Deputy Police Director Leonardo Carrillo told the council the city plans to replace a legacy computer-aided dispatch (CAD) system with a new web-based platform. “The $8,000,000 purchase is gonna be spread out over a number of years and it's to modernize our current CAD system,” Carrillo said. He added a separate $1,200,000 item will be used to migrate and make legacy data searchable rather than force all historical records into the new live system.

On the city budget, Business Administrator Eric Pennington said directors have been given budget templates and responses are due in December; he estimated the council could receive a complete 2026 budget in March or April and said administration staff will try to accelerate the timeline to avoid prior fines. He also responded to a question about the scope of temporary emergency appropriations, acknowledging the figure discussed was large and promising a clarification on how long any given appropriation would last.

Pennington also addressed an added-starter host-municipality agreement for solid-waste disposal with Reworld (the renamed Covanta). The prior agreement produced $3.5 million; the current agreement increases that amount by $700,000 to $4.2 million. Pennington said the administration is negotiating a long-term agreement, likely 10 years, and seeking operational improvements such as a dedicated lane so Newark trucks can move more efficiently through the facility.

What’s next: The CAD procurement, budget schedule and Reworld agreement will proceed through the normal contracting and budget processes; council members asked for additional detail on timelines and costs.