Published: January 23, 2007 11:42 pm      

Local 911 center gets improvement grant

ASHLAND — The Ashland-Boyd County Regional Public Safety Communications Center was one of eight emergency dispatching operations statewide that were chosen to receive state grants aimed at improving 911 services.

The 911 Improvement Grants, announced Monday by Gov. Ernie Fletcher, were provided to enable some centers to upgrade from basic to enhanced 911 service and to assist existing e-911 centers, such as the RPSCC, with the cost of equipment replacement and/or maintenance.

The RPSCC was awarded $23,767, according to a news release from the Kentucky Office of Homeland Security.

The local 911 center’s grant application called for the money to be used to upgrade the building’s electrical system and to purchase a new emergency backup generator, said Margaret Fairchild, an administrative assistant with the RPSCC. The upgrades will enhance the center’s ability to continue operating during power failures, she said.

The RPSCC was the only northeastern Kentucky 911 center selected to receive funds during the first grant cycle. However, two others in the Big Sandy region were awarded money.

The Martin County Fiscal Court received $199,142 to be used for the county’s dispatching center, while Magoffin Fiscal Court received $19,500.

The grants were awarded under House Bill 656, which was passed by the 2006 General Assembly and later signed into law by Fletcher. The measure created a pool of money designed to facilitate upgrades to 911 systems throughout the state and to improve the 911 infrastructure supported by Commercial Mobile Radio Service wireless phone carriers.

Between October and December of last year, 59 grant applications were received by the state Office of the 911 Coordinator, an agency of the state Office of Homeland Security, requesting more than $7.8 million.

The applications were scrutinized by independent technical review teams, who scored each one based on the merits and effectiveness of the proposed projects.

A second round of grants is scheduled to be awarded later this year.

KENNETH HART can be reached at khart@dailyindependent.com or (606) 326-2654.