Grant County judge reassures, but locals question plan to dispatch 911 to KSP

By Carolyn Reid

Grant County Judge/Executive Chuck Dills was the chief deputy sheriff when the county merged with Kentucky State Police dispatch in 2005. He admits county law enforcement especially had qualms about the merger, but so did the county itself.

“People were asking how KSP dispatchers would know how to find these places. Law enforcement felt the state police calls would take priority over all other calls,” he confirmed.

In other words, they were asking the same questions many in our county are asking now.

As Pendleton County Fiscal Court dives into questions regarding our own dispatch, fears center on money versus  lives and locals versus non-locals. How could it be cheaper to send it to an agency that pays more for the service? Are we cutting costs at the expense of lives? How will those dispatchers know the nooks and crannies of the county?

Grant County came into the merger with different circumstances than is Pendleton County. Around 2005, their dispatch had moved from Williamstown into the county, and it was not in the best shape, Dills says, due problems with the director. KSP approached the county with a proposition: merge services with KSP.

“I can tell you law enforcement was against it,” Dills says. “They said the state police did not know the area the way our locals did. They were afraid, too, that KSP would be first on the scene.”

Pendleton is handling its own issues with dispatch. The county does not pay enough to compete with other counties, meaning the county loses staff to other dispatch centers. More money has to come from the general fund for dispatch upkeep when cell phone fees are meant to cover the the bulk of the costs of the service.

And the answer that is being kicked around is a merger with KSP. Rather than KSP approaching the county, the county approached KSP.

Dills, who sits on the 911 advisory board, says, “The bottom line financially, there is no comparison.” He admits he does not understand exactly how the state works the funds, but he does know the county this year will pay $80,000 for a service that would cost at least $200,000 to $300,000 if the county still owned it. (Last year, Grant County overpaid by over $100,000, so this year, the amount is being repaid to the county, resulting in the $80,000.) He does know the wireless money, the 70 cents per line that is charged to cell phone accounts, goes to the state and is redistributed, and that collaboration saves money for districts, overall, because that credit, as he calls it, is distributed across the state.

Dills also points out a concern for smaller dispatch centers: grants will go to larger centers because they are more able to keep up with the technology and resources than smaller centers can. He cites KSP’s resources as an example. “They have the latest equipment and mapping systems, much greater than many dispatch centers have.”

Not to mention, he says, state dispatch is pulling from a larger pool of possibilities than our local dispatch can reach out to contact.

While people are understandably concerned for the dispatchers and their positions in the county, Dills says they have one KSP dispatcher dedicated to Grant County. He assumes Pendleton will operate in the same manner.

Rick Mineer, PC Magistrate, says KSP plans to hire multiples if this merger goes through.

While many in the county worry about the dispatchers' possible lack of local knowledge--roads and other factors like the "nooks and crannies" of the area, Dill reminds the county the responders themselves will remain the same. The mapping equipment at KSP dispatch allows them to give directions to more unfamiliar areas, but most who are responding know the areas they are called to, and, he says, that is what matters more. "The services are the same because the people responding are the same." He cited drive-thru restaurants in the area that now have a call center taking orders rather than someone in the restaurant taking the orders. He says the idea is similar.

Local responses

While Dill cannot imagine returning to a local setting, residents and even first responders cannot imagine dispatch moving away. Nila Harris recalled hearing a schoolmate's calming voice, a familiar voice, on the other end of the line when she was calling for help for her mother-in-law. Even Dill admits that was a problem for him at first, and while the dispatchers now know him, he knows those who call in do not have that luxury as they may have had 20 years ago.

Falmouth Police Chief Marty Hart made no secret of the fact he has concerns. "No amount of savings can justify sacrificing such a vital asset of the county's emergency services," he says. "You will not get the same quality from resources outside of the county.

"I also find it concerning that the people who are affected by the decision have not been consulted. I am referring to department heads of all the affected departments."

He circled back to his first thought. "There is a lot more to consider than just money."

Falmouth Fire Chief Dave Klaber sees relationships along with local knowledge. "I don't want to see our dispatch leave. We are all one big family, and those dispatchers are a huge part of it. They live in the community and care about our safety and what happens in the community. They also know our county, which can make a huge difference in situations."

He cites the fact that some who call are not familiar with the areas where they need help. Dispatch helps deal with that. In response to the mapping software KSP has, Klaber says, “It makes a big difference when you have local dispatchers who know the area so they are familiar about what you are talking about on calls, especially when there’s an issue locating incidents when the caller is not familiar with the area or aren’t sure exactly where they are at.

"Mapping doesn't make a difference if you can't decipher landmarks that aren't on a map."

Debbie Hicks-Sharp, who first posted about the discussion she heard in Fleming County, says dispatch even works with school bus drivers in the area, something she is not sure KSP will do. Besides that, she is worried for our community itself. "My first concern is for our community. The dispatchers we have know the community people, first responders and the roads. They are familiar with our bus routes and our school security systems.

"There are some community members and addresses that our dispatchers are familiar with and they can relay that to our first responders.

She also points to the familiarity the dispatchers have with the people and the area. "I hate to see our community lose jobs when there are so few in the county.  I listen to the scanner and hear the compassion and concern that dispatch and first responders have for each other.      

"I have heard calls where only folks that know our community could get responders there so quickly.   

Non-emergency information comes through, too, she recalls. "In times of storms, I have heard them help each other regarding down trees and closed roads quickly. I feel that strangers could not respond as quickly and with the community support we get from our local dispatch office. I am sure you hear the same from many.”

She credits a local dispatch with contacting buses, too, to tell them of problems along their routes before they get there.

Bobby Pettit is a retired fire marshal who helped set up Pendleton County Dispatch as it is today. He was one to oversee its move from the police department and its one-person, seven-digit call number days to the standard of 911 calls and full staffing that we see today.

"911 Dispatch [is] a group of professional people who are the backbone of emergency services for Pendleton Co. I was part of the group who formed the initial 911 Dispatch. I firmly believe our County needs to do anything and everything possible to keep this service in Pendleton Co."

He goes farther to comment on the situation Grant County is in after merging their services with state police dispatch. "If KSP District 6 was located in Pendleton Co. I would be okay with that"

And while Dill says the service will not suffer due to a possible lack of local connection, Pettit sees the situation differently.

Final comments from Grant Co. and KSP

Dill admits the start with KSP was pretty rocky, but now he cannot imagine going back to a local center, dealing with staffing shortages, training, and other problems they faced even then.

David Jones, KSP Public Affairs Officer and former school resource officer for Pendleton County, stated little will change in the responses and the service the county sees if the merger takes place; however, he also reassured the county communications are in the early stages. “If this takes place, it will take time. It isn’t happening immediately.”

And even if it does happen, he says, nothing will change.