March 15, 2024 |
Photo – An out of county combined dispatch center – Bigfoot99 file photo
At a meeting of the Rawlins City Council Wednesday night, the mayor and the county sheriff squared off over concerns about a recent push to create a county-wide, combined dispatch center.
The Rawlins City Council held a special meeting on the issue. Sheriff Alex Bakken was invited to speak about his recent push to create a single county-wide emergency dispatching center. Mayor Terry Weickum expressed disappointment that the city was excluded from Sheriff Bakken’s public discussion on a combined dispatch center.
Mayor Weickum is referring to a comment made by the sheriff during the February 6th Board of Carbon County Commissioners meeting. At the time, Sheriff Bakken said a single emergency call center is an inevitability.
On Wednesday night, Sheriff Bakken repeated the point he made at the February commissioners meeting. Sheriff Bakken said his research shows that a county-wide call center appears to be the most cost-effective way to provide emergency dispatching services.
According to the sheriff, having three separate and distinct dispatch operations in the sheriff’s department, in Saratoga, and at the Rawlins Police Department results in three times the cost to taxpayers.
Sheriff Bakken said he is researching the feasibility of a single combined emergency call center for Carbon County. The sheriff said nearby counties report that a single dispatch center is preferable to operating multiple independent facilities.
Sheriff Bakken said some people are under the impression that his department wants to “take over” all dispatching services for Carbon County. The sheriff said a combined dispatch center would be governed by a board made up of members from participating municipalities.
Sheriff Bakken said he began investigating the subject of a combined dispatch center after entering into a Memorandum of Understanding with the Saratoga Police Department. Staffing shortages meant that Saratoga could no longer provide 24/7 emergency dispatching services for the Platte Valley. Last December, an MOU was created to allow dispatchers from the sheriff’s office to work out of Saratoga. Sheriff Bakken said competing for a limited number of dispatchers isn’t the best way to guarantee coverage.
Sheriff Bakken said the process of dissolving the Saratoga dispatch center has already begun. The sheriff invited the Rawlins PD to participate in the creation of a Carbon County combined dispatch center joint powers board.
Mayor Weickum said he didn’t like that it appeared the city was excluded from the initial discussion. The mayor said he isn’t against the idea of a combined dispatch center. However, Mayor Weickum said he would like to have been part of the conversation from the beginning.
Sheriff Bakken apologized, saying it was not his intention to make Rawlins officials feel excluded. The sheriff said he is still very early in the research process, and he wanted to finish his feasibility study before officially bringing the matter to the Rawlins city council’s attention.
Mayor Weickum referred to several stories done by Bigfoot99 about the combined dispatch center. The mayor said the sheriff shouldn’t have made public comments before talking to the city.
Councilman Darril Garner said he takes a different view than Mayor Weickum. Councilman Garner said he feels that Sheriff Bakken has done a good job keeping everyone informed about his research. The councilman said other counties have embraced a single dispatch center.
Mayor Weickum said in his time as a Carbon County commissioner, he also investigated the creation of a combined dispatch center.
The mayor said it’s not always a smooth process. Additionally, Mayor Weickum said a single dispatch center would leave the county vulnerable if something happened to the facility.
Sheriff Bakken agreed that a backup call center is a good idea.
The sheriff said Saratoga and his department are going to become one entity. Sheriff Bakken told Mayor Weickum that Rawlins could choose to participate or not.
At Wednesday’s special council meeting, Sheriff Bakken also addressed the fact that several Rawlins police officers have transferred to the Carbon County Sheriff’s Office. The sheriff said he’s interviewed the officers and most of them have given the same reason for leaving the Rawlins PD. Sheriff Bakken did not elaborate on what that reason was, but said pay wasn’t a factor.
Sheriff Bakken told the Rawlins city council that he is simply investigating the best way to provide emergency dispatching services for the county. The sheriff said he’ll revisit the council when he has more information to share.
