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By BARTON PERKINS | Staff Writer

PELHAM – The Pelham City Council approved the purchase of new police vehicles during its regularly scheduled meeting on Monday, Oct. 16.

The police vehicles are 10 SUV-style pursuit vehicles from Niagara Falls, NY. This purchase was discussed in depth during the city council’s work session, which took place immediately before their regularly scheduled meeting. The approved purchase tackles the growing need for more emergency vehicles and resources within the city.

The idea of “mutual aid” or sharing first-responder resources between Pelham and other cities in Shelby County was also discussed, but no final decisions were made in regard to a long-term program.

The bid for the ten police cars in Niagara Falls was passed unanimously and the vehicles should arrive in Pelham by the end of October. However, the new police vehicles are not expected to enter active service until mid-April, this delay is due in part to the vehicles having to undergo additional modifications to meet department standards, such as the installation of vehicle cameras owned by the department.

Another major piece of business discussed by the City Council was the rezoning of seven acres of land off Yeager Parkway from General Business District to Light Industrial District. Shield Properties LLC put forth the proposal, and the owner, Will Taylor, spoke on why he wishes for the property to be rezoned.

“We want to have some outdoor storage to put trailers for our equipment and also have some warehouse space to store stuff in the winter,” Taylor said.

Taylor went on to assure council members and the public that very little of the property would actually be used for storage purposes and that any changes he made would not be visible to other residents in the area. 

Although no residents spoke against the rezoning, the City Council decided to hold off on any final decisions regarding this potential rezoning until the next scheduled meeting on Monday, Nov. 6. 

The only other business discussed at the meeting was the consideration of declaring certain pieces of personal property belonging to the city of Pelham as being surplus and no longer needed for municipal purposes. This resolution was passed unanimously.

The next regularly scheduled City Council meeting will take place on Monday, Nov. 6 at 7 p.m.