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Dickinson County updates jail staffing, 911 upgrades and bridge work
Summary
Sheriff Gary Davis reported staffing shortages and a 29-inmate population; Emergency Management outlined school CERT and a proposed computerized 911 guide-card system costing roughly $14,000 (to be funded from a 901 fund). Public Works said a bridge will reopen next week and waste-management options are under review.
Sheriff Gary Davis told the commission the jail currently houses 29 inmates (seven female) and that the detention staff remains short after a recent departure, with recruitment ongoing.
"We just lost another detention officer this week, so we're down 3," Davis said, noting the department is actively hiring to reach full staffing.
Chancey Smith of Dickinson County Emergency Management described a new Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) class at Abilene High School that includes stop-the-bleed and CPR training and could prepare students for careers in medical and public-safety fields. Smith also presented a proposed upgrade to the county's dispatching guide-card system that would replace paper cards with a computerized prompt-and-entry tool. Smith said the upgrade has an estimated one-time setup cost of $10,000 plus approximately $2,000 per dispatch station, for a total roughly described in the meeting as $14,000; he said the county could use an existing 901 fund allocation rather than general-fund dollars.
"It does come with a cost... $14,000, 10 is the setup, and then 2,000 per station for dispatch," Smith said, and added the project would allow law, fire and EMS protocols to be computerized for training and quality assurance.
Jay Hill, director of public works, said the bridge on 03:45 would be complete and reopen on Tuesday after the guardrail installation, and previewed additional bridge and road work planned for the coming weeks. Hill also flagged staffing shortfalls and said waste-hauling options would be discussed with the vendor in a Nov. 19 meeting.
Finance Director Mark Strauschow said he is reviewing end-of-year numbers and bills for the radio project and warned a budget amendment could be necessary if costs shifted into the next fiscal year.
Taken together, the updates show county leaders juggling personnel shortages, near-term infrastructure openings and an investment proposal for dispatch technology they said would improve training and quality assurance.
