County applies for LSA funds and seeks Motorola contract to expand P25 radio coverage across northern Northampton County

The county’s emergency management director briefed the finance committee on a Local Share Account (LSA) grant application for emergency radio equipment and on a proposed contract with Motorola to expand the county’s Project 25 (P25) radio system into northern sites.

Emergency management explained the county intended to apply for LSA funds on behalf of multiple jurisdictions to purchase mobile and portable radios for emergency-management, sheriff, coroner and municipal public‑safety units. The director said some municipalities and fire departments already apply directly for grants; the county is pursuing its own LSA application to supplement local purchases and to replace older radios over time.

Separately, county staff presented a proposed contract with Motorola for a northern expansion of the P25 radio system that would add four sites identified in the packet (described in the presentation as Fox Gap above Upper Mount Bethel, a Palmerton site near Lehigh County, a Pentela site on a ridge near Blue Mountain Ski Area, and a Transco site above Pen Argyl). County staff said the contract total is $8,725,219.80 for the expansion and associated integration work and that the agreement includes a warranty period; after warranty, maintenance obligations would commence (staff said maintenance would begin in 2027 for the covered sites). The expansion is intended to improve coverage in geographically challenging northern valleys and to provide resilience and redundancy for the public‑safety radio system.

County staff described a phased approach: as grant awards or local purchases allow, municipalities can move portable radios to the P25 system; the county has maintained interoperability patches between legacy and P25 systems during the transition. The director said work on encryption and console configuration is under way and staff expect to begin limited rollouts in the southern region as additional sites come online; county staff said they hope to complete the broader infrastructure buildout by the end of next year, subject to fiber connectivity and site‑construction conditions.

The committee asked staff for a list of municipalities that have started purchases and for assistance options for smaller departments applying for grants. Staff agreed to provide status information and to assist municipalities with grant opportunities.

Why it matters: Modernizing and expanding the county’s public‑safety radio system affects police, fire and EMS communications countywide. The project is multi‑year and capital‑intensive; granting and procurement timelines and interoperability during transition are critical for uninterrupted public‑safety communications.