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WILKES-BARRE — After years of planning, Luzerne County’s administration formally alerted county council Tuesday that it will need an estimated $20.7 million for the proposed 911 emergency radio communications system upgrade.
That’s in addition to $1 million council already earmarked in the capital budget to start the project and $330,000 awarded through a gambling grant to help fund a new 160-foot emergency communication tower in Ross Township that will improve radio coverage in the Back Mountain.
And the figures don’t include a recommended support and maintenance agreement that will add a total estimated $7.354 million to the cost over 20 years, officials said. This agreement would include round-the-clock monitoring and assistance and two “refreshes” of the system hardware after seven and 14 years to ensure it lasts, the administration said. Unlike the other costs, the maintenance portion would be part of the 911 department’s annual budget.
County 911 Executive Director Fred Rosencrans stressed all dollar amounts are estimates because vendor negotiations are still underway.
The system allows emergency responders to exchange messages throughout the 906-square-mile county. Switching from a 20-year-old analog system to a digital one is warranted because equipment support for the radio transmitters and receivers will end Dec. 31, 2020, officials have said. While the system won’t automatically shut down on that date, replacement parts are no longer manufactured and have become increasingly difficult to find.
County officials had estimated the project would cost between $16 million and $24 million. The $20.7 million figure announced Tuesday was the amount the administration included in a recent request seeking proposals from banks interested in lending money to the county.
Borrowing details are expected to be presented at the Sept. 10 council meeting because the proposals from prospective lenders are not due until Wednesday. The administration proposes borrowing of up to $35.14 million in a package that also would provide $1.8 million toward new paper-trail voting machines and $12.1 million to refinance high-interest debt.
Two vendors — JVC Kenwood and Motorola — submitted proposals to provide the new 911 radio system to the county, the administration has said. It did not identify which company it wants to select, although the presentation noted the Motorola proposal was about $3.4 million lower.
Michael C. McGrady, of project consultant MCM Consulting Group, said the existing system was a “quilt work of systems cobbled together,” and the new project will end radio interference and improve radio coverage that is inconsistent or nonexistent in some parts of the county.
The system must support 73 fire departments, 56 police departments, 38 EMS agencies, the sheriff’s department, 76 local municipal emergency management agencies, the county emergency management agency and five hospitals.
It also has to meet minimum digital and audio quality thresholds set by the county, including in-building coverage at the county courthouse and prison in Wilkes-Barre, Mohegan Sun Arena in Wilkes-Barre Township and Mohegan Sun Pocono casino in Plains Township.
McGrady also said the control stations also will be added in schools allowing immediate connection to 911.
Some council members questioned why the county plans to spend approximately $260,000 for the arena and casino. McGrady said both are high-profile buildings, and the county will own the equipment installed in both to ensure it is compatible with the new system.
Rosencrans said 911 must be able to communicate effectively with emergency responders inside both facilities because they attract large crowds.
In other business Tuesday, council:
• Passed a new capital plan that provided approximately $1.65 million in capital funding for security cameras, technology upgrades, repairs at the county parkade on Water Street in Wilkes-Barre, parking lot drainage work and a cooling tower project at the Bernard C. Brominski Building in Wilkes-Barre. Council scaled back some requests to create a $303,000 capital plan emergency fund.
• Approved a new collective bargaining agreement with court-appointed support workers belonging to AFSCME.
• Amended the budget to add $40,000 in state funding for five new part-time county drug task force officers.
• Made several appointments to outside boards, including placing John Pickering on the county Convention Center Authority, which oversees Mohegan Sun Arena.
• Heard a presentation from representatives of the Greater Wilkes-Barre Chamber of Commerce about a request for a 10-year Keystone Opportunity Zone tax break extension on a Wright Township property it wants to sell for a new construction project.