Carroll Council Debates Benefits And Costs Of New Recumbent Bikes For Rec Center

Bids received for the purchase of three recumbent bikes with interactive displays for the Carroll Rec Center resulted in nearly 25 minutes of debate at the latest Carroll City Council meeting. Three companies submitted six different bids for bikes, providing a broad range of options for consideration. Parks and Rec Director, Jack Wardell, said their recommendation was to take the lowest bid on the higher priced True C900 option from Foremost Fitness Group of High Ridge, Mo. Recreation Superintendent, Joel Cortum, detailed the major differences between the True C400 and C900, which are both commercial bicycles.

Wardell says they don’t have many maintenance troubles on the bikes. There was a $900 difference with the more expensive model having a three year warranty on labor and parts. The lower priced model had five years on parts and two years on labor. The potential for additional charges on repairs, however, was a concern for LaVern Dirkx, especially when dealing with a company outside of the state.

Wardell says those costs are not an issue if the bike is still under warranty. But once that warranty is up, the city will be responsible for travel along with repair and parts costs. Generally, these companies will try to schedule other jobs in the area to offset those; but it could put a piece of equipment out of commission for a longer period of time while waiting for repairs. Carolyn Siemann echoed the same concerns and a discussion ensued about whether or not they had to accept the lowest bid. In this case, the bid included language that the council could reject the lowest bid for other factors. A motion was made by Jerry Fleshner for the purchase of the three bikes recommended by Rec Center staff, the True C900 at $10,350 each. That motion died for lack of a second. Another motion was made by Clay Haley for the True C400 bikes at $9,450 each. This passed on a vote of four in favor and two, Dirkx and Siemann, against.