Cowlitz County to join 911 radio-system upgrade; county’s portion estimated at about $123,000

Cowlitz County staff told commissioners they are preparing an interlocal agreement to participate in a regional upgrade of the 9-1-1 radio system and that the county’s share of the work would be about $123,000 of an approximately $2 million project.

Chandra Wake of Public Works explained that Cowlitz County currently uses radio towers under interlocal agreements with the county 9-1-1 authority and a tower vendor. Wake said the regional Radio Stabilization Project will migrate equipment to newer GTR-8000 radios and firmware; the project will tune radios automatically and reduce the frequent manual tuning currently required. “We are told that this system…life expectancy ended about 15 years ago, so we're living on borrowed time,” Wake said, adding that parts are difficult to obtain and some must now be hand-built.

Wake said the county’s portion of the regional upgrade is roughly $123,000; she also said piggybacking on Lewis County and on the 9-1-1 authority’s Day Wireless/Motorola contract reduced Cowlitz’s standalone cost. “Our portion alone was about, I think, dollars 40,000 less because of the piggybacking with Lewis County,” Wake said. Work was described as on-site meetings already underway, equipment ordering in progress, construction beginning in September with heavier construction in October and November.

Commissioners asked whether the county had funds; Wake said Public Works would fund the county’s share and staff had identified the necessary funds. Wake said the interlocal agreement will go to legal for review, and it can be signed either by the three commissioners or by an authorized signatory and returned on a future consent agenda. One commissioner said he was comfortable with an authorized signatory signing the agreement; another said he was “okay” with staff proceeding.

Wake described alternatives — using smaller, ground-level repeaters rather than tower-mounted equipment — but said countywide coverage would be limited by such alternatives. She also noted Public Works uses a mobile repeater seasonally to improve coverage in low valleys. County staff said they were not able to apply for some grants because the project schedule was already short, so the county’s contribution will come from the Public Works budget.

County staff will forward the interlocal agreement to legal for review, complete equipment orders and provide weekly project updates as the regional contractor moves into construction.