The Emporia City Commission were treated to a presentation regarding a proposed multi-million dollar project to aid emergency responders.
During the City-County joint meeting in February, representatives of the Lyon County 911 Board proposed a project to switch the county’s current UHF radio system over to an 800 MHz trunked system. The project would include infrastructure work to county radio towers and a full replacement of first responder radios.
The city would be solely responsible for purchasing the new first responder radios with an estimated cost at just over $1 million. Emporia Mayor Jon Geitz says while this is a necessary project, that number does scare him just a bit.
Lyon County Emergency Management Director Jarrod Fell says the transition is essential in order to replace outdated and deteriorating equipment.
The transition would see Lyon County become encompassed within the Kansas Statewide Interoperable Communication System (KSICS). Currently, 70 percent of public safety in Kansas utilize this system.
Some of those counties include Leavenworth, Douglas, Ellis, Ford, Finney, Butler, Rice, Franklin, Harvey and Coffey. Along with the new 800 MHz system, the new radios would also include GPS tracking which according to the 911 Board would be extremely helpful specifically for firefighters.
The current proposal will see Lyon County cover the cost of all infrastructure work. The next step in the process will be a visit to county commissioners in the coming weeks to discuss the logistics of that work.
The hope of the 911 Board is to see the project get underway by 2020.
In other business, commissioners received an update on the Emporia Water Treatment Plant. The city completely redid the ozone treatment capacity of the plant a few years ago.
Recently there have been some unexpected issues regarding bi-products at the plant. Work will be needed to address the issue with a total cost between $56-$58,000.
Commissioners are set to vote on the item during their action session next week. That meeting will take place at 1:30 pm next Wednesday inside the municipal courtroom at White Auditorium.
