LAKE STATION | The city is receiving a $330,000 federal grant that will allow it to purchase up to 16 new vehicles this year, Mayor Keith Soderquist said.
Soderquist learned recently that Lake Station qualified for the Congestion Mitigation Air Quality funds in a phone call from the Northwestern Indiana Regional Planning Commission,
"This is awesome news," he said.
Soderquist said the grants should purchase fuel-efficient vehicles, including E85 models.
"The whole point is to reduce emissions," he said.
The city plans to use the grant to purchase five police cars, five electric cars and four trucks.
Soderquist said the city has a number of older model trucks in its vehicle fleet, including a 1978 Chevrolet truck.
"It's a gas-guzzler," he said.
Soderquist said the grant covers the full cost of the vehicles, meaning the city does not have to provide any matching funds. The only requirement is for the city to pay about $8,000 in administrative fees.
Other area communities that have received the grant include Beverly Shores, Crown Point, East Chicago, Gary, Portage and Valparaiso, Soderquist said.
