Gratiot County Central Dispatch reports staffing, training and tower progress; CAD upgrade planned
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Summary
David Roberts, director of Gratiot County Central Dispatch, told commissioners the center has improved staffing and training, replaced furniture, built a 300‑foot tower and plans a new computer‑aided dispatch (CAD) system funded by a voter‑approved millage.
David Roberts, director of Gratiot County Central Dispatch, briefed the board on staffing, training, capital projects and outreach at the county’s 9‑1‑1 center.
Roberts said he was hired in June 2023 and focused first on staffing and morale. He said dispatchers’ designations and continuing education are now up to date: ‘‘As of today, everybody is designated. So we have 14 designated dispatchers,’’ Roberts said. He described improvements to scheduling and policies, including an electronic schedule accessible by staff on mobile phones.
Capital projects and funding: Roberts credited a voter‑approved millage (passed August 2024) that authorized six mills for six years for infrastructure, towers, CAD replacement and operations. He said the first priority is a new radio tower to improve coverage in the county’s northern section. A 300‑foot tower was completed at a leased site north of Alma and crews will install a shelter and equipment; Roberts said the target to bring the site into service is January 2026, weather and power permitting.
‘‘We broke ground on the fifteenth. The pillars were in... the tower construction went up, and it was up within 4 days. 300 foot,’’ Roberts said.
Computer‑aided dispatch and other systems: Roberts said the county has approved a consultant to help select a new CAD system and that the county is budgeting roughly $425,000 to $1,000,000 for the project; he estimated the likely range to be near $400,000. The new CAD will include mobile data for patrol vehicles and consolidation of other apps and databases into the CAD to reduce duplicate data entry.
Other improvements: Roberts described updated furniture and ergonomics in the dispatch center, a new training and policy management system (PowerDMS), an internal app (Gratiot Safe) for residents, and school panic‑button and Rave emergency notification implementations. He said staffing is increasing from two to three dispatchers per shift to match workload.
Why it matters: The dispatch improvements aim to strengthen 9‑1‑1 coverage and interoperability with police, fire and EMS and to modernize technology for reliability and future growth.
Next steps: Roberts said the CAD procurement will be a roughly 12‑month project after vendor selection and that tower shelter equipment installation and power connections are the immediate tasks. He requested continued coordination with the board and county departments during procurement and deployment.