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Commissioners say new county building may need fixes to ensure fire radios work inside; contingency funds available
Summary
County staff told commissioners that analog fire radios are not reliably reaching inside the new building and engineers are evaluating solutions; commissioners said contingency funds exist and will consider options if changes threaten the construction timeline or certificate of occupancy.
During the Sept. 4 meeting, county staff and commissioners discussed a radio-coverage issue at the new Rockingham County building that could affect the fire department’s ability to use radios inside the facility and, potentially, the building’s certificate of occupancy.
Facilities staff reported that engineers are evaluating whether radios will work inside the structure. The board heard that digital signals generally penetrate the building while analog signals — which some local fire departments still use — are not consistently audible. Commissioners and facilities staff said they expected an engineering recommendation within about two weeks and that contingency funds and change-order money are available to address problems if needed.
One commissioner said buying radios for the outside agencies would be expensive and that retrofitting the building or utilizing existing contingency money would likely be the preferred approach. The board heard that a master electrician on the project and county communications staff were engaged and staff would report back if the issue appeared likely to delay occupancy.
No final decision was made at the meeting; staff were asked to continue evaluating technical solutions and to return to the board with options and cost estimates.
