Palm Beach Gardens adds golf-course addresses to dispatch maps to speed first-responder response

Palm Beach Gardens on March 6 presented a new public-safety mapping upgrade that adds golf-course features—tees, fairways, greens and holes—into the city dispatch computer-aided dispatch (CAD) system so first responders can navigate directly to course locations when callers report incidents on golf properties.

Ross Gilmore, the city’s GIS director, said staff created 325 discrete street segments (one for each hole) and 975 address points for the city’s 19 golf courses so dispatchers can use a pick list to send units to a specific hole, fairway or green rather than directing them to a clubhouse or main entrance. Gilmore said lat/long coordinates and a naming convention keyed to course and hole number are part of the dataset, which can be shared with outside agencies and used for mutual-aid coordination.

Judy Brandt, emergency communications manager, said dispatchers and officers had previously been routed to main entrances, which often required responders to traverse winding neighborhood roads or trails to reach an incident location. Brandt said the new CAD entries will reduce response time and that the team is developing a field-mapping mobile app for responders to use on foot.

Chief Pape and course security partners provided updated course maps and have agreed to annually update the city’s dataset. Brandt said the city plans to roll the mapping out to other jurisdictions the dispatch center serves after testing with police and fire.

Ending: City staff said the update is already in service in the CAD test environment and will be extended to partner jurisdictions; the city expects the change to reduce travel time to on-course incidents and improve interagency coordination.