Calhoun County, AL – The Calhoun County 911 Board met for the regular scheduled meeting on Thursday, March 16th.
- Meeting Called to Order
- Welcome New Member: JPD Chief Marcus Wood
- Chief Wood was nominated by Commissioner Fred Wilson and approved in a unanimous vote by the Calhoun County Commission.
- Welcome Back: Chief Shane Denham
- Chief Denham was reappointed and unanimously approved to the board by the Calhoun County Commissioners.
- Roll Call of Members
- Board Chairman – Chief Gary Sparks, Oxford Fire Department – Present
- Board Vice-Chairman – Sheriff Matthew Wade, Calhoun County Sheriff Office – Present
- Chief Jeff Waldrep, Anniston Fire Department – Present
- Chief Van Roberts Sr., Quad Cities VFD (Retired) – Present
- Chief Marcus Wood, Jacksonville Police Department – Present
- Chief Shane Denham, Anniston Police Department (Retired) – Present
- Phillip Winkles, Piedmont Rescue Director (Retired) – Absent
- Election of Officers
- Chairman – Sheriff Matthew Wade nominated Chief Gary Sparks – Unanimously Approved
- Vice-Chairman Sheriff Matthew Wade nominated Chief Shane Denham – Unanimously Approved
- Approval of Agenda – Unanimously Approved as Ammended
- Amended to include adjournment to Executive Session to discuss a security issue
- Approval of Minutes – Unanimously Approved
- Approval of Financial Reports – Unanimously Approved
- Notes that many of the totals seem higher than anticipated because they reflect the contributions taken in for the radios and microwave upgrades. As payments are made these figures will be adjusted.
- Old Business – None
- New Business
- WBRC Agreement – Unanimously Approved
- Wes Wyatt with WBRC spoke about utilizing the 911 cameras that are setup for observation in the county. He felt this would be a great tool to share the views during inclement weather. This would not include any cameras used for security.
- Board attorney, Adam Maniscalco, will make a few adjustments to the agreement, pending approval. Namely that there is no exclusivity to WBRC and the county always has jurisdiction to move cameras and take control from any shared party. Currently there are three existing cameras and two more to come.
- DHS Grant Application / Emergency Power (UPS) – Unanimously Approved
- This is a request to approval a grant for $143,000 for upgrades to the uninterruptible power supplies (UPS) at the 911 center. This grant is very competitive and there is no guarantee, but the Calhoun COunty Commission felt there should be an attempt at grant funding before consideration to cover the upgrade our of the commission budget.
- Committees: Appointments were made by Chairman Sparks. – Unanimously Approved
- Budget
- Phillip Winkles
- Shane Denham
- Marcus Wood
- Personnel
- Van Roberts
- Jeff Waldrep
- Matthew Wade
- Technical
- Matthew Wade
- Shane Denham
- Phillip Winkles
- Budget
- WBRC Agreement – Unanimously Approved
- ESN Assignment Hearing
- Pat Brown, director for Piedmont Rescue and Johnny Warren, President of Anniston EMS both spoke in support of the redrawing of lines and reassignment of EMS Emergency Services Network (ESN)
- Piedmont Rescue and Anniston EMS Request to reassign EMS ESNs – Unanimously Approved
- Piedmont Rescue and Anniston EMS requested to have the lines redrawn to better service areas in the county. One of the larger changes is that Anniston will no longer cover the Weaver area. This will be covered by Piedmont EMS and Anniston will be used as backup. There were also areas reassigned to Piedmont because they are closer and it made more logistical sense.
- Board Chairman Comments
- Next month will be telecommuter week and Chirman Sparks has ask agencies to coordinate food to support the 911 dispatchers. He also suggested a training session for them with a meal provided.
- Director Comments
- Kevin Jenkins shared that he appreciated recognition of now of the dispatchers by the Chief of Ohatchee Police. She handled a difficult call intentioned by a child.
- Board Member Comments – None
- Public Comments (three minutes each) – None
- Adjourn to Executive Session – Unanimously Approved
