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MatCOM urges council to restore funds for dispatch chairs, cites staffing strain
Summary
A MatCOM representative told the Wasilla City Council that ergonomic chairs are essential equipment for 12-hour shift dispatchers and asked the council to restore the removed line item while the council debated adding a dispatcher position amid retirements and leave.
Lori Kreke told the Wasilla City Council on May 27 that chairs removed from the MatCOM 9‑1‑1 budget are essential equipment for dispatchers and asked the council to restore the funding.
Kreke, representing MatCOM, said dispatchers sit 12‑hour shifts, perform high‑stress work and need support to avoid fatigue and injury. “Their chair isn't just a seat. It's where they serve,” she said during the council's public‑comment period.
The request came as the council reviewed fiscal‑year 2026 budget amendments that included staffing changes at MatCOM. MatCOM operations supervisor Lori Creaky later told council members that training a new dispatcher takes eight to nine months and that the center currently had employees retiring, on military leave and on family‑medical leave. She asked the council to approve an additional dispatcher to reduce overtime and burnout.
Council members debated personnel lines in the budget. During the committee‑of‑the‑whole session the council voted on a separate amendment to add an additional dispatcher; the motion to remove one proposed dispatcher (amendment 42) was adopted as part of the budget discussions, then later the council voted on a separate amendment to add funding for a dispatcher (amendment recorded as passed in the meeting minutes). The council did not take a final action on the full budget the night of May 27 and postponed the ordinance for further consideration.
The discussion distinguished between the public request to restore the chairs line item and the staffing decisions in the budget. Kreke's plea was framed as equipment for safe, effective operations; Creaky framed the personnel request as operationally necessary to maintain service while employees exhaust benefits, take leave or retire.
Council members said they wanted more background materials and emphasized training time and retention as factors in deciding whether to add staff. The council postponed final adoption of the FY26 budget to a later meeting for additional review.
The council did not adopt a final budget the night of May 27, and the MatCOM chair funding and any dispatch staffing additions remained subject to further council action.
