Hot Springs Board Approves $541K in Solid Waste Equipment, Authorizes Two Police Wellness and Crime Grants

The Board approved a $156,962.11 truck purchase and a $383,721 trailer purchase for the Solid Waste Department, and authorized applications for two federal police grants totaling up to $230,000 if awarded — one for officer mental health and one for violent crime reduction.

Hot Springs Board of Directors Agenda Meeting Agenda Meeting June 10, 2025 Confidence: Medium Independent — not affiliated with the City of Hot Springs

Published: May 17, 2026 · Last updated: May 17, 2026

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The short version

The Board approved buying a Mack day cab tractor for $156,962.11 through cooperative purchasing to replace an aging Freightliner used to haul garbage to the landfill.
The Board awarded a $383,721 bid to Specter Manufacturing Inc. for three aluminum transfer trailers — also used to haul garbage — replacing units roughly ten years old.
Both solid waste equipment purchases came in under their budgeted amounts.
The Board authorized the Hot Springs Police Department to apply for a federal grant of up to $200,000 for officer mental health and wellness programs; the department applied in 2024 but was not awarded funding.
A second police grant application — for the Project Safe Neighborhoods Program, which funds overtime and equipment for violent crime and drug enforcement — was discussed but the available record does not show a final vote.

By the numbers

Total identified spending

$740,683

Votes taken

includes procedural votes

Unanimous votes

Largest single item

$383,721

Purchase of Three Transfer Trailers

Emergency / ratification items

Resident questions unanswered

Money approved

Item	Amount	Vendor	Vote	Source
Purchase of Day Cab Tractor	$156,962	Tri-State Truck Center	Passed	`item:2`
Purchase of Three Transfer Trailers	$383,721	Specter Manufacturing Inc.	Passed	`item:3`
Law Enforcement Mental Health and Wellness Act Grant	$200,000	U.S. Department of Justice / COPS Office	Passed	`item:4`
Total identified spending	$740,683

Major decisions

Purchase of Day Cab Tractor (R-25-114)

Item: Bid award — approved purchase of a Mack day cab tractor for $156,962.11 through a cooperative purchasing agreement via Sourcewell.
Vote: Passed
Cost: $156,962.11 — approximately $36,000 under the budgeted amount.
Vendor / responsible: Tri-State Truck Center
Discussion level: Brief Brief presentation
Resident impact: Replaces a 2017 Freightliner used to transport garbage from the city's transfer station to the landfill; intended to maintain uninterrupted solid waste service.
What the Board said or did: Staff noted the 2017 Freightliner had just under 10,000 hours of use and that the Mack tractor was purchased through a cooperative contract, saving approximately $36,000 versus the budgeted amount. No separate board discussion is recorded.
What remains unclear: The vote count breakdown is not available in the provided record.
Source: item:2

Purchase of Three Transfer Trailers (R-25-115)

Item: Bid award — approved purchase of three aluminum transfer trailers from Specter Manufacturing Inc. for $383,721 total ($127,907 per unit).
Vote: Passed
Cost: $383,721 total — approximately $7,300 less than a comparable purchase in 2023 and under the $500,000 budgeted amount.
Vendor / responsible: Specter Manufacturing Inc.
Discussion level: Brief Brief presentation
Resident impact: The trailers haul garbage from the city's transfer station to the landfill; replacing ten-year-old units is intended to maintain solid waste operations.
What the Board said or did: Staff noted only one bid was received after the invitation to bid was publicly advertised. Staff also noted the trailers are built to specific dimensions to fit the city's transportation compactors and are ready for immediate use. No separate board debate is recorded.
What remains unclear: The record does not explain why only one bid was submitted. The vote count breakdown is not available.
Source: item:3

Law Enforcement Mental Health and Wellness Act Implementation Projects Grant (R-25-116)

Item: Grant application — authorized the Hot Springs Police Department to file for and accept a $200,000 federal grant from the U.S. Department of Justice Office of Community Oriented Policing Services.
Vote: Passed
Cost: No local match required; no city spending commitment at this step.
Vendor / responsible: U.S. Department of Justice / COPS Office
Discussion level: Brief Brief presentation
Resident impact: If awarded, the 24-month grant (October 2025–October 2027) would fund annual mental health check-ins with licensed professionals, expanded support services for officers and their families, suicide prevention and wellness training for supervisors, and enhancements to the department's wellness unit. The grant covers training, conferences, and counseling — not additional personnel.
What the Board said or did: Staff noted the department applied for this grant in 2024 but was not awarded and that the 2025 application incorporates feedback on budget and training timing from the prior submission. No board debate is recorded.
What remains unclear: The award decision rests with the federal government; the timeline for notification is not stated in the available record.
Source: item:4

Project Safe Neighborhoods Program Grant (R-25-117)

Item: Grant application — the Board discussed authorizing the Hot Springs Police Department to file for and accept fiscal year 2026 Project Safe Neighborhoods funding from the U.S. Department of Justice Bureau of Justice Assistance.
Vote: Unknown
Cost: Expected funding between $20,000–$30,000 if awarded; no local match required.
Vendor / responsible: U.S. DOJ Bureau of Justice Assistance
Discussion level: Brief Brief presentation
Resident impact: If awarded, funding would be used for officer overtime on special operations targeting drug trafficking, violent crime, and weapons offenses, plus training and potentially equipment.
What the Board said or did: Staff explained the department has received this grant for several years and that it supports coordination among local, state, tribal, and federal law enforcement. No board debate is recorded.
What remains unclear: Whether the Board took a final vote on this item is not confirmed in the available record. The specific funding amount, if awarded, would fall between $20,000 and $30,000 but is not fixed at this stage.
Source: item:5

Locations affected

Hot Springs Transfer Station / Landfill route

New Mack tractor and three aluminum trailers purchased to transport garbage from the transfer station to the landfill.

Status: Approved
Hot Springs Police Department

Two federal grant applications authorized for officer wellness programs and violent crime operations.

Status: Pending

Watch list

Open follow-up issues we'll check on in future briefings.

Project Safe Neighborhoods Grant Vote Status

Open

Resolution R-25-117 (Project Safe Neighborhoods Grant) is listed as 'discussed' in the available record rather than voted on and passed. Whether this reflects a tabling, a postponed vote, or a gap in the record is not clear.

Why it matters: Clarity on whether the Board formally authorized this grant application is needed for accurate tracking of police department grant activity.
Next check: Verify with Board staff whether a vote was taken on R-25-117 and update the record accordingly.

Solid Waste Equipment Delivery Timeline

Open

Delivery timeline and commissioning dates for the new Mack tractor and three transfer trailers are not in the available record.

Why it matters: Understanding when these critical solid waste assets will be operational is important for service continuity planning.
Next check: Check with the Solid Waste Department for expected delivery and deployment dates.

Law Enforcement Mental Health Grant Award Decision

Open

Federal award notification for the Law Enforcement Mental Health and Wellness Act grant — the department was not funded in 2024 and has revised its application for 2025.

Why it matters: This grant would provide significant officer wellness support if awarded; monitoring the federal decision timeline is essential.
Next check: Track federal DOJ COPS Office announcement of award decisions and confirm Hot Springs Police Department's application status.

Source notes

This briefing is based on the public records below. Every claim above can be traced back to one or more of these sources.

video: Meeting Video Recording
agenda: Agenda Items 1–5

Confidence: Medium

Transcript and five parsed agenda items available; specific vote counts were not recorded in the provided material.

How we know this

We do not invent facts.
We cite source records.
We distinguish what happened from what remains unclear.
We use neutral language.
We correct errors when found. See corrections.