Do yourself a favor and look at the DocuColor 8000AP. We just went through the same scenario as you and went with the 8000AP. After 6 CLC's I would NEVER buy or lease another Canon again. The support from Xerox if far superior to Canon, the attitude of Xerox is completely different as well. They are more aware of the production needs vs Canon's office mentality.
I wouldn't consider the DC5000 in the same class as the DC8000AP and the ImagePress 7000. Make sure you are comparing apples to apples, the DC5000 does not handle paper weights the same as the DC8000 and ImagePress 7000.