for their training program; ACFD would assume all responsibility for the engine.  Applicable fire equipment would be removed from Engine 529 and transferred to Engine 531 to be used as a reserve fire engine that would initially be stationed at Fire Station No. 31.  The estimate fair market value of Engine 529 is $5,000 - $7,000.  

Staff will facilitate a direct sale to ACFD consistent with Union City Municipal Code Section 2.32.250 which would be at market rate and support the training of ACFD staff who directly service Union City.

The proceeds from the sale of Engine 529 to ACFD will result in the amount of approximately $7,000 being deposited into the Garage Equipment Replacement Fund (Fund 6122), to be available for future vehicle and equipment replacements.  

There is no immediate need to replace Engine 529 or Engine 531.  However, there are three apparatuses that should be retired over the next three years.  Replacement costs for these apparatuses is approximately $2 million.  This cost is not part of the City’s current budget planning.

Staff recommends that the City Council adopt a resolution declaring Fire Engine 529 as surplus and authorizing its sale to the Alameda County Fire Department at market value for training purposes with proceeds to be deposited into the Garage Equipment Replacement Fund (Fund 6122). 

Applicable equipment from Engine 529 will be transferred to Engine 531, which will be removed from service and placed in reserve.