Commissioners approve interlocal agreement with Burlington for shared 9‑1‑1 CAD system

The Alamance County Board of Commissioners unanimously approved an interlocal agreement with the city of Burlington to implement a shared 9‑1‑1 computer‑aided dispatch (CAD) system.

Bruce Walker, presenting for county staff, said the county’s 20‑year‑old CAD system is at end‑of‑life and that the planned replacement will improve efficiency, interoperability and public safety. The replacement project will be managed with support from the National Public Safety Group and is intended to go live in 24 to 30 months after contract execution.

Under the agreement, Alamance County will serve as the primary public safety answering point (PSAP) and Burlington will operate as a secondary PSAP. Capital and ongoing hardware and software costs will be apportioned between the county and Burlington based on a formula tied to average annual calls dispatched over the last three fiscal years. Walker said Burlington had secured nearly $963,000 in federal grant funding to support the project and the county expects 9‑1‑1 fund revenues and other grants to assist with costs.

Commissioners said they supported the regional collaboration and noted the project aligns with state and federal efforts to encourage shared public safety infrastructure. Board members voted to approve the interlocal agreement and authorized staff to proceed toward contract finalization with the vendor (Hexagon) after both jurisdictions sign the agreement.

What’s next: staff will return with a contract for the approved CAD vendor and established project milestones; vendor payments will be linked to milestone completion.