May 10, 2024 |
Photo – Saratoga Town Hall and Police Department – Bigfoot99 file photo
The mayor of Saratoga this week postponed a public meeting scheduled for Monday to discuss the proposal to combine the town’s dispatch center with the one operated by the Carbon County Sheriff’s Office.
The workshop, which is likely to be rescheduled for later in May or in early June, is meant to discuss the need to combine the town and county emergency dispatching centers. The meeting was originally scheduled for this coming Monday, May 13th. A new date has not been determined yet.
The workshop cancellation was discussed during Tuesday’s Saratoga town council meeting. Mayor Davis said he postponed Monday’s workshop to allow more council members to attend.
The meeting is meant to give town officials an opportunity to explain to the public why a combined dispatch center is needed. Citing a lack of staffing and the expense of maintaining equipment, Sheriff Alex Bakken and Saratoga Police Chief Mike Morris began investigating the possibility of bringing both emergency call centers under one roof.
Mayor Davis said the dispatch workshop is too important for town council members to miss. The mayor said he will announce when a new date for the meeting is set.
Chief Morris said the workshop will serve to inform the public about why a combined dispatch center is needed and how it can potentially operate. The police chief said nothing has been finalized. If a combined dispatch center is created, Chief Morris said it will likely be governed by a joint powers board.
Chief Morris said he and Sheriff Bakken have been looking into how other counties, such as Sweetwater, run their combined emergency dispatch centers. The police chief said Carbon County’s size and number of towns presents challenges that other counties have not had to face. We can’t simply copy what other counties are doing, said Chief Morris
Chief Morris said more research must be done before a potential combined dispatch center is formed. The police chief said the upcoming workshop will allow the public to voice their concerns to the council. Mayor Davis said the council can also explain to residents why a combined dispatch center is needed.
Mayor Davis said the executive director of the Sweetwater County joint dispatch center, Rick Hawkins, will be on hand during the meeting to answer questions about how their joint powers board works. The mayor encouraged as many people as possible to attend the workshop.
As of the reporting of this story, the town has not chosen a new day for the workshop to discuss dispatching services in Carbon County. Yesterday afternoon, Assistant Town Clerk Brenda Mistelske informed reporter Matt Copeland that Bigfoot99 will be notified as soon as a new date is set.
