Efforts to update Starke County’s computer aided dispatch system are getting support from Hamlet officials. The Sheriff’s Department’s new system is going to mean some additional costs for local communities, but Hamlet Town Council President Dave Kesvormas thinks it will be a good deal.
“The county’s getting it on a grant to get it set up and they’re kind of letting us go in on their coattails, and I think that it’s a smart way of doing it,” Kesvormas said during last week’s council meeting. “I can commend [Sheriff] Bill [Dulin] for thinking of it this way, and it’s a smart move. I don’t know who would be opposed to it.”
Officials hope the new CAD system will make it easier for Starke County dispatchers to provide accurate information to various agencies, including the Hamlet Police Department. The Sheriff’s Department is buying the system with funding from various county departments, as well as a State Homeland Security Program grant. But the county’s asking the Knox, North Judson, and Hamlet police departments to chip in toward the licensing, support, and maintenance costs going forward.
Kesvormas said that Hamlet’s share is still being finalized. “The way the grant works is that we would all be covered under it, but they want to get a commitment from each municipality, in terms of how much it’s going to cost every year thereafter,” he explained. “The gentleman providing that shot me a number. It’s not that bad for the fire department and the town. I think the initial number was $3,000. That’s a fair nominal cost, but I had questions. We’ll get the other municipalities, North Judson and Knox, and see where they’re at with it. So we can see where we’re going to actually fall with it.”
He said the town council will formally vote on an agreement once that cost is finalized.
