[June 10, 2009]

Lee Co. votes for one dispatch center

FORT MADISON, Jun 10, 2009 (The Hawk Eye - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- The creation a single consolidated dispatch center in Lee County cleared its first hurdle Tuesday with members of the board of supervisors voting unanimously to sign onto a 28E agreement necessary to make the center a reality.

Now officials are waiting for Fort Madison, Keokuk, West Point, Montrose, Donnellson, St. Paul and Franklin to sign on as well.

Many of the elected officials in those towns wanted to see what the supervisors would do before voting on the issue, said Sheriff's Office Chief Deputy Jim Scholl, a supporter of the consolidated dispatch. Scholl made his comments before the board voted Tuesday.

The Houghton village board already has voted to sign the 28E agreement.

A 28E agreement is a legal document that lets government bodies enter into cooperative action.

The dispatch center agreement will be on the Keokuk City Council workshop agenda for discussion Thursday.

Fort Madison council members will vote on the agreement next Tuesday.

Three dispatch centers exist in the county -- one in Fort Madison, one in Keokuk and one at the Lee County Correctional Facility.

Officials in the county have been discussed consolidating the emergency call centers for at least 15 years.

"The drawback to the project was always bricks and mortar. We had to build somewhere for a new 911 center. The other drawback was location, where do we put it," Scholl said.

Thanks to the ongoing $6.2 million expansion and renovation of the Lee County jail, room has been reserved there specifically for a dispatch center.

Official estimate a consolidated center will cost $639,300 its first year of operation. If approved, the center would not begin operations until fiscal year 2010/2011.

Plans call for incorporated cities and the county split the $397,944 annual cost of wages and longevity pay for 13 employees, who would work at the center.

Pension, Social Security and insurance cost for employees, which is expected to cost $241,355, annually would be paid for with a new emergency management levy of .24 cents per $1,000 of assessed valuation.

Officials also would have to come up with about $165,000 for equipment and console fixtures, which would be paid for with a combination of grant and E-911 funds, Scholl said.

The county would have to purchase the new equipment even without starting a new dispatch center because current equipment will not be able to meet soon to be implemented communications standards, Scholl said.

"Currently we use 25 kilohertz channels. It's mandated we switch to 12.5 kilohertz, or narrow-band channels by 2013," Scholl said. "We face a loss of communication abilities if we don't make that deadline." The biggest benefit of the consolidated center will be increased response times and safety for residents.

In the proposed emergency call center, dispatchers would be dedicated to answering 911 calls and not double as receptionist nor jailers.

"We feel the main focus of a 911 dispatch should be to the citizen on the other end of the phone and rescue personnel. We do not have that focus. It's not because our dispatchers are not doing their job. It's because their additional duties have interfered with their jobs and we believe it's becoming dangerous and disruptive," Scholl said.

A consolidated dispatch will not initially be cheaper than the current three centers.

Although, costs would be shuffled around, saving both Fort Madison and Keokuk money because for the first time, smaller incorporated towns have been asked to contribute. The county likely would not save money because its dispatchers double as jail workers and the positions cannot be eliminated, Scholl said.

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