YOUNGSTOWN Control board picks 2 towing companies

New charges will probably will be $40 for the tow and $5 per day for storage, one official said.
By ROGER G. SMITH
CITY HALL REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Two new companies will tow cars for city police.
The city's control board chose Thursday to rotate calls between Ludt's Auto and Truck Towing of Boardman, which has a city location, and Bob O's Towing of Youngstown.
The deal is contingent on the city reaching a contract with each company.
Those two offered the lowest charges for towing cars when the city recently sought requests for proposals.
Ludt's offered $35 a tow and a $5-per-day storage fee. Bob O's offered $40 a tow and $10 per day for storage.
Ultimately, the contract probably will call for a $40 tow and $5 per day for storage so each company is charging the same rate, said Detective William Blanchard, the police department's fiscal officer.
For many years, Major's Towing and Passarelli Bros. Automotive Service were called when police needed vehicles to be hauled away after accidents, when drivers were arrested or illegally parked and must be moved.
Money disputes
The city never had a contract with either, however, and disputes over money erupted in late 2000.
Major's and Passarelli wanted more money for their work. Council members countered that the two companies were overcharging car owners and owed the city money. The city was supposed to get $10 per tow but the companies had stopped paying that fee in 1999.
City council passed a new law early this year setting the fee at $40 per tow and $5 per day for storage.
The city then sought proposals that came the closest to those charges.
Major's offered $60 a tow and $10 per day for storage and Passarelli offered $55 a tow and $10 per day for storage.
The city won't take a $10 cut from each tow as before, Blanchard said. He said council members want to keep cost down for low-income people because they often can't afford the tow charges.
The city collected between $20,000 and $25,000 a year from the $10 fee, he said.
rgsmith@vindy.com