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<br />problems. At the same time, other radio users with the County, including County departments <br />such as Public Works and city radio users, are also likely experiencing congestion now or will be <br />experiencing congestion in the future. Most of those radio user entities also operate in the high- <br />band VHF radio area and will need additional frequencies so that more than the nine frequencies <br />for public safety entities will in fact be needed within Anoka County within about the next five <br />years. <br /> <br />Agencies that migrate to use of the new Digital Modulation, 800 MHz Minnesota Department of <br />Transportation (Mn/DOT) Radio System will be turning ~ack frequencies in the VHF band in the <br />future. Those frequencies will not begin to be turned back until migration to the new MnlDOT <br />radio system is completed which will not begin until the beginning of 2003. The policy <br />established for use of those turned back frequencies states that the agency that will be turning <br />back a frequency must notify the Metropolitan Radio Board 90 days prior to turning back the <br />frequency. The Metropolitan Radio Board will then make a decision as to whether or not that <br />frequency to be turned back is needed for some purpose within the MnlDOT system. If it is not <br />needed, the Board will notify the State of Minnesota frequency coordinator that a frequency will <br />become available. It will then be up to the frequency coordinator to determine who among <br />various applicants for additional frequencies should receive the turned back frequency. It must <br />be understood that there are great demands for additional frequencies in the VHF band from <br />cities and counties located throughout and surrounding the metropolitan region, including <br />counties in Wisconsin. There are great needs for VHF frequencies in at least 14 counties that are <br />contiguous to the seven county metropolitan region. As a result, the frequency coordinator will <br />be forced to ration frequencies that are made available for licensing by applicants from all of <br />those counties. It is believed that Anoka County might receive no more than one or two of the <br />frequencies that will be turned back by the agencies that will be migrating to the new system. <br />Not all of the frequencies currently used by the agencies migrating to use the Mn/DOT radio <br />system are to be turned back, as many of them will have continuing uses for such things as siren <br />control and fire service paging. <br /> <br />The other possible way in which Anoka County may be able to obtain additional VHF radio <br />channels will be through use of very narrowband radio frequencies that are being made available <br />for licensing by the FCC through its ref arming process, the rules for which were published in <br />September of 1998. It will be necessary that very narrowband frequencies having a bandwidth of <br />6.25 kHz be used. Use of the 6.25 kHz bandwidth channels will allow having two frequencies in <br />the bandwidth currently occupied by one frequency for at least some of the frequencies currently <br />in use in Anoka County. There will be some restrictions on use of these very narrowband <br />frequencies in regard to at what site adjacent frequencies will be usable. It is, however, possible <br />that with one or two additional turn back channels and use of very narrowband radios that nine <br />additional frequencies for public safety use and some additional frequencies for use by other <br />government radio users in Anoka County can be obtained within the next five years. There are <br />no digital modulation radios currently manufactured that operate within 6.25 kHz of bandwidth. <br />Enhancement of the existing public safety radio systems in Anoka County is not possible if <br /> <br />Ronald Vegemast Engineering, Inc. <br /> <br />-23- <br /> <br />Report: Anoka County <br />