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Open mind urged on sharing dispatch services
(by Sali McSherry - August 11, 2010)
Open mind urged on sharing dispatch services
By SALI McSHERRY
Councilman Shawn Riley, who chairs the Gates Mills safety committee, asked members last week to keep an open mind when considering alternatives for emergency dispatch services. Currently, the village has its own dispatch service.
Pepper Pike, which also has its own dispatch service, asked officials in neighboring communities if there would be interest in talking about sharing services. Pepper Pike officials are considering the possibility of serving as dispatch for other municipalities or contracting with another community.
One possibility is Chagrin Falls, which provides dispatch service for seven police and three fire departments, including Hunting Valley, Moreland Hills and Orange.
"We can't ignore the fact that we're fiscally challenged," Mr. Riley said.
Moreland Hills Police Chief Steve Szeredy and Fire Chief Thomas Robinson were asked to schedule a meeting with Pepper Pike officials and possibly Councilman William Barnes, who chairs the finance committee, to discuss options, Mr. Riley said.
One of the issues, Moreland Hills Police Executive Lt. Ron Whitmer said, will be to determine what Pepper Pike is looking for in contracting for or with another municipality.
If Gates Mills provided dispatch services for Pepper Pike, Mr. Szeredy said, the village would need more equipment, including another dispatching workstation, and space is limited. There also is a question of how much manpower would be needed, he said.
Mr. Szeredy is participating with the Urban Area Working Group, which specifically focuses on regionalization. He said the idea of sharing services with another community is an offshoot of that.
There are concerns and challenges, Mr. Szeredy said. Dispatchers in Gates Mills answer the telephone lines for administration, police, fire and 911 calls, because there is no secretary to answer calls at Village Hall. Gates Mills dispatchers, who have been on ride-alongs with police, know the area and know the residents, he said, and that personalization would drop to some degree.
It's also a question of whether it would be cost-effective to share dispatch services, Mr. Whitmer said.
Mr. Riley said there are call centers in other countries that contract with companies in the United States. It's not unusual, he said. Communities may have to get to a point in which sharing dispatch services becomes the financially prudent and practical choice, he said.
In some cases across the country, there are counties that dispatch for up to 130 municipalities, Mr. Szeredy said.
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