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The Harlan City Council approved the purchase of a backhoe during the panel’s regular meeting for July.

Mayor Joe Meadors explained the situation involving the city’s current backhoe to the council.

“The last time I talked to you, our backhoe had gone down,” Meadors said. “It’s a 22-year-old backhoe, so we certainly got our money’s worth out of it.”

According to Meadors, it would cost the city between $8,000 and $10,000 to repair the backhoe.

“My thinking is there is a used one with 800 hours on it; that’s practically brand new,” Meadors said. “Those run about $110,000 new, we can get this one for $65,500, and they are going to furnish two brand new front tires.”

Meadors explained purchasing a backhoe would be an asset for the city. He mentioned the city could have used an additional backhoe during a recent storm, which blocked the front and back entrances to the Ivy Hill area.

“In the event of something happening in the city, we wouldn’t have to wait for somebody to loan us a backhoe,” Meadors said.

Meadors suggested repairing the city’s current backhoe and purchasing the used backhoe. The old backhoe would then be transferred to the city’s sewer service, Harlan Municipal Wastewater.

“We’ve got 41 pump stations,” Meadors said. “When one of them goes down, and they have to work on it, they have to come and get our backhoe at the city garage. That means if we’re doing something … We have to stop it and let them have the backhoe because when a sewer line goes down, it backs up, and it’s not long before people start complaining, and rightly so.”

Council member Jeff Phillips asked if the city’s current backhoe would be repaired.

“We’re going to repair it anyway and let the sewer plant use it,” Meadors confirmed. “I was going to let them pay for the repairs and let them have the machine.”

Meadors asked the council for permission to purchase the backhoe for $65,500.

“I want you to understand, this $65,500 will come out of the ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act) money,” Meadors said.

A council member made a motion to purchase the backhoe for $65,500. The motion passed with no objections.