NATCHEZ — With 21 vehicles in the Adams County Sheriff’s Office fleet with more than 100,000 miles and having gone a year without any replacements, county supervisors approved a request Tuesday to buy six new vehicles, but board members and the sheriff did not agree on all details.

Sheriff Travis Patten said the last administration purchased Chevrolet Tahoes, but he was looking to purchase Ford Explorers, which will come in equipped sans installing the radio and striping, at a cost of approximately $31,000 to $32,000 each.

Patten said between six SUVs, he estimates switching to Explorers, which are cheaper than Tahoes, will save the county approximately $54,000.

The sheriff also plans to auction off some vehicles — three Ford Crown Victorias and a Dodge Durango — as well as the search and rescue boat stationed at the Natchez Fire Department Station on John R. Junkin Drive.

The 28-foot aluminum boat was donated brand new in 2009 by boat builder Vance Breaux, who knew former Sheriff Ronny Brown. The boat was appraised at $122,000 at the time.

Patten said the boat is so large that use on the Mississippi River for search and rescue purposes is not practical. Patten said a three-fourth ton truck is required to haul the boat, and due to the vessel’s size, it cannot gain access to all spots along the river where a search and rescue boat might need to be used.

Patten said with the proceeds from selling the large boat, he hopes to purchase a more practical boat similar to the ones Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks agents use along the river, as well as a crime scene van.

The sheriff said he seeks to buy a Carolina Skiff, which if bought brand new would cost approximately $35,000. The van would cost approximately $21,000. Patten said he would name the boat after Brown.

District 1 Supervisor and Board President Mike Lazarus suggested rather than buying new toys, the sheriff ought to put the money gained from the sales back into the fund for purchasing new vehicles to help the county get on a yearly replacement schedule. Lazarus said with the previous sheriff, the county was replacing three vehicles a year.

ACSO’s Maj. Jerry Brown said Wednesday a crime scene van could save hours during the early stages of an investigation, when time is critical.

“Processing the crime scene is very time consuming,” Brown said. “During the early stages of a crime, time is of the essence.”

Brown said the van would help by freeing up an investigator to go knock on doors and pursue other leads while an investigator with the van would process the scene.

Patten said having a crime scene van in the county could also potentially help the city police.

Former Natchez Police officer and alderman Billie Joe Frazier said having a crime scene van in the community is imperative. Frazier was attending the supervisors meeting as part of the Leadership Natchez class.

Lazarus also said the argument for originally purchasing the Tahoes was that the resell value would be higher, so he asked what the plan was for the SUVs.

Patten said several of the Tahoes have more than 100,000 miles, but rather than sell the vehicles, he wanted to hand them down to people who have vehicles in worse condition.

Patten said Wednesday if any proceeds from the sale remain after potentially purchasing a boat and crime scene van, the funding would be earmarked for vehicle replacement.

Within the next two weeks Patten said he hopes to have the auction. The sheriff ultimately makes the decision for what to do with the proceeds of the sale.

In other news:

4Supervisors approved advertising seeking bids for the construction of a levee at the former Belwood Country Club. Delta Regional Authority granted approximately $2.3 million in funding for phase one construction of the levee.

4Emergency Management Director Robert Bradford said Tuesday three emergency sires are not operating properly. The locations are in the Cloverdale, Broadmoor and Sibley areas. Bradford said the siren near the National Guard Armory has been repaired.