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SUBJECT Ramsey County Dispatch Center Consolidation Policy , . E'A:UTIVE SUMMARY -continued .. A?II!s time, in order to meet project timelines for implementation of the 800 MHz subsystem, the County needs to know which other PSAPs will be part of the consolidated Dispatch Center. Board policy discussion and decisions are needed on the financial and governance positions the County will include in agreements with independent Dispatch Centers who wish to join a countywide Dispatch Center. Once the County Board has decided thcse issues, they can be communicated to the cities for their response and decisions about joining in a consolidated Dispatch Center. POLICY QUESTIONS I. Is the proposed financing plan acceptable? 2, What governance structure should be used to provide oversight of dispatch activities? 3, Who should represent the Board in formal negotiations? CONSOLIDATED DISPATCH CENTER The Ramsey County Board has taken a position in support of exploring dispatch consolidation. There would be several advantages to all of the jurisdictions involved, I. Greater opportunity for enhanced services to be provided more efficiently by combining resources currently being used for dispatch operations, 2. Coordination of responses across several jurisdictions can be done more effectively if protocols and . procedures are part of a consolidated Dispatch Center's daily operations. If a crisis occurs in a community that is not part of the consolidated operations, there is an adjustment period as the communication connections are made and operational adjustments are made. 4. If the community is part of the consolidated center, the surge in call loads can be more readily absorbed. 5, Potential cost advantages to consolidating dispatch operations, There are some economies of scale on the call taking part of dispatch operations, As a result, the growth in operating costs over time would be slower in a consolidated center than in several independent centers. These benefits are stronger for Ramsey County than for most counties because of its small geographic area. If a problem occurs in one part of the County, its impact can spread quickly to the whole County. In response to the County Board's position that one consolidated countywide Dispatch Center could provide a better long-term service strategy for the whole County, provide the best public safety for the community and be the most cost efficient, the County Manager, along with Commissioner McDonough, other Commissioners and the Project Manager, have been meeting with the cities of Saint Paul, Maplewood and White Bear Lake to explore their interest in joining the County in a consolidated countywide Dispatch Center. Also, for those cities that wish to continue running an independent Dispatch Center, the County will work with them to create a well- coordinated countywide system. During discussions with the cities, financial and governance issues have been explored. The following two sections provide the concepts that have evolved during these discussions. None of the cities have formally agreed to these items, although Maplewood's City Council voted on April I I, 2005 to authorize staff to begin ~iating an agreement with the County for the County to provide 911 dispatch services for Maplewood. ~ent I, a letter dated April 1,2005, from Commissioner McDonough, as Chair of the 800 MHz Pohcy Planning Committee, to City Manager Richard Fursman, responds to initial questions raised by Maplewood,.