Tuesday, June 15, 1999
Newport cool to idea of 911 study
Leaders fear changes could hurt services
BY AMY CAPPIELLO
The Cincinnati Enquirer
NEWPORT — Newport City Commissioners objected Monday to a proposed study that would discuss the possibility of combining Newport, Fort Thomas and Campbell County's 911 emergency dispatch services.
Although the Board of Commissioners took no action on the proposal, members said Newport had the most effective emergency dispatch service in the county and they believed the city had nothing to gain by examining a possible merger.
“We have been extra fortunate that our service has been of the quality it is, and I would not like to see it diminished,” Commissioner Jan Knepshield said. “I would be opposed to anything that would lower the quality of that service, whether it saves money or not. Because if you're on the other end of that telephone and you need help, that help is priceless.”
But City Manager Philip Ciafardini said the study would prove useful even if a merger did not take place. The cost to the city is estimated to be no more than $10,000.
“It's going to be an evaluation of the present system,” Mr. Ciafardini said. “This is still an opportunity for us to look at our services, evaluate them and see if we can do it better.”
The idea of merging the three emergency dispatch services first arose in 1991, but a study commissioned then failed to convince the governments that a combined dispatch service was necessary.
This study would take approximately six months to complete. Total cost for all communities would be an estimated maximum of $20,000.
Staff members from each government would compile information on the individual services. That information would then be passed on to an independent consultant, who would evaluate the effectiveness of each service and how a combined dispatch service would affect the county.
The commissioners also discussed upgrading Newport's 911 equipment. The new system would use digital rather than analog equipment to cut the time it takes to answer a call from 8-10 seconds to 2-3 seconds. The new equipment would also feature a caller-ID service to provide the name, phone number and address of the caller. The total for the proposed system, which includes installation and personnel training, is $48,336.
The commissioners will revisit these issues at their next meeting.
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