The Committee of Intergovernmental Cooperation will meet with Schenectady County elected officials to discuss the creation of a central dispatch for police and fire departments in the county on Thursday, March 25, at 7 p.m. at the South Schenectady Fire Department in Rotterdam.
The project, which would allow for participating municipalities throughout the county, to work out of a centralized location in an effort to increase the efficiency of responses, promote public safety and cut down on costs in up keeping equipment at the municipal level.
Backed by Anthony Jasenski, D-District 4, the project was created in an effort to cut down on operational and fiscal inefficiencies in using multiple fire and police dispatch locations throughout the county.
According to information from Schenectady County, the county was awarded a $100,000 grant through the New York State Shared Municipal Services Incentive Program to study the feasibility of a central dispatch in 2007. In 2008, the county implemented the study and conducted presentations and meetings with local law enforcement, EMS, fire and public safety agencies throughout the county in an effort figure out the best way to implement the use of a central dispatch center for the different residents of each of the municipalities through the New York State Technology Enterprise Corporation. Through the information found by NYSTEC in the municipalities, a consensus was reached that the creation of a unified communications center would help to improve the coordination of efforts between different information and mutual aid service, when needed, throughout the county. In January of 2009, the county applied for the New York State Efficiency Implementation Grant in relation to the project, bringing in $1 million in aid in the spring of 2009 to purchase equipment towards the creation and implementation of a central dispatch.
The driving force behind this has always been public safety, but if we can save money that is also good, said Janeski.
The use of a county dispatch would increase the ability to inform major groups of law enforcement while increasing safety and lowering costs of running a dispatch out of Niskayuna, Duanesburg, Princetown, Glenville, Rotterdam and the City of Schenectady, according to Janeski. Dispatchers from throughout the county would meet at a centralized location and dispatch to locations in the county.
The county has given each of the towns and the city of Schenectady an April 1 deadline on passing resolution to become a part of the negotiation process. In Niskayuna, the town board unanimously passed resolution on Tuesday, March 23, to enter into negotiations regarding a Uniformed Communications Center. At the 7 p.m. meeting, Deputy Supervisor Liz Orzel Kasper said that the resolution states that Niskayuna is interested in the program. Town Supervisor Joe Landry said that the town is in favor of the centralized dispatch but understands that they still need to sit down and negotiate with the county about the details of the project.
`What this is doing is putting us in this direction and authorizing us to negotiate with the other towns, the city and the county,` said Landry. In an earlier interview, Landry also said the town could see a long term savings in equipment and effectively direct emergency crews to any number of incidents throughout the county. `The plus side is now you have one centralized location that knows what is going on throughout the county and for any multi-jurisdictional incident, they will be able to dispatch much more effectively,` he said.
While the town of Niskayuna has passed resolution to enter negotiations for centralized dispatch, town supervisor of the town of Glenville, Chris Koetzle, is still unsure if the town of Glenville, who also dispatches for the Village of Scotia, would like to see more information about the ides of centralized dispatch before making any other decisions. Koetzle is worried about a loss of control with the addition of a centralized dispatch and the cost on taxpayers within the town of Glenville. `What they’re going to do is decide on the personnel level, the union contract benefits, equipments, the building and they’ll send us the bill,` said Koetzle. `The county needs to tax for the service if they are going to deliver the service. They’re guaranteeing a 7 percent savings without knowing any of the costs, they’re making assumptions but we need facts.` Koetzle said that if the plan makes sense, the town will go forward with the plan, but would like to see more information.
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