Wednesday, August 11, 1999
dispatch centers open talks on merger
BY JANE PRENDERGAST
The Cincinnati Enquirer
COVINGTON — Consolidation discussions began Tuesday among Kenton County's three 911 dispatch centers.
The police chiefs of Erlanger and Kenton County met with Covington's communications manager to discuss the issue. Merger talks have collapsed before, after all three entities wanted to stick with their own systems.
This time, Kenton County “wanted to look at the feasibility of merging the dispatch centers and put the matter to rest,” said Lt. Col. Jeff Kennedy, Erlanger's assistant police chief. “I don't have any pros or cons. We'll sit down and listen to anything.”
Emergency dispatching in Northern Kentucky is handled by seven separate communication centers — Covington, Erlanger and the county police department in Kenton County; Fort Thomas, Newport and the county police department in Campbell County. Only in Boone County are all calls handled in one place. Merger talks have also begun in Campbell County.
Each of the communications centers in Kenton County has recently been upgraded at considerable cost. Covington, for example, spent $1 million this year on a new computer system that is not yet in operation.
“We're in the discussion phase,” said Kenton County Chief Mike Browning. “We just got started.”
He, Erlanger Chief Greg Sandel and Covington Communications Director Bob Crutcher agreed to work on a merger proposal. If their supervisors want that, they hope to have it finished Sept. 1.
Reporter Amy Capiello contributed.
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