CHARLOTTE — The Charlotte City Council approved the purchase of several new pieces of equipment for the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department on Monday evening.
The new equipment will include a bomb truck, a new helicopter, and a contract renewal for the purchase of ballistic gear. $1 million will be used for the bomb truck, $1.9 million will be used for ballistic gear, and $5.3 million will be used for the helicopter, Channel 9′s Joe Bruno learned at Monday night’s meeting.
Charlotte City Council unanimously approved these three purchases for CMPD. No discussion #CLTCC https://t.co/fu1JMW0Khe
— Joe Bruno (@JoeBrunoWSOC9) July 10, 2023
CMPD Chief Johnny Jennings released a statement on the approval of the new equipment.
“On behalf of The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department, I’d like to thank Charlotte City Council for their continued support and investment in our department,” he said. “The approval of this critical equipment will help the department continue to protect our community as we continuously strive to make Charlotte a safe place to live, work and visit.”
The department’s outgoing bomb truck is over 20 years old and there will be new safety measures on the new truck. CMPD will also be replacing a 25-year-old Bell helicopter in the Aviation Unit’s fleet, according to a release. The current helicopter will be used as partial exchange for the new one. reducing the sale by almost $1.3 million.
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