| Commission postpones Sheriff’s dispatch equipment request |
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By: APRIL CAMP, Post Contributor
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Posted: Sunday, October 16, 2011 5:59 am
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Matthew Young
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While the Rutherford County Commission voted in favor Thursday of an Eagleville School expansion project, members decided to wait until November to consider purchasing new dispatch equipment for the Sheriff’s Office – a move Commissioner Matthew Young strongly disliked.
“You cannot play with people’s lives, and by not funding it, we are playing with people’s lives,” Young said, during the County Commission’s monthly meeting.
The request by the Sheriff’s Office will remain on hold for new dispatch equipment while the commission searches for additional dollars.
However, the County Commission approved more than $3 million for additional classrooms at Eagleville School, which is currently using 14 portable classrooms to accommodate students.
Nine new classrooms and a science classroom will be added as part of the first phase of the expansion. The projects had to be split into phases that were affordable for the county. The next phase will comprise adding more classrooms, auditorium space, and expanding the cafeteria. That phase has been put on hold until more funding becomes available.
The Sheriff’s Office is requesting $350,000 from the commission, only a portion of what is needed to actually purchase the equipment.
Young (Dist. 16) pointed out that the total amount needed to fund the equipment was more than $429,000.
“Why are we not funding the amount needed?” Young asked. “I heard the sheriff say last year that we are one part away from our system not working.”
Sheriff Robert Arnold addressed the full commission, explaining that the department has the oldest dispatch system in Rutherford County and cannot communicate with Smyrna, La Vergne or Murfreesboro.
“The current 911 system is 28 years old,” Arnold said. “It has a life span of approximately 10 years.”
Young argued that failing to fully fund the new equipment is dangerous to the residents of Rutherford County.
Arnold also pointed out that the Sheriff’s Office has been replacing parts on the dispatch system for quite some time to keep it operational, but he said he believes it is not going to make it much longer.
Several of the commissioners said they would have to search for additional funding for the equipment, which will likely be available next month.
Commissioner Allen McAdoo (Dist. 18) proposed postponing the vote until all of the funds needed for the equipment could be found.
Commissioner Will Jordan (Dist. 3) argued for approving the partial amount and adding the additional funds in November.
Young made one final plea to the commission to not postpone replacing the equipment too long.
“It’s coming up on storm season, and we do not need to be replacing our system after the season starts,” Young said. |
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