Money spent in Chicago stays in Chicago.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced Friday the city will spend $3.5 million on 100 new Ford “Interceptor” cop cars.
It's Ford's largest single order yet for the cars, manufactured at the company's Torrence Avenue plant in Chicago. Emanuel said the purchase is the first one following an open, online reverse auction for the vehicles.
“When Chicagoans can manufacture automobiles that will keep Chicagoans safe, this city is a better place to live, to work and to raise our families,” Emanuel said in a statement.
The new sedans and all-wheel drive SUVs will be purchased at Ford dealerships in Chicago and Bensenville, Emanuel said. Some of the vehicles will hit the streets by the end of the year.
Over the next five years, Chicago plans to buy 500 Ford Interceptors with an option to buy more.
“In a few months, new law enforcement vehicles will be patrolling our corners, our blocks and our neighborhoods, and hundreds of new jobs that were created will help make that happen," Emanuel said. "This is what it’s all about.”
United Auto Workers approved a new Ford Motor Co. contract last fall, resulting in nearly 2,000 jobs in Chicago and a new third shift. Emanuel said 250 of those jobs were created to produce Interceptors.
“Ford’s increased presence in Chicago bolsters our economic competitiveness and demonstrates that Chicago is a city on the move where businesses are growing and creating new opportunity,” Emanuel said.
