Simi Valley approves joining Ventura County regional radio system; staff to return with implementation costs

The Simi Valley City Council voted unanimously on Sept. 15 to authorize city staff to participate in the Ventura County regional radio system and execute a use agreement, with staff returning later with finalized budget requests and contracts to implement the system.

City staff said Simi Valley’s current radio system, installed in 2006, has exceeded its expected lifespan, suffers increasing failures and is difficult to support because manufacturer parts and support are limited. Gary Boswell, deputy administrative services director, told the council the existing system supports more than 500 radios used across departments and that recent outages required sourcing retired equipment from another jurisdiction.

Staff presented a multi-criteria evaluation including coverage, interoperability, support and cost. The city conducted real-world drive tests at more than 900 locations and reported coverage for key sites — including the shooting range, public service center and water-treatment plant — was comparable or improved on the regional system. The regional system provides 24/7/365 support with service-level agreements and planned interoperability with other county partners and Los Angeles systems on day one.

Boswell said the regional system’s five-year estimated cost is about $7.9 million; a stand-alone replacement was estimated at $9 million–$13 million over five years. Staff estimated an initial hardware/integration investment near $5.6 million for radios, dispatch consoles and infrastructure, with ongoing years two through five costs in the $430,000–$530,000 range. The regional system also offers a subscription model; staff said the city’s anticipated tier would be roughly $20 per user per month, similar to other participating cities such as Ventura and Oxnard. By contrast, maintaining a stand-alone system would require larger capital and ongoing maintenance staff and costs.

Chief of Police Chris Schwartz and Mark (consultant, Client First) participated in the briefing; Schwartz said he supported the regional approach for operational interoperability and officer safety. Boswell and consultant Mark said there is no financial obligation to sign the use agreement; staff will return to council later this year with precise contract terms and any related budget requests.

Councilmember Rocky Rhodes moved the recommendation and the council approved it unanimously. Staff said the steering and oversight committees that evaluated the options included police, IT and administrative staff from participating jurisdictions and that the city’s internal steering committee unanimously recommended regional participation.